Page 102 of A Second Chance for the Beta

“What was that thing about Richie?” I ask.

“Didn’t you say he might want to prove his loyalty?” he asks.

“I’m not sure if those were my exact words,” I mutter.

“Well, it doesn’t matter. If he wants to be with Livia—and we both know he will want her due to the mate bond—he will also want to stay here. He needs to prove to me that I can trust him,” he says.

“You want him to play the bait?” I ask. “That’s… a fantastic idea. They connect him with Imogen, so it won’t be too suspicious.”

“Exactly.”

I frown. “What do they want from Ella?” I ask. “Why the necklace? Ella has been here for a while now. Everyone knows her; she is a beta.”

“How did she get the necklace?” Liam asks.

“It was her mother’s,” I explain. “She found it in her inheritance. We also found Candy’s photo there…” I pause. “And then went to look for Charlie.”

“This is when they started to follow you around,” Liam concludes. “It has nothing to do with Charlie.”

“Fuck,” I curse. “I should have known!”

“It was really an unlucky coincidence,” Liam says. “It wasn’t your fault, Dante. Anyone would have connected it to Charlie first. I did too.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose. “All I want is to protect my family.”

“But that’s what you are doing,” he reassures me. “Imogen and her gang are here. We have Richard as our bait, and you are trying everything to find out the truth. Meanwhile Ella is doing the same, just with the vampires.”

“Maybe you are right,” I say. “I still feel helpless, and on top of that I have this talk with Charlie ahead of me. The luna said it’s best to be honest.”

“I think the same,” Liam says. “What does your gut feeling tell you?”

“That she was lied to a lot in the past, and she will cope better with the truth,” I admit.

*ELLA*

“And bring us some drinks,” Aryanna calls towards Atticus who accompanied her to me. They only checked her bags for explosives or weapons, something we would do too if strangers came to visit the pack grounds.

They didn’t even comment on her phone and notebook and let Aryanna join me in my room with all the stuff she brought along. They offered her a guest room, but we both preferred for her to stay with me.

“Drinks will be brought to your room,” Julianus says. “Anything you want to eat?”

“Are you serious?” Aryanna asks.

“I am always serious,” he says.

“You are right. I haven’t seen you smile at all until now,” I point out. “You are of high rank, aren’t you? That’s probably quite the achievement here.”

He just shrugs. “It… just happened,” he says, but something in his eyes flashes. He has the same look he had when he brought me to Aloysius, when he allowed himself a moment of vulnerability.

“Do you have a mate?” Aryanna asks. “Pardon me, I mean… a beloved?”

“No,” he says quietly. “But I had someone who I wanted to be mine. I was about to ask…”

“And then what happened?” I ask curiously. When a young vampire arrives with our food and drink, I wait for him to leave us again before gesturing at Julianus to come in and eat with us.

“I hope your beloved didn’t pass away,” Aryanna mutters. “I know we aren’t friends, not even allies, but I would hate for anyone to lose their soulmate.”

“The person I wanted to have as my beloved didn’t die,” he says quietly, a hint of sorrow in his eyes. “But they left me. So, in a way, they are lost to me forever.”