Page 47 of Conall (The Sunburst Pack #3)

T HE TRUCK RUMBLED THROUGH Sunburst territory, the familiar landmarks blurring past as they made their way back to the packhouse. Nadine sat beside Conall, exhaustion radiating from her, while Quinton dozed fitfully in the back seat.

Gregory was dead, the Prometheus Group dismantled, Chimera finished. By every measure, they’d won.

So why did Conall feel like they were missing something?

The phone call from Anders played on repeat in his head. Una figuring out Robert Mitchell was the leak during routine security checks. It all made sense on the surface.

I’ll be right back, Conall told Nadine as they pulled into the packhouse lot.

She looked up at him with those dark eyes that had been haunting his dreams since he’d met her. Where are you going?

Just need to check something. Won’t take long.

Her expression shifted to the same analytical look she got when puzzle pieces weren’t fitting together properly. Conall—

Trust me. The words came out more plea than command. I’ll explain later.

He left her standing by the truck, Quinton stretching the kinks out of his back beside her, and headed for the newly constructed holding cells in the basement of the packhouse.

Robert Mitchell sat on a narrow cot, head in his hands. When Conall entered, he looked up with the hollow eyes of a man who’d lost everything that mattered to him.

Come to gloat? His voice carried the edge of defeat.

Come to listen. Conall pulled up the single chair in the cell area. Tell me you weren’t the leak.

Robert’s laugh held no humor. I wasn’t the leak.

The conviction in his voice made Conall’s inner wolf pace restlessly. Either Mitchell was a phenomenal liar, or they’d arrested the wrong man.

Then explain the evidence. The financial records, the communication logs—

I don’t know. Robert leaned forward, his hands clasped tightly together. Conall, you’ve known me since we were cubs. Have I ever lied to this pack? Have I ever done anything that wasn’t in Sunburst’s best interests?

No . The honest answer sat like a stone in Conall’s chest. Robert had always been solid, reliable. The kind of pack member who did his job without complaint and never sought glory for himself.

The payments—

I never received any payments. I haven’t seen a single dollar from anyone outside this pack. His voice cracked. Conall, I swear on my parents’ graves, I never betrayed this pack. I don’t know how that evidence got there, but it wasn’t me.

The mate bond whispered warnings through Conall’s consciousness—Nadine’s analytical instincts, her ability to see patterns others missed. She’d been suspicious from the beginning, convinced someone was playing a longer game.

What if she’d been right all along?

Conall left Robert with more questions than answers and headed straight for Anders’s office. The lead guardian was hunched over his desk, sorting through reports with the methodical precision that made him invaluable.

Anders.

He glanced up as Conall entered, noting something in his expression that made him straighten.

Problem?

Maybe. Conall closed the door behind him, his instincts screaming that they were being watched. I just talked to Robert. He swears he’s not the leak.

Of course he does. They always claim innocence.

This is different. Conall moved closer, lowering his voice. I’ve known Robert my entire life. He’s not capable of this kind of deception.

Anders studied him for a long moment. You think we arrested the wrong man.

I think someone wanted us to arrest Robert. The words felt dangerous, like admitting them made the conspiracy real. Anders, I’ve been having concerns about some of our pack members. The way they’ve been asking questions, pushing for information they don’t need.

Anders’s expression sharpened. Which pack members?

Una. Dana. Raymond. Each name felt like a betrayal to speak aloud. All of them have been asking detailed questions about security protocols, sensor placements, communication systems. Questions that go beyond normal concern for pack safety.

I noticed that too. Anders was quiet for a long moment. You want to investigate deeper.

I want to be sure we got the right person. If there’s still a leak—

Then we’re compromised and don’t know it. He stood. Let’s start with Dana. If Raymond was involved in that training accident with Quinton, she would know.

Will she be awake yet?

Anders glanced at the clock on his phone. It’s almost six a.m. She usually gets her siblings ready for school in the mornings.

Then let’s go.

Dana Rosado answered her door with flour in her hair and a confused smile. Her younger siblings peered around her with the curious intensity of cubs who sensed adult tension.

Conall, Anders. Is everything okay?

We need to ask you about the training accident with Quinton, Anders said, his voice carrying the kind of authority that discouraged lies.

Dana’s expression shifted, confusion giving way to something that looked almost like relief. Finally. I’ve been wondering when someone would ask about that.

Conall’s wolf went still. Wondering?

Because it wasn’t really an accident. She stepped onto the porch, closing the door behind her so her siblings couldn’t overhear. Raymond set it up. He told me Quinton needed to work on his defensive techniques, that it would be good training for me to practice against an experienced guardian.

And you injured Quinton during this training? Anders asked.

That was Raymond’s idea too. He said it needed to look real, that Quinton was working on some kind of undercover operation and needed convincing injuries. Dana’s voice carried growing uncertainty. He told me not to mention it to anyone because it might compromise pack security.

A cold knot formed in Conall’s chest. So Raymond orchestrated the entire thing?

He said you and Anders had asked him to coordinate it quietly. That it was pack business. Dana’s eyes widened as she processed their reactions. It wasn’t pack business, was it?

Where was Una during this training? Conall asked.

Una? She wasn’t anywhere around. I haven’t seen Una at any of my training sessions. Dana looked between them with growing alarm. Did I do something wrong? Did I hurt Quinton worse than I thought?

You did nothing wrong, Anders assured her. But we need to speak with Robert Mitchell again. Immediately.

R OBERT LOOKED UP AS Conall entered his cell for the second time in an hour, this time followed by the lead guardian. More questions?

One question, Anders said. Did anyone else ever have access to the pack communication protocols? Anyone who might have been able to set you up?

Robert’s expression turned inward as he sifted through memories.

Finally he nodded. Raymond did. About three months ago, he offered to help me upgrade the new protocols.

Said the council had asked him to handle it quietly, that they wanted an experienced pack member to review security before full implementation.

And you gave him access? Conall asked, his tone harsh.

He’s been pack family for forty years, Conall. Raymond taught half of us how to track when we were cubs. Of course I trusted him. Robert paused. He spent hours with the communication equipment, said he was running diagnostic tests.

Anders and Conall exchanged looks. Hours alone with communication equipment would be more than enough time to plant false evidence, create false records, set up the perfect frame job.

Robert, Anders said quietly, I think we may have made a mistake.

Before Robert could respond, Conall’s phone buzzed with a text from Nadine.

Need you and Anders. Found something in Gregory’s files you need to see. NOW .

He showed it to Anders.

We’ll be back soon, Anders told Robert. With good news for you, I hope.

They found Nadine in the converted newspaper office, surrounded by hard drives salvaged from Gregory’s facility. She glanced up as they entered, her expression grim.

Communication logs, she said without preamble. I’ve been going through everything we recovered from Gregory’s lab. Found actual voice recordings, encrypted message threads, financial transfer records.

She pulled up audio files on her laptop. Listen to this.

Raymond’s voice filled the room, unmistakably his despite the electronic distortion: The twins are getting suspicious. Might need to accelerate the timeline for eliminating them.

Another file: Robert Mitchell has access to all communication protocols. Easy target for framing. Una can ‘discover’ evidence when needed.

And another: The alpha pair trusts me completely. Forty years of loyalty buys significant operational freedom.

Each recording felt like a physical blow. Raymond’s voice, Raymond’s words.

Raymond plotting against everything they’d sworn to protect.

How long? Anders’s voice hovered on the edge of fury.

Years, Nadine replied. The earliest files date back three years. Well before Gregory’s supposed death, well before anyone suspected there was a problem.

She pulled up financial records. Regular payments to shell companies registered in Raymond’s name. Not large amounts—just enough to supplement retirement income without raising suspicions.

But why? The question tore out of Conall. Raymond’s been pack family since before I was born. He taught me to track, helped train me and Quinton—

Because he never stopped believing Vincent’s ideology, Nadine said quietly. The ‘strong rule the weak’ mentality. The communications show he was working with Gregory long before Gregory’s fake death. He wanted to protect Vincent’s legacy by undermining the current leadership.

The pieces fell into place with sickening clarity. Raymond’s detailed questions about security protocols. His push for immediate investigation of the twins. His convenient presence during Dana’s training accident that provided Quinton’s blood for evidence planting.

All of it designed to frame them while positioning himself as a concerned pack elder asking protective questions.

We need to tell Malcolm and Larissa, Anders said. Call a council meeting.