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’Alpha, I have not seen her this morning. She must be in her room,’ Burke’s voice resonated through the mindlink, and Alpha Denzel panicked.

It was just a few hours before the arrival of some other Alphas, and Alpha Denzel had to ensure that Ashley was found before their arrival.

He just could not let them see her or give them a clue that she was at the pack, or else, news would travel to Tristan and Scarlet.

’She’s not? Tell the warriors to begin searching the pack. I will check the cameras.’

After ending the mindlink, Alpha Denzel turned to Adira. "There is a problem."

Adira was concerned and was about to ask what the problem was when he added, "I need you to be alert when Valerie wakes up. Don’t let her know that Ashley cannot be found."

"Alpha Denzel, what happened?" Adira was greatly disturbed, trying to find a way to help, but Denzel was equally clueless, and there was no way for him to get answers at the pack house.

"I don’t know. I have to check the cameras because nobody knows where she went."

Adira would have loved to go help him, but it would not be healthy for Valerie to know about this.

Worry would not be good for a Luna preparing for her coronation. Taking deep breaths, Adira tried to remain calm and positive.

Better still, she might go help Luna Fernanda in the kitchen until Valerie woke up. "Okay. I will do my best to keep Valerie company and keep her mind away from the incident."

"Thank you," Alpha Denzel said with gratitude. The right team came to him at the right time, making everything seem like a miracle.

He went back to the group of Alphas and said to them, "King Spartan, please stay here in case Alpha Lawn comes out and please don’t let him know this. Ashley is not in her room, and no one knows her whereabouts. I’m going to find her."

From experience, the Alpha King sensed a pending problem. "This is not sounding good. I will do my best to keep him company and not make him feel suspicious."

Thinking carefully, Denzel suggested, "You could tell him that I went out with Ashley. Adira can keep Valerie company too."

"Okay, do your best."

Alpha Denzel checked the CCTV footage with Troy and Idris as soon as he got to his office, and his heart sank. "Burke said he knew nothing about it."

In the video, Burke knocked on Ashley’s door, and she opened it. It also showed Ashley following Burke into the woods.

"And he is your beta," Alpha Idris observed. Knowing Denzel, anyone thinking of betraying him would only be courting death.

"That is the most painful part," Denzel’s fingers balled into fists as he stared over and over again at the footage playing on the computer.

However, Alpha Troy noticed something odd. The last time he was at this pack a week ago, he met Burke, and the guy did not seem like he would do something like this.

"Alpha Denzel, is that how he always looks? I don’t know if it’s because of the camera, but his eyes look strange."

Alpha Denzel zoomed in on the part Troy was talking about and had the same conviction. "His eyes are rather sea blue, so if there is a reflection of the camera lights, it shouldn’t emit a darker color."

"Or was he communicating with his wolf or about to shift?" Alpha Idris, asked.

Alpha Denzel did not have all the answers, but one thing was sure.

"Burke does not have the guts to betray me. He would not dare." He instantly mindlinked Burke to ask if he was under some kind of influence last night.

Or, could it be a seducing spirit? What would they want with Ashley? ’Burke, to my office.’

Burke arrived at the office with Alice, Rav, and Raven. The twins had insisted on helping since they had not been assigned any jobs in the pack yet, so Burke did not refuse.

When he saw the group of Alphas, he greeted politely. "Alpha Troy, Alpha Idris, you are welcome."

"Thank you, Burke," Alpha Idris responded calmly. Denzel went straight to the point as there was no time to waste.

The more things were delayed, the greater danger Ashley was in. "Burke, take a look at this video."

Alpha Denzel observed his reaction throughout the time the video played, and though it was filled with fear, the shock component was even stronger.

"Alpha, I know there are cameras. I swear by the moon goddess that I never went to wake Ashley after she went to bed."

Indeed, Burke knew there were cameras, so if he was going to do something like this, he would have found ways to avoid the cameras or even wipe them.

"So, what happened?" Denzel asked. Burke was clueless.

"I don’t know. I was exhausted after all the preparations and could not even shower before going to bed. And Alpha, you know how I hate yellow."

Burke made a strong point. He always saw yellow as a feminine color and never had such colors in his closet. The image of him in the CCTV footage wore a yellow shirt.

Alpha Denzel believed that something was wrong somewhere and someone was trying to implicate Burke to make him hurt or even kill an innocent person.

"What is the status of the warriors? There are no cameras in the woods, so I have to depend on them."

Alpha Denzel did not want to go round in circles. The woods were the largest place in the pack, and it could take the whole day if he wanted to search through them for Ashley. As such, he had to rely on the warriors.

"There is no news yet," Burke replied, not understanding what was going on.

"And the time is short. If we don’t find her before Valerie wakes up, she would insist on doing so by herself." Alpha Denzel’s worried voice cut through.

Alice had heard a few things and could not stand there doing nothing. "Alpha, please let me help," she said. Alpha Denzel had everyone excuse them.

It would not be right to expose her when she did not have solutions to the damage accompanied by the use of her powers. "How will you do it?"

"I will check if there are any spirits. It seems that Burke was impersonated." Alice was certain, and Alpha Denzel believed it too.

If for nothing, for the sake of Alice, Burke would not dare. It must be a spell or indeed impersonation. "How long will it take, and what is the consequence?"

Alice merely opened her mouth when they heard panicked voices outside. "Ashley, what happened to you?" The most among the voices was Burke’s.

Alpha Denzel rushed out, and his eyes darkened dangerously. "Who did this to you?" He demanded, his heart burning with rage at the blood form of Ashley.

Alpha Idris, who was behind Alpha Denzel, had his wolf acting strange. "Mate," his wolf roared, Idris was greatly afraid, thinking it was Valerie.

About to apologize, he heard Ashley murmur before she fainted.

"They wanted Val..."