Chapter 77: Maren’s Fury.
Maren stood in her private chambers, her hands gripping the stone windowsill so hard that her knuckles had turned white. The rage building in her chest couldn’t be contained. Her wolf scouts had failed. Not only had they failed to kill Bella, but the girl had actually shifted during the fight.
"She shifted," Maren said through gritted teeth, her voice deadly quiet. "The Moonblood finally awakened."
Mallory Woods stood behind her, watching her shoulders shake with barely controlled fury. She knew exactly how dangerous Maren was when she got this angry.
"The scouts confirmed it, Maren," Mallory said carefully. "Bella killed the pack leader and drove off the other two. Her transformation was complete."
Maren spun around, her eyes blazing with rage. "Twenty decades!" she shouted, slamming her fist down on the heavy wooden table. "Twenty decades I’ve been planning for this moment. Twenty decades of making sure no Moonblood could challenge my rule. And now she has awakened right under my nose."
Mallory kept her voice steady. "We knew this day might come. That’s why we prepared for multiple scenarios."
"Multiple scenarios?" Maren laughed, but there was no humor in it. "I should have killed her when she was still a child. I should have eliminated her entire bloodline the moment I took power."
She started pacing back and forth across the room. Every few steps, she would pick up something from the table or shelves and throw it against the wall. A crystal goblet shattered. A silver candlestick clattered across the stone floor.
"Liora had grown weak," Maren continued, her voice getting louder. "She never used her full power. She was content to hide away in that pathetic little town, pretending to be human. But this girl... this girl fought three of my best wolves and won."
Mallory nodded. "The reports say she fought with impressive skill for someone who just shifted for the first time."
"That’s exactly what I’m afraid of," Maren snapped. "If she’s this strong on her first shift, what will she be capable of once she’s had time to train? What will she be able to do once she fully understands her heritage?"
She stopped pacing and turned to face Mallory directly. "The Moonblood prophecies are clear. A silver wolf will rise to challenge the current alpha."
Mallory stepped closer. "We can’t give her time to grow stronger."
"No, we can’t," Maren agreed. "I want every available wolf sent to that forest. I want her surrounded. I want her overwhelmed. I don’t care if we have to sacrifice half my army to do it."
"How many wolves do we send?" Mallory asked, already calculating numbers in her head.
Maren thought for a moment. "Double what we originally planned. No, triple it. Send at least fifty wolves. Make sure they understand that failure is not an option this time."
Mallory made notes on a piece of parchment.
She walked over to a large map that was spread across another table. The forest where Bella was hiding was marked with several red pins. "Here’s what we’re going to do. We’ll send wolves in from three different directions. North, south, and east. That way she can’t escape to the west without running directly into the main path"
Mallory leaned over the map. "What about the boys? Luca and the others found her. They’re together now."
Maren’s expression darkened even more. "Those four..." she said through gritted teeth.
"Our previous attempts to drive wedges between them haven’t worked," Mallory agreed. "They’re more loyal to each other than we anticipated."
"Then we need to change our strategy," Maren said, tracing her finger along the map. "We’ve been trying to separate them from Bella. But maybe we should be working with their connection instead of against it."
Mallory looked confused. "What do you mean?"
Maren smiled devilishly. "The prophecy. The one that’s been hanging over their heads this entire time. One of the four boys will betray Bella when she needs them most. We’ve been ignoring that part of the prophecy because we were focused on killing her before it could happen."
"You want to let the prophecy play out naturally?" Mallory asked.
"No," Maren said, shaking her head. "I want to make sure it plays out in our favor. We’re going to force one of those boys to betray her."
She walked back to the window and stared out at the dark forest in the distance. "They’re all terrified of that prophecy. It’s been eating at them, making them doubt each other. All we need to do is push the right pressure points."
Mallory was starting to understand. "Which one do you think is most likely to break?"
"That’s what we need to figure out," Maren said. "Luca is completely devoted to her. The mate bond makes him almost impossible to turn. Cassian and Rafe are both too stable, too grounded. But Killian..."
"Killian has anger issues," Mallory finished. "He’s impulsive."
"Exactly," Maren said, turning back to face her assistant. "And he’s already suspicious of the others. Our scouts have reported arguments between him and Luca. He’s worried that one of his friends will be the betrayer, so he’s watching everyone constantly."
"How do we use that?" Mallory asked.
Maren began pacing again, but this time her movements were more controlled, more purposeful. She was planning now.
"We plant evidence," she said. "Something that makes it look like one of the other boys is working with us. Something that Killian will find and believe."
"What kind of evidence?"
"Letters. Communications between us and one of the other boys. Make it look like they’ve been feeding us information about Bella’s location and plans."
Mallory was taking more notes. "Which boy should we frame?"
Maren considered this carefully. "Luca would be the most devastating choice. If Killian believes that Luca is betraying Bella, it would destroy the entire group dynamic. The mate bond makes Luca the most trusted, so his betrayal would hurt the most."
"But would Killian actually believe that Luca would betray Bella?" Mallory asked. "The mate bond is pretty obvious to everyone."
"You’re right," Maren admitted. "It needs to be believable. What about Rafe? He’s the quiet one. The one who keeps his thoughts to himself. It would be easier to believe that he’s been hiding his true intentions."
"Rafe it is," Mallory said, writing his name down. "How do we make sure Killian finds this evidence?"
Maren smiled again, and this time there was genuine pleasure in it. "We don’t leave it for him to find. We make sure it gets delivered to him during a moment when he’s already emotional and not thinking clearly."
"During the battle?" Mallory suggested.
"Perfect," Maren agreed. "Right when they’re under attack and stressed and fighting for their lives. That’s when people make poor decisions. That’s when they act on emotion instead of logic."
She walked back to the map and pointed to a specific area. "Here. This clearing is where they’ll make their stand. It’s the most defensible position in that part of the forest. When our wolves attack, they’ll retreat here."
Mallory studied the location. "How do we get the fake evidence to Killian during the battle?"
"We have wolves who can take human form," Maren said. "One of them can pose as a wounded messenger. Someone who claims to have escaped from our forces with important information."
"And this messenger will have the forged letters on them?"
"Exactly. Letters that appear to be communications between Rafe and our forces. Details about Bella’s abilities, her location, her plans. Information that could only have come from someone close to her."
Mallory nodded approvingly. "Killian will be desperate to believe that he’s found the betrayer. It will confirm all his worst fears."
"And once he believes that Rafe has betrayed them," Maren continued, "he’ll turn on him during the fight. The group will fall apart from the inside. They’ll be too busy fighting each other to protect Bella effectively."
"What if Killian doesn’t believe it?" Mallory asked. "What if he shows the letters to the others instead of acting on them immediately?"
Maren had already thought of this. "That’s why the attack has to be overwhelming. They won’t have time for long discussions or careful consideration. They’ll be fighting for their lives. In that situation, Killian will act on instinct."
"And his instinct will be to eliminate the perceived threat," Mallory said.
"Exactly. He’ll attack Rafe, believing he’s protecting Bella. The other boys will be confused and divided. And while they’re all fighting each other, my wolves will finish what they started."
Maren walked over to her desk and pulled out a piece of parchment. "Start drafting the letters. Make them look authentic. Use Rafe’s handwriting if you can get a sample."
"I’ll send someone to collect samples from his school notes," Mallory said. "Anything else?"
"Yes. Make sure the letters mention specific details that only someone in their inner circle would know. Bella’s shifting process, her injuries from the recent fight, her emotional state. The more accurate the information seems, the more believable the betrayal will appear."
Mallory was writing furiously now. "When do you want to launch this operation?"
"Tomorrow night," Maren said without hesitation. "I don’t want to give Bella any more time to recover from her injuries or to practice with her new abilities."
"That’s very soon," Mallory said. "Are you sure we can have everything ready by then?"
Maren’s eyes were cold and determined. "We have to. Every day we wait, she gets stronger. Every day we wait, those boys become more united. This is our best chance to destroy them all."
She stood up and walked to the window again, looking out at the forest where her enemy was hiding. "Twenty decades I’ve ruled these lands. Twenty decades of peace and order under my leadership. I will not let some... some child! destroy everything I’ve built."
"She won’t," Mallory assured her. "This plan will work. The prophecy will be fulfilled, on our terms."
"Make sure it does," Maren said, her voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. "Because if this fails, if that girl survives and grows into her full power, she won’t just challenge my rule. She’ll destroy me completely."
Mallory gathered her notes and headed for the door. "I’ll get everything started immediately. By tomorrow night, Bella will be dead and the Moonblood line will be extinct forever."
"See that it is," Maren said, not turning away from the window. "And Mallory? Make sure Killian’s anger burns hot enough to override any loyalty he might feel toward Rafe. I want him absolutely convinced that his friend has betrayed them all."
"Consider it done, my queen."