Azalea

I shook out my soft waves as I pulled them back into a low ponytail. My black dress hung loose at my shoulders because I couldn’t quite reach the zipper. I looked in the mirror with a sad expression. I was not looking forward to this. I never liked Gwen and her actions after Liam and I finally accepted each other did nothing to change that. I may have forgiven her and allowed her the opportunity to live, but that did not mean that I wanted to be going today. But I wasn’t going for me; I was going for Damien, Lily, and Liam. Damien was the most upset, mainly expressing his grief through anger right now. Lily was upset for her mate and his family. I never got the impression that she did much more than tolerate Gwen as Damien’s mates. Then Liam. I couldn’t quite figure out exactly how he felt about it all. In some respect, he and Gwen had been friends growing up and she was his best friend’s little sister. I know he hated her after her attempt to kill me, but I think that eventually eased.

Liam came into the bathroom, stopping behind me. He kissed my shoulder gently. “Want me to zip this up?” he asked. I nodded.

“Yes please,” I said softly.

He gently pulled the zipper up to the top of the fabric before leaning down and kissing his mark on my neck. “You look beautiful,” he said. I turned to him, wrapping my arms around his neck, and giving him a soft smile. He rested his hands on my h**s.

“You okay?” I asked him. He nodded.

“We should get going,” he said. His lack of words told me he was reticent about all of this. I leaned up on my tiptoes to k**s him softly. Once we broke apart, I clasped his hand, and we made our way out to the forest for the funeral.

Damien

Crying. That is all that could be heard as dirt was piled over the simple pine box my sister was being buried in. Crying. Wailing. My father held my mother as she cried over her daughter. Her only daughter.

Lily stood next to me, her hand rubbing soft circles on my back under my suit jacket. She rested her head on my shoulder and I tried to focus on her scent and touch to keep myself from crying or getting angrier.

I wanted to know who was responsible for this. This was not her fate. Azalea let her live. She had a chance at life. I was still angry with my sister even years later for attacking Azalea. Gwen knew Liam wasn’t her mate and was told to stay away. She just couldn’t listen.

I thought after her mate rejected her and she went through all that pain, she would finally give up on Liam. I thought she would try and be a better person. But no, she dug in harder. She was always trying to step in between Lyssa’s attempts to find Liam a mate before he found Azalea again. And Gwen could just never let it go.

Now here we are. My pups would never know their aunt. My parents are burying their daughter. And I don’t even have a face to put my fist into for it all.

Azalea did a nice job with the arrangements. They were tasteful and simple. And secluded. No one would know where she is except us. People had stopped murmuring about Gwen long ago, as if they had forgotten she existed. I don’t know what mom would tell anyone who asked her, but I just never spoke about it. And I would never speak about her again.

Liam

I ran my hands through my hair as I sat at my desk. Nothing. We got nothing significant from the autopsy my Uncle did. We had nothing significant from the camera footage. There were a few instances that looked as if the camera glitched or went out of focus, but the warriors assigned to normal prison guard duty said these weren’t out of the ordinary. There just wasn’t enough evidence of anything to go on. How does someone slip in and out of somewhere so guarded without being seen or caught by any camera?

Gavin was giving me a headache. He was whimpering about going to Azalea. She had given me space since the funeral a few days ago and I had been in a funk since. I was conflicted about Gwen’s death in all honesty. Gavin on the other hand, was not. I had felt all Azalea’s ups and downs for the past couple days but had been trying to focus on all the issues at hand that I had pretty much ignored her. She was in bed asleep by the time I came to our room every night as well.

My thoughts went to Abraham and his offer to help with the investigation. I hadn’t spoken to him yet. I kept going back and forth on the matter but if I was being honest, my main concerns were with his son, not him. He would be a neutral pair of eyes on the situation unlike Damien and Declan who were clearly letting their emotions guide them temporarily. Damien was distant and moody, even with Delilah who he usually doted on. I could see the stress on Lily’s face yesterday when I saw her. She was worried about him and I was too. I needed to find something soon before both of them went nuclear.

“Austin, can you send someone to find Abraham and bring him to my office. I would like to speak with him,” I linked my Delta.

“Sure thing,” he replied quickly.

–

Thirty minutes later there was a knock at my door. “Come in,” I called. The door opened gradually to Abraham.

“Good evening, Alpha,” he said bowing his head in respect. “You asked to speak with me?”

I nodded. “Yes, please come in and have a seat,” I motioned towards the chairs opposite me. He obliged, quickly taking a seat. “My mate brought it to my attention that you would like to help with the investigation?” I asked, getting directly to the point.

“Yes, Alpha,” he said. “I think I could be of some use.”

“And how do you know about this?” I asked.

“Rumors spread when a pack house gets locked down, sir,” he said in a respectful tone. I couldn’t argue with that.

“What do you think of those rumors?”

“I think all rumors have some basis of truth. But I do hope that they are all not completely true. Whatever they may be based upon, I would like to help solve the dilemma,” he responded. He was smart.

“You have a background in investigation if I do recall?”

“Yes, Alpha. I worked with my previous pack’s warrior team heavily. I have never been very fit or physically gifted myself, but I have an eye for things other people miss,” he explained. I nodded my head. I watched him for moment, mulling it over. With no leads, there was really no downside to letting him help as long as he could keep the information he was given under wraps.

“Alpha, if I may be bold for a moment?” he interrupted my thoughts. I raised an eyebrow and he continued. “I hope you are not letting my son’s behavior cloud your judgement. I was unaware of your daughter’s current grounding due to their irresponsibility. I would not have allowed him to go out the other night had I known he was encouraging her to break your rules.”

“I appreciate that, Abraham. I won’t lie to you and tell you I am very much a fan of your son’s. But I am sure you can imagine that I would be protective over my daughter,” I said.

He nodded. “Of course, Alpha. She is your pup; I expect nothing less. I have had a conversation with Vlad about his behavior and will be watching him more closely in the future,” he said.

“I hope things can improve,” I said in a measured tone. “Alright. I will accept your assistance in the investigation.”

“That is wonderful Alpha. I will do my best to help resolve this quickly,” he said with a small smile.

“Go find Delta Austin and he will give you all the information you need. If you need anything, feel free to ask. Everyone involved will be informed to give you their full cooperation,” I told him. He stood up, understanding that he was being dismissed. He left my office and I quickly linked Austin.

“Abraham will be helping with the investigation into Gwen’s murder. Please fill him in on everything we know,” I linked.

“Yes, Alpha,” he replied immediately. “Hey… Liam…” he continued hesitantly.

“What Austin?” I shot back, wishing he would get to it.

“I know you got a lot going on and this is all been stressful. You should probably take some time for Azalea,” he said. My brow furrowed.

“What do you mean?” I asked him.

“She hides it well, but I know she is feeling lonely. Felix keeps trying to get her to stay put but she won’t. Lily said she is trying to give you space, but she is worried too. Lily shouldn’t be worrying about Azalea while she has Damien to look after. Just go to your mate, okay?” he finally finished.

s**t. He is right. I was being a total a*s while dealing with everything. Gavin was right and that also irked me. “Can we go to mate now?” he pleaded.

I sighed as I stood up from my desk. Time to make up for days of unintentional neglect.

–

I knocked on her office door and heard her normally sweet voice beckon me in with irritation. When I opened the door, she looked up from the document she was reading and said “Oh!” quickly.

“Hello, Little Luna,” I said gently.

“Liam, what’s wrong?” she asked, her face growing concerned. I turned to Felix and nodded, dismissing him for the night. I turned back to her and came around the desk. I turned her chair, so it was facing me as I leaned in and kissed her gently. Immediately, I felt her longing but not in a lustful way.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered.

“For what?” she asked, looking up at me.

“I’ve been distant,” I admitted.

“It’s alright. The funeral…” she trailed off. I shook my head.

“No, I have ignored you and that isn’t okay,” I told her. “So, Missy is going to watch the boys tonight and make sure they get to bed. We are going to go upstairs, have dinner together, and do whatever you want for the rest of the night. Just me and you.” A smile slowly grew on her face. I will always do anything to see that smile.Content rights belong to .