45. The Bait

Chapter forty-five

The Bait

*AURELIA*

E ric looks at us with a frown. "Tell me, how much or how little did you sleep last night?"

"They didn't sleep at all," Emilien points out. "Despite me trying to make them."

"Fantastic," Eric mutters. "So, the whole team is probably exhausted to the bone."

"Technically, the adrenaline rush kept us awake," Arden points out. "After an adrenaline rush, it's almost impossible to sleep. Besides, a human can last almost eleven days without sleep… though after the third or fourth, hallucinations and other serious side-effects would kick in, so we shouldn't push it that much."

Eric looks something between annoyed and resigned, while I chuckle. "You are grinning now," he mutters to me, "but, just wait til you two argue. Then it won't be that funny anymore."

Arden looks at me confused, while I just take his hand and squeeze it. "Don't worry," I say to Eric, winking. "I know how to win my mate over."

"Goddess." He rolls his eyes. "Yeah, a match made in heaven, truly." He clears his throat. "So, what do we have?"

"Guillaume LaRue was actually gamma of his pack," Emilien explains. "A very skilled warrior, wealthy, elitist, and a collector of…" He looks at Eric expectantly.

"Gemstones," Eric finishes.

"He had a son from his chosen mate. He never marked her, which means the bond to his actual mate never broke," Leila adds. "But here it gets weird. I talked to the alpha of the pack in Auvergne. His father was the one working with Guillaume. He said his father always admired Guillaume for his talents, although they butted heads a lot for their differing views. There is a rumor surrounding Guillaume, namely that he met his true mate one day and kept her hidden until she ran off. No proof, though."

"Meg's mother," Arden says. "It has to be her. Even if it didn't happen exactly like the rumors say, there has to be some truth to it."

"Yes, I think so too," I say. "The director of the orphanage said that Meg's mother was on the run and clearly hiding from someone. She wouldn't even say his name."

"What we know for sure is that Guillaume split from his chosen mate, took his son, and disappeared," Leila continues. "Then, there was no sighting of him for a long while until a pack in the south stumbled over his dead body. It looked like bears ripped him apart."

"Bears, or his son," Eric mutters.

"Going by what Annette said, Night killed his father, so it's safe to say that it wasn't bears," I point out.

"Let me get this straight," Nox says. "Guillaume and his chosen mate had a son. Said son is our culprit, Night. But Guillaume never marked his chosen mate, so when he stumbled over his fated mate, the mate bond kicked in, and he wanted to claim her as his, abducted her, probably locked her up, and did horrendous things to her. She escaped, gave birth to Meg in secret, and passed away."

"She is his gemstone," Arden adds. "We know that Guillaume was the first with the obsession."

"So, father and son separate from Guillaume's chosen mate, and do Goddess knows what to track down Meg's mom." Nox pauses. "And then suddenly Night decides he has had enough, kills his father, and sets out to get his half-sister, Meg. That's insane! All of it."

"Folie à deux," Arden points out.

"I was about to say the same thing," Gustave agrees. "It certainly sounds like it."

"What does that mean?" I ask.

"It means two people share a psychosis," Arden explains. "It mostly occurs when two people live closely together, possibly isolated. In this case, Guillaume had the psychosis and probably transferred it to his son."

"That's possible?" Zoé asks, shocked.

"It's rare," Arden says. "But it's not unheard of."

"We know Night is very smart," Eric says. "Chances are high that he got this psychosis from his father but then bested him because he was clearly the more intelligent individual."

"It also explains where Night's money comes from," Nox adds. "His father must have been loaded. It helped to get his business running, and once he had customers, they added to his wealth."

"Is it possible that Guillaume originally helped with that plan?" Zoé asks.

"I doubt it," Arden says. "From what we heard, he was mainly obsessed with Meg's mother but was not controlled and organized enough to manage what Night is pulling off."

"He was a wealthy man," Eric says. "Did Guillaume own some estates?"

"Plenty," Arden says. "Which makes our search so difficult. We could search through every one of his possible properties, but where to start?"

"We are running out of time," I say. "We can't look through every property and hope Meg, Léna, and Coralie are there."

"I agree." Nox takes a step forward. "And that's why I want to propose a plan."

"Go ahead."

"We need a trap. We need someone to play bait, if you want to call it that way, someone to lure them out. Have them go to the hospital and fake donate blood and make sure everyone knows they have the blood group."

"That's dangerous," Arden says.

"I know," Nox says. "But it's not like we have many options left. Léna and Coralie were abducted. Clearly Night's plan changed, and whatever he is doing now is for revenge, and he has a strong, unknown supporter now who served him Coralie and Léna on a silver platter. Plus, they have to be desperate for new victims now. They lost three at once but still have customers waiting for fresh blood."

"I have to agree," I mutter. "This is getting worse every minute. We need to take the risk."

"It's going to be difficult to get a good bait so fast." Eric frowns. "Most wolves and lycans working here are well-known in one way or another. I would need to request someone from a pack far away."

"Or maybe you don't," a voice rings through the room.

I turn around to see Tori approaching us. Lion is following her with a deep scowl on his face. "We are sorry," she says. "We didn't mean to eavesdrop. We were just here to pick you up for lunch." She pauses. "I am an omega, and no one here knows me. I could do it."

"No, no way!" Lion blurts out.

"I'm a good choice," she says.

"Aurelia," Lion begs. "Don't say yes."

She turns around to look at him. "Lion," she says, surprisingly serious. "I want to help, and I can help. I don't need your approval to do it, but I would still like it if you have a bit of faith in me."

How did she learn to handle him that fast? Nox links me.

Beats me, I answer. Must be the mate bond.

"Zoé," Arden says suddenly. "Do you still have access to the chatroom and auctions?"

"Yes, although there are no auctions at the moment."

"Can you hit the seller for a request? Let's say our friend Alexander is looking for an omega girl in her late teens who looks similar to Tori. You think you could pull that off?"

Zoé takes a deep breath and nods. "Yes."

"Good," Eric says. "I approve." He turns to Arden. "How are we doing this?"

Arden doesn't even waver, and it's then that I realize how much more confident he is now. "Gustave and Emilien, I need you to update the geographical profile, we know much more now about the victims, but also about Night. I still want to narrow down the most likely places the girls are kept at, in case our plan doesn't work out."

"We'll jump right to work," Emilien says.

"Leila please help Zoé with luring in Night or whoever it is who keeps an eye on their chatroom. Make sure to emphasize that it's very urgent because your customer is leaving the country soon. You have a good sense for people and for manipulating them. I think you would be a great help to Zoé."

"Got you." Leila nods. "We'll press for them to act fast."

He turns to Nox and me. "I'd need you to prepare Tori for her role. I know you are both good with doing the dirty work, as you call it. Please help her. We don't have much time. I want her to be ready to donate blood in the afternoon."

Nox chuckles. "Shady stuff is our forte, huh?"

"Everyone is good at something," I say, slightly amused.

"Good," Eric says. "And I will see that we have everything prepared to keep Tori safe. I want her to carry a chip so that we can track her constantly. Maybe in one of her teeth."

"Yes," Emilien muses. "Even when her cover gets blown, they won't pull them, will they?"

"WHAT!?" Lion exclaims.

Eric glares at Emilien. "You just had to say that out aloud."

"I apologize," Emilien mutters. "It doesn't mean they would go that far or—"

"I know of the risks," Tori intervenes. Her voice is shaking slightly, but other than that she looks firm. "I still want to do this. I know everyone thinks I'm rather shallow, but I'm worried for Léna and want to help."

I take Tori's hands. "You have nothing to prove," I say quietly.

"I want to help, Aurelia," she says with emphasis. "And I can do it. No one knows me here. I'm an omega, I am the right age, and it will be easy to forge my documents." She turns to Eric and Emilien. "Am I right?"

"I can't deny that," Eric admits. "With Zoé going to stress for a fast sale, they won't be able to check your background too much. We can pretty much fake everything about you, including your blood group. I can even add a fake illness to it, to make you even more appealing to them."

"Alright," I give in. I don't want to put Tori in unnecessary danger, but ultimately this is her decision. "Let's do it."

Nox, Lion, Tori, and I set off to Eric's suite where we will be preparing Tori. While Tori and Nox move ahead, Lion and I fall back. "It's because of me," he says sadly. "I told her she was shallow, although, it's not true."

"I know," I say quietly. "I don't like that you did."

"I'm trying to make it up to her, but it's not easy."

"That's because once said, it's hard to take back words," I tell him. "I know you were hurt too by her reaction. I'm sure you will be able to move past it, but you need to be genuine with her and make an effort. She deserves a mate who cherishes her."

"I do," he exclaims. "She was always Terry's sister for me," he admits. "Never looked at her properly. And I never realized how beautiful and funny she is. And she has these cute dimples when she laughs."

"Oh, so you are crushing on her?" I say with a smile.

"Yeah, but don't tell her."

"Why not?" I chuckle. "She would be happy."

"You really think so?"

"Lion." I sigh. "In general, women like it if men are honest with their affection for them. She is your mate, for Goddess's sake. Why are you beating around the bush?"

"You are right," he mutters. "Fuck, you are right. Maybe it's more difficult because I knew her before—"

"No," I interrupt him. "I don't think it is. You would need to put effort into any relationship, no matter who you are fated to. The mate bond just pulls us towards each other, but it's on us to make the most out of it. It's not magically solving everything."

"I want to be a good mate," he says. "I know I suck at being a boyfriend, because I'm dense, but I want to try my best for Tori."

"Then support her in what she is doing today," I tell him, "in the way only her mate can support her. Have faith in her and show her that you will have her back."