TEMPORARY MATES PERMANENT CRAVINGS novel Chapter 361

Three hundred and sixty-one

Barbara POV

The scenery changed through the train window as we moved farther from the city. Buildings gradually gave way to stretches of greenery, with trees lining the tracks and tall grass brushing against the railway embankments. The metal rails ran beside us, disappearing into the distance as the train carried me toward Blood Moon Pack.

My parents had asked where I was going when I left. I told them it was work-related. They didn’t question me further, which suited me. They had enough problems of their own after Luna Lisa’s summons.

They had no idea I was going to find Maverick’s father-the Almighty Alpha Desmond, whom Isabella had spent years running

from.

I needed to find him before everyone else decided what Maverick’s future would look like. If Isabella and Wesley were truly mates, it was only a matter of time before Maverick became part of Wesley’s farmily. I didn’t know exactly what would happen, but I knew the boy’s position would change.

The thought made my stomach churn.

Finding out Isabella was Wesley’s mate had destroyed the last illusion that I could win him back. No matter what I did, I couldn’t compete with a bond I couldn’t break. I needed information-something I could use against Isabella.

The train continued through the countryside, its wheels producing a steady rhythm beneath my feet. Fields stretched beyond the tracks, broken by clusters of trees and distant houses. Occasionally, another train passed on the opposite line, the rush of air rattling the windows before the landscape returned to its quiet rhythm.

The journey took four hours.

By the time we approached Blood Moon Pack, the scenery had changed again. Dense greenery surrounded the railway, and tall trees formed a canopy along parts of the track. The houses became fewer, replaced by stretches of woodland and open land. The air drifting through the vents carried the damp scent of earth and leaves.

I gathered my things as the train slowed. I stepped onto the platform and looked around.

The station was smaller than the ones I was used to, with weathered railings running along the platform and weeds pushing through cracks near the tracks. Beyond the station, trees stretched toward the horizon, their leaves moving in the wind.

I took a deep breath.

Since learning about Isabella’s bond with Wesley, this was the first time I had felt something close to satisfaction.

If Isabella had spent all this time running from Maverick’s father, she had given me something I could use.

I intended to find out exactly what.

A taxi took me from the station into Blood Moon Pack. I sat near the window, watching the woodland give way to houses and shops as we entered the town. The Alpha House wasn’t difficult to find. It stood near the center of town, where anyone looking for the seat of power would expect it to be.

The three-story white building sat behind high gates, with security stationed around the entrance. Cars moved through a separate checkpoint while visitors gathered near the pedestrian gate. I paid the driver and joined the queue, only to discover that everyone had to explain why they were there before receiving a number.

The guards seemed to enjoy that little piece of authority far too much. They questioned people with the arrogance of men who had forgotten they merely guarded the Alpha rather than being the Alpha themselves. One man was turned away after trying to argue his case. The guard barely looked at him before calling the next person forward.

When it was my turn, the guard’s eyes moved over me. I had dressed well before leaving home, and judging by the change in his expression, it had worked.

1/4

+20 Bonus

“Reason for your visit?”

“I came from Alpha Cameron’s cabinet. I have a message for Alpha Desmond.”

That changed everything.

He straightened. “From Alpha Cameron?”

“Yes.”

He spoke quietly to another guard, who looked at me before checking something on his tablet. I was given a number that put me ahead of most of the people waiting.

I smiled as I walked through the gates.

Sometimes all it took was knowing which name opened doors.

Inside, I was directed to a waiting area where several people sat. I chose a seat and looked around. It didn’t take long before something else caught my attention.

Young women. Too many of them.

Some looked around eighteen or nineteen, while others appeared younger. One girl couldn’t have been much older than sixteen. They moved through the building accompanied by staff or guards, and whenever one passed the waiting area, I found myself watching her.

Their heads remained lowered. Their shoulders were drawn inward, and none of them carried themselves like people who

wanted to be there.

What kind of place was this?

Another girl passed, keeping her gaze on the floor as a man directed her toward a corridor.

I leaned back in my chair.

Perhaps Isabella hadn’t lied about everything. Whatever kind of man Alpha Desmond was, he certainly was a raging lunatic. If Isabella hadn’t made herself such a nuisance in my life, perhaps I might even have felt sorry for her.

Whatever happened between her and Desmond was their problem. Isabella had spent enough time destroying other people’s lives while expecting everyone to treat her like a victim.

Besides, I wasn’t doing anything wrong. I was reconnecting a father with his son. Practically a service to humanity.

I smiled at the thought.

If Desmond wanted Maverick as badly as Isabella’s fear suggested, he would thank me for bringing him the information.

Alpha Desmond entered with the kind of presence that made people notice him before he even spoke. He was a few years younger than my father, with mousy brown hair threaded with grey and a face that seemed permanently amused. His eyes carried the same mischievous glint as his smile, and something about it made my skin crawl. He looked like the sort of man who would laugh while watching someone else suffer.

He spotted me and grinned.

“Well, who is this beauty?”

His tongue slipped over his lower lip as his gaze traveled over me.

Revulsion crawled up my spine.

I forced myself to smile.

2/4

+20 Bonus

Ils gaze fell to my hand when I shifted in my seat, revealing the black ring on his finger. I stared at it.

he same ring Marcus wore

Meridian.

hat made this visit far more interesting.

Before we discuss why you’re here,” Desmond said, dropping into the chair opposite me, “would you like something to eat?”

‘I’m fine.”

‘Wine?”

smiled. “Perhaps later. I have somewhere to be.”

He laughed.

‘You’re a busy woman. I like that.”

kept my expression pleasant. There was no way I was drinking anything he offered me. I didn’t know what he might put in it, and I wasn’t interested in finding out.

‘Now,” he said, leaning back. “Tell me what brings you here.”

‘I’m from Alpha Cameron’s pack.”

His smile faded slightly.

‘I see. What does that fool want?”

hesitated, then tilted my head.

‘You seem to have some resentment toward Alpha Cameron.”

‘Why wouldn’t I?” His mouth twisted. “That bastard and his slut of a sister.”

I kept my face neutral.

His sister.

Lady Nadia, Emma’s mother. Beta Franklin’s wife.

There was history there.

I filed the information away.

“He must have given you quite a reason to hate him.”

Desmond laughed.

“They think they’re better than everyone. Always sitting on their little throne, acting like the rest of us should bow. Meanwhile, they’re running from one problem to another, searching for whatever magic they can find to keep themselves safe.”

He leaned closer.

“I shouldn’t be telling you this. You’re one of them, but I don’t care.”

That amused me.

“Then perhaps you won’t mind if I tell you why I’m really here.”

“Go on.”

+20 Bonus

“Do you remember Isabella?”

He rubbed beneath his nose while thinking, then pulled something from his nostril and wiped it against his trousers. My nose wrinkled before I could stop it.

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