Fractured

Chapter 13: The Spy

While I sat awaiting the arrival of Brandon's son, I couldn't stop myself from slowly going through an imaginary list of wolves whom could be the traitor. Every time a name popped into my head, I would automatically dismiss it for one reason or another. The thing was I didn't want to believe any of our people would do such a thing. We weren't just a pack; we were a family.

Even though Griffin was sure Izzy was the source of information leak, something inside me knew this wasn't possible. I understood why he thought this way, though, like me he didn't want to believe one of our own could betray us like that, and the timing of her arrival seemed to fit perfectly.

As I looked around my office, my eyes landed on the picture of Olivia sitting on my desk. It was taken a few weeks after we had first mated. Her long blond hair had been braided on the side of her head, and the sun behind her gave it this beautiful glow. I remember thinking how much she looked like an angel in her flowing white dress. I felt the familiar tightening in my chest. I missed her so much it hurt.

"Why did you leave? Our pack needs you so much right now. I need you?" No matter how long she gone, I still went to her with all my problems. It wasn't that I was expecting her to answer, it just sort of helped. I was startled by a quiet knocking at my door and quickly wiped away the tears threatening to spill from my eyes.

"Alpha?" A young boy nervously asked as he entered my office. He had to of been Brandon's son; he was like a small replica of the tall scrawny brown haired tracker. They even seemed to share the same nervous, self-conscious demeanor. The only difference between them was his son's unusually bright green eyes, which he must have gotten from his mother.

"Is this a bad time, Alpha?" He questioned, shifting uncomfortably on his feet. He began wringing his hands and looking around the room. I noticed he wasn't like most young male wolves his age; there was something more skittish about him.

"No, not at all. What's your name son?" I asked, realizing I didn't know what to call him.

"My name is Ryan, sir," He answered still not meeting my gaze.

"Did you father tell you why I wanted to speak with you?"

"He only said that you needed to talk to me about something important."

"I heard you recently turned eighteen." He looked up at me and nodded. "Happy belated birthday. Turning eighteen is a big deal for our kind. How was your party?" Ryan looked at me as if I was speaking a different language.

"Excuse me, Alpha, I don't mean to be rude, but I am pretty sure you didn't ask me here to talk about my birthday party." As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Ryan looked to be already regretting it. Honestly, I was shocked by his brazenness.

"Sorry, Alpha Blackmore. I didn't -- I mean shouldn't have--"

"No, it's okay, really," I said cutting off his attempted apology. "Actually, your party is exactly why I asked to speak with you."

"It is?" He asked sounding completely stunned.

"Yes, I am not sure if you are aware of this, but the Jacobs' three daughters went missing on their way home from your house the night of your party."

Instead of answering Ryan became extremely interested in the oversized bookcase across the room. I watched as his eyes seemed to try to memorize each title of the ancient leather backed books. These books contained not only werewolf history and lore, but they also held our packs history from the beginning until now. After a few moments, he slowly turned back to face me.

"Yes Alpha, I know," He replied. His eyes took on this sad, distant look, a look I knew all too well. It was a look I wore more often than not.

"How did you find out?" I asked since it was supposed to be confidential information. Ryan took a minute before responding.

"Lucy's parents called me early this morning to see if I might know where they were."

"When was the last time you saw them?" I needed to get a better idea of when they went missing.

"I think it was just after midnight when they left. I offered to walk them home, but my father said it would be rude of me to leave my party. I knew I should have gone with them." I could hear the guilt in his voice. The poor kid was blaming himself for what happened to these girls.

"Do you think you could make me a list of everyone that attended the party last night?" I asked handing him a piece of paper and a pen from my desk draw.

"Like right now?" He asked grabbing the paper from me.

"Yes, when you're finished just leave it on my desk. I will be back in a few minutes. If you finish before I am back, feel free to leave, just remember you are not to discuss anything we talked about with anyone understand?" I said getting up from my chair and walking to the door. I turned back to look at Ryan, waiting for him to respond.

"Yes, Alpha." And with that, I turned to walk out the door.

"Alpha?" Ryan called out before I could close the door all the way

"Yes?" I asked standing in the doorway.

"Do you think they're still alive?" He asked, fear filling his voice. I wanted to tell him, yes, but I couldn't bring myself to lie to him.

"I don't know," I answered honestly.

"Lucy's my mate, you know," his voice coming out just above a whisper. "I mean she's not eighteen until next month, but I am sure of it." I could see the love in his face when he spoke her name. I didn't doubt they would end up being mates; I only hoped they would have the chance to find out.

"We are going to do everything in our power to find them, I promise." And with that, I left to find Griffin and Asher. We needed to discuss what our next move should be. Thanks to Ryan, I was sure I now knew who the spy was, but I hoped I was wrong.

~~~~~~Author's Note~~~~~~

I know this update was little slower than usual, but I hope it was worth the wait.

Do you know who the spy is, and what do you think about Ryan?

Please remember to vote and comment.