Chapter 8 Thanks

Ella POV "That's so generous of Alpha Alexander. Please make sure he knows we're grateful for this." I smiled at the employee. "Who needs him to pay for it?" David muttered bitterly. Amanda's mouth was hanging open in surprise as she stared at the expensive clothing. I knew if she were in my shoes, she'd go on a spree and get everything in the shopping center that even remotely interested her. I wasn't going to do that, though; these two outfits were more than enough for me. The employee bagged up the clothes for me, and I thanked her again before turning to head out of the shop. David was fuming, which I found amusing, and I knew it was at least in part Alexander's goal. He wanted to show me that he was serious about this arrangement. I did appreciate the reassurance; it seemed that our alliance was off to a great start. "That's a very nice gesture from Alpha Alexander," my mother said. "Maybe he's more generous than we realized," I said thoughtfully. "Is there anything else you want to do while we're here?" my father asked. I shook my head. "This is everything that I needed." "So you're leaving?" Amanda asked in disbelief. "I should get home and study up for the council meeting," I replied. I saw David and Amanda exchange a quick glance, but I didn't react. They could spend the rest of the day here alone if that's what they wanted to do—it didn't bother me. Now that I collaborated with Alexander, his men would soon give me a way to prove their affair. More alone time for the two of them would only help my plan. Hopefully. Amanda looked back at me and tilted her head. "You've changed so much overnight," she said. She opened her arms and stepped toward me for a hug. It disgusted me, but I wrapped my arms around her and hugged her tightly. "We're growing up, that's all," I said, rubbing her back. "But we'll always be best friends, right?" "Of course," Amanda said, squeezing back before stepping away from me. For the entire trip home, I felt grimy. I had allowed Amanda and David to touch me far too much. I had played the part and pretended that I was still the naive, trusting girl they had taken advantage of, but I wasn’t that person anymore, and I hated pretending that I was. But it is all worth it. Revenge takes time. When we got to the house, I started to head up the stairs to my room. I heard my mother call after me, "Don’t forget to take your medicine." "I won’t," I called back. I had forgotten to take it yesterday, but it was important that I keep the habit. I set the bag on my bed and went to open my nightstand drawer, where my pills were kept. I looked at them and felt the same shame and disappointment I always did when I had to take them. When I had first turned 18 and shifted, everything was fine, but shortly afterward, for reasons the doctors couldn’t understand, my wolf had gone dormant. It wasn’t a huge deal—in these modern times, we didn’t show our wolves off much. There wasn’t much reason to shift, so we were able to keep my dormant wolf a family secret. I hoped one day I would be cured. The pills were supposed to help with that, but they never had. I turned the bottle over in my hand, frowning at the label. Now that I knew it was pointless, why should I keep taking them? All they ever did was give me a stomach ache. I put the pills back in the drawer without taking any. Now it would be more meaningful for me to investigate my pack. I remembered that before my death, David mentioned someone had reported that my family was working with rogues. I knew that couldn’t be true. I had to discover who the betrayer was and why they had done it. I needed to stay close to David in order to do that. There was a traitor lurking in the shadows, and I was determined to find them. I went down to my father's office. "When exactly is the council meeting?" I asked. "In a few days," he said. "Are you feeling nervous?" I nodded in response. "I don't want to seem like I'm completely out of my depth," I said. "Is there anything we can do to prepare?" He smiled and pointed to the seats across from his desk. I immediately sat down. When I was young, my father used to help me with my homework like this, and it always felt very grown up to me. Now, hopefully, there was more he could teach me. "What topic are you feeling unprepared about?" he asked. "Finances," I replied. "I want to know more about exactly how the finances in the pack are managed. I know that we are in a good position, especially compared to several other large packs, and I want to know what it is that gives us that advantage." He smiled proudly at me. For the next few hours, I listened attentively as my father explained how his Beta and several Gammas had worked out a system to manage our finances. Each Gamma was in charge of a certain sector, and they all reported back to the Beta, who put together a report that my father reviewed at the beginning of each month. It took some of the pressure off my father, and it made sure that every sector got individualized attention so nothing was missed. I asked a lot of questions about these particular Gammas as he talked. Some of them I had met, but most I hadn't. I wondered if any of them could be the ones who betrayed our family and took note that I would have to look into them more on my own. Later that evening, I was sitting in the living room with my parents, watching the news. As expected, a report about Alexander's shopping center came up. I remembered that in the original timeline, rumors had spread about counterfeit goods. I suspected David, but I didn’t speak up back then. I understood now that when dealing with rumors and false reports, it was important to act quickly to prevent the negative impact from setting in. Proving that you didn’t do something is the hardest part. The first time around, it took Alexander until the next evening to respond to the false reports, and by then, the damage had already been done. Now, as the initial reports were hitting the news, the anchors were saying that they had a statement from Alexander, pointing out that such reports were easy to disprove to anyone who wanted to look into the documentation of his shopping center and saying that it was sad how easy it was to mislead and even bribe media outlets. It was a very Alexander way to respond, and I couldn’t help but smile at the TV. I was glad that he had trusted me. He must have prepared this statement after his speech, well before the rumors had even started. My phone buzzed as I got a text message. I pulled it out and saw that it was from Alexander. It was only one word: “Thanks.” "Now it's your turn," I replied.