If that’s true, then what she is doing is sexual assault.
“Fucking unbelievable,” Griffin mutters.
Lissa could have any guy in the pack, but that’s not what she wants. It’s not about sex, it’s not about intimacy; it’s about power. She has fun messing with those of lower rank, well aware that they can’t do anything to stand up to her, especially until recently, when Forest’s parents still openly had her back.
“Do you know if she has her sights set on anyone specific, currently?” I ask.
Nina nods. “My friend’s mate,” she says bitterly. “He is such a nice guy. I don’t think he will ever betray his mate. I am scared they might do something stupid and run.”
“I won’t let them become rogues,” Forest states with finality in his voice. “This ends now! Nina, tell us the man’s name.”
“To stop her,“ I add, “we’ll need his help.”
“What do you want him to do?” Griffin asks.
I twist the recorder Lissa used against Forest between my fingers. “I want him to play along, at least, seemingly so. Let her do her thing, and we’ll be able to let everyone know who she truly is. Forest could confront her without a recording, but she will have pack members defending her and thinking he is just out for revenge, but if we record her—”
“She would pretty much be outed to everyone,” Griffin concludes. “With solid proof.”
Forest looks at Nina thoughtfully. “Do you think your friend and her mate would be willing to help? I don’t want to force anyone into doing something that could be dangerous.”
“They will,” Nina says with confidence in her voice. “Her mate—his name is Ben—he is a pretty strong-willed guy. I know he wants to protect her at all costs.”
I nod. “Alright, then please link them.”
“Now?” Griffin asks.
“Yes, but we won’t meet here. There are too many eyes watching us. We’ll meet at your place, Griffin. Prepare a meeting for tomorrow, after lunch. We’ll need a couple of hours to prepare everything.”
Griffin nods grimly. “Got it.”
twenty-three
Across the Ranks
*FOREST*
There is not much that Rose and I can prepare in advance. At the end of the day, we’ll need to rely on Nina and her friends and their ability and willingness to play along.
Nina’s friend is a shy, sweet young woman, eyeing us all nervously when we meet at Griffin’s place, but her mate is a pretty confident guy. It shows that rank doesn’t mean much at the end of the day. Someone can be an alpha and a coward, or he can be an omega and a hero.
Nina’s mate is here, as well, obviously ready to get his very own revenge and make amends at the same time.
“And you think this will work, Alpha?” Ben asks me.
“Yes,” I say. “But we need to place the device somewhere she won’t spot it.”
“What about under one of those belts around the chest?” Nina asks, squeezing her mate’s hand. “You wear them sometimes when you train.”
“Oh, to measure your heart frequency,” Griffin says. “Yes, we can fix it on something like that. You can use one of mine. Take off your shirt, Ben, we’ll fix it now.”
“Make sure to stick it to his body so it won’t drop,” Rose adds. “We’ll have this one shot. Let’s be extra cautious.” She walks over to the shy young woman, gently taking her hands. “Don’t worry, Elli,” she says. Her voice is so gentle and warm, making that odd warm feeling return to my chest. She is a great luna. She might be out to take down Lissa and my parents, but her concern for the omegas is genuine. “Your mate looks like the type of person who can easily pull off a difficult task.”
Ben instantly perks up. “Really?”
Before he can bounce over to his mate, I grab his arm and hold him back. “Yes, really,” I mutter. “Just please hold still for a moment.”
“You are like a kid with ADHD,” Griffin teases. “Just how old are you?”
