Chapter 14 - Elize #2
I felt a twinge deep in my gut. I suspected that my uncle would never hide something like that, but I couldn’t.
“Do your men lose control like that?”
Dustin shook his head. “No, but Troy didn’t have problems before either. It’s slowly moving down the pack. I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before it gets here.”
I frowned. “Doesn’t that bother you?”
He nodded. “Of course. But I’m trying to focus on doing what I can right now. Keeping my men alive.”
I wished I knew more. I wished I had the answers and that things were simple. But magic was never simple. I learned that at a young age.
“Don’t stay mad at him for too long,” I offered. “You’re a good Alpha, and leaders should stick together.”
I headed back down the hallway and slipped into the room, but Troy wasn’t there. They must have understood my confusion because one of them pointed. “He just went down the hallway to answer his phone.”
“Thanks.” I slipped back out and headed down the hallway that the guy pointed toward. I found him walking ahead of me. I was about to call his name when I heard him speak. “No, I want you to keep your eyes on him.”
I stopped walking. Had we missed someone?
“Troy,” I called his name, and he looked over his shoulder. He offered me a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “I’ll talk to you later.” He hung up the phone and shoved it into his pockets.
I walked toward him. “Is there someone else missing?”
He shook his head. “No. We have everyone.”
I frowned, confused. “Then who were you talking to just now?”
“No one. Just Ivan telling me something. Are you ready to head home?”
I nodded. “Are we going to leave so soon? What about the others?”
“I’ve arranged those rides to get home since most of them aren’t driving themselves.”
I looked at his hands and noticed they were shaking. I swallowed. “Troy, is there something you aren’t telling me?”
He frowned. “No, I’m just tired. It’s getting late. Come on, let’s get home.”
I followed him out, and I could hear his phone ringing as we got into the car. He didn’t answer, but the more it rang, the more I wondered what was going on.
The drive home was quiet, and I sat unsure. I felt like there was something he wasn’t telling me. It irritated me as we drove because I just spent the last couple of hours helping him. What could he know that he didn’t feel that he could tell me?
As we got home, we headed inside. Troy normally tossed his keys onto the counter, but he didn’t. He shoved them into his pocket and offered me a smile. “You should get some rest. I know how exhausted you are.”
I stared at him, wanting to ask if there was something he wasn’t telling me, but I felt he wouldn’t tell me. So, I decided to go with my next option.
I smiled. “I’m going to. I could probably pass out as soon as I hit my bed.” I turned and headed down the hallway. I slipped into my room and shut the door. But I leaned against it and pressed my ear to the door.
I could hear nothing for a long moment, and then I heard Troy on the phone. “Ivan, where did he land? I thought you said that you were following him? What is he doing at the council office so late? No… no… I’ll come down.”
I could hear the shuffling of feet, and then the front door opened and closed. I slipped out of the room and back to the front door. I watched as he pulled out of the driveway, and I grabbed my keys.
I hurried out to my car and hopped in. I drove down the road, following behind Troy at least a block. He drove to city hall, then got back on the road and headed inside. I looked around the parking lot and found that my uncle’s car was the only other car parked.
I hurried after him, yanking my heels off so they didn’t click on the tile floor. I went up the stairs slowly until I found Troy standing in front of a door.
What made me stop was that he was leaning on the door trying to listen in. My jaw dropped at the sight of him. It was like a five-year-old was trying to peek into someone’s meeting.
“Troy?”
He jumped and turned. His eyes widened as he spotted me, and I crossed my arms. “What the hell are you doing? And what are you doing peeping into that room?”
“It’s not what you think.”
I glared at him. “I’m doubting that, considering you refused to tell me what this is.” I waved a hand around the hallway.
“What are you doing here?” he asked as he moved away from the door.
“I could tell you were hiding something. You have never been the best at trying to hide things.”
He sighed, and I frowned. “What are you hiding, Troy? Why are you following my uncle?”
His eyebrows went up. “How did you know I was following him?”
I clicked my tongue. “Because his car is the only other vehicle here. Seriously, Troy. What are you doing? What are you not telling me?”
He sighed again as he rubbed at his head. “I know he’s your family, but I think he’s hiding something from us. I think the council is hiding something from all of us, and I’m just trying to figure out what it is.”
I wanted to tell him he was wrong, but I couldn’t. I knew my uncle, and I still couldn’t put together why he suddenly decided to bring me here. Why the sudden need to bring me back after he was the one who helped me get away?
I always trusted my uncle and believed that he wanted what was best for me, but I couldn’t even deny that his actions lately had been weird. I had to trust my gut that something was wrong and Troy was right. Something was going on, and the Council knew something.
I frowned. “And you felt you should hide this from me rather than tell me? What happened to us being a team here?”
He frowned. “I just… I didn’t want to put more on your plate, Elize, with everything else that is going on. And Martin is your family. I don’t want to get in the middle of that. I know how close you two are.”
I pulled a hand up, stopping him. “Troy, I agreed to help this pack, and that means you need to trust me. If you think there is more going on, you need to tell me.”
It was weird how just weeks ago I wanted nothing to do with him, and now I wanted him to trust me. Keeping a distance was hard, but if I wanted a solution and a way out, I needed to do this. Because I still wanted out, didn’t I?
“I had Ivan following him, and it led me here, but I can’t hear anything.”
I snorted. “That’s because the rooms are soundproofed.”
“They are?”
I nodded. “Yeah, I learned that when I was younger. You’re not going to hear shit.”
His shoulders sank. “Well, then I don’t know what to do.”
I took a step closer to him. “Well, instead of trying to sneak around, why don’t we invite him in? My uncle trusts me and could get his walls down.”
A side of me hoped I was wrong and that he knew nothing. But a part of me knew something was off.
“Like?”
“I can get a family dinner arranged. His guard will be down.”
“And you’re okay doing that?”
I nodded. “You’re not the only one who wants answers.”