The Alpha's Fated Outcast: Rise Of The Moonsinger. Chapter 404 404: Mate bonds we don't talk about II

Lenny

After he left the room, Ramsey leaned back in his chair with a sigh. "How are things holding up on your end?"

"Sa old challenges, different week," I replied. "But I wanted to ask you for an update on the situation there. The attacks you ntioned are they still ongoing?"

Ramsey ran his hand through his hair, looking more tired than I'd seen him in months. "All thanks to Lyla and her wolf, we've been able to thwart three separate attacks this week alone. Nyris keeps detecting these creatures before they can get close enough to cause

"That's good news, isn't it?"

"Yes and no. I'm worried about how much energy these spiritual communications are taking out of Lyla. Every ti Nyris needs to pass along a warning, it seems to drain her more than the last ti."

"Can't she control it?" I asked, concerned for Lyla's well-being, especially given her pregnancy.

"She can't. Miriam says there's nothing we can do except let the process follow its natural course. She thinks Nyris is onto sothing important, sothing that requires this level of spiritual connection to detect."

"Any theories about what these creatures are?"

"That's where things get really interesting," Ramsey said, his expression growing grim. "Delia, the historian we've been working with who claims to be human but isn't…"

"She's not human?" I asked with surprise.

"Yes," Ramsey nodded. "She's part siren and part lycan. She lied about her identity, but she also confessed everything we found out in your investigation."

"Which of the things specifically?" I asked.

"She admitted that her entire education was sponsored by the parents of the boys who assaulted her years ago. The sa boys who those large dogs mysteriously attacked which she reported to the police."

I felt my eyebrows shoot up in surprise. "That's incredibly strange. Why would the families of her attackers pay for her education?"

Ramsey nodded grimly. "Exactly what we thought. It makes no sense unless there's a much larger conspiracy at play here. We've been keeping a close watch on her these past few days, but she's been completely normal. Almost too normal, if that makes sense."

"You think she's up to sothing?"

"I think she's been up to sothing for a very long ti, and we're only now starting to see the edges of it. The timing of her appearance, her extensive knowledge about our world, especially since she has never lived amongst our kind. The way she's positioned herself at the centre of this investigation—none of it feels coincidental."

"What's the next move?"

"Continue monitoring her while trying to identify these attacking creatures. Kyren thinks they're connected to sothing much older and more dangerous than random predators."

We sat in silence for a while, both of us staring at our screens without saying a word. Then I cleared my throat.

"Hey… do you know that Caius and Cassidy are dating?"

"Yes," he replied without hesitation. "Caius has always been open about his feelings for Cassidy. He actually asked my permission before asking her out."

"Oh."

Ramsey narrowed his eyes. "Why?"

"No reason," I tried to keep the emotions from my voice. "Just curious."

Ramsey gave a look that said I don't buy that, but he let it go. "Talk to you soon, Lenny, and please handle those minority pack Alphas. I don't know if it's just , but they're becoming audacious."

"On it, boss!" I nodded to him before the call ended.

I sat there for another full minute, my fingers idly tapping the conference table. Then, rising with a groan, I made my way out of the conference room.

The corridor outside was quiet, with soft rays of late-afternoon sunlight slanting through the tall windows of the office building. As I walked down the corridor toward my office, I spotted Cassidy talking with Seth near the main staircase.

I approached them, and Seth imdiately excused himself when he saw coming, nodding politely before disappearing around the corner.

"Cassidy," I said, trying to keep my voice casual despite the hamring of my heart. "Can I ask you sothing?"

"Of course," she replied, though I noticed a flicker of wariness in her eyes.

I took a deep breath, knowing that her answer would either confirm my worst fears or give hope I probably didn't deserve to have.

"Are you dating Caius?"

She hesitated for just a mont and then smiled and nodded. "Yes."

"Why?" I heard myself ask.

She stared at for a few seconds, squinting at with confusion on her face. "Why not, Lenny? Caius has always been a friend, and he was there for when I needed friendship the most. Isn't it natural that we would fall in love at so point?"

"That ans I would have ended up with a thousand won. That's not how this works," I replied.

"And yet you have baby mamas littered all over the place, Lenny. I don't think you're the right person to et when it cos to relationship matters."

"I know more about relationships to the extent when I know soone is faking it, and that's what you're doing, Cass. You don't like Caius as much as he loves you. Do you even like him at all?"

She stared at for a few seconds and inhaled deeply. "You know, my mother used to say that you don't need to like a man to get what you want. All you need is to get him to love you, and after everything I've been through, I now understand that phrase. I once devoted my life to Ramsey and see where it got ."

"Lyla is his fated mate, Cassidy, there's nothing either of us could have done."

"Yeah, yeah!" she sighed and looked up at . "Caius makes happy. He's gentle, he's kind, he listens, he's rich at least, and he's good in bed. I just need to please him enough so he can consider marrying ."

"That's what you want?"

"Yes!" she scoffed. "That's what a woman wants. All those fairytales about Prince Charming coming to save you…" She shook her head. "True love doesn't exist."

"But you know I love you, right?" I fired. "I had to suppress our bond because you wanted to be with my friend so badly, and then allowed you to lie about rejecting your mate bond with so random Lycan."

I felt her stiffen for a mont before she raised her eyes to .

"It didn't change anything, Lenny. I don't want to be with you. Even if I give in to that stupid mate bond, I am not about to be a stepmother with, what? Six children. I don't want that."