Kael’s POV
Sophie Morrison.
I stared at the photograph on my screen.
Blonde hair. Bright smile. The same woman from the alley.
The same woman I’d saved outside The Pit.
My blood ran cold.
If Sophie Morrison was one of the girls...
Then the other one...
The one with the mask. The one who kept her face hidden. The one who trembled under my touch.
That could be ARIA.
I shot to my feet. My chair crashed into the wall.
Three years. Three years of nothing.
And she might have been RIGHT THERE.
I HAD touched her.
My hand burned with the memory. That brief contact. The way her arm felt under my fingers.
Wait.
Something wasn’t right.
If that woman was Aria, I would have KNOWN. The mate bond would have screamed at me. Fenrir would have gone insane.
But there had been nothing.
No scent. No wolf. No pull.
Just emptiness.
*Fenrir.* I reached for him. *That night. Are you sure you didn’t sense anything?*
*Something felt familiar.* His voice was confused. *But there was no wolf to recognize. No scent to follow.*
No wolf.
No scent.
Then who’s that human girl?
I slammed my fist against the desk. The wood cracked.
*Kael. Calm down.*
I CAN’T!
I paced the office. Back and forth. Back and forth.
Think. What did I actually KNOW?
One: Sophie Morrison worked at the same company where Aria had been employed.
Two: Sophie was at The Pit. On the same night I was there.
Three: She wasn’t alone. She was with another woman. A woman who hid her face. A woman with no scent.
Four: That woman reacted to my touch like she knew me.
The evidence was thin. But it was more than I’d had in three years.
I grabbed my jacket. Headed for the door.
The Pit.
That’s where this started. That’s where I’d find answers.
---
The drive took fifteen minutes. I made it in eight.
The Pit looked different in daylight. Less intimidating. Just an ugly building in an ugly part of town.
I parked. Got out. Headed for the back entrance.
The guard’s eyes went wide when he saw me.
"A-Alpha Blood Crown! We didn’t expectâ€""
I pushed past him.
The interior was quiet. No crowds. No music. No roaring fans.
I found the boss in his office.
He looked up from his desk. His expression shifted from bored to startled.
"Alpha!" He shot to his feet. "This is a surprise! I didn’t know you were coming!"
"Neither did I."
"Do you need the arena cleared? I can have a fight ready inâ€""
"I’m not here to fight."
He blinked. "You’re... not?"
"No."
Silence.
"Then why ARE you here?"
I stepped closer. Let him feel my presence.
"The night I fought Viktor. There were two women. Near the back exit. They left early."
His brow furrowed. "Two women?"
"One blonde. One with dark hair. Both wearing masks." I watched his face. "Do you remember them?"
He thought for a moment. Then his eyes lit up.
"Oh! Yes! They stood out because they were clearly humans. Or at least, one of them was. The blonde."
"What about the other one?"
"The dark-haired one?" He shrugged. "Couldn’t tell. She kept her head down the whole time."
"Did they register?"
"Everyone registers." He turned to his computer. Started typing. "Name and contact. For security."
I waited.
He scrolled. Clicked. Scrolled again.
"Here we go. That night. All attendees."
A list appeared. Names. Phone numbers. Addresses.
I leaned over his shoulder. Scanned the entries.
Chen. Davis. Erikson. Martinez. Morrison.
Morrison.
Sophie Morrison.
"That’s one of them." I pointed at the screen. "The blonde. What about the other one?"
He scrolled through the rest. Checked twice. Three times.
Then looked up at me.
"There’s no other entry, Alpha."
"What?"
"Just Sophie Morrison." He gestured at the screen. "Only one registration for their party."
I stared at the list.
One name. Just one.
The dark-haired woman hadn’t registered. Hadn’t given her name. Hadn’t left any trace.
"That’s impossible. You said everyone registers."
"They do. Usually." He shifted uncomfortably. "But sometimes, if someone comes in with a registered guest, they slip through."
Slip through.
Of course.
If she was hiding... she wouldn’t want her name in any system.
She wouldn’t want to be found.
Aria wasn’t just missing. She was HIDING.
From what? From who?
From ME?
"Security footage," I said. "Pull it up. Now."
He nodded. Typed frantically.
"Here." He turned the monitor. "Back exit. Around the time you mentioned."
Grainy footage. Black and white. Two figures hurrying toward the door.
One blonde. One dark-haired.
The dark-haired one had her face turned away. Like she knew exactly where the camera was.
"Can you enhance it?"
He tried. The image blurred. Got worse.
"Sorry, Alpha. The equipment is old."
I stared at the frozen frame.
A blurry shape. A hidden face. A ghost.
---
I left without another word.
The boss called after me. Something about future fights. I didn’t respond.
My mind was racing.
Sophie Morrison.
She was the key. The connection.
But how to find her?
She was human. Living in human territory. I couldn’t storm in and demand answers. There were treaties. Rules.
I sat in my car. Engine running. Going nowhere. I gripped the steering wheel.
Focus.
Sophie was in wolf territory. Visiting someone. That someone was probably Aria.
Which meant Aria was HERE. In my territory. Living somewhere. Working somewhere.
But where?
My thoughts stopped.
Rewound.
*Working somewhere.*
Director Black’s voice echoed in my head.
*"We’ve hired a new assistant. Exceptional qualifications."*
Yes, I had a human assistant! She....what’s her name? It’s seems that I didn’t ask about name but I don’t care. She came from human world, then maybe she knows something about Morrison Industry!
The realization hit me like lightning.
I needed to see her. NOW.
I hit the gas.
The car lurched forward. Tires screeching.