She was adorned in a delicate white dress.
He doubted she could have created it and destroyed it within merely a week. Certainly not. Then he recalled Grace mentioning that only one had ever been produced and removed from the catalogue. He examined it.
Sadie stood there attempting to reassemble it.
“Disregard it, Sadie,” he advised her softly. He observed her distress regarding the condition of the dress. “I am confident that once the situation is resolved, she will create your dress.”
“No, she will not,” he heard Sadie utter with a deep sigh.
“Indeed, she will,” he assured her.
“No Ryder, you fail to comprehend… this is her dress… the one she crafted for herself…” Her large blue eyes fixed on him, brimming with sorrow. “She will never create it again.”
His gaze shifted past her to the dress again, and he sighed, contemplating her attire. He recognised that the dress Sadie desired for herself was the same one she would have worn for him, the one he had insisted she create for the woman Brianna believed to be his new Mate. It was clear that Sadie wanted to don the dress she had envisioned for herself. It was no surprise she had torn up that photograph, declined to create it, and ordered them to leave. It was evident why he could sense her anguish that day.
He entered her office and insisted, from her perspective, that she permit his new Mate to don the dress that she, his true Mate, had both designed and intended to wear for her Luna Ceremony. The situation deteriorated with each passing moment. His actions did not alleviate her anguish; rather, they exacerbated it. He needed to resolve this matter promptly.
She crafted the dress, despite knowing she would never don it. Subsequently, she destroyed it, yet retained it.
The woman was subjecting herself to torment daily. He sighed while gazing at it; it was exquisite, and she would appear stunning in it.
Did she employ this method to deter herself from him? He pondered.
Luca concluded his exhaustive search of the premises without any findings, meticulously examining each room, commencing from the lower levels and progressing upwards, in pursuit of clues regarding her whereabouts.
There was nothing, not even a handwritten address book containing the phone numbers of acquaintances or social contacts.
Luca asserted, “I must search her office at the store. I have found nothing.”
“We must wait until it closes. I doubt Maria will permit us to search the office.”
“The building is equipped with an alarm. We will require Stella or another staff member to grant us access.”
“Or an alarm code,” Sadie remarked, remaining near the dress. “Luca, you will enter and charm the woman securing the premises, while you engage her in the back room. Ryder and I will proceed upstairs to investigate her office.”
Ryder turned to his younger sister, astonished by her audacious remark to Luca. She had just instructed his Beta to engage in s****l relations with the human woman.
“Not an entirely unworthy suggestion,” Luca chuckled. “However, I do not engage with humans, Sadie.”
“Why not? A girl is a girl; we possess all the same attributes.” She fixed her gaze on Luca as if to emphasise her argument.
“Sadie, you are not permitted to speak in that manner.”
Ryder observed her direct her gaze towards him before rolling her eyes. “Why can’t he make a sacrifice for the group?”
I am unequivocally convinced that the man has had numerous women and has likely engaged in this behaviour previously. What is one additional conquest to his tally?
“Sufficient.” Ryder scowled at her. “Leave, we have concluded here.”
“I would sacrifice myself for the collective.” She remarked as she passed him and exited the room.
Ryder’s eyes expanded in astonishment. What was that?
Indeed, he perceived her assertiveness in that remark, yet he questioned the whereabouts of his once-gentle sister. She was uttering phrases he had never heard from her before, and certainly did not wish to hear.
“We shall await Nolan,” Ryder remarked, rising to his feet.
“When did she acquire a vulgar vocabulary?” he enquired of Luca.
Luca remarked, “That was articulate and devoid of vulgarity, expressed in the most courteous manner I have ever encountered, given the circumstances.” He directed his gaze at Ryder. “I have experienced that, and your phrasing, ‘Luca, engage with that she-wolf until she divulges what we desire,’ was quite civil. Sadie’s words were exceedingly polite.”
Ryder could not dispute that; Luca was correct.
They departed, securing the premises, and returned to the hotel since he had not formally checked out. At this juncture, there was nothing he could do. He sat with his laptop before him, accessed the pack-house’s database remotely, and searched for the alliance contract Nathan had suggested he review. He had intended to do this at the pack, but given their non-return, this was his sole alternative.
The document indicated that the matter involved not only Brianna but also her mother, Anna. It traced back to the moment Brianna discovered her Mate, Andrew, and specified that she was never to have her pendant removed by anyone within the Pack.
