“How do we know that you’re telling us the truth? For all we know you’re just lying to us.”

My eyes snapped to Malcolm, the trance that Luciana had had me under breaking, but I knew it was only momentary. Malcolm had a point, and despite the fact that she was mate, the situation was too serious for me to make rash decisions without being sure of the facts. And if what she was saying was indeed true, then there were many questions that I would like answered.

My eyes returned to my mate, taking in her clenched jaw and narrowed eyes, both of which were an obvious sign that she wasn’t happy with the fact that Malcolm had dared to question her. Her eyes rolled, the movement smoother than I imagined it could be, before she leaned forward, shaking her head as she lifted her elbows and rested them on the desk.

“You’ll just have to take the leap and trust me. And besides, the only way that I could possibly prove that I’m telling the truth, is by taking you to Dev, which is what I’ll be doing later anyway. He’s hostile towards us whenever we’re in human form, but he’s well adjusted to those who shift.”

Malcolm leaned back in his chair, folding his arms across his chest and allowing his leg to bounce up and down in obvious agitation. I decided that maybe this was an appropriate time for me to step in once more. I was, after all, the Alpha.

“So, if I’m understanding all of this correctly, Zee doesn’t age?”

Her head nodded up and down, her eyes moving from Malcolm to me.

“I can honestly say that he hasn’t changed one bit since he’s arrived here—at least not visibly. His hair doesn’t grow, and his muscles don’t either. He gets stronger and faster the more he trains, but even then, he doesn’t change. We’ve never even had to give him a haircut. I doubt he’s ever even shaved.”

The silence settled amongst us once more, and I allowed myself to look at Malcolm once more, wondering if he would consider me to be stepping out of line if I urged him to confide in Luciana about his suspicions regarding his relation to Zee. Deciding that it would be better if I gave more subtle hints, I refocused my attention on Luciana once more.

“Can he remember anything? From his life before he would up with the resistance? Maybe the name of his pack, or a sibling?”

She lifted her shoulders before dropping them in a shrug, leaning back in her seat in the same movement. She reached out and took a pencil off of the desk. My eyes felt drawn to her hand like a magnet, and I felt no shame in watching her twirl the object between her fingers. It was an odd thing to do in the midst of this conversation, but who was I to question her actions?

“I don’t think so. He’s never said anything that made it seem like he did. And if he’s not going to talk about it, then who am I to question him? Would you enjoy it if you were being questioned on your life before you were kidnapped by the resistance? Actually, an even better question, would you like being questioned at all?”

Her eyes narrowed as she looked at me, a frown pulling at her eyebrows, the thick arches curving dangerously. I had to admit that despite her obvious sign of irritation towards my question, and having to answer it, the expression suited her. It made her features more prominent, her eyes sparkling and becoming more green than brown. The silence between us lasted only a moment longer.

“But what I can tell you is that he’s from a family with a strong bloodline. Most probably a Beta or a Gamma, as he would have challenged me by now if he had Alpha blood in his veins. He could even have been the son of a pack warrior. He’s more loyal to me than anyone else in the pack, and his other skills go beyond anything I’ve ever witnessed someone else of our kind do.”

The sigh that she let out was audible, the pencil that she had been toying with clattering to the floor. I watched her, expecting her to bend down and pick it up, but instead she left it laying there, instead swiveling herself around in the chair.

“What do you plan on doing in retaliation to the resistance? You do have a plan, right? Obviously you do, or else you wouldn’t have gone through all the trouble of finding me.”

“My plan is to gather wolves who have extraordinary abilities that aren’t considered normal to the rest of our kind. A dream team of sorts.”

The chair squeaked as she swiveled towards me, moving much faster than I had expected her to, causing me to flinch away from her, and then having her eyes connect with mine. Her eyes seemed to be glowing with excitement, and the feeling was spreading through the air, seeping into my pores and making me feel the same.

“How big is this group of yours so far?”

“Well, if you agree to join us, then we’ll be four in total.”

Her excitement died down visibly, her shoulders dropping back into a slouch, her eyes no longer widened with excitement. I could practically see her train of thought as she comprehended what I had just told her.

I got the overwhelming feeling that I had just disappointed her with that information. She was probably expecting a much larger number than just four.

“How do you expect to attack an organization as big as the resistance with only four of us?”

“Well, the thing is, there are only four of us who exist.”

I watched the slow smile that creeped onto her face, and it was in that moment that I knew I was wrong. Terribly wrong.

“Is that what you think?”