A gentle touch on my shoulder pulled me from the depths of sleep. I opened my eyes to find Berry standing over me, already dressed in casual clothes. The bedroom was dimly lit, suggesting evening had fallen.
“Rise and shine, sleepyhead, she teased, a small smile playing on her lips. ‘Or should I say rise and dine? It’s dinner time.”
1 blinked, disoriented. “What time is it?”
“Seven thirty, Berry replied, adjusting her sleeve. “You fell asleep during your rest.”
I hadn’t meant to sleep so long. The past few days had been exhausting, the constant planning, the betrayals, the imminent operations. I sat up, rubbing my face.
*I’ll get dressed,” I said, rising from the bed. “Give me five minutes.”
As I moved to the closet to select fresh clothes, I caught Berry watching me with a mixture of amusement and fondness. Even amid chaos, she could still make me feel centered.
“Where were you today?” I asked as I buttoned a fresh shirt.
‘I went to see Isabelle,” Berry replied, sitting on the edge of the bed. “Then I had tea with the girls. Ruby joined us later.”
I raised an eyebrow, “And how was that?”
“It was… informative,” she said. “Ruby and the others are having dinner at their usual restaurant tonight. I thought it might be awkward if I joined them, so I decided we should eat separately. Besides, we have things to discuss.”
She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small USB drive, holding it between her fingers.
“What’s that?” I asked, my interest piqued.
“According to Isabelle, it contains the names of all her father’s accomplices,” Berry explained, a hint of triumph in her voice. “Every single person involved in the plot against us.”
I paused in the middle of tucking in my shirt, staring at the small device. If Isabelle was telling the truth, this could be exactly what we needed to root out the entire conspiracy.
I finished dressing and moved closer, taking the USB drive from her hand. “And how exactly did Isabelle come to possess this information?”
Berry’s expression turned serious. “She says she’s been deceiving her father all along. She prepared this as ‘insurance‘ in case he ever found out and tried to retaliate against her. She hid it in Matthew’s bag.”
I frowned, suspicious. In Matthew’s bag? How did you get it then?”
‘I sent Garth to retrieve the bag,” Berry explained. “Then I had Matthew give me the USB drive.”
My frown deepened. “You spoke to Matthew about this?”
“No,” Berry shook her head again. “I got the information from Nia.”
I considered this carefully, turning the small drive over in my palm.
“Isabelle claims she’s been working against her father this whole time,” Berry said. “She says she hid the USB drive in Matthew’s bag as insurance. If Charles ever discovered her betrayal, she could use this to protect herself.”
I raised an eyebrow, still skeptical. “Why wouldn’t she give it directly to Matthew?”
I don’t know,” Berry admitted. “She didn’t explain that part.”
1 studied the USB drive, weighing its potential value against the risk of trusting information from Isabelle. “How much do you trust fier in this?
“Not completely,” Berry said frankly. “But we can verify the information. If it matches what we already know, it could be invaluable.
I nodded slowly, “What have you done with Isabelle?”
‘I removed her silver bracelet,” Berry said. “And I’ve assigned two female servants to take care of her. She’s still not allowed to leave her room, but I wanted to make her more comfortable given her… condition.”
I raised an eyebrow at this show of leniency. “You’re being unusually accommodating to someone who helped orchestrate attacks against us
Berry’s expression hardened slightly. “Don’t misunderstand. She’s still a prisoner. I’m not being soft; I’m being practical. Her pregnancy is advanced, and I don’t want to risk harm to an innocent child.”
I moved closer, placing a hand on her shoulder. “I understand. I just want to make sure we’re not letting sympathy cloud our judgment/
“Trust me, it’s not,” Berry assured me. “I haven’t forgotten what she did. But we need to remember that she might still be reporting to her father. This could all be a ploy to gain our trust.”
“True,” I agreed, pocketing the USB drive. “Though if it is, it’s a rather elaborate one. Her father nearly succeeded with his plan.”
“Have you looked at what’s on it yet?” I asked.
Berry shook her head. “No, I wanted to leave that to you.”
I appreciated her trust in me, though I suspected analyzing the contents would take considerable time. “We’ll need an entire day to go through this properly.”
I know,” Berry agreed. “But we should stick to our original plan. We arrest the people we already know about tomorrow night, then we can deal with the rest afterward.”
“That makes sense,” I nodded. “If we wait, some of them might go into hiding.”
‘How did you convince Isabelle to hand this over?” I asked, genuinely curious.
Berry smiled faintly. “She claims she trying to break free from her father’s control.”
“And Matthew? How does he feel about this development?”
A shadow passed over Berry’s face. “He’s… not willing to give her a chance. It makes me sad, in a way.”
I sighed, understanding Matthew’s position all too well. “Can you blame him? She manipulated him, lied to him, and was part of a conspiracy against his former pack.”
“I know,” Berry conceded. She had opportunities to tell him the truth. She chose to remain silent.”
“Yes,” I suggested, “Charles couldn’t really hurt Matthew, he’s an Alpha with his own territory and allies. Matthew isn’t weak just because he prefers peace.”
I reflected on what I knew of Matthew and his wolf/“His wolf, Zephyx, hates Isabelle as much as he does. That’s rare with fated mates.”
“You think they can’t reconcile?” Berry asked.
“I’m just saying don’t jump to conclusions,” I cautioned. “But also… don’t expect too much. What’s broken between them may be beyond repair.”
Berry smiled at that, and I couldn’t quite read her expression. I slipped the USB drive into my pocket and finished buttoning my shirt.
“Shall we? I offered my arm, and together we headed to dinner.
