Chapter 175: Sleeper’s Death

Dorian pulled into the driveway in front of the mansion and exhaled a deep breath. The meeting had taken longer than expected.

Apparently, more than fifty prominent families from the Eastern and Western Territories had been evading tax payments and monthly revenues for months.

​Knowing how delicate the matter was, he had to leash his temper and sort out the whole issue with a patience he didn’t even feel.

He grabbed his phone from the dashboard and glanced at the time. Past noon. He was late. Then his gaze landed on the list of missed calls from Alyssa.

"Shit," he muttered, instantly hitting redial. His phone had been silent throughout the meeting and he hadn’t heard her call.

She answered on the first ring, and the sound of her voice instantly put him at ease.

"Dorian, where are you? Are you here yet?"

"I just returned home from the meeting, my love. I’m so sorry it took so long."

"But Dorian," she whined. "You promised. I feel so alone here without you. Pandora and Henna haven’t arrived, and you were supposed to give a speech today."

"I’m sorry, baby," Dorian chuckled. "I’ll make it up to you, I promise. I’ll be there as soon as I can, okay?"

"Okay. Ooh, I was going to tell you. I gave a speech today. Everyone applauded."

Dorian could hear the excitement in her voice, along with the loud chatter from the background. He smiled, closing his eyes to savor the sound of her laughter.

"It was so amazing," she continued happily. "Everyone cheered. I wish you had been here to see it."

"I’m so proud of you, sweetheart. I know you killed that speech."

The sound of a car pulling up behind him caught his attention. He glanced at the rear view mirror and spotted Jake, Alec, and Anthony getting down from the vehicle.

"I’ve got to go now," he continued. "I’ll be at the Academy soon with everyone else."

"Okay. Call me when you’re here, so I’ll come meet you."

"I will. I love you, sweetheart."

"I love you."

He hung up and sat there for several seconds, smiling foolishly. He stared at Alyssa’s photo splashed across his lock screen, then brought the phone to his lips and kissed it.

Pushing the door open, he stepped out just as Anthony and Alec walked past him, with Jake behind them.

Anthony took one look at him and grinned slyly. "Someone’s in a good mood. What’s the smile for? Had a talk with Alyssa?"

"Anthony, one day, I’ll have to peg that mouth of yours shut," Dorian muttered as they entered the mansion, but his tone was mild and jovial. "We’re running late already. Jake, check on your mate and my sister. Make sure they’re ready."

"Yes, Alpha," Jake nodded and hurried off.

"I’m starving," Alec muttered.

"Me too," Anthony added. "We skipped breakfast."

"If you two really have to eat, then do so now. We leave in twenty minutes," Dorian instructed.

He turned and hurried up the stairs to change into fresh clothes. He took a quick shower, brought out the navy-blue tux Alyssa had chosen for him, and changed into it. In a matter of minutes, he was done.

He stepped out of the room and hurried downstairs, intent on leaving Anthony and the rest behind. They could come on their own. He had wasted enough time and Alyssa was waiting for him.

Anthony and Alec were in the dining room, eating and arguing about something unimportant. They had changed into fresh suits, too.

"Where is Jake?" Dorian demanded.

"He left to wake Henna and Pandora," Alec answered. "Apparently, he found them asleep in Pandora’s room and didn’t want to disturb them until he was changed and ready to go."

"I’m leaving," Dorian said. "The rest of you can come later..."

"ALPHA! ALPHA, SOMETHING’S WRONG!" Jake’s voice suddenly broke through the silence, filled with terror. It was the first time Dorian had ever heard his beta sound that way.

Jake hurried down the stairs and burst through the door of the dining room.

"What’s wrong?" Dorian asked sharply. "What happened?"

"It’s Pandora and Henna!" Jake exclaimed. "Something’s wrong. They won’t wake up!"

"What do you mean they won’t wake up?" Anthony repeated, pushing his plate away and getting up.

"I mean exactly what I said!" Jake snapped. "They won’t wake up!"

A strange feeling suddenly came over Dorian. "Show me," he ordered.

All four of them hurried back up the stairs. The moment they entered Pandora’s room, Dorian hurried around the bed and pulled his sister into his arms.

"Pandora!" he called out her name in a loud voice, gently tapping her face. "Pandora, open your eyes. Can you hear me?"

She remained mute. Her eyes were shut tightly, her body limp. She was breathing, but she looked lifeless. The same thing applied to Henna, who was currently cradled in Jake’s arms.

"What could have happened?" Alec asked worriedly. Beside him, Anthony looked like he was in pain. He couldn’t tear his panicked gaze away from Pandora’s unconscious form.

Meanwhile, Dorian spotted a strange residue in the corner of Pandora’s mouth. He held her chin up, swiped at the residue with his thumb, and brought it to his nose. One sniff was enough to let him know what it was.

"Alec, get me the maids," he ordered. "All of them. Now!"

"Yes, Alpha," Alec nodded frantically and sprinted out of the room.

"Dorian, what is it? What did you find out?" Anthony asked, taking a step forward toward the bed as Dorian carefully lowered Pandora down.

"They’ve been drugged," Dorian muttered. "With Sleeper’s Death. I found the residue in the corner of Pandora’s lips. She must have realized what it was and tried to induce vomiting..."

"Wait... I don’t understand," Jake cut in, eyes wide with panic. "Sleeper’s Death? Isn’t that the potion meant to calm Lycans who have gone feral?"

"How the hell did Pandora ingest a deadly potion like that?" Anthony added, his voice tight with tension.

​"I don’t know," Dorian yelled. "But this only means one thing. We have a traitor amongst us. To normal Lycans, Sleeper’s Death has no odor and no taste. I’m only able to detect a faint odor because of Soren’s blood in me, and Pandora and Henna probably weren’t aware they took it."

He looked back at his sister and his beta’s mate. "Judging by how both of them are unconscious, I think someone drugged their food. But who? And why?"

The door slammed open, and Alec raced in, his eyes wide open. "Alpha, it’s everyone!"

"What?"

"Everyone has fallen unconscious!" Alec exclaimed. "Every single soul. The maids, the domestic servants. Even the patrolling guards. They’re all under a strange, deep slumber."

Dorian instantly connected the pieces in his mind. For everyone else to be deep in slumber, it meant the food for the entire household had been drugged.

And that also meant...

His eyes flew up suddenly to Anthony and Alec. "It was the food," he muttered. "Someone drugged the food."

Anthony and Alec realized what that meant at the same time. Before either of them could make a dash for the bathroom to induce vomiting, the effects of the potion took hold.

Anthony was the first to drop to his knees. His head swam, his eyes losing focus. The last person he thought of before falling unconscious was Pandora.

Alec fell next. He looked at Dorian with fear in his eyes, because everyone knew how powerful Sleeper’s Death was. If not cured, the victim could remain unconscious for years. It was that powerful, and it was only used for Lycans who had lost control and gone feral.

"Alpha..." Alec choked out, terror written across his face.

"I will get to the bottom of this, Alec. I swear," Dorian vowed, reaching out to hold him as he collapsed.

From where Jake sat on the bed, he looked at his twin with panic-filled eyes, then looked down at his mate in his arms. Finally, he looked at Dorian.

"Alpha, what are we going to do?"

For once, Dorian felt confused. He was torn between leaving his sister and his beta, and going to the Academy to be with his wife.

And ​he had no idea danger was already closing in on Alyssa.