Chapter 32: The Threat

Olivia’s POV

​I narrowed my eyes. "What?"

​"Thirty thousand dollars," he said, completely serious.

​My eyes nearly popped out of my head. "Thirty thousand dollars?"

​"Keep your voice down!"

​"Where do you expect me to get thirty thousand dollars?" I asked, my voice laced with disbelief. "And why on earth would I give it to you?"

​Owen shrugged casually, stepping closer until his shadow completely covered me. "You are Princess Annabel now, aren’t you? Daughter-in-law to the Lucianos and wife to Alpha Lucian. Thirty thousand dollars is like loose pocket change to people like them. All you have to do is ask your rich husband."

​I stared at him, disgust and disbelief washing over me. "You must be completely out of your mind."

​"I’m not."

​"And why exactly would I give you anything?"

​Owen’s smirk vanished, replaced by a cold, threatening glare. "Because I know who you really are. I know you’re not Princess Annabel. I know you’re Olivia, the princess’s maid. And I know that if Alpha Lucian discovers his precious wife is actually a servant from an enemy pack..." He paused, a nasty smile touching his lips. "Well, I don’t think I need to explain what happens next."

​My blood ran cold. He was blackmailing me. Of all the problems I already had, apparently the Moon Goddess had looked at my life and decided I wasn’t suffering enough.

​"I don’t have that kind of money," I said through gritted teeth.

​"Then get it."

​"From where?"

​"Ask your husband."

​A humorless laugh escaped me before I could stop it. "My husband?"

​Owen nodded.

​The husband who had disappeared for two days after telling me to stay as far away from him as possible? Perfect. Maybe when Lucian returned, I could simply walk up to him and say, Hello, dear husband. Welcome home. Could you please give me thirty thousand dollars? No reason. Definitely not being blackmailed by a guard from my old pack.

​Yes. That sounded completely believable.

​"You’ve lost your mind," I said.

​Owen’s face hardened, his cold gaze burning into mine. "I am giving you until the end of tomorrow. Thirty thousand dollars by tomorrow night."

​My amusement disappeared instantly. "And if I don’t?"

​"I go straight to Alpha Lucian and tell him exactly who he married."

​My stomach twisted. "You’re betraying your own pack for money. I’ll tell Alpha Kenneth about this—"

​The moment the words left my mouth, Owen grabbed my arm in a brutal grip. "Don’t."

​His voice had changed completely, dropping into a harsh threat.

​"If you tell Alpha Kenneth about this and anything happens to me, my friends back home will expose you immediately," he interrupted with a dark smile. "If I disappear, if I’m arrested, or if anything happens to me at all, your secret gets to Lucian. So choose your next move very wisely, my fake princess."

​I searched his face, my heart pounding as I tried to figure out whether he was bluffing.

​He smiled, enjoying my silent panic, and released my arm. "Thirty thousand dollars. Tomorrow."

​"Owen," I called out as he stepped away. "How am I supposed to get that much money in one day?"

​He looked over his shoulder, his eyes gleaming in the fading evening light. "You’re the princess now. Figure it out."

​Without waiting for my response, he turned on his heel and melted into the evening shadows, leaving me standing alone in the dark alley with my blood running cold.

​Morning came, and I still hadn’t slept a single wink. I spent the entire night tossing and turning, my mind consumed by fear and anxiety. Every time I closed my eyes, Owen’s words came back to me.

​I rolled onto my back and stared at the ceiling. Where in the world was I supposed to get thirty thousand dollars? My savings were minimal, and every single penny was sitting in a small box back at the Blood Moon Pack. Even if I could somehow get someone to bring it to me, it wasn’t nearly enough.

​For a moment, I considered contacting Alpha Kenneth to tell him about the blackmail.

​Then I remembered Owen’s warning. What if he wasn’t bluffing? What if he really had told someone else about me? The moment Alpha Kenneth arrested him, my secret could reach Lucian.

​I groaned and pushed myself out of bed. "Think, Olivia. Think."

​I walked toward the window and pulled the curtain aside, staring down at the courtyard below. Maybe there was another way to contact Alpha Kenneth without Owen finding out.

​Except there was one tiny problem. I had no way of contacting Alpha Kenneth. My wolf was still silent, so I couldn’t mind-link anyone. I didn’t have Alpha Kenneth’s private phone number, and I certainly didn’t know the main landline for the Blood Moon Pack house. Great. Just great.

​Apparently, when Alpha Kenneth sent me here to pretend to be his daughter, neither of us thought it might be useful for me to have a way to contact him.

​I sighed heavily and was about to move away from the window when headlights appeared in the distance. A line of luxury black cars was driving through the gates, stopping right outside the main entrance.

​The doors opened, and Lucian stepped out.

​My stomach immediately tightened. He was back.

​He wore a sharp gray shirt with black pants. Even from this distance, there was no mistaking him. He was taller than nearly every man standing around him, looking dangerously handsome as people immediately moved toward him.

​I swallowed hard. Of course he had to come back today.

​As if sensing someone watching him, Lucian suddenly stopped. Then his head lifted, and his eyes went directly to my window.

​Shit.

​Panic flared inside me, and I quickly ducked behind the curtains. But I knew it was too late. He had definitely caught me watching him.

​I walked back over to my bed and sat down, chewing on my fingernails. It was a bad habit I only ever picked up whenever I was terrified or extremely nervous.

​"What am I going to do?" I whispered, my heart racing.

​I desperately needed that money, but even if I somehow found thirty thousand dollars, what guarantee did I have that Owen wouldn’t just come back next week asking for fifty thousand? Then a hundred thousand?

​None. Absolutely none.

​This was why paying a blackmailer was probably a terrible idea. Unfortunately, letting him tell Lucian that his wife was actually a maid pretending to be a dead princess sounded considerably worse.

​I stood up and began pacing around the room. There had to be someone I could ask.

​Gloria, the kind maid? Absolutely not.

Lady Rebecca? No. She was no longer in the mansion.

Alpha Lucas?

​I immediately pushed that thought away. I barely knew the man.

​Which left...

​I stopped walking.

​Lucian.

​"No," I shook my head immediately. "Absolutely not."

​I continued pacing, then stopped again. Who else did I have?

​I looked toward the door. The worst he could say was no. Actually, knowing Lucian, the worst he could say was probably something much more insulting than no, but that was a problem for future Olivia. Right now, I needed thirty thousand dollars.

​I took a quick bath, dried myself, and changed into a simple pink dress. It was one of Annabel’s favorite outfits, simple and elegant. I stared at myself in the mirror for a few seconds, took a deep breath, and lifted my chin.

​Princess Annabel. I needed to act like Princess Annabel. Surely a princess could ask her husband for thirty thousand dollars without looking like she was about to confess to murder.

​I left my room and climbed the two flights of stairs leading to Lucian’s private wing. By the time I reached his massive double doors, most of my courage had disappeared.

​I stood there for several seconds, took a deep breath, and knocked softly.

​No answer.

​I knocked again, a little firmer this time.

​"Come in," Lucian’s cold, heavy tone sounded from the other side.