Pregnant With Alpha’s Genius Twins

#Chapter 156 – The Ashes of his Life

Victor flies down the highway in silence, his knuckles white as he grips the steering wheel.

He can’t even engage with his emotions right now – he just feels so desperate and betrayed. So

instead, he just drives. And drives.

The mile markers fly by before Victor even really realizes where he’s going. When he arrives, he

supposes it’s as good a place as any.

The gates slowly part before the black hummer, the Beta guards at either side saluting him. He doesn’t

respond, just drives slowly through his Beta camp.

Victor pulls into his spot by his little office cabin, not really knowing what else to do. When he turns off

the car, he rests his head back onto his seat, staring up at the ceiling of the car.

What the f**k.

His emotions start to creep back in on him then, and he grits his teeth against them. But, realizing that

he can’t avoid these thoughts forever, Victor exhales, hanging his head, and gives in.

God damnit, how could she have done this to him?

Evelyn. His Evelyn. This woman who he had trusted so completely, who had never, ever been anything

but a help to him – even when he had been so horrible to her when he had found her and the boys

again, she had always been fair.

She’d let him into her life, helped him, been so beautiful and funny and charming –

And so f*****g sexy, on the night of the Hunt, and every night they had spent together after, curled up in

her soft sheets –

And all the while, she had been betraying him. Talking to him while he was at his most vulnerable,

collecting his secrets like a little magpie, subtly influencing all of his choices.

God damnit.

Part of the problem was that he couldn’t remember which precise choices he had made according to

that advice he’d gotten from his “therapist.” What had he done that was his idea? What had been hers?

Victor pulls the release handle on the door, climbing out and slamming the door shut behind him. Then,

he walks around his office and sinks into the camping chair waiting for him there by the fire pit.

The maintenance Betas had set up a fire, stacked the wood in a neat cone over a pile of kindling. And

he bet – yes. When Victor reaches into the pocket at the side of the chair, there’s a box of matches

waiting to go.

He strikes one, throwing into the pit, and slowly the fire starts to burn. Victor’s glad of it, passively – it’s

still cold out, though the snow has melted as the world turned its face towards spring.

Still, Victor knows it’s too early in the day for a fire, but he also doesn’t really care. He stares into the

flames, considering.

What, really, had the therapist told him? He had always thought her so wise, so helpful, so clear-

headed. Was it all just an act, or had Evelyn been using that position to truly help him? Indeed, he had

felt helped…

But he didn’t know. Couldn’t parse it. How much of it, really, had played neatly into Evelyn’s hands?

How much of his life – his separation from Amelia, the downfall of his pack, the centrality of Evelyn

herself to his regaining the pack –

How much had been her nudging the pieces in the right direction, as the voice on the phone had said?

Victor sits up rigidly at that thought – wait. Who even had been the voice on the other end of the

phone?

He groans, slumping down in the chair and covering his face with his hand. In his focus on his extreme

emotional betrayal, he had forgotten some of the bigger unanswered questions in the situation.

Like who, for instance, had burned down his f*****g house? He knew, of course, that it was the person

on the other end of the phone – or at least someone connected to them.

But who would have that kind of access – both to his house to burn it and to his personal life? Who

would have known that he was in therapy. Then, who would have been clever enough to put together

the clues and figure out that Evelyn had been masquerading has his therapist?

Victor feels a growl building low in his chest as he realizes, suddenly, that he knows the answer to the

question. That there’s only one person who could have possibly have had all of that information.

“Sir?”

The voice is soft and tentative, but Victor still jumps in his chair at the sound of it.

His head snaps in the direction of the word and the growl that was growing in him makes itself known.

“You,” Victor snarls, glaring at Edgar, who stands with his hands out before him.

“Please,” Edgar says softly, “I don’t know what it is, precisely, that you’re going through – but I come in

peace.”

Victor glares at him but doesn’t rise from his chair as Edgar takes a few steps forward.

“Can I sit down?” Edgar asks quietly.

Victor blinks once, deciding, and then nods to the chairs folded up against the wall. Edgar takes one,

unfolds it, and sits across the fire from Victor, folding his hands in his lap.

“Well?” Victor asks, watching him closely.

“I don’t know what has happened, fully,” Edgar says quietly. “But I am aware that the house burned

down last night. I’m so sorry to hear that, Victor.”

Victor blinks slightly at the use of his first name instead of the title “Sir,” but doesn’t touch it, instead

leaning forward in his chair. “What are you even doing here, Edgar? You’re not one of my Betas

anymore. Your presence here – as well as your knowledge of what happened on my property tonight –

could be construed as suspicious, at best.”

Edgar nods slowly. “Yes, I understand that my timing gives you pause, but I do swear to you – it’s

completely by chance. I was here visiting some old friends,” he nods again to the barracks, “some

Rogues, actually, whom I had encouraged to join your forces. If you ask them, they’ll confirm it.”

Victor nods slowly, making a mental note to do just that. He’s not really running high on trust at the

moment. “And you came to see me because…?”

“Because I have some information that I think you’d want.” Edgar says calmly.

“You’ve been meeting with Amelia,” Victor says, watching his former Beta closely as he states the fact.

Edgar blinks, clearly surprised – obviously, he had thought it had passed Victor’s notice.

“A different system of reconnaissance reported it,” Victor explained, “and Amelia herself told me that

she’d say hello to you for me, the last time I saw her.”

Edgar nods, grimacing a bit. “I suppose that puts me at a bit of a disadvantage,” he murmurs. “It would

have been easier to deliver this information if you weren’t already suspicious that I was on her side.”

At that, he stands up and walks over to Victor, handing him a USB flash stick used for storing

information.

“As it stands, it will look likely like I’m planting evidence blaming her, and that if you take this to court

she’ll find some way to disprove it and make you look the fool. But have your data guys run it – it’s

genuine. I give you my word on that.”

Victor takes the stick, looking down at it. “And what will I find on here?”

“Audio,” Edgar says, “taping our conversations at lunch. Amelia asking me to help her get revenge on

you. Me pretending to agree to get her to tell more. Then, surveillance video that my own tail on her

sent me a few minutes ago. Video of her getting out of her car tonight on the outskirts of your property.

Carrying a can of gasoline.”

Victor stares at him. “She let them take that video?”

Edgar shakes his head. “She didn’t know. I’ve had my own private team on her for weeks. They know

her behaviors, know how to evade her detection by now.”

Victor just stares at him, not knowing what to believe.

“I’m…grateful to you,” Edgar says softly. “Despite it all – despite…” he pauses, not saying her name.

Victor pauses, looking at Edgar closely before sitting back in his chair and scowling.

“Well, she’s all yours, if you want her back,” Victor says ruefully, putting the USB in his pocket and

staring at the fire.

“What?” Edgar says, his voice quiet but appalled.

Victor says nothing, ashamed and angry and just…

He sighs, again unwilling to touch the deep emotions roiling inside of him. If he does, he knows he’ll

just lose it.

“You’re a fool,” Edgar says, his voice soft. “You have no idea what you just gave up.”

Victor snaps his head up to him, glaring, but stops short when he sees Edgar’s face.

Pity. His former Beta – former friend – feels pity for him.

Victor is speechless but Edgar just shakes his head, walking away.