Chapter 25

Third Perspective POV

Nan was doomed.

Everything happened very quickly from there. Nan’s supervisor called security and the other supervisors. The storage manager was outraged and let everyone know it.

Nan tried to argue. “Wait! I know this looks bad, but I DID NOT put that there!”

Nadine, the woman who approached her for hire, replied. “Nan, it was found in your bag. We have a witness.”

“A witness? More like a liar! Eillen is trying to set me up.”

“Why would Eillen try to frame you? Eillen has been a very helpful and considerate employee to her fellow coworkers. You can’t make an accusation without any proof, Nan.”

The irony of that statement made Nan feel like screaming. Proof? They had no real proof that Nan stole the necklace!

She said as much too. “Proof? The only proof you have is word of mouth by someone who dislikes me and was the only one in the room after I put the necklace in the desk.”

Eillen spoke up. “Nan, how could you say that? I was only trying to be friends with you, you’re the one who decided to steal from the company.”

Nan wanted to leap across that desk and make her eat those words. She felt so stupid for leaving Eillen in her office. She had thought Eillen had more sense than pulling something like this after discovering who Lionel was.

Clearly, Nan was mistaken. Eillen was more hateful than Nan could have ever guessed. Nan gritted her teeth.

“You literally hired me! Why in the world would I jeopardize my job by stealing from a client? It makes no sense for me to do that.”

Nadine said, “But it also makes no sense that someone would frame you. What would the reason be?”

Nan laughed bitterly. “I would love to know that too. I really would.”

“But what I do know is that you are all making a big mistake. I did not take the stupid necklace. What would I even do with it?”

But Nan’s arguments had fallen on deaf ears. No one was listening to her. They were all to outraged and worried about their reputation to listen.

The storage manager did not help matters. He berated Nan. “We should have you arrested!”

Nan heard some mutter, “And blacklisted. She should never be allowed to work in this industry again.”

There were no disagreements with this. It hurt Nan. So quickly they believed that she-viper’s lies.

Nan felt alone and helpless. This was not a new feeling. It was one she had always felt.

She’d felt it the first time she realized she had no wolf. She felt it when Patti was very sick. She had felt it when her creepy old boss had attacked her and Patti.

The situation made her anxious. No one believed her. And from the looks of things, in deep trouble.

Eillen’s vindictive expression only confirmed her fears. Eillen had framed her. And she was about to get away with it.

Despair was creeping in. She dropped her face into her hands. How would she be able to get out of this mess?

This was the scene Lionel walked into.

Loud, angry voices spilled out of Nan’s office. Nan surrounded by hostile faces. Nan was slumped in defeat.

‘Absolutely not,’ Lionel thought to himself.

Lionel walked up to Nan. He pressed his hand gently onto her shoulders. Nan’s head shot up.

Her grey eyes looked sad. Lionel asked, “What’s wrong Nan? Tell me.”

His voice was soft, but commanding. Lionel ignored everyone around them trying to get his attention. They were insignificant.

In a tired voice, Nan told the whole story. Lionel’s fury grew. His eyes cut to the idiotic woman who had started it all.

Dismay flooded into her disgusting scent, and he knew she remembered him. He allowed his wolf eyes to flash at her, releasing the icy rage he felt into his own scent. Her pupils shrunk in fear.

Good. Message received then. He would make sure she remembered this next humiliation.

“Sir? I will have to ask you to leave. This is a private matter.” A woman in a professional looking suit approached him. A person in some position of authority.

Lionel stared back coldly. “Call your boss. Now.”

“Excuse me? Sir, I don’t know who you think you are, but you have no right to make demands of me.” Her voice was firm.

“I’m the man who holds all the investments in this company. You and your incompetent colleagues would not be here were it not for me. Call your boss, or I will pull all of my money in less than five minutes.”

He flashed his wolf eyes one more time at her. Signaling his alpha status. A warning.

The woman gulped. She reached for her phone. Lionel held a hand up for her to pause.

One trade secret amongst alphas was that their senses were sharper than the average wolf. Eyesight and smell being at least 10 times sharper. Allowing Lionel to spot something no one else would have been able to detect.

Lionel had a devilish idea. One that should prove Nan’s innocence and provide entertainment for him. A wolfish grin overtook his face.

Nan was fascinated. He looked so handsome, but so wicked too. She had a feeling Eillen was about to regret taunting this wolf.

“I have a solution to this problem for once and all. Simple and quick. It would allow you all to keep this fuck up of yours from your boss.”

He slowly glared at everyone in the room. Most flinched. ‘As you should,’ Nan thought.

“See, there’s this special little pollen that glows under a certain light. Luckily for you, the bride’s bouquet happens to be covered in it. I’m assuming the bride has handled both the bouquet and necklace?”

Nan’s breath caught. ‘I think I see where this is going,’ Nan thought hopefully. From the dread on Eillen’s face, so did she.

“Yes, she did.” One person replied.

“Nan, did you say you did not directly touch the necklace?”

Nan held back a grin. “The bride put it directly into the box. I never touched it, not even when I opened my bag.”

“Then the thief’s hand should be covered in it. Turn out the lights. The pollen is best seen in the dark.”

Soon the lights were out. Lionel pulled up an app for a black light. Then he shone it on the bouquet.

A pink substance glowed back. Someone gasped. Camly, he walked over to the desk and did the same with the necklace.

It too glowed pink. “Was this enough of demonstration for you?” Lionel asked the people in the room.

No one said anything. “Now, Nan, come here.” Nan obeyed.

Just as Lionel knew it would, Nan’s hands did not change. Lionel turned. He spoke to the crowd.

“To be impartial, I would like everyone in this room to show me their palms face up. If you have nothing to hide, this should not be a big problem. Only the thief’s hands will glow.”

Eillen could feel the noose tightening around her neck. But she knew the jig was up. She could only glare when Lionel got to her, and her palms lit bright pink.

Lionel said, “I think you’ve found your culprit. Nan and I have dinner plans now, so sort this out on your own.”

Then he wrapped an arm around Nan and pulled her towards the door. Only Nadine stopped them. “Nan, I’m so sorry about that. I’ll make sure you get proper apologies before the week’s end.”

Nan just nodded mutely. There was not much to say. Nan was ready to put the day behind her.

Besides, she had much better things to think about. Like Lionel, and his heroic rescue of her. She blushed, and tried to stop smiling. She failed.

The moment Nan and Lionel left; the crowd turned on Eillen. Her cheeks burned as her supervisor ripped into her. She lost all the rewards she had worked so hard for.

She had been demoted into an office runner in front of everyone. Eillen knew she was lucky not to be fired. But that did not soothe her wrath.

‘I swear, I will make Nan suffer for this,’ Eillen seethed. ‘I’ll make every moment of her life miserable.’