Alpha's Rejected becomes the Lycan's Obsession
Chapter 158: Focused in one direction

Chapter 158: Focused in one direction

A faint smile curved at the corner of Eldred’s lips after Daniel’s words settled into the air. It wasn’t the kind of smile born from amusement or friendliness. No. It was something darker, measured, and calculated. The kind that cloaked sharp edges beneath a polished surface.

He spoke back, his voice low and steady, with an arrogance that crawled beneath the skin. "Gamma Daniel—or should I say ex-Gamma Daniel—it’s nice to see you again. You don’t look bad. I see His Majesty has been taking care of you." His eyes roamed over Daniel briefly. "And you also recall our laws. That’s very good of you. But... you seem to be forgetting the one that says false accusation without evidence is equally as deadly as treason. Don’t go making accusations and spewing things you know nothing about. It will get you in deep trouble."

Then, without giving Daniel a chance to respond, Eldred turned to Vanessa. The cocky glint in his eyes returned, and he gave her a slow, deliberate smile. "You know where to find me if you need me," he said to her, still smiling, before walking out of the weapon storeroom like he had just finished discussing the weather.

The tension didn’t dissolve with his departure. If anything, it only thickened.

Silence hung in the air, pressing in around them. Vanessa stood frozen for a second, her eyes trained on the closed door, her heart pounding. She hadn’t expected an audience, especially not Daniel. And the last thing she needed was anyone misunderstanding what they had walked in on.

But before she could gather her thoughts properly, Daniel turned to her.

"Hi, Nessa," he greeted, his voice calm but unreadable.

Vanessa quickly snapped out of her trance, raising a hand slightly in a subconscious gesture of protest.

"Listen, Daniel. What you heard... it’s not what you think it is." Her words tumbled out in a rush, her voice low but insistent. She was already trying to patch things up, to control whatever narrative he might have formed from what he overheard. She didn’t want this moment to ruin her, especially when she was not playing any active role or even intended for it to go that way.

Daniel didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he just watched her, his eyes quietly observing every shift in her expression. He could see the flicker of panic there, though she masked it well.

Vanessa’s hands twitched slightly as she added, "I wasn’t plotting anything with Eldred. I would never do that. He only just walked in here a few minutes ago and started giving unsolicited advice. I would never do anything that would put a question mark on my loyalty to Alpha Williams or to the wellbeing of this pack."

Daniel exhaled a long breath. He had already figured as much, but hearing her scramble to explain still weighed on him. "I’m not telling on you, Nessa," he said softly. "So you can calm down. I heard everything."

He let his words settle for a moment, allowing the tension to breathe in the silence before walking toward her, his boots tapping gently against the stone floor like a slow drumbeat. Each step was deliberate, almost calculated, as if he were weighing every thought, every memory, with each movement.

When he stopped in front of her, close enough for her to catch the faint scent of pine and steel that still clung to him from his time in Apex Dominica, his voice dropped to a lower, steadier tone.

"What I’m not so sure about though," he said, his words careful but unflinching, "is if you were actually going to take his advice."

His gaze pierced hers, firm, unwavering, almost as though he was trying to pull the truth straight from her soul.

Vanessa straightened her spine, the weight of his stare pressing down on her. Her breath caught, just for a second, but her voice didn’t falter.

"I wasn’t," she answered quickly, the denial falling from her lips before she had a chance to think twice. It was sharp, defensive, and too fast not to be questioned.

Daniel didn’t budge. His posture remained steady, his arms relaxed at his sides, but there was something immovable about the way he stood.

"Are you sure?" he asked, raising a brow.

She frowned, her features tightening in irritation, visibly annoyed now. "What do you mean, am I sure?"

Daniel studied her carefully, his expression calm but firm, his eyes never leaving hers. "Well, I know you very well, Nessa, at least, until I left for Apex Dominica," he said, his voice level but edged with quiet certainty. "If you weren’t even slightly considering what he was saying, you would have shut him up instantly. No hesitation."

He didn’t speak the words as an accusation, not with malice or suspicion, but as an honest observation, a truth drawn from memory. A reflection of the woman she used to be.

Vanessa had never been one to entertain nonsense, not even for a heartbeat. Especially when it came to Alpha Williams. Her loyalty had always burned like a wildfire. She’d never allowed idle talk or disrespect to fester in her presence. She cut through rebellion before it had a chance to form.

But now... now she’d stood there, letting Eldred talk. Listening. Not lashing out. Not shutting him down.

And that, to Daniel, was deeply unsettling.

"I did shut him up," Vanessa argued, her tone firm, almost defensive. "But he kept talking anyway."

Daniel’s head tilted slightly to the side, just enough to signal both doubt and quiet insistence. "Exactly my point," he said, his voice calm but cutting through her denial with unnerving clarity. "Nobody would be brave enough to speak another word if you really wanted them to shut up. Not even Eldred."

The weight of his words hung in the air between them.

Vanessa said nothing to that. Her mouth snapped shut, lips pressed into a thin line. She didn’t bother trying to argue further, because deep down, she knew Daniel wasn’t wrong. Without responding, she turned away, her hands returning to the task she had abandoned, the punching bag now lying limp and torn. Her fingers worked with practiced precision as she began restringing it, her movements sharper than necessary.

She focused on the bag like it was the only thing keeping her grounded, every pull and knot a way to avoid meeting his gaze. Avoid the questions she didn’t want to answer. Avoid the truth she hadn’t yet admitted to herself.

Her silence spoke volumes.

After a few moments of tense silence, Vanessa exhaled, letting out a quiet, weary breath that barely stirred the air. Her voice dropped a notch, softer now, but still guarded. "What do you want, Daniel?"

Daniel gave a small shrug, his shoulders lifting just slightly. "I just want to talk."

She didn’t look at him. Her fingers remained busy with the punching bag, looping the strap with more force than necessary.

"About what?"

"Anything," he said gently. Then, after a small pause, his tone deepened. "Everything."

He watched her carefully, his eyes tracing each of her deliberate movements. "I saw how affected you were by the announcement," he continued, his voice quiet but steady. "And I just... I wanted to be here for you. In case you needed someone to talk to."

His words weren’t heavy with pity or laced with judgment. They were honest and raw. And they hung there in the space between them, waiting.

At that, Vanessa froze again, the cords in her hands slipping slightly. She turned her head slowly to face him.

"Did Alpha really just find out about her location and the boy’s existence? Or had he known all this while?" she asked, her voice tinged with something fragile and wounded.

That question has been bothering her for a while. And to make matters worse, Eldred had poked in that exact spot, making it seem as if Williams had been playing all of them for a fool all these while.

Daniel didn’t hesitate. "He just found out. I’m very sure of that."

She studied his face, trying to find cracks in his words. "How did he find her?" she asked.

"I’m not sure how," Daniel replied, his voice honest, "but I heard Charlotte helped him."

That answer didn’t bring her comfort. If anything, it made her face darken more.

Vanessa turned back to the bag. Her shoulders drooped a little as her voice came out strained. "Why am I so unlucky? Nothing ever goes my way."

The vulnerability in her voice made Daniel take a step closer. "I don’t think you’re unlucky," he said. "Maybe you’re just not seeing other possibilities because you’re only focused in one direction."

Vanessa turned sharply to him, her expression folding into a scowl. "What do you mean by that?"

Before Daniel could open his mouth to explain, her phone vibrated loudly against the metal shelf beside her. She grabbed it quickly, frowning deeper when she saw the caller ID flash across the screen.