Claimed by the Wrong Alphas

Slater

Tears glistened in my eyes as I stared at the picture before looking up at Jex again. "Why didn’t she come home if she survived? Why didn’t she contact anyone?’

"I don’t know," Jex shrugged helplessly. "I need to leave now, but I’ll contact you when I come out of hiding."

As he started to stand, I grabbed his arm. "Wait, I need you to help me out with something."

I pulled a pack of one of the drugs I’d recovered from the library and spent the next few seconds explaining Trisha’s routine and the hooded figure, which turned out to be a student in Ravenshore.

Jex examined the pills briefly and shook his head. "It’s a hard drug for sure, but you won’t get much from analyzing these. It’s probably just Trisha trying to maintain her expensive lifestyle. The only way you could get more information is to confront Trisha directly..."

Just as Jex was still talking, he ducked his head and whispered urgently. "You were followed."

I froze. "What?"

"I noticed a big, bulky guy has been pacing outside the café since you entered, and with the way he keeps looking inside, he might come in for you soon."

"Shit!" I groaned. "I double-checked on that, I swear."

"It’s too late to regret now or anything. Listen carefully, when I count to five, you’re going to leave and head down to the lower villages in Ravenspire. There’s a shop that operates as a front for a black market. When you go there, loudly say you want to buy Viagra, sex toys, a magazine...anything a typical boy your age would buy. Make it believable."

He leaned closer. "Slip the man a pack of one of the drugs and just say Gamma. When he analyses it, he’ll contact you. Then try to return the rest when you get back to school. Focus on following the people who sell them, not the drugs themselves. Having these in your possession can put you in real trouble."