Rejected by the Alpha, Claimed by his Brother

My mind buzzed with thoughts. This was it. The smoking gun. The missing link. The cursed holy grail of gossip and guilt. This journal could expose everything—Rosa’s betrayals, her lover’s identity, the mutilated truths hiding in that box of fingernails.

This could finally stop the wedding. Finally get me justice. Finally give Axel and me a chance.

The realization hit me like a runaway bull. I had everything I needed. Well. Almost.

I turned to Mateo. "What now?"

He looked at me with a bland expression. "Now? Now it’s up to you and Axel. I’ve handed you the evidence. You have to decide what to do with it."

My stomach coiled. "What if they... I don’t know... get here and can’t see any of this because the veil’s still up? What if it’s just me ranting about a hidden lair full of fingernails and wedding sabotage while everyone stares at me like I’ve lost my mind?"

That could be a possibility. The moment we leave, the veil could return. Worse, Rosa’s lover might come back at night to put it back up even if Mateo helped lift it.

Mateo tilted his head, impressed. "That’s... actually a smart thought. Damn. I didn’t think of that."

I rolled my eyes. "Glad one of us is the paranoid type."

He stepped back, frowning thoughtfully. "I’ll have to be nearby then. Hide somewhere in the woods. That way, when I see you coming with the others, I can lift the veil just in time. But you’ll need to tell me when."

That froze me. I hadn’t thought that far ahead.