"Did you arrange for Howard to be my butler?" The timing of Howard's arrival had always seemed too perfect, especially when she needed a butler the most. And ever since she knew her place was less than 1,000 yards from his estate, the suspicion had lingered at the back of her mind. Thora's sudden question made Darius pause, but then he nodded openly. "Yes." He didn't hide a thing, and that honesty took most of the anger out of Thora's voice. "Did you arrange for this villa, too?" she pressed. He nodded. "Yeah." He remembered she'd once told him it was better to come clean. "Why?" Thora's voice turned cooler. Darius's expression grew serious, his gaze locked on her eyes. "Thora, do you remember? When you asked this question two years ago, I told you to find the answer yourself." Thora frowned slightly as she recalled the memory. She remembered that two years ago, she'd asked him why he kept helping her out. Why did he break her engagement to Caleb, or offer to become her mate, using his Alpha status to shield her from all kinds of trouble? Darius slowly stood up, his tall figure casting a shadow over Thora. His face was solemn, like he was taking an oath. "Even now, my answer is the same. If you want to know why, maybe you'll have to spend your whole life finding out." His voice was soft, carrying a gentleness even he didn't notice. It was his way of confessing—he wanted to be her mate for life and hoped she'd spend her whole life figuring out his feelings. Lorcan, now awake, grumbled in Darius's mind, "Do you really have to be this indirect? Thora only cares about missions and battles—she's clueless about love. There's no way she'll get it." "Shut up!" Darius shot back through their mind-link. "That's exactly why I can't be direct—she'd punch me out and call off the bond on the spot. Besides, haven't you noticed how much better she treats me now?" Lorcan snorted. "Yeah, it's a huge difference! Instead of beating you half to death, now she does it with a straight face. Such progress." Darius ignored the stupid wolf and just waited quietly for Thora's answer. Thora thought it over, her gaze steady. "I think that's way too long. It's not efficient." Darius's eyes lit up with a smile. Yup, that's my Thora. No hope for her EQ. But seeing that she wasn't rejecting him, he decided to let it go. Even though Darius had moved some of his things in, he didn't stay the night at Thora's place. Thora didn't mind. The villa had plenty of rooms, and having him around to watch the place was convenient, especially since she'd be heading off to the military academy soon. With Darius there, Thora stopped digging into Samuel's situation for now. She planned to wait until the Wolffang team assembled and use Luke's updates to dig deeper. That night, she put out a command on Wolffang's communication channel—everyone was to meet at the Wolffang Base at 8 a.m. the next day. After returning to the country, Thora had given the team some much-needed time off. Everyone had gone home or gone wild, letting loose and enjoying themselves for once. After all, none of them knew if they'd make it back alive next time. But since they'd chosen this path, they had no complaints. It was the duty and belief of a soldier. ... The next day, Wolffang Base. After being empty for so long, the base finally buzzed with energy. When Thora arrived, everyone was already waiting in the field. Shirley was hanging upside down from the pull-up bar, her long ponytails nearly touching the ground, swaying back and forth. "Why isn't Thora here yet..." she mumbled, chewing on candy. Thora checked her watch—she wasn't late. That meant they'd all arrived early. She strode over."Ms. Green!" someone called out. Immediately, everyone jumped to their feet, all disorder vanishing as they snapped to attention. Shirley flipped down in one smooth motion and ran over. In no time, everyone lined up in a perfect row, each one staring straight at Thora. Thora glanced around and noticed someone was missing...