Chapter 70 Confirmation

(Alexander POV)

When I arrived at the marina, I saw Mark and Yuri in shifted wolf and bear form with Hope in the middle of them. Oliver drove as fast as he could to get here after I told him I got a call from Amanda that she was back home at Washington to prepare for the birth of my nephew and Lucian was going to the airport to fly to France. I didn't say anything to Amanda about Hope going to the marina to have lunch on their yacht. I wanted whomever invited her to think everything was going according to plan.

As soon as Mark saw me, he shifted back to human form and Yuri followed suit.

"Alpha, we got some burnt rogues at the marina. Luna Hope here has already disposed of their bodies by dumping all of them into the water." Mark looks down still surprised he now has clothes on once he shifts back.

I give Hope a hug, happy she was ok. "What happened?" My question was directed to Mark.

"The Rogue Lord sent his Gamma, a wolf named Elliot. He's a small man who shifted into this huge gray wolf. He was able to scale the building and escape."

"Come on. Let's leave. We'll discuss this when we get back home." I guide Hope to the car. She looked calm, like nothing happened.

She complained she wasn't able to have lunch so we ordered some take out to bring with us. When we got to the building, we all went to our suite to discuss what happened.

"I smell a Hemming traitor. Right now, the obvious suspect is Lucian, but why would he do something like that?" Mark talked with a mouthful of dimsum.

"It's not Lucian." Hope said, enjoying her taosi spare ribs and spring rolls. We all look at her waiting for her to tell us what she knows. "What? Why are you guys looking at me like that?"

"If it isn't Lucian, Luna, who then?" Oliver asks her.

"Lawrence. He has financial troubles. He must have made a deal with The Rogue Lord." She says nonchalantly.

"And how do you know he has money problems? He's probably the richest among us." I tell her.

"Not anymore he's not. Plus, if he can sentence Leia to death, who IS his own daughter, what makes you think he can't sell me off to The Rogue Lord?" We all stop eating. No one knew that. How in the world does she know all this? She looks at us and laughs. "Sorry, I asked Leia. She was at the Hemming Event. Remember, I smelled like a decaying corpse?"

"What else do you know? And why didn't you tell me?" I was hurt Hope didn't tell me what she knows plus I need a bit more information so I know where to start digging. Right now, I need to get Lawrence's financial statements from my accountant.

"Leia killed a business partner, Alberto Sarmiento who she said was also a drug lord. Lawrence had to pay back the money Sarmiento invested plus much much more to appease the family. To cover it up, Lawrence made a fake story about Leia having a love affair with a mob boss and that she was also a drug addict. Then, he made it appear that he covered it up to make it look like it was the truth."

"Yup, I heard about the mob boss and drug addict scandal and yes Lawrence covered it up." Mark told us. "So that's what really happened. Damn, Lawrence is one twisted sonofagun. It's all about the money for him."

"I'll do some digging to confirm all the information you got from Leia. I know some people. I just need to throw them a bone." I tell them.

"If they need favors, just throw my name. I'll help them." Hope offers.

"Very generous of you. By the way, you aren't going to the party later tonight." I tell her sternly.

"No can do, Alexander honey. They are expecting me."

"Lawrence Hemming will be there tonight. The Rogue Lord's men failed this time. If Lawrence Hemming wants to be paid, tonight is their last chance to get you because tomorrow we are leaving New York City." I argue.

"You're right, it isn't safe. I'll have my parents leave tonight for Seattle. They are better off there. I'll have Grace and Ava accompany them."

"Good idea. I'll send my mother with them."

"Then WE have to go so The Rogue Lord won't think of anything. We'll just have to keep a keen eye on Lawrence. We catch him, the High Elder can deal with him." Hope tries to explain.

"Let me try and get more information. Then I'll decide if we go. Right now, let's tell our parents of the plan to send them home. I just need to make a few phone calls first." I head to the office and open my briefcase. I have a small blackbook of numbers of people I can contact to get me the information I need.

I called the accountant first and told me to give me the status of the Hemming Group of Companies because I was thinking of investing more money. He said it was a bad idea because the Hemming Group was on the verge of bankruptcy. He had no idea how Lawrence was staying afloat because even if he sold many of his assets, it wasn't enough to cover his losses. He actually told Lawrence to file for bankruptcy and focus on their cattle business instead. It may not bring in billions, but it would keep him and his family comfortable.

The next person I called was Lawrence's former executive secretary. She was terminated after Leia disappeared. I asked her about Alberto Sarmiento. She hung up on me. I obviously hit a nerve.

I decided to call a friend of my father's who was very close to Lawrence, but had a fall out with him as well. I asked him if he knew of an Alberto Sarmiento.

"Rich family from Columbia. They're still rich. Money comes mostly from the drug trade even if they legitimate businesses."

"Do you know what happened to him?"

"He died. Don't know how though, but the family came down hard on Lawrence, like it was his fault. His daughter, the pretty one, she seemed to be entangled with this Alberto person. I don't know how or why, but Lawrence cut her off after that."

The last person I called was known to be the Godfather of the West Coast. The authorities were always following him, but could never find enough evidence to arrest him. Unfortunately, he has legitimate businesses in Seattle so it was very hard not to bump into him.

"Ulrich, the man I was meaning to call. What can I do for you?"

"I need information on a Alberto Sarmiento. You know him?"

"This is going to cost you. I heard you're married to the CEO of Stella Foundation, Hope. My family wants to meet her. In secret of course. I know she wouldn't want to be photographed with someone like me." He laughs.

"Sure. I can arrange something. Just as long as you're good to her, she won't mind."

"Good. Very good. My daughter, she's a fan. It will make her really happy to meet her. Anyway, this Alberto Sarmiento. He's dead, killed by Leia Hemming. I heard she bit off his neck. She is one sick woman. " He laughs.

"Do you know why?"

"It had something to do with a girlfriend of hers. They were drug runners for the East Coast mob. Leia, well, she started as a drug courier, but eventually started employing other people to do the running and she would collect a percentage from them. She actually had a pretty smooth enterprise going on. Anyway, a lot of these models did some running to earn enough for maintenance, you know, to keep up with appearances. But you know how it is, it's hard to get out once you're in."

"Alberto, the sick bastard, started branching out into human trafficking. One of Leia's girls caught the eye of one of Alberto's friends and was willing to pay good money to have her. When that girl found out about it, she "vanished". Alberto did all he could to Leia to get information, but he couldn't get anything from her ."

"So Alberto threw a lot of money to track down that one girl. He actually found her, but before he sold her, Leia got to him first, I mean got to his neck first." He laughs at his own joke.

"Now, the fucked up part of this story was Alberto Sarmiento had just invested $1B to the Hemming Group of Companies when that happened. Lawrence Hemming was asked to pay twice the amount or the Sarmiento's would kill him. Last I heard, Lawrence was having trouble covering his losses. A little bird even told me that his foundation was just a cover so he could embezzle the money to keep his company. If I were him, just sell the company and retire. He could still make a lot of money if he sells."

"He poured a lot of his time in building his media empire. I don't think he wants to let it all go to waste."

"Well, he is desperate and desperate men can do almost anything. Why are you asking about Alberto Sarmiento, Alexander?"

"It's about my wife." I tell him knowing he has taken a liking to Hope.

"The money she gave him for his foundation? Tell her consider it gone. Or is it more serious? Like life or death serious?" I heard him sigh. "I pledge you my help, Alexander if Lawrence Hemming plans to hurt her. My daughter, I told you, she is a fan, and because of your wife, she has become interested in helping the needy. You know how to get in touch with me if you ever need my help. That's a promise."

Confirmed.

----

(Lawrence POV)

My phone was ringing. I looked at it and saw the number of The Butler. He must be calling to send me my payment. I smiled. Finally, all my money problems are solved.

"Lawrence, the plan did not work. The daughter of Adella is still free therefore, you will not be paid." I wonder if he uses a voice changer. No one should sound as creepy as him.

"I gave you all the opportunities to capture her. I paid off the staff to leave the marina empty. I used my son's phone to get her to come there. Don't tell me she brought an army with her to the marina? How could your army not get her?" I argued with him.

"She possesses great power. Something we did not anticipate. Tonight, there is a soiree in honor of the High Elder and we know you are invited. I need you to slip an elixir in her drink to incapacitate her. After which, we will lure her to a undisclosed location."

"When you say elixir, you mean drug her in a venue full of people?! She probably knows by now I'm the one who sent her the invitation for lunch. It's like walking into a trap if I go to that party tonight." The Butler isn't thinking these things through. He doesn't care if I get caught just as long as he gets Hope.

"I see. You would rather not be paid. I completely understand." The Butler snorted.

"I deserve at least partial payment for what I have done."

"I can send Gamma and his men over right now to break your neck. I believe that would be payment enough." He laughs, but it didn't sound like a laugh, it sounded more like a wheezing sound.

"You don't have the guts to kill me."

"Look out your window Lawrence, what do you see?" I look out my window and I saw rogues peering out of the windows from the building in front of mine. Many of them. There was a sudden knock on my office door. A small man walked in with a briefcase and closed the door quietly. He just stood there like he was waiting for orders. The he smiled and I saw his black fangs and I knew this was the Gamma the Butler was talking about.

"Lawrence, have you made contact with the Gamma?"

"Ah...yes, he's here in my office as we speak."

"So, would you like to die or would you like to take your chances and slip the elixir? I will send a downpayment if you agree. Tick tock Lawrence. The Gamma has been itching to kill someone since this morning." The Butler wasn't giving me much time to decide.

"Fine, fine. I agree."

"I am wiring you the money now. Check your computer." I look at the small man and go behind my desk to open my computer. I look at my bank account and there it was... a whopping $1Billion!

"Make sure she drinks it then give me a call when she has taken it. I and my army will do the rest. Good day, Lawrence." The line goes dead and the small man places the briefcase on my table.

"There are two vials. One vial is enough to incapacitate her. The other is insurance that nothing goes wrong." He turns to leave.

"Wait. How do I know if it has affected her?" I need to know what it does to her. It may be poison. A dead Hope by my hands is not what I wanted.

"She will feel weak. Imagine the effects of wolfsbane. You will know. And Lawrence, do not fail." He bows his head and leaves. I turn to look outside my window. The rogues were gone.

If all goes well, I will again be the richest among wolves by tomorrow. I just needed to hatch a plan for Hope to drink this. I pick up one of the vials with the red elixir in it. I'll have to conceal it in red wine.

That's right, Alexander's red wine.