Bonded to My Ex's Alpha Brother (by CalebWhite) novel Chapter 78

“Hi, Erin. How are you?” Thomas’s voice came through, warm and concerned.

“I’m fine. What about you? The Alpha isn’t taking his anger out on you, is he?” I forced myself to sound normal, though I was certain he could hear the fragility in my voice.

“I’m good. I have some news for you. Good news.”

1 sat up a little straighter, a spark of curiosity breaking through my gloom. “What news?”

“The traitor who betrayed the Darkwood Pack has been caught. It was Claire, the Alpha’s personal

secretary.”

1 held my breath. “Claire?”

At the name, Amy’s head snapped up, her eyes widening with interest. She moved closer, obviously trying to hear both sides of the conversation.

“Yes,” Thomas confirmed. “She had been working with the Ridgeclaw Pack for months, leaking

sensitive information.”

A weight I hadn’t realized I’d been carrying suddenly lifted from my chest. “But… why would she do

that?”

Thomas sighed. “She said Alpha Ethan approached her, offering a million dollars for all the information on the project. He promised her name would never be revealed. So she did it for the

money.”

I shook my head, still struggling to process ‘this information. “How was she caught?”

“You know our leader, Thomas said, a note of admiration in his voice. “He’s smarter than any of us could imagine. You won’t believe it. He had me check all employees‘ bank accounts. He caught the culprit through bank transactions. He discovered that a million dollars had been transferred to Claire’s account on the day of the meeting. When he traced the transaction ID for all information, he found it was from the Ridgeclaw Pack’s bank.”

“He could have done that before humiliating me,” I said bitterly, the memory of my public disgrace

still vivid.

“I know,” Thomas agreed, his voice softening. “But he wants to make amends now. That’s the other part of my news. The Alpha asked me to tell you that you can rejoin Stone Group.”

I froze, my heart suddenly pounding violently in my ears. “What?”

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Chapter 78

“He wants you back, Erin. Your position is waiting for you.”

I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath. Four days ago, this news would have filled me with relief, even joy. Now, it brought only a hollow ache.

“I don’t want to rejoin the company, Thomas,” I said firmly. “Thank you for believing in me and telling me this now. It’s good news for me that the blame has been lifted from my head, but I don’t

want to go back there.”

“But Erin-‘

“No, I cut him off. “I can’t return to a place where no one trusted me, where I was publicly humiliated without a chance to defend myself. Please thank the Alpha for his offer, but my answer is

no.”

There was a long pause before Thomas spoke again. “I understand. I’ll tell him.”

After hanging up, Amy immediately enveloped me in a tight hug. “See? It’s over! Your name has been cleared!”

I nodded, a small, genuine smile finally breaking through my defenses. “Yes. At least I’m no longer seen as a traitor.”

“This is huge, Erin!” Amy pulled back, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “Now you can put this whole nightmare behind you.”

I laughed–the first time I had laughed in four days. The sound was rusty and unfamiliar, but it felt good. A tear slid down my cheek, but this time, it wasn’t from sorrow. It was from relief.

“So,” Amy said, her smile widening. “Now you can dress up for tonight, right?”

1 nodded, feeling lighter than I had in days. “Yes, I think I can manage that.”

Amy clapped her hands together in delight, then dove back into my closet. She eventually pulled out a soft teal dress that hugged my figure without being too revealing. She also insisted on doing my makeup, skillfully concealing the dark circles under my eyes and adding color to my pale cheeks.

By the time we were ready to leave, I looked like a completely different person from the hollow–eyed girl who had stared back at me from the mirror that morning.

“Have fun, you two,” my mother gave me a quick hug at the door. “Remember, home by nine.”

“I’ll drive tonight,” I told Amy as we walked out the door.

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Chapter 78

She laughed, dangling her car keys. “Baby, I’ve got this. Let’s go.”

“You could have invited Thomas,” Amy said as she drove, flashing me a mischievous smile.