Chapter 3 A Wild Goose Chase

Peter didn't look back as he ran. He had been too slow in slipping away. While he had spent time trying to be quiet, he didn't anticipate the possibility of Embry and her subordinate concluding their conversation and turning around to see him. Luckily, he was already at the end of that passage by the time she saw him. He looked back to see if she was following up but when he didn't see anything, he slowed down a bit to do a maneuver around a large tree just outside the abandoned temple. He stopped to catch his breath and looked around. He was on the right track.

If Embry decided that he wasn't worth chasing after, that would be great but the thought of her deeming him unworthy enraged him a little.

"Beta, I hear movements on the east side," someone yelled from the back.

So they were actually chasing him. Peter felt elated along with the adrenaline rush. He picked up his pace as he heard leaves and branches rustle not too far from him. He knew that Embry was fast but he was faster.

Embry gritted her teeth as she ran, using the shortest routes possible. How the hell did a rebel manage to open the blocked wall that even dynamites couldn't blow open?

'Beta, do we chase?' she heard Gul through the mindlink. As she sighted the figure running, she replied with a clear instruction, 'Don't. I'll get him myself.'

Embry didn't need to stop in order to catch her breath. She could go five long minutes while holding her breath. This was a child's play compared to what she usually ran. "Stop right there," she shouted again. She didn't really expect him to stop though. Who in their right mind would? The man turned but she couldn't see his face. He had a light mask on and piece of cloth tied around his nose which was smart because of the opium emission traps set by the old priestesses at the beginning of the tunnel for unsuspecting intruders.

Wait, that meant this rebel was either a frequent invader or someone with prior knowledge of the framework of the tunnels. If it was the former then she needed to tighten the security. If it was the latter, then he had someone helping him on the inside. That wasn't good at all. She had to get him. If she could catch him and find out who his accomplices were, she would finally be able to catch those thieves that gave their Alpha a headache and prove her theory that the Skywalker pack had a hand in this anarchy somehow.

Peter ran until he got to the barrier. He stopped to catch his breath before slipping past the barrier and coming up the alley. He continued running, just in case Embry was still in pursuit. While he turned to check his back, he bumped into someone.

"My lady!" A young girl shouted and he turned back to see who he had hit.

The lady in question was a young girl dressed in a long black skirt and although he couldn't tell what her complete outfit was, her silver cloak could not be missed. Definitely the daughter of some blockhead council member or wealthy businessman who cast his lot with the devil.

"How dare you hit the lady? You have no respect for royalty!" The girl who was most likely her handmaiden shouted at him.

Royalty? Is that what too much money and power made them think of themselves now?

The young lady in question didn't say anything, she just looked at him like he had five heads.

Peter felt awkward standing there for the few seconds he did and he could feel eyes on him. His pursuer was hot on his tail and it was almost funny how she hadn't caught up yet. Almost. Nothing was amusing about the fact that he had possibly ruined their chances of a successful heist with this screw up.

"I'm sorry, really sorry," he said, not sounding sorry at all. "I didn't mean to bump into your lady," he said hurriedly to the maid then turned to the lady already walking backwards. "I have to get going. Use a carriage or something next time." He ran off.

"Ugh, what an uncultured brute," the handmaiden fussed, trying to dust off imaginary dirt from the lady's clothes.

The lady Peter had bumped into kept looking in the direction he had just passed. She couldn't see his face through the odd mask he had been wearing but his eyes had been a captivating emerald green. The dark lines surrounding his eyes made him look like he had put on the dark ink ladies wore to make their eyes beautiful. His scent...dear goddess his scent had been heavenly for a street rat like him.

The air around the lady shifted as the Beta of her pack whizzed past. She scoffed. "We have more important things to think of and she has nothing better to do than to chase a man? How pathetic," she spat, swirling around with graceful movements. "Let's go, Hannah. We'll be late."

Embry found herself in the marketplace. Whoever this intruder was, he was skilled and very fast. Not just anyone could leave her in the dust like that. She should have lost him by now but for some reason his scent, although faint, was so unique and distinctive. Her eyes scanned the streets as she followed her nose but the more she got mixed up in the crowd, the more she lost track of his scent.

The sky was getting increasingly dark and the streetlights were already being turned on when she finally caught a glimpse of the bastard in his deep purple cloak. He was already at the gates. The idiot had stopped running. He probably thought he was safe now. As if she would let her only lead slip through her fingers. With a new burst of energy, she pushed through the crowd faster, a wide smirk on her face as she tackled him to the ground.

The minute she pinned his hand to his back, she knew something was wrong. His frame was smaller, he was a few inches taller from up close and most importantly, his scent was marginally different and unpleasant.

Huffing angrily, she let go of the poor male and stood up. She had been played. Ignoring the disturbed people around her, she grabbed the boy's collar with a growl of frustration. "Who gave you that cloak?"

"I don't know, Beta. Someone gave me a pouch of silver to wear his cloak and give you this message," the boy trembled, shakily handing a white cloth to her.

Her eyes widened when she saw the message.

'Too slow, sweetheart.'

He even had the audacity to scribble a badly drawn wink face! Squeezing the cloth in pure rage, she let go of the boy.

"Beta, is there something wrong?" A soldier at the gate approached her.

Slamming the note against his abdomen, she spoke. "Find out what textile shop owns this material."