Katherine immediately brushed off her memory about Sophie, so that her face wouldn't betray her in front of the grand witch. She must not be caught lying. The punishment was too great.
"The reason for Duke Romanov's need for my services…" Katherine's words halted. She tried to find a good excuse.
"That is not his real name but only his alias," Eloise curtly said. "Not that you are allowed to speak his name since you are not close with him whatsoever."
Katherine swallowed hard and under the glower of the Witches. She needed to focus on answering without bringing doom to both her and Sophie. There was in no way that she could die right now.
Somebody needed to warn Sophie and only Katherine could do that.
She needed to survive and warn the girl of the danger of witches. Whether or not Sophie was actually intimate or close with the duke or Alpha didn't matter at all as long as she was perceived as a threat.
Katherine bowed her head low. "I did not have any idea that he was the Alpha at all. As to why I was there… it was because he was in need of someone to teach a person in their castle the trade of bookkeeping."
"Bookkeeping?" Eloise's expression didn't change.
"Yes." Katherine breathed out. This was not a lie at all.
Witch Eloise looked far from satisfied at the answer and her smile became cold. "In need of bookkeeping? I know that Leland is well-versed in all things that are needed to portray himself as human and noble. I was the one who helped him."
Similar to the friendship between her mother and Leland's mother, Eloise and Leland had such a strong and fierce bond. When their mothers introduced them together, the two immediately became close and the best of friends.
Well, it was true that Leland was initially hateful of the idea that his mother was forcing friendship between the two of them, but Eloise proved herself to be a good friend.
Someone whom he could depend on.
Everybody could see that Eloise and Leland could form a union together and become perfect mates. It was a match made in heaven and nobody could ever disagree.
Her mother and Isolde both promised and reassured Eloise that Leland and she would form a union after the Alpha conquered the human kingdoms and became the Lycan King.
The Alpha didn't actually like his mother that much, Eloise was aware of that, but that was why Eloise had her own plans once everything was settled and she usurped the Grand Witch title from her mother.
By that time, Leland would no longer be controlled by his mother, Isolde, and she, Eloise, would be the one that the Alpha adored for all her help. That was how much Eloise loved Leland.
She didn't care about her mother or Leland's mother at all.
Eloise was only lying in wait.
It was only a matter of time until she and he would become one and together.
So why was Eloise sensing that this person that Katherine was talking about was someone who would rival her? Surely, Leland did not care about his people and preferred doing things for himself.
He was the type of man who did not trust others, so why would he entrust it to someone from his pack? Was this a special woman?
The last female lycan that expressed interest in Leland was hexed by Eloise herself and she hoped that it sent enough of a message. However, it seemed like Eloise was wrong and someone needed to be eliminated again.
"It is not the Alpha himself," Katherine shook her head. "I believe that he wanted to pass on the role to someone else…"
"I see." Witch Eloise frowned. "Who is this person?"
Grand Witch Elaine cleared her throat and then narrowed her eyes at Katherine and her daughter. The Grand Witch was all too aware of how possessive and jealous her daughter could be but it was interrupting their business.
She clapped her hands to gather the attention of all of the witches. "If that is all that you have to report and there is nothing substantial that needs to be learned of then we shall proceed with our plans."
Katherine barely escaped her brush with death that night.
Or so she thought.
***
After the coven of the Witches ended on that full moon, all of them soon gathered in celebration and spent their time in merriment and delight. They were not opposed to the idea of a grand time with their fellow witches.
Katherine was smart enough to not immediately run away or attempt to go to Hastings right away. One way or another, Eloise would see her and perhaps track her down.
However, not wanting to get interrogated by Eloise, Katherine performed the art of dancing between conversations. She talked with a lot of other people and tried to stay as far away from Witch Eloise without suspicion.
Katherine could feel the glare of the woman wanting to approach her and get answers about Leland. She had never seen anyone so determined… so obsessed with one person that it frightened Katherine.
Every now and then, she would glance over her shoulder and find Eloise just behind her. Only a couple of people away from her and that was where Katherine would jump to the next group to talk.
She was running away in her own way while pretending that she was too busy to pay attention to Eloise. Before Katherine knew it, she would eventually find herself parched after all the talk.
It was rare for all the witches to gather together and so the festivities were grand. Numerous tents were set up for all of them to sleep and there was also a banquet for all of them to enjoy.
Katherine eventually darted to one of the banquet tables and was about to reach for a goblet but was beaten to it by someone else. She found herself freezing for a moment and slowly looked up.
Eloise smiled kindly at her and offered her the glass. "You must be so thirsty after all the conversation, Katherine. Some refreshments?"
The source of this c𝐨ntent is freewe(b)nov𝒆l