Patrick's eyes were filled with pride. The sight of Gloria like this made him feel that his heart was beating faster. It was as if he was looking at that Gloria from three years ago. He had never thought that he missed that Gloria so much!
At night, in Christine's office at Fittro Club, Christine had just finished briefing Patrick, when someone knocked on the door.
Patrick said, "Come in."
Leonard pushed open the door and entered. He asked, "Alpha Patrick, you want to see me?"
"I want you to find out if there's something we don't know about regarding what happened three years ago," Patrick said.
"Do you mean the thing about Gabrielle three years ago?" Leonard was surprised. He asked in disbelief, "Isn't that settled already?"
"Since when do I need your permission when I do things?" Patrick said with certain Alpha pressure.
Leonard trembled in fear. Cold sweat broke out on his forehead as he said carefully, "Alpha Patrick, it has been three years since it happened. Besides, the phone records and texts on Gabrielle's phone already spoke the truth. I just don't think there's any point in wasting time on a settled problem."
Patrick fixed his eagle-like eyes on Leonard's face with a cold chill, whispering, "It seems that you don't want me to look into it."
Leonard's face was pale. He knelt on one knee, his hand on his chest, lowered his head, and said, "Alpha Patrick, I didn't mean that. I just felt you're different now. You are the Alpha of the Black Thorn Pack. I know Miss Carter is your mate, but she shouldn't become your weakness. She is a rogue and a murderer, and she will bring shame to the Black Thorn Pack."
"Shut up!" Patrick said sternly. The coldness in his eyes froze as he looked down at Leonard, who was on one knee.
"Leonard, I chose you as my guardian when I was seven years old. From the moment I picked you, the only thing you had to do was follow my orders. Do you want to be expelled for disobeying me, your Alpha?" Patrick's words were colder than his eyes.
Leonard kept breaking out in a cold sweat since Patrick rarely said such kinds of words to him. Right now, he was extremely flustered. The Alpha's pressure coming from Patrick made him feel like the air around him was about to freeze.
Leonard's face went ghastly pale. He suddenly fell to the ground, making a loud noise. Christine also tensed up. She wanted to help Leonard, but when she saw Patrick's expression, she decided to keep silent.
Patrick's gaze fell on Leonard. After a while, Patrick waved his hand and said, "I'll forgive you this time. Leonard, remember, this should never happen again. Go and look into the thing that happened three years ago. Make sure there aren't any stones unturned."
Without the Alpha's pressure, Leonard got up from the ground. He did not dare to say anything else and left right away.
He walked out of Christine's office with a complicated expression on his face.
Although Patrick spared him, he was not happy about it at all.
He thought, 'The Black Thorn Pack depends on Alpha Patrick, but now he's going soft because of Gloria. It feels like looking at cracks in a perfectly good piece of art.'
In the office, Christine said, "Alpha Patrick, something has been bothering me."
"Yes?" Patrick leaned against the chair.
"It's about the thing that happened three years ago. You weren't interested in looking into it before, but now you've changed your mind. Why?" Christine asked.
Patrick interlocked his hands on the desk. Christine's question struck him.
He was lost in thoughts. The reason was that Gloria, who he thought had killed Gabrielle, went over to Derrick to calm the furious Derrick even after Derrick insulted her.
Gloria was so considerate. Seeing her like that, he couldn't help but ask himself, "Did Gloria really kill Gabrielle out of jealousy?"
Christine's heart welled up with anger as she looked at the silent Patrick. "It has been almost a year since she got out of the werewolf prison. Why do you want to look into it now?
"Gloria has said more than once that she was wronged. And it never occurred to you to look into this during those three years she was in prison. Why do you want to investigate it now?" Christine vented her anger.
"Alpha Patrick, you didn't look into this before, because you didn't care. You are an excellent leader. You made this decision because you knew something was wrong." Christine clenched her fists tightly. At first, she did not want to say this much, but as she thought of what Gloria had been through, she could not help but question Patrick.
"Alpha Patrick..." Christine felt that she must have lost her mind today, but she could not control the urge to blurt out. She continued, "Do you have any idea what kind of things will happen to a woman after such charges?"
Christine questioned Patrick. Yet as soon as she finished speaking, she regained her sanity, and there was nothing but a deathly pallor on her cheeks.
"Alpha Patrick, I'm sorry! I wasn't being myself. Please punish me for what I've said!" said Christine in a trembling voice.
Patrick did not interrupt Christine. He stood up and said, "Well said."
Then he left expressionlessly.
He knew Christine was right. Indeed, he had long sensed that there might be more to the story. Why didn't he look into it?
Because he did not care at that time.
The proof was right there. Why should he bother doing more digging?
Gabrielle's death meant nothing to him, and at the time, he did not realize that he had feelings for Gloria.
Later on, he still did not investigate it. That was because he dared not to.
Patrick sighed and walked out of Fittro Club. He looked up at the night sky, only to see the moon hiding behind the clouds.
Why did he change his mind now?
Because he couldn't stand by and let Gloria be insulted.
He wouldn't be able to face her if she was proven innocent. How could he ever forgive himself then?
Patrick closed his eyes in pain, and his wolf let out a painful howl.
At the same time, Leonard had already started his investigation. He returned to the storeroom, looking for something.
"What are you doing here?" Damon stood at the door and looked at Leonard.
Leonard was startled, and he turned his head at once. When he saw Damon, he heaved a sigh of relief. "It's you."
Damon frowned. At the sight of the notebook in Leonard's hand, he asked, "What's that in your hand?"
"It's just Gabrielle's address book, so?" Leonard replied.
"Why do you need it?" Damon pressed on.
"I..." Leonard was about to explain to Damon. Yet he was interrupted by someone. "Leonard, hurry up. We are waiting for you."
Leonard was stunned for a second, but he quickly reacted and said, "I'll be right there. Just a second, Hank."
Leonard was not stupid. He recognized that it was the voice of Hank, a guard of the pack. Hank interrupted his conversation with Damon on purpose.
Thinking of Damon's relationship with Gabrielle, Leonard said quickly, "Beta Damon, I've got work to do. I'm leaving now."
Damon blinked and muttered to himself in confusion, "Gabrielle's address book? Why does Leonard take it?"
Then he turned and left as well. Instead of going after Leonard, he walked towards his bedroom.