Chapter 49: Someone Who Surprised Me
Hayley’s POV:
After the party ended, the guests slowly left one by one. I returned to my room, locked the door, and sat down at the vanity to remove the heavy makeup I’d been wearing. My true, flawless face finally appeared in the mirror. I put on a face mask and was just about to go to bed when my phone rang unexpectedly. It was from an unknown number. I hesitated for a moment but decided to answer it.
“Hello, Hayley. Do you remember me?”
The voice was familiar, and I instantly recognized who it was. Excited, I asked, “Paul? Is that you?”
“Yeah, it’s me. I just got back to the country and was thinking about you, so I called. How have you been? Got time to meet up?”
I explained, “I’m living in Midnight Pack right now, not the Shadow Pack at Phoenix City.”
“You’re in Midnight Pack?” He sounded a bit surprised, then laughed and said, “What a coincidence. I’m in Midnight Pack too. How about we meet up tomorrow?”
He sent me a location, and when I checked it, I realized we were less than a half-hour’s drive apart.
“Pretty close,” I noted.
“Yeah, I’ll come pick you up tomorrow then.”
I thought about it and agreed. The next day, which was a weekend, I gave George a quick excuse before heading out, making sure not to bring a driver. Once I was sure no one I knew was around, I let Hera take over, running swiftly to the spot Paul had sent me.
As soon as I arrived, a black Maybach pulled up smoothly in front of me. The window rolled down, revealing Paul’s face.
“Get in, Hayley.”
I was surprised—my face was still heavily disguised with makeup, and yet Paul recognized me right away. He drove me to his place, a luxurious villa in the suburbs.
“Hayley, what have you been up to lately? These past few years as Alpha must’ve been busy for you. I hear you even went back to school. Isn’t that a bit of a waste of your talents?” he teased.
“Paul, stop teasing me. I didn’t have much of a choice.” I chuckled, but then got straight to the point. “Paul, you didn’t call me here just for a casual catch-up, did you?”
He laughed, clearly impressed. “You really are an Alpha—nothing gets past you.”
“Come on, Paul, we’re close. You don’t have to be so formal with me. If you need my help, just say it,” I said directly.
He smiled, finally getting to the heart of the matter. “Alright, since you asked, I do need your help. I know that when it comes to languages, there’s no one in the world better than you.”
“So, I need you to translate a document in French into both English and Spanish for me.”
“You know, my current job might seem like I’m just a piano teacher and a regular guy, but I work for the higher-ups in the agency.”
“Our operations require the highest level of confidentiality, so you must be absolutely discreet. You can’t share anything about this—what’s in the document or even that you’re working on it.”
He paused, then added, “And for your help, I’m offering you one million dollars. Once it’s done, the money will be wired to your account.”
Hearing the sum, I was definitely tempted. Even though I’m the Alpha of the Shadow Pack, my family’s wealth isn’t something I can just spend freely. Over the years, I’ve put a lot of my earnings into charity work, so right now, I could use the extra funds.
But as Paul mentioned, this wasn’t just an ordinary translation job. The level of secrecy required went beyond the contents of the document. It meant I couldn’t breathe a word about this project to anyone. That was our mutual understanding.
“Alright, I’ll do it. When do we start?” I decided after thinking it over.
He replied, “I’ll give you the hard copy later today. Will three days be enough?”
“That works.”
“Great. Wait here for a bit,” he said, standing up and heading upstairs, leaving me alone in the living room! Just then, the doorbell rang.
Seeing as Paul hadn’t come back down yet, I went to open the door. But as soon as I did, I was shocked by the sight of someone I never expected to see…
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