They Buried Me in the Desert. I Built Weapons for the Crown Chapter 03

They Buried Me in the Desert. I Built Weapons for the Crown Chapter 03

By the time I got back to Sable Ridge, the conference room was already packed.

Gideon came in first, his expression grim, with Octavia close behind, her face just as cold.

Seraphine followed with red-rimmed eyes, weakly holding onto her father, Eamon Ashborne.

The four of them sat together in a neat row, stiff-backed and composed.

Harlan sat at the head of the table. A stack of bank statements and copies of invoices lay in front of him.

The moment Eamon saw me, he slammed a hand on the table and pointed straight at me.

“Iona, all these years, you’ve been selling core data from a series of weapons systems to rogue forces behind the Crown’s back!”

“Ashborne Pack may have cast you out, but we can’t stand by and watch you betray the Crown!”

Octavia looked devastated.

“Iona, I’m so disappointed in you. You may hate this family, but that doesn’t excuse betraying the Crown.”

Gideon spoke coldly.

“We’ve already submitted the evidence to Crown Security Directorate and Federal Scientific Integrity Office.”

“Look at your computer. Those transfer records and invoices speak for themselves.”

I frowned at Harlan.

He sighed and motioned for a technician to open my work computer.

Several large transfers appeared on the screen alongside matching fraudulent procurement invoices.

The dates, amounts, and recipient accounts were all there, and every transaction led back to a shell company in rogue territory.

“That data isn’t mine,” I said calmly.

Harlan’s expression remained grim.

“Iona, these files were recovered from your local hard drive.”

“Protocol requires that you be temporarily suspended pending the investigation.”

“Fine. I’ll cooperate.” I glanced at the four of them across the table and suddenly smiled. “But are you sure this evidence will hold up under scrutiny?”

I looked at my Beta, who also served as my research assistant.

He kept his head down, sweat beading across his forehead.

“Evan,” I said, “you stayed here until after midnight yesterday. Were you busy ‘organizing’ these files for me?”

His whole body jerked, and his head snapped up, but his trembling lips couldn’t form a word.

Gideon’s gaze sharpened as he cut me off.

“Iona, stop trying to deflect.”

“The evidence is right there. You should be thinking about what you’re going to tell the investigators.”

I had no interest in arguing with them anymore, so I turned to Harlan.

“Harlan, I’ll cooperate fully with the investigation.”

“But I need to undergo surgery. I can come back for questioning as soon as I’m out.”

Harlan hesitated, then nodded.

I turned and walked out of the conference room. Behind me came Gideon’s low, mocking voice.

“You can run for now, but not forever。”

I didn’t look back.

I was flying to Glassmere Medical City, where a Crown healer would perform my surgery.

I headed for the airport by car.

Without warning, a black SUV swerved in from the side.

The attack had clearly been planned, and they forced our vehicle to a stop within moments.

The door was yanked open.

Two masked werewolf hunters dragged me out without giving me a chance to react.

They moved fast, injecting me with a shifting suppressant before pulling a silver-colored hood over my head and hauling me roughly into another vehicle.

My wolf, already surging toward the surface, went dead silent inside me.

The engine roared in my ears, and my struggling triggered a coughing fit I couldn’t stop.

I had no idea how much time passed before the vehicle finally stopped.

Someone shoved me forward.

Then the deafening chop of rotor blades filled my ears. It was a helicopter.

I was pushed into the cabin, and the hood was ripped from my head.

Gideon sat across from me in the cramped cabin.