Chapter 85: Chapter 85

"Hendrix!" Alex shouted angrily. "You know I could blame the death of those ten wolves on you, right? You were supposed to protect every part of the forest, and you slacked with that."

"I'm sorry, my Lord, but I'll make sure I do more findings and ensure the culprit is held accountable," Hendrix replied, bowing down.

"You better do, Hendrix. You're dismissed," Alex said, dismissing him. He stood up and walked out of the study to meet Mia by the door.

"Mia, what are you doing here? Are you not meant to be resting?" he asked, approaching her.

Mia glanced at Hendrix, who was standing behind Alex. She noticed a small movement in his hands that stopped abruptly when she looked at him.

"I'm fine, Alex. I just woke up and came here when the guards told me Hendrix was here," she replied.

"Good day, my lady," Hendrix greeted Mia, bowing curtly and raising his head afterward.

"Good day, Hendrix," Mia replied, squinting her eyes at his shoes.

"My husband and I would like some private time alone, Hendrix," Mia said, taking another look at him.

"Alright, my lady," Hendrix said and made a move to walk away.

"Wait, Hendrix. Why is your hair ruffled, and why are your clothes damp?" Mia asked suspiciously.

"The dew must have fallen on me in the woods when I went earlier today," Hendrix replied, lowering his gaze.

"Alright, you may go," she said, dismissing him.

Hendrix walked a distance and was stopped by Mia again. Alex squinted in confusion at what Mia was doing.

"What cologne did you use, Hendrix? I've never seen you wear this type of cologne," Mia asked, scooping down to the ground, trailing her hands on the specks of dust on the path Hendrix walked.

"Uh, yes, it's a new cologne, my lady. It was gifted to me by one of the ladies in the pack," Hendrix replied tentatively.

"You don't have to be so tense, Hendrix. I'm not Alex who's going to eat you up," she said with a small smile and then walked back to Alex.

"Let's go back," Mia held his hands and walked towards the bedroom. She glanced again at Hendrix, who was walking at a faster pace.

"Come, Alex," she halted and walked back to him. A small amount of clay had fallen from the bottom of Hendrix's shoes to the ground. Mia examined it.

"What are you trying to do, Mia?" Alex asked in confusion.

"This clay, Alex. Hendrix wasn't coming from the woods; he's coming from somewhere else, but it's not the woods."

"That can't be possible, Mia," Alex argued.

"Take a look at this," she said, standing back up with the clay in her hand. "This isn't the woods' clay, Alex."

"The clay in the woods is not as light as this, and his smell was of a different kind. He definitely wasn't coming from the woods, and his clothes are not damp," Mia said, trying to figure out where she had perceived the smell of Hendrix before. "I only asked why his clothes were damp to see if he'd lie."

Alex widened his eyes, nodding his he

"That means if he wasn't coming from the woods, and his clothes are not damp, he definitely was lying," Alex added.

"But that gives us no clue about what happened in the woods, Mia," Alex said again.

"No, Alex. Hendrix is suspicious. I just can't pinpoint how or where. But for every perfect crime that happened, there always has to be a leftover mistake," Mia said, still in a daze.

"If Hendrix wasn't protecting the woods when the incident happened, then where was he? Why did you appear at the scene with the clay of another place on him? There's something about the way he smells," Mia said.

"If we go back to the details of the previous killings, I'm very sure we can find evidence or any trail to what I've seen here," she added again.

Her stomach gurgled at that moment, distracting her from her thoughts.

"Come, let's get you food to eat," Alex said, holding her hands to the dining table. The table was soon set, and Mia settled down to eat, temporarily forgetting about Hendrix's thoughts.

Alex was disoriented the more he thought about Mia's suspicions, but her claims seemed to be right. Hendrix was behaving awkwardly this morning, and for what reason would he lie to him, except if he was hiding things. "I'll have to keep a watch on him, no matter how little it may be. He's still a suspect," he said, taking a glass of water.

"Let's get you to sleep, you need to rest, Mia," Alex said as soon as they both finished eating.

"It's not good to sleep so soon after eating, besides I just woke up. Let's go check the details of the previous murders and see if we can find anything," she said.

"That seems like a good idea," Alex replied and stood up from the table, back to the study. Mia walked after him, still trying to figure out what Hendrix's smell was.

"Why do you keep sniffing your nose, Mia? What's the matter?" Alex asked.

"I'm just trying to remember the smell of Hendrix," she replied.