When morning came, the air had turned cold—keen. There was a mountain wind, and it carried the scent of snow and chaos. Silverpine's compound, filled earlier by visiting envoys, buzzed now with another type of energy.
They were preparing to wage war.
Lucas stood over the map of the old territory. Ink covered the map, marking areas of rogue activity, trade routes, and vulnerabilities in defenses. Cade worked alongside him, inserting pins as Mia stood against the table, observing.
We don't know where the outlaw group is hiding as yet, grumbled Cade.
"They've made it to Glenshadow and Redwater borders, always along trade routes," said Lucas.
"They are targeting resources—supply chains."
Mia's eyes clenched. "Or they are tempting. Tempting pack warriors from their homes."
She looked at Cade. "They are going to make a full invasion?"
"No," Mia replied.
"They are planning something worse, I think."
She pointed to land south of Silverpine. "This forest here—it's neutral, not claimed officially."
Lucas nodded. "A dead zone. Too wild to be claimed by a pack, too sacred to reap."
"Exactly," Mia said.
"It's perfect to stage something. Hidden. Secured. And within range to hit."
Cade sighed. "We need to recon. Quietly."
Lucas gave one swift nod.
"I'll
She stepped closer.
"So will I."
Both the men gazed at her.
"Mia—" started Lucas.
"No," she said firmly. "I'm not going to sit around and wait again. If they are after me, I want to know when they are coming."
Lucas hesitated
Cade smiled.
"She's correct."
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
They made their way past the southern border that day, accompanied by two scouts. The forest was thick, the old trees gnarled, their roots curled around moss-covered stone as though they were claws.
It was bizarrely quiet.
Not a single bird. No wind. Just the echo of their wary footsteps and the buzz of tension between them.
Lucas moved as soundless as a shadow, all his senses on high. Mia trailed behind, observing, her wolf straining beneath the surface, humming with anticipation.
Cade took them along an overgrown trail, then halted at the edge of a ridge overlooking a hollow clearing.
He knelt, raised his hand.
They froze.
Beneath, the hollow of the tree contained a small camp.
Campfires.
Tents.
Crates.
And wolves.
At least twenty of them__unranked, unmarked, yet all of them armed. One sported a Blackridge crest on his shoulder. Another had scar tissue along his jaw.
They're stockpiling, she whispered.
Lucas's eyes grew cold. "This is no rogue camp. This is a camp of mercenaries."
"Damn it," Cade muttered.
"They're building an army."
Mia's wolf stirred.
She came closer, eyes squinting at a figure standing at the center of camp—a figure that was tall and cloaked in black, standing confidently.
"That's not a stray," she said.
Lucas's voice dropped to a growl.
"That's Viktor Blackridge."
Cade braced himself. "I thought he was banished."
"Looks like he's back."
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Viktor Blackridge.
Having been the second-born son of the Blackridge Alpha, banished for attempting to overthrow his brother, notorious for gathering deserters and exiled wolves to build something darker than a pack—a rebellion.
A cult of power.
And he now stood on neutral territory, marshaling an army just beyond the reach of Silverpine.
She gazed down at him, heart racing. "He's going to use the summit. Force the confrontation. Split the alliance from within."
Lucas's expression turned to steel. "Not if we tear this down first."
"We can't take that many wolves alone," Cade said. "We need to get going. Now."
Lucas turned. "Fall back. Quietly."
They departed through the forest, covering their tracks as best they could.
But before they vanished altogether, Mia glanced back—and caught sight of Viktor looking up.
Straight at her.
As though he knew.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
It was dark when they arrived back at Silverpine. Mia washed off the forest from her body but could not wash from her mind the image of Viktor's eyes—piercing, hollow, merciless.
At the lodge, the pack council stayed behind.
Lucas stood alongside them, Mia at his side.
"We found them," he told us. "Blackridge is mobilizing an army within the neutral zone. They've joined forces with rogues."
Shouts filled the room__admonitions, anxieties going through them.
It was Mia who shut them up, though.!
She stepped closer, voice firm but controlled. "We don't have time for politics any longer. We can't afford to wait. We can't afford to divide. So make the decision now—stand with us, or step back."
Her words were quiet.
They descended upon us like thunder.
Lucas looked at her, his pride smoldering beneath the tension that filled his eyes.
And the elders said nothing for the first time since the Banquet of the Moon.
Because they recognized.
It was no longer getting closer. It had started already.