The forgotten love

The heavy wooden doors swung open with a forceful push as Kaden Wolfe stormed into the dimly lit room. His footsteps echoed against the stone floors, the sound reverberating off the walls like a drumbeat announcing his arrival. "Where is he?" Kaden's deep voice sliced through the silence, laced with a mixture of anger and dread. Ethan Stone, Elena's personal assistant, rose from his seat, his face etched with concern. "Alpha Kaden, I'm afraid your father—" "Tell me," Kaden growled, his amber eyes flickering with a primal intensity that demanded obedience. Ethan swallowed hard, his gaze momentarily dropping to the floor before meeting Kaden's unwavering stare. "He was found in the woods this morning, barely clinging to life. The pack healers tried everything they could, but..." His voice trailed off, leaving the rest unspoken. Kaden's fists clenched at his sides, his knuckles whitening from the sheer force of his grip. "Who did this?" he snarled, his eyes narrowing to dangerous slits. "We don't know," Ethan replied, his voice quivering slightly. "But there are rumours... whispers of treachery within the pack." A deafening silence fell over the room, broken only by the sound of Kaden's ragged breaths. His jaw tightened, a muscle twitching in his cheek as he struggled to maintain his composure. "Gather the pack," he commanded, his voice low and menacing. "I want answers, and I want them now." Kaden paced the length of the room like a caged wolf, his muscles coiled with barely restrained tension. The mere thought of someone betraying his father, the former Alpha, ignited a rage within him that threatened to consume every fibre of his being. It wasn't long before the sound of shuffling feet and hushed murmurs drifted in from the hallway, signalling the arrival of the pack members. One by one, they filed into the room, their expressions ranging from concern to outright fear. Among them was Elena Blackwood, her once-vibrant eyes now dull and downcast. Kaden's gaze locked onto her, and for a fleeting moment, he felt a pang of something he couldn't quite identify – a mixture of longing and resentment that twisted in his gut. "Silence," Kaden bellowed, his voice cutting through the din like a knife. The room fell deathly quiet, every eye trained on him, waiting with bated breath. "My father, your Alpha, has been brutally attacked," he began, his tone laced with barely contained fury. "And someone in this room knows exactly what happened." His piercing gaze swept over the gathered pack members, daring them to speak up, to confess their treachery. Elena shifted uncomfortably, her hands instinctively cradling her swollen belly – a constant reminder of the mate bond that tied her to Kaden, a bond he had fought against for so long. "Alpha," she spoke up, her voice trembling slightly. "I swear on my life, I had nothing to do with this." Kaden's eyes narrowed as he regarded her, his expression unreadable. A heavy silence hung in the air, charged with tension and unspoken accusations. "We'll see about that," he growled, his voice low and menacing. "No one leaves until I get to the bottom of this. The traitor among us will be found, and they will pay with their life." A collective shudder rippled through the pack, their fears laid bare by the weight of Kaden's words. As for Elena, she could only watch helplessly, her heart sinking as she realised her nightmare was just beginning.