CHAPTER 20 : THE HIDDEN ENEMY
1238 Words
Night pressed down on Silver Crest territory, thick and unyielding under a heavy stretch of clouds.
Wind tore through the forest, rattling the trees while thunder crawled along the backs of the mountains. Torches lined the borders, their flames straining to stay alive as patrol wolves moved slowly, every sense stretched thin.
Something was off.
Every wolf in Silver Crest felt it.
Attacks kept coming, each one braver than the last. Tension built up in the pack until it felt like the air itself might snap.
And out there, somewhere past the borders—
Enemies waited.
Deep in the eastern woods, far from any patrols, a single figure slipped through the trees, carried by shadow and silence.
He was careful. Always watching.
The hooded wolf paused beside an old stone ruin, half-choked by vines and darkness. A place belonging to some dead pack long ago.
Now, it had another use: secrets.
He scanned the woods, then slipped inside.
Wolves were waiting in the gloom. None wore Silver Crest colors.
Rogues.
In the center stood an Alpha—huge, scarred, radiating something dangerous.
Darius.
Moonlight poured through the broken ceiling, lighting up every ugly scar etched across the Alpha’s face. His eyes, cold and black, found the hooded wolf.
“You’re late.”
The wolf dipped his head. “Guards everywhere tonight.”
Darius moved closer, looming. “And?”
A heartbeat’s hesitation. A hand pushed back the hood.
Damien. Kael’s Beta.
The rogues traded knowing smiles.
Darius looked delighted with himself. “Silver Crest’s Beta sneaking around in the dark to meet his enemies.”
Damien’s face never changed. “I want information. That’s all.”
Darius gave a quiet, mean laugh. “You betrayed your Alpha just by being here.”
Damien didn’t bite. His eyes just got harder. “You promised discretion.”
“Of course,” Darius said, grinning as if it was all a joke.
He circled Damien, all predator.
“So. The rumors are true?”
Damien stood there, silent for several long seconds.
Then: “Yes.”
Nervous energy rippled through the rogues. Even they weren’t sure they wanted that prophecy to be real.
Darius’ eyes glittered. “The Queen.”
Damien’s jaw clenched at the word. “She hasn’t woken fully.”
“Yet,” Darius said. “That word matters.”
Damien pulled a folded map from his coat and set it on the crumbling table.
“She’s still inside Silver Crest,” he said.
Darius closed the gap in an instant. The rogues clustered around.
Damien pointed to the north side of the map. “Kael beefed up security at the western borders after the last attack.” His finger drifted lower. “But there’s a weakness by the river crossing.”
Darius studied the map. “You’re sure?”
“Yes.”
“And Kael—he doesn’t suspect?”
That question dropped like a stone between them.
Damien’s face shifted. Not guilt, exactly. Something colder.
“He trusts me.”
Darius smirked. “Then your Alpha’s an idiot.”
Damien’s stare could’ve frozen blood. “Careful what you say.”
Darius just laughed. “You still defend him, even while selling him out?”
Damien said nothing. But it was all over his face—something in him still rebelled, still hated what he was doing. Just not enough to stop.
Rain started pounding outside, finding every crack in the stone. The rogues slunk deeper into the ruins.
Darius folded the map slowly. “You’ve done well.”
Damien crossed his arms, voice low. “I need your word.”
Darius looked pleased with himself again. “That depends.”
“No unnecessary bloodshed. That was the deal. You wanted the prophecy confirmed.”
“I did,” Darius said, grinning. “But you’re begging the wrong Alpha for mercy.”
Damien’s expression darkened, shadows cutting deeper under his eyes.
“You promised—”
“I promised nothing.”
Power rolled out from Darius, thickening the air until every wolf went silent.
He leaned in so close Damien had to look up. “She threatens us all. Any Alpha with sense knows it. If your little Queen wakes up, the world changes.”
Damien didn’t flinch. “Then do it. Kill her fast.”
That statement drew looks, even from the cutthroats in the shadows.
Darius studied Damien. “You don’t sound convinced.”
For the first time, cracks showed in Damien’s mask. Pain, quick and raw—then gone.
“She’s dangerous,” he said.
“But innocent?”
Damien looked away.
Darius’ grin cut wider. “Interesting.”
He faced his rogues. “Prepare the hunters.”
That command spread pure excitement through the wolves—growls, shifting forms, weapons ready, the bloodlust almost a smell.
Damien’s hands curled tight. “You’re going tonight?”
“Yes.”
“That wasn’t our bargain.”
Darius was already losing interest. “Once Kael’s mate woke, bargains stopped mattering.”
Mate.
The word landed harder than a blow. Damien’s jaw worked, struggling against something he couldn’t quite hide. Even he knew it—Kael loved her, whether he could admit it or not.
Darius clocked the reaction in a second. “You pity him.”
“No.”
“Liar.” Darius’ tone went dark. “You know what we’ll do to her once she’s ours.”
Damien didn’t answer. He already knew the bloody truth of it.
Kael would tear the world down stone by stone to get her back. And wolves everywhere would pay the price.
But maybe… Maybe that was better than letting the prophecy wake.
Darius seized Damien’s shoulder, grip bruising. “If you lied…”
His eyes flashed, all threat. “I’ll flay every wolf in Silver Crest.”
Damien yanked free. “You’ll get your chance.”
“Oh, I know,” Darius said, all teeth.
Thunder crashed overhead.
The Alpha barked to his rogues, “Go!”
They snatched up weapons, melted into the storm one after another. Damien stood there, worry clawing at his chest. Something in all this felt wrong. Too fast, too wild.
Darius paused on his way out. “One last thing.”
Damien looked up warily.
Darius’ grin twisted. “When Kael learns you betrayed him… whose side do you think your beloved Queen will be on?”
Damien tried to brace for it, but the words hit home.
Before he could answer, Darius was gone into the rain and thunder.
Now Damien stood alone in the ruins, thunder shaking the walls while rain hammered the world apart.
He stared out into the empty, black woods.
And for the first time since meeting the enemy Alphas, he felt real fear wriggle inside him.
Because maybe… maybe he hadn’t just betrayed Kael tonight.
Maybe he’d doomed them all.
—
Miles away, back on Silver Crest land—
Liana jerked awake, breath locked tight in her chest.
The mate bond sizzled inside her, sharp and painful—not comfort, not warmth. Danger.
Her wolf took over, urgent.
Run.
She sat up in bed, heart out of control, and outside her window wolves howled—warning calls, fear spreading fast over the pack grounds.
Without warning, a horn sounded from the northern border.
Once. Twice. Three times.
Intruders.
Liana’s blood went to ice.
Out there, somewhere past the torches and trees—
The hunt had already started.
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