Chapter 8: Crossing Borders
1129 Words
Rhiannon's POV
We reached the western border at dusk.
The Silver Claws moved like shadows through the forest—twenty fighters, all hardened by survival. Marcus led the front, his scarred face set in concentration. Sera walked beside me, her fingers sparking with residual magic.
And Soren rode on my back in wolf form, small enough to pass as a pup I'd found.
No one questioned it. In the Claws, everyone had secrets.
"There," Marcus said, pointing to smoke rising in the distance. "The pack's main settlement."
My chest tightened.
We were less than ten miles from Crescent Moon territory.
Ten miles from him.
"Stay focused," I told myself.
This was business. Nothing more.
We approached the settlement cautiously. Wolves emerged from the treeline—warriors, by the look of them. Their leader stepped forward, a grizzled man with alpha authority rolling off him in waves.
"You the Silver Claws?" he asked.
"We are," I said, my voice low and steady. I wore a mask—silver, covering the upper half of my face. My hair was bound back, my body wrapped in dark leather armor. No one here would recognize me.
No one could.
"I'm Alpha Garrett of the Western Ridge Pack," he said. "We've got rogue problems. Big ones. They hit us three nights ago, killed two of my wolves."
"We'll handle it," I said. "But we need information. Numbers. Patterns. Weaknesses."
Garrett nodded, gesturing for us to follow. "We've set up a command post. Your payment is ready—half now, half when the job's done."
As we walked, I felt eyes on us. The pack wolves stared, wary and curious. The Silver Claws had a reputation. We were effective. Ruthless when needed.
And completely anonymous.
"Is it true your leader can shift into multiple forms?" one young wolf whispered to his companion.
I ignored them, focusing on Garrett's briefing.
But my mind wandered.
Crescent Moon was close.
Too close.
Would Darius know I was here? Could he sense me, even after all this time?
No. The bond was broken. Destroyed.
I was nothing to him.
"Rhia."
I blinked. Sera was looking at me, concern in her violet eyes.
"You good?" she murmured.
"Fine," I said. "Let's get to work."
We tracked the rogues for two days.
They were organized—more than typical rogue bands. They moved in coordinated strikes, hit supply lines, and vanished before reinforcements arrived.
"Someone's leading them," Marcus said, crouched beside me as we watched their camp from a ridge. "This isn't random chaos. This is strategy."
He was right.
Fifteen rogues sat around a fire below, armed and alert. At their center was a man I didn't recognize—tall, with a scar running down his face.
"That's their alpha," I said. "We take him out, the rest scatter."
"Or they go berserk," Sera countered. "Killing an alpha can make rogues desperate."
"Then we do it clean." I stood, signaling the Claws into position. "Marcus, take the left flank. Sera, wards on the perimeter—no one escapes. I'll handle the alpha."
Soren tugged at my pant leg, his small face worried. "Mama, be careful."
I crouched, cupping his face. "Always. Stay with Sera. Don't shift unless I say."
He nodded reluctantly.
I shifted.
Not into a wolf. Into my panther form—sleek, black, built for stealth. My Chimera power allowed me to meld into shadows, to move without sound.
I was a ghost.
I slipped down the ridge, my paws silent on stone. The rogues didn't notice as I circled their camp, positioning myself behind their alpha.
He was arguing with another wolf, his voice rough. "—don't care what Crescent Moon wants. We're not backing off until—"
Crescent Moon.
My blood ran cold.
"The Alpha there is weak," the scarred rogue continued. "Distracted. His Luna's useless. It's the perfect time to—"
I lunged.
My claws raked across his throat before he could finish. He collapsed, choking on blood.
Chaos erupted.
The rogues sprang to their feet, snarling. But the Silver Claws were already moving—Marcus's wolves tearing into them from the left, Sera's magic trapping two in glowing nets.
I shifted mid-leap, becoming a wolf, then a bear, tearing through the rogues with brutal efficiency.
It was over in minutes.
The survivors fled, just as predicted.
I shifted back to human, breathing hard. Blood stained my hands, my armor.
But we'd won.
"Clean sweep," Marcus said, grinning. "Nice work, boss."
I nodded, scanning the camp. My eyes fell on a map spread across a crate.
A map of pack territories.
With Crescent Moon circled in red.
My stomach dropped.
"Sera," I called. "Get over here."
She approached, following my gaze. "They were planning an attack."
"On Crescent Moon," I said quietly.
Marcus frowned. "So? That's not our contract. Let them deal with it."
He was right.
It wasn't our problem.
Crescent Moon had cast me out. Darius had destroyed me.
I owed them nothing.
But my eyes lingered on the map. On the notes scrawled in the margins.
Weak Alpha. Vulnerable borders. Strike at the full moon.
Three days from now.
"We report this to Garrett," I said, folding the map. "And then we leave."
Sera nodded, but her eyes were knowing.
She knew where I'd come from.
Knew why my hands were shaking.
"Let's move," I said, turning away.
But as we left the camp, I couldn't shake the feeling.
Crescent Moon was in danger.
And despite everything, despite the pain and betrayal—
I still cared.
Or maybe... maybe I just wanted to be the one to save them.
To show Darius Nightshade exactly what he threw away.
Let him owe me his life.
That would be a better revenge than death."
Darius's POV
The report came at midnight.
"The Silver Claws cleared out the rogue nest," Cade said, dropping a bloodstained map on my desk. "And they found this."
I studied the map, my blood turning cold.
Crescent Moon. Circled. Targeted.
"How many rogues are we talking about?" I asked.
"At least fifty. Maybe more." Cade's jaw was tight. "They're planning a coordinated strike. Three days from now."
Fifty rogues. Against our pack of two hundred.
We could handle it. But there would be casualties.
"Double the patrols," I said. "Fortify the borders. And get the Silver Claws here. I want them on the front line."
Cade hesitated. "They've already completed their contract. They might not—"
"Pay them triple. Whatever it takes." I stood, exhaustion weighing on me. "We need them."
He nodded and left.
I stood alone in my office, staring at the map.
The feeling was back. That prickling sense that something was shifting.
Something was coming.
And I had no idea what.
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