(Zayden)
The feast is finally over.
Wine stains on the tables. Grease on the plates. Speeches that went on too long from men who loved the sound of their own voices. Handshakes from elders who smiled too wide and meant none of it.
Rowan stood on the dais and announced it to the whole hall. He raised his glass until the chatter died.
“In two weeks, Alpha Zayden Ashcroft will take Luna Serena of the Riverstone line. The alliance is sealed. Silver Creek is strong.”
They cheered like I’d just won us a war.
I had.
I won by getting rid of weakness. By cutting out the rot before it spread. That’s what an Alpha does. That’s what my father did to anyone who threatened the pack. He taught me that when I was ten and he made me watch a traitor get dragged to the border. “Sentiment k
