** Alaric’s POV **
The problem with being an Alpha in 2026 is that you can no longer pretend politics don’t exist. You can’t just patrol your borders, snap a few necks, and call it leadership. Now it’s all diplomacy and meetings, and not even the exciting ones where there’s the potential of a fight breaking out, or finding your fated mate whilst visiting another pack. Now they’re all virtual.
The sound of pups playing outside filters through to the meeting room, and I let it wash over me. It’s them I’m doing this for, to keep them safe, to give them a future that doesn’t involve fighting just to stay alive. I want them to live, not just survive.
A glowing screen of boxes filled with faces stares back at me from the tablet propped on my desk. Each square holds an Alpha or Beta from a p
