CHAPTER THREE
920 Words
Kael wasn’t the kind of man who waited for trouble to come to him.
By the next morning, he was already hunting it down.
The sun hadn’t yet cleared the treetops when he made his way to the training grounds. The air was sharp and cool, carrying the scent of damp earth and fresh-cut grass. Young warriors were already moving in synchronized drills, their grunts and the clash of wooden blades echoing in the stillness.
As Kael stepped into view, the atmosphere shifted. Conversations faltered, backs straightened. He didn’t need to raise his voice — his presence alone commanded attention. But this morning, he wasn’t here to supervise training.
“Ronan,” he called, his tone curt.
His Beta broke away from the sparring circle and joined him without hesitation. The two men began walking the length of the field, their boots crunching over the gravel path. For a few paces, neither spoke.
“You’ve heard it,” Kael said finally.
Ronan gave a short nod. “I have. And it’s spreading faster than wildfire in a dry season.”
Kael’s jaw flexed. “Where did it start?”
“Three nights ago,” Ronan replied. “First whispered in the servants’ quarters. By morning, the patrol guards were talking about it. Now, it’s woven into every corner of the packhouse.”
Kael’s eyes narrowed. “Servants don’t invent rumors this specific. Someone planted it.”
“That’s my thinking too,” Ronan agreed. He lowered his voice, scanning the area before leaning in. “And I think I know who.”
They reached the far edge of the training yard, where a moss-covered stone wall marked the border. Beyond it, the forest stretched deep into shadow. Here, far from listening ears, Ronan continued.
“Lucien. From Crescent Fang.”
The name was enough to bring a low growl to Kael’s throat. “Lucien,” he repeated, like a curse.
Lucien had been circling Kael’s territory for months — politically, socially, always wearing that smug, calculated smile. An Alpha with a talent for making enemies disappear behind polite handshakes.
“Why him?” Kael demanded.
“Because he’s been everywhere lately. Cozying up to our allies. Sending extravagant gifts to people he has no business impressing. And last week…” Ronan hesitated. “…he was seen in our gardens. Talking to Selene.”
The words sank deep, tightening Kael’s grip on control. “When?”
“Late evening. The night before the rumor started.”
A muscle in Kael’s jaw twitched. Lucien wasn’t just planting poison in the pack — he was delivering it straight to Selene. The timing was too perfect to be coincidence.
Ronan watched him carefully. “If he’s aiming for you, Kael, he’s aiming through her. He’ll play the concerned friend, feed her doubt until—”
“Until she no longer knows what to believe,” Kael finished grimly.
By the time Kael returned to the main house, his decision was made. This wasn’t a rumor he could let fade on its own. It had to be cut out at the root.
That evening, he found Selene in her private study. She was bent over her desk, reading, a small lamp casting warm light over her hair. She didn’t look up when he entered.
“We need to talk,” he said, closing the door behind him.
Her voice was calm, but cool. “About what?”
“Lucien.”
She froze for a fraction of a second before turning her gaze to him. “What about him?”
Kael stepped closer. “I hear you’ve been speaking with him.”
She set her book down slowly, folding her hands on the desk. “He approached me in the garden. Said he’d heard there was… tension between us. He offered to listen.”
Kael’s lips thinned. “Lucien doesn’t do anything out of kindness. He’s dangerous, Selene. He’s trying to undermine us.”
Her eyes softened briefly, then hardened again. “Or maybe he’s just willing to hear me when you’re not.”
The words hit like a blade between his ribs. He took a breath, keeping his voice low but firm. “I’m listening now.”
For a long moment, neither of them moved. Selene’s gaze searched his face as though trying to see past the man she was angry with, past the Alpha who seemed always in control. He wanted her to see the man who loved her — the man who would fight anyone and anything to protect what they had.
But in her eyes, he also saw doubt.
She finally looked away. “You say he’s dangerous. I say you’re hiding things from me. Both could be true.”
Kael closed the distance between them until the desk was the only barrier. His voice dropped to a near whisper. “If you let him get between us, Selene, he wins. And once he wins, we lose more than just each other — we lose everything.”
Her lips parted as though she wanted to argue, but instead, she stood and walked past him, her shoulder brushing his lightly.
“Goodnight, Kael,” she said softly.
When the door clicked shut behind her, Kael remained in the empty study, staring at the lamplight pooling over the desk. The truth was brutal and clear: Selene was slipping further away, and Lucien’s shadow was tightening around them both.
And unless Kael moved quickly, he wouldn’t just lose his mate.
He’d lose the entire pack.
- Writer
