050
1091 Words
~Alpha Duncan
I stared out the window.
I was back.
Weeks had passed since my return, and the pack had fallen into rhythm again, as if my absence had been nothing more than a brief pause.
Meetings resumed. Territory held. My house was full again.
And still…
I’d been texting Iris.
No replies.
I tightened my jaw.
What did I do wrong?
The question surfaced uninvited, irritating in its persistence.
I didn’t miss her.
No.
That was the lie I repeated until it almost sounded convincing.
I went downstairs.
“Alpha,” one of the guards said, straightening immediately when he saw me.
I didn’t answer right away. I scanned the hall instead, cataloguing details the way instinct demanded. Who avoided my eyes. Who stiffened. Who relaxed too quickly.
Good.
Fear meant respect.
Unease meant uncertainty.
Both were useful.
“Where is Eunice?” I asked finally.
The guard hesitated. A mistake.
“In your office,” he said. “She’s been… managing things.”
I hummed quietly. Managing. That was one word for it.
Eunice didn't know I was back.
Well, I didn't tell her, I didn't invite her to the party.
I moved down the hall without another glance back. Every step echoed, slow and intentional. By the time I reached my office door, I could hear her voice inside.
Eunice moans.
She still hasn't changed.
The door opened under my hand, smooth and silent.
Eunice froze mid-sentence.
The girl took her clothes and ran outside. Eunice recovered faster, her smile slipping into place like armor.
“Duncan,” she said, standing. “You didn’t announce your return.”
“I don’t announce myself,” I replied calmly. “i arrive.”
“You’ve been busy,” I said, moving behind my desk. My desk. I ran a finger along the polished surface, noting the subtle changes she’d made.
Papers rearranged. Symbols moved.
Territory claimed.
“Someone had to be,” she replied smoothly. “The pack needed leadership.”
She really wants to be Luna.
To be feared.
To be respected.
She never really cares about the pack. That's what I thought.
Silence stretched between us.
“I’ll ask you once,” I said evenly. “And I expect a clear answer.”
Her eyes held mine. “Go on.”
“Have you stayed away from Iris,” I said, “and from my daughter?”
There it was.
A question that carried more weight than it sounded.
I was only specific about iris.
I think it's the mate bond.
“Yes,” Eunice answered after a brief pause. “I have.”
“And you will continue to,” I said.
“Yes.”
I studied her face for a long second, then nodded. “Good.”
I turned toward the window, dismissing her without another word. The pack grounds outside were quiet. Too quiet.
Then…
A knock sounded at the door.
Sharp. Controlled.
“Enter,” I said.
The door opened, and Thorne stepped inside.
“Alpha,” he said firmly, “I need a word.”
Thorne remained where he was, hands clasped behind his back, posture rigid in that way that meant duty was fighting something personal. I turned to face him fully, already sensing this wasn’t a report meant to be delivered lightly.
“You said you needed a word,” I said. “Speak.”
He hesitated.
That alone set my wolf on edge.
“I don’t want to keep secrets from you,” Thorne began carefully. “Not about this.”
My jaw tightened. “About what?”
“About Iris.”
The name hit harder than it should have.
My wolf stirred instantly, restless, alert, a low pulse of awareness rippling through my chest. I hadn’t realized how tightly I’d locked that part of myself away until it responded so fast.
Thorne continued, steady but deliberate. “While you were away… I’ve seen her. A few times.
”
I didn’t interrupt. I didn’t need to. My silence was permission enough.
“She came to the house the day you traveled,” he said. “Late evening.”
My breath stilled.
“The day I left,” I repeated slowly.
“Yes.”
My fingers curled at my side.
“She didn’t come for trouble,” Thorne added quickly. “She was shaken. Eyes puffy. Like she’d been crying for hours.”
Something cold slid down my spine.
“She kept asking questions,” he went on. “About you. About whether I’d seen you with someone else.”
The room seemed to tilt.
“She mentioned a video,” Thorne said. “Didn’t explain much. Just kept asking if it was real. If I’d seen it too.”
I didn’t realize I’d stopped breathing until my chest burned.
Guilt hit hard,sharp, immediate, unforgiving.
My wolf surged forward, wounded and restless, pacing inside me like it had been struck blind. The mate bond, quiet but never gone, flared painfully to life, echoing distress that wasn’t entirely my own.
Whatever that video was, whatever poison it carried, i need to know what was making her cry.
I dragged a hand down my face, grounding myself. “Did she say who sent it?”
Thorne didn’t hesitate. “Yes.”
My head snapped up.
“It was Anastasia.”
The name detonated in my chest.
Fuck! I forgot to take care of that b***h.
My wolf snarled, a sharp violent thing clawing at my restraint. Heat rushed through my veins, anger blooming fast and dangerous.
“Explain,” I said tightly.
“She’s been circling Iris for weeks,” Thorne continued. “Manipulating. Watching. And before I could intervene fully, she kidnapped her.”
The word landed like a blow.
Kidnapped.
The room went silent except for the sound of my own heartbeat, loud and furious in my ears.
“You’re telling me,” I said slowly, each word edged with steel, “that while I was gone… Anastasia put her hands on Iris.”
“Yes,” Thorne said firmly. “I got to her in time.”
My wolf roared.
The desk cracked beneath my palm as I slammed my hand down, power rippling outward before I could fully rein it in.
“Is Iris okay?” I demanded.
Thorne met my eyes without flinching. “She’s fine.”
That did little to cool the fire in my blood.
“Where,” I asked, voice low and lethal, “is Anastasia?”
Thorne straightened. “In the pack cell.”
- Writer
