The large map on my desk was spread out so far it barely fit between the edges of the table. I had it weighted at the corners with stones.
A set of red pins and blue markers dotted the paper, each one marking the key areas of our borders and patrol paths. The squad leaders stood in a loose semicircle around me.
“North team will take this route here,” I said, tapping the map just shy of the upper ridge. “Cut across the old stream bed and loop back through the pine stretch. South team, you’ll cover the far fields past the mill road. West team…” I pointed toward the heavy shading on the far left of the map, “keep your formation tight when you move past the marsh. We’ve had too many animals vanish out there in the last few months to risk anyone wandering too far
alone.”
Each leader nodded as I went over their directions, some making mental notes, others jotting things down.
I didn’t give them anything more than the basics. No whispered warnings about possible enemy movement. No hint of the unease that had been chewing at me for the past few days. Not because I wanted to keep them in the dark for the sake of control, but because I knew how quickly rumors could spiral in a pack…and if there was a threat, I needed facts before fear.
When I finished with the directions, I leaned forward over the map. “Report anything unusual directly to me,” I said, looking at each of them in turn. “Doesn’t matter if you think it’s small. A scent you can’t place, a noise you can’t identify…I want to know immediately.”
One of the wolves, Darren, the newest squad leader raised his brows. “Alpha, is there a particular threat we should be looking for?”
His question was cautious. But I know he was asking if we were under attack without saying the word.
I shook my head. “No specific threat. This is a new routine we’ll be running at least once a week. Our job is to make sure the pack is protected all the time…not just when we think there’s a problem. We’ve gotten too used to reacting instead of preventing. That changes
now.”
There was a brief silence as they processed that. Then, a couple of nods, murmured agreements.
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“Alright,” I said, straightening up. “Get your teams ready, patrol starts in an hour.”
They filed out one by one.
When the last one was gone, Cole stayed leaning against the far wall, arms crossed, watching me like he was waiting for me to drop the formal Alpha mask.
“Hopefully,” he said, pushing off the wall and stepping closer to the desk, “after this patrol, we’ll finally know if something’s going on in the territory or if we’re just imagining shadows. Either way, it’ll make things easier to navigate.”
I glanced at the clock on the wall. Nearly breakfast time. “Speaking of easier to navigate… I need to head to the dining room.”
Cole gave me a look like I’d just said I planned to take up knitting. “You? Heading to breakfast early? That’s a first in… what, three years?”
I gave him a flat look. “Irene and Faye don’t like it when I skip meals. Apparently, the Alpha should set an example.”
He smirked. “Uh–huh. And this has nothing to do with Bella being in the dining room?”
I rubbed the back of my neck.
“Because,” he went on, “I can only imagine the fireworks if it ends up just Bella and Luna Faye at the table. She’d eat the Luna alive before the coffee’s poured.”
I gave him a sharp glance, but he was unfazed. Cole was the only one who knew about my past with Bella. Not because I’d told him willingly, but because he’d been there for enough late–night disappearances and unexplained tension to put the pieces together himself.
“You’re not wrong,” I admitted finally. “That is the reason…avoiding unnecessary… tension.”
Cole’s grin widened like he’d just won a bet. “So, how’d she take the surprise?”
I didn’t need to ask who he meant.
“You know she’s delusional,” I said simply. “She probably thought she could keep me for herself. Now she’s being disrespectful to Faye just to prove she still has a chance with me.”
Cole leaned a hand on the desk, his expression sharpening. “Then it’s up to you to put her in her place…before things get out of hand.”
“I already have,” I said, my voice low. “But if she keeps pushing, she won’t like the way I enforce it next time.”
He studied me for a moment, maybe trying to see if I was bluffing. Then he straightened,
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gave a short nod. “Good. Because your mate might be handling herself fine now, but it’s not her job to fight your old messes.”
I didn’t argue…of course he was right.
I slid into my usual seat at the head of the table, my eyes instinctively scanning for Faye. Her chair was empty.
I turned to Irene. “Is Faye aware breakfast is ready?”
She glanced up from buttering her toast. “I’m not sure. I assumed she’d come on her own like usual. Maybe she overslept.”
Before I could reply, Bella’s voice cut through the room. “Maybe she’s not hungry. She’s an adult, after all, she doesn’t need to be called out for meals like a child.”
I didn’t even bother acknowledging the jab. Just looked at her long enough for her to realize I’d heard her, then shifted my gaze away as if she weren’t worth an answer… She wasn’t.
Instead, I raised my voice slightly. “Maya.”
Maya appeared from the far side of the room almost instantly, hands clasped in front of her. “Yes, Alpha Alexander?”
“Go and let Luna Faye know breakfast is ready.”
“Yes, Alpha.” She bowed slightly and hurried off.
I reached for my coffee. Bella’s lips curved in that faint smile she always wore when she was working an angle.
Irene was just staring at her as if she was trying to watch out for her next move.
We’d already started eating by the time Maya returned, her steps lighter than before, like she knew she was bringing news that might shift the atmosphere.
“Alpha Alexander,” she said quietly from my left, “Luna Faye isn’t in her room.”
I set my fork down. “Did you check the balcony?”
“Yes, Alpha, and the study. She’s not there.”
Before I could process that, Bella let out a soft, dramatic sigh. “How… disrespectful,” she murmured, not even looking at me. “To ignore everyone at breakfast and disappear to god
knows where.”
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My head turned sharply in her direction Enough My volca came out harsher than I’d intended, but I didn’t regret it.
Her brows lifted in false innocence. Tim just saying
“Stop talking.” I cut in, my tone leaving no room for misinterpretation.
She closed her mouth, though her eyes still glittered with provocation
trene set her knife down. “Maybe she skipped breakfast because you wouldn’t let her breathe at the table. What’s your problem, Bella?”
Bella rolled her eyes, a little smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. “Oh, that’s rich. Funny how Faye has everyone wrapped around her finger here.”
I felt my chest tighten…the dangerous kind of tightness that usually came before a bad decision. My instinct was to push back, to make an example of her right away.
But before I could speak, Irene’s hand landed lightly on mine under the table. A subtle shake of her head.
I exhaled through my nose. My food sat half–finished in front of me, but the idea of swallowing another bite was impossible.
“I’m full,” I said simply, standing. If I sat there any longer, I wasn’t sure I could stop myself from doing something to Bella.
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