Chapter 2 Blood and Honor

The Silver Crest pack hall had never felt smaller.

Two hours after Seraphina's explosive departure, the massive space seemed to press in on Kai from all sides. Pack members clustered in tight groups, their voices a constant buzz of speculation and fear. The scent of anxiety hung thick in the air, mixed with the lingering traces of otherworldly magic that still made his wolf pace restlessly beneath his skin.

"This is a disaster," Beta James Crowley muttered, running his hands through his graying hair. "The whole pack is spooked. Half of them are ready to pack up and leave, the other half want to call for backup from our allies."

Kai stood at the head table, staring at the splintered remains of the oak doors. His maintenance crew had already started repairs, but the damage was more than physical. The doors had been blessed by the pack's first Alpha, warded against supernatural threats for over a century. The fact that Sera had blown them apart like matchsticks...

"She's not the same person," he said quietly.

"No kidding," James snorted. "The Seraphina I remember couldn't hurt a fly. This one looked ready to tear out our throats with her bare hands."

"That's enough." Victoria's voice cut across the conversation like ice. She'd spent the last hour repairing her appearance, every platinum hair back in place, her makeup flawless despite the earlier chaos. Only the tight line of her mouth betrayed her agitation. "We don't discuss pack security in public."

She was right, of course. The anniversary celebration had devolved into an impromptu war council, with dozens of pack members offering their opinions on what Seraphina's return meant. But Kai couldn't bring himself to care about protocol. Not when his entire world had just been turned upside down.

*She's alive. She's powerful. She hates me.*

The three thoughts circled through his mind on endless repeat, each one hitting like a physical blow.

"Alpha." Elder Thorne approached with measured steps, his steel-gray eyes sharp with concern. "Perhaps we should adjourn to your office. This matter requires... delicate handling."

Kai nodded, grateful for the excuse to escape the suffocating attention. "James, clear the hall. Send everyone home. Post double guards on all borders, but keep them defensive. No one crosses into disputed territory without my direct orders."

"What about patrols in the neutral zones?" James asked.

"Suspended. All of them."

"Alpha," Thorne's voice carried a note of warning. "Surely you're not considering giving in to her demands? She has no legitimate claim-"

"She has every claim," Kai said firmly. "If she's truly the Alpha of the Shadow Moon Pack, if she's carved out territory and held it, then she has the right to negotiate borders. Pack law is clear on that."

Victoria's perfectly manicured nails dug into his arm. "Kai, be reasonable. This is obviously some kind of elaborate revenge scheme. She's probably working with rogues, or worse. We can't take anything she says at face value."

He looked down at his wife-his legal wife, his political alliance, his constant reminder of the choice he'd made-and felt nothing but exhaustion. "What would you have me do, Victoria? Ignore territorial law? Start a war?"

"If necessary," she said without hesitation. "The pack's security comes first. Always."

The casual way she dismissed the potential for bloodshed made his wolf snarl. This was exactly why their marriage had been doomed from the start. Victoria saw everything through the lens of political advantage, never considering the cost in lives.

Sera would never have-

He cut the thought off before it could take root. Comparing his wife to his lost mate was a path to madness.

"My office," he said curtly. "Now."

---

The Alpha's office had always been Kai's sanctuary, a place where he could think without interruption. Rich mahogany furniture, floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, and a massive stone fireplace created an atmosphere of timeless authority. But tonight, even this refuge felt tainted by the memory of violet eyes and bitter laughter.

Victoria settled into the chair across from his desk with practiced grace, while Elder Thorne remained standing, his weathered hands clasped behind his back. James took his usual position by the door, ready to provide security or privacy as needed.

"Report," Kai said, falling into his desk chair with a weariness that went bone-deep.

"I've reached out to my contacts in the surrounding packs," Thorne began. "The Shadow Moon Pack is real, though information about them is... limited. They appeared roughly four years ago, claiming territory in the Blackwood Forest region. Several packs have tried to challenge their claim, but..."

"But?"

"They've all failed. Decisively." Thorne's expression was grim. "The Ironwood Pack lost half their warriors in a single night. The Bloodfang Alliance tried to pressure them into submission and ended up retreating with their tails between their legs. No one talks about what happened, but the fear is real."

Kai felt ice settle in his stomach. The Ironwood Pack were known for their brutality, the Bloodfang Alliance for their numbers. If Sera's pack had defeated both...

"How many wolves does she command?" he asked.

"Unknown. Estimates range from fifty to five hundred. The Shadow Moon Pack doesn't participate in inter-pack gatherings, doesn't send representatives to Council meetings. They're completely isolated except when defending their territory."

"Or expanding it," Victoria added pointedly.

James cleared his throat. "There's something else, Alpha. I've been hearing rumors... strange stories about the Shadow Moon Pack. They say anyone can join, no matter their background. Rogues, outcasts, wolves who've been banished from other packs. They say their Alpha doesn't care about bloodlines or pack politics."

"Impossible," Victoria scoffed. "No pack could function that way. Without proper hierarchy, without bloodline authority-"

"Without tradition," Thorne finished, his voice heavy with disapproval. "It goes against everything our society is built on."

But Kai remembered the girl who'd cried every time another Omega was mistreated, who'd tried to sneak extra food to the pack's weakest members, who'd begged him to consider reforms that would give the lower-ranked wolves more rights and protections.

Of course she'd build a pack for the forgotten.

Of course she'd tear down the barriers that had kept her trapped at the bottom of the hierarchy.

"Alpha," Thorne continued, "I strongly advise treating this as a rogue incursion. Contact the Regional Council, request support from our allies. This... person... whoever she's become, she's dangerous. The power she displayed tonight was unnatural."

"Unnatural?" Kai's voice sharpened. "Explain."

The elder's weathered features creased with worry. "True werewolves don't command ice and shadow, Alpha. We don't drop the temperature of a room through will alone. What we witnessed tonight... it suggests outside influence. Dark magic, perhaps. Or worse."

Victoria leaned forward eagerly. "You think she's been corrupted? Possessed?"

"It would explain the dramatic transformation," Thorne agreed. "And if that's the case, then she's not just a threat to our pack. She's a threat to the entire supernatural community. We'd be justified in taking... extreme measures."

The suggestion hung in the air like a death sentence. Extreme measures meant execution, sanctioned by the Council and carried out without mercy. It meant treating Sera not as a rival Alpha, but as a monster to be destroyed.

Kai's wolf exploded into violent motion inside his chest, snarling and snapping at the very idea. The thought of anyone harming Sera, of ending her life after he'd just discovered she was alive...

"No."

The word came out harder than he'd intended, backed by the full force of his Alpha authority. All three of his advisors flinched, and even Victoria had the sense to look startled.

"Alpha," Thorne said carefully, "perhaps you're too close to this situation to think clearly. Your history with this individual-"

"My history with Seraphina is exactly why I'm the only one who can handle this properly." Kai stood, pacing to the tall windows that overlooked the pack grounds. In the distance, he could see the sentries patrolling the borders, their forms barely visible in the storm that still raged outside. "She requested negotiations. We'll negotiate."

"It's a trap," Victoria said flatly. "She's luring you into a vulnerable position so she can finish what she started five years ago. This is all about revenge, Kai. Can't you see that?"

He could see it. Hell, he'd have done the same thing in her position. But revenge and justice weren't always different things, and he'd destroyed her first. If she wanted satisfaction, if she wanted to watch him suffer the way he'd made her suffer...

Maybe he deserved it.

"What are your orders, Alpha?" James asked quietly.

Kai turned back to face his inner circle, decision crystallizing in his mind. "Tomorrow night, I'll meet with Alpha Nightfall to discuss her territorial claims. Neutral ground, minimal security, full diplomatic protocols."

"Absolutely not," Victoria snapped, surging to her feet. "I forbid it."

The temperature in the room dropped several degrees, and for a moment, Kai's eyes blazed pure gold. When he spoke, his voice carried the unmistakable authority of an Alpha who would not be challenged.

"You forget yourself, Luna. You don't give me orders."

Victoria's face went white, then flushed red with humiliation. In front of the Beta and Elder, he'd just made it clear that her influence had limits. That their marriage, political or not, didn't make her his equal in pack leadership.

"Of course, Alpha," she said through gritted teeth. "I was merely... expressing my concerns for your safety."

"Noted and dismissed." He returned his attention to James. "Send word to Alpha Nightfall. Tomorrow at midnight, the old stone circle at Raven's Ridge. She can bring two guards; I'll do the same."

"Alpha," Thorne protested, "Raven's Ridge is dangerously close to her claimed territory. If this is an ambush-"

"Then I'll die knowing I tried to fix the biggest mistake of my life." Kai's voice was quiet, but it carried the weight of absolute certainty. "The meeting will happen. That's final."

James nodded sharply. "I'll send the message immediately."

"See that you do." Kai moved toward the door, suddenly desperate to be alone. "This meeting is dismissed."

As the others filed out, Victoria lingered, her ice-blue eyes bright with anger and something that might have been fear.

"This is madness, Kai. She's not the girl you once knew. That creature tonight... she's dangerous. Unnatural. If you won't think of the pack, at least think of our marriage. Our future."

He looked at his wife-really looked at her-and wondered when she'd become a stranger. Had she always been this cold, this calculating? Or had five years of loveless marriage poisoned them both?

"Our marriage was a business arrangement, Victoria. We both knew that from the beginning."

Her perfect composure finally cracked. "It doesn't have to stay that way. We could try, Kai. We could build something real together. But not if you're chasing after ghosts."

For a moment, he almost felt sorry for her. Almost wished he could be the husband she deserved, could love her the way she wanted to be loved.

But his heart belonged to a woman with violet eyes and midnight hair, a woman who'd once looked at him like he hung the stars and now wanted nothing more than to watch him burn.

"Goodnight, Victoria."

She stared at him for a long moment, emotions warring across her beautiful features. Then she straightened her shoulders and walked to the door with regal dignity.

"Don't say I didn't warn you," she said quietly. "Some things, once broken, can never be repaired."

The door closed behind her with a soft click, leaving Kai alone with his thoughts and the howling wind outside.

He moved to the window, pressing his palm against the cold glass, and stared out into the storm-lashed darkness. Somewhere out there, in the territory she'd claimed and defended, Sera was probably planning for tomorrow night's meeting. Was she as nervous as he was? Did she lie awake at night remembering what they'd once had, the way he did?

Or had she moved on completely, leaving him behind like the mistake he'd proven himself to be?

*Twenty-four hours.*

In twenty-four hours, he'd see her again. Talk to her without an audience, without the pressure of pack politics and public performance. Maybe, if he was lucky, he'd finally get the chance to explain why he'd done the unforgivable.

Maybe she'd listen.

Maybe she'd forgive him.

Or maybe she'd kill him, and at least then the pain would stop.

Either way, tomorrow night would change everything.

Again.