Chapter 6 - Shadows At The Border
Early morning meeting in the courtyard room, Xavier, Jayden, and a few warriors, along with his chief in command of his warriors, gathered.
The chief commander reported to Xavier about seeing rogues watching from the pack tree lines and borders.
Xavier barked out orders about tighter patrols in every area around the pack house. His mind flickered to me for a moment before he snapped back to reality.
Meanwhile, I was in my room. I decided to go see Maya; it had been a while since I last saw her. I knocked on her door.
"Come in!" she said. I entered to see her scrolling through her phone and sat beside her.
She squealed. "Merida! It's been a while since I last saw you." She wiggled her eyebrows at me. "Has my brother been keeping you busy? Huh? See! I caught you! You let my brother rail you!" We both burst out laughing.
She put her hand on mine, smiling. "We're now besties, right?" I smiled back. "Definitely." She hugged me, squealing, before taking a slightly serious tone.
"Merida? Have you heard of the commotion?"
I looked confused. "What commotion?"
She shook her head before saying, "The rogue wolves—they are getting more aggressive. Two of our patrol guards were found dead at the pack borders."
I covered my mouth in shock. "Oh my god, that's so bad…"
She held my hands tighter. "Don't go out much, okay? Rogue wolves often target lone she-wolves, so be careful." I nodded. "Sure."
Her voice softened but remained playful. "You know? I've been hearing Xavier's wolf has been restless lately, appearing more often."
I almost smiled, keeping my voice calm. "Really? I wonder why." I thought to myself—was it because of me? It couldn't be…
Midday, the pack grand gates opened for a visiting party—an ally Alpha, his warriors, and his mage, Seraphine. She carried herself like she already owned the place. I watched from Maya's window, curious.
I saw Xavier and the ally Alpha exchanging greetings. He greeted Seraphine politely, but with no warmth. Her eyes wandered to Maya's window and spotted me.
Her eyes narrowed, lips curling into a cold smile. I stepped away from the window and asked Maya who they were.
"Oh, them? That's Xavier's ally pack. The lady you saw is Seraphine, the Alpha's mage," she explained.
I nodded, taking it all in. "Wow, that's a lot…"
She added, and my heart froze: "Yep, and she's also Xavier's ex-girlfriend." My heart clenched, but I refused to show weakness.
I excused myself outside. As I walked down the hallway, my eyes elsewhere, I bumped into someone.
"Oh my! I'm so sorry, I—" I froze. It was Seraphine. The Alpha, Xavier, and his warriors froze.
She crossed her arms and let out a dramatic scream, yelling harshly. "Servant! Watch where you're going! Are you blind? Ugh, such a pity."
I was brutally offended. Xavier didn't correct her, his expression unreadable. She drew more attention as she pushed me away and walked off, Xavier following her. He glanced back once, speaking harshly.
"Eyes matter. Always watch where you're going."
He walked off behind them, and I scoffed.
Later that evening, around 5:50, I was training with Jayden, improving rapidly thanks to frequent practice. I saw Seraphine walking toward us, rolling her eyes, standing right where we were training.
Her voice, fake-sweet but dripping with venom: "Oh hi, blind freak! I just came here to give you my proper introduction. I'm the great Seraphine of the Stonefall pack. My daddy is the Alpha, so you all better show respect."
I bit back a comeback as Jayden shot me a warning to keep quiet. Just then, Xavier appeared, his eyes locked on me, raking over my body with an unreadable expression. Seraphine noticed, her smile fading slightly.
Later, in the evening, I was in my room, still seething over the day's events. I heard Xavier's voice outside my door, low and possessive.
"Ignore her. She's nothing. You belong to us."
I whispered to myself, "You're really confusing…"
Silence. Then a low growl: "You just don't understand me…"
I went to my bed and drifted off to sleep. Suddenly, just before dawn, howls ripped through the night—rogues had breached the border.
Warriors rushed to arms to fight the intruders.
Sensing danger, my wolf was on full alert. I grabbed a dagger from beneath my bed, and suddenly my door burst open.
Xavier stepped in, growling as he moved protectively and possessively toward me.
"Stay with me."
CONTINUE READING FOR CHAPTER 7
Author's note
Oh my, what's happening? An attack? Why did Xavier come to Merida of all people. Find out in the upcoming chapter.
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