SEBASTIAN
The morning begins with tension in the air…thick, unspoken, and waiting to snap.
I stand in the training yard, the weight of the pack pressing on my shoulders like chains. Warriors spar behind me, their grunts and clashes filling the silence. But my focus is elsewhere.
A storm's coming.
Not one of thunder and wind…but of memories, of blood, of someone I buried long ago.
A guard hurries toward me, his scent sharp with nerves.
"Alpha," he says, panting slightly. "Crimson Crest has arrived."
The words stop me cold.
I turn, slowly.
"What?"
He nods, lower lip trembling. "Their Alpha requests an audience."
The name still burns: "Caleb".
"You're sure?"
"Yes, Alpha. He waits at the southern border."
Of course he does.
He knows the rules. He helped *make* them.
I march to the border with fire in my veins. The warriors around me fall silent. They remember the stories. They remember the last time Crimson Crest and our pack stood face to face.
I see him before I smell him—tall, lean, standing like the years haven't touched him. A scar runs down the side of his face now, new and ugly. His eyes, however, are unchanged—ice and arrogance.
"Sebastian," he drawls.
"Caleb."
His name tastes like rust in my mouth.
He offers a smirk. "You've grown darker. Broodier."
"You're not welcome here."
He shrugs. "Didn't expect a welcome. Just respect."
"You lost that day you betrayed everything we built."
His smile falters for half a second.
Then, "Things are changing. Packs are going missing. Rumors in the North. We need to talk."
"There's nothing left to say."
He steps forward, lowering his voice. "They're after something, Sebastian. Something buried. You think you're safe because your walls are high? You're not. I came here to help you. Whether you like it or not."
I glare at him. The boy I once called brother is gone. In his place is this—man, stranger, threat.
But I don't say no.
Not yet.
***
Later, I spot Ava by the river that cuts through the back of the pack. She's alone, walking slowly, brushing her fingers along the tall grass.
I want to turn away.
But I don't.
The bond still sings, even if I wish it didn't.
"Dangerous place for a walk," I call out.
She turns, shielding her eyes from the sun. "Is it?"
"The current is faster than it looks."
"Then maybe I'll let it take me," she replies, not a trace of fear in her voice.
I narrow my eyes. "You joke too easily about death."
"I grew up with it."
There's silence between us for a moment, both of us listening to the river.
Then she asks, "What happened to Dove?"
My chest tightens.
"Why?"
"She's still in your eyes. When you look at me. Like a ghost."
I clench my jaw. "Her death is… a mystery. She was fine, then she wasn't. No blood. No battle. No sign. Just gone. One day, she left the healer's hut and never came back."
Ava doesn't press. Instead, she looks back at the river.
"It's beautiful," she whispers.
That's the last thing she says before the world explodes.
There's a flash of movement from the trees. A dark figure….fast, precise…races toward us.
I see it, but too late.
Ava doesn't.
Hands slam into her back, shoving her forward.
She screams—and vanishes beneath the surface with a loud splash.
My body locks.
Panic claws at my throat.
Water churns. Bubbles rise. She doesn't come up.
My feet won't move.
Memories slam into me like blades…Dove's laughter echoing in the woods, her braid whipping behind her, her scent in the healer's hut…and then silence.
One day, she was gone.
And I couldn't save her.
Can't move.
Can't breathe.
Then, out of nowhere, Caleb barrels past me.
Without a word, he throws himself into the river, cutting through the current like a blade.
He finds her.
His arms wrap around Ava, and he pulls her up, both of them coughing and gasping as he hauls her onto the riverbank.
I finally move. Stumble toward them.
Ava's eyes are wide with shock, her lips blue, shaking in his arms.
"You froze," Caleb snarls at me. "Again."
My blood chills.
Again.
Because he knows. Because he remembers.
The last time someone we loved was in danger, I froze too.
I couldn't save Dove.
And now…
I watch Caleb wrap his coat around Ava.
She looks up at me—not with gratitude, but confusion. Fear. Doubt. Hatred
Caleb stands, water dripping down his face, and steps closer.
"She could have died," he hisses. "And you were right there."
I don't respond.
Because he's right.
Because I hate him.
Because he saved her.
I look around. Whoever pushed her is gone.
One of mine.
Someone inside this pack just tried to kill my Luna.
And I have no idea who.
But I know this…whoever it was?
They're watching.
And they're not done.
"GUARDS!" I roar.
Within seconds, two guards appear, panting, hands on their weapons.
"Seal off the area. No one leaves this side of the pack without my order. I want every shadow searched. Every wolf questioned. Someone in this pack tried to kill Luna Ava."
Their eyes widen. One nods quickly before shifting into his wolf and darting off.
I turn to the other. "Get five more. Escort her to the Luna lounge. She doesn't step out until I say so."
"Yes, Alpha."
I move to Ava. She's on her feet now, shivering, eyes distant.
"You're safe," I say, though I'm not sure I believe it myself.
She doesn't respond.
Caleb's eyes meet mine, unreadable. "Your enemies aren't just outside your walls, Sebastian. You've been so busy looking outward, you didn't see the knife behind your own back."
And that's the worst part.
He's right again.
And I have no idea how deep the betrayal goes.
A single crimson petal lies near the riverbank. Not from any flower nearby. I kneel, frowning.
"This wasn't here before," I whisper.