JASON'S POV
I could not sleep.
Night pressed against the windows of my room like a living thing. Every sound was too loud. My bones ached from an old pain I could not name. My wolf moved under my skin, restless and angry. It kept whispering her name. Aria. Aria.
she told me to go away that she didn't want me that I betrayed her I knew she hated me but a part of me wanted to talk to her so badly if I could see her pretty face and explain everything to her but there was nothing to explain I lied That moment would not leave me. The memory burned brighter than the moon. I had told myself to walk away. I had told myself she was trouble. But my wolf would not let me. It worried. It reached. It called.
I rose from the bed and did not bother to put on my coat. Cold air bit my face as I left the house. The pack grounds were quiet. Only the night answered me. I walked until I found Lena near the training yard, sitting alone on a low wall. She looked smaller than I remembered. Her shoulders were tight; her eyes were red.
When she saw me, she stood up quick, but her hands trembled. I could smell fear on her — fear and something else, like guilt. My wolf licked the scent. It told me she was tangled in this web. I did not trust her, but I needed to see aria
"Lena," I said. My voice was calm. Inside, my chest beat like war drums. "Where is Aria?"
She swallowed. Her mouth quivered. She looked away, then back at me with wet eyes. "Alpha Jason… I—" Her voice broke. "We were attacked."
I closed the distance between us without thinking. My wolf was ready to fight. "Who attacked you?" I asked. I kept my voice low. I did not want the other wolves to hear. Not yet.
Lena dropped her head and began to cry. Big, ugly cries that pulled at something in me I had tried to hide. "They came in the night," she whispered. "Men with masks. They hit the gates. They took our scouts. They burned a fence. They said… they said they wanted a prisoner. They wanted a girl."
My hands tightened into fists. Heat crawled up my neck. "A girl?" I asked. The world sharpened to one point. I could feel a pull in my chest. My wolf howled and I swallowed it down.
She looked at me with raw fear. "They left notes," she said. "They said the girl belonged to another pack. They said we must bring her home and keep her safe. I didn't know what to do. I thought—" Her words fell apart.
"How dare you Lena" I said with rage all over my face a rage I could not explain I took her neck and choked her to the wall and pressed her neck on the wall she was losing breath then she said while choking I know where the men went to if you lose me you may never see her again. The wolf inside me cooled down immediately. Aria. Aria was out there. She was in danger I didn't know how or why but I could feel it.
I turned and walked faster. The night air burned in my lungs. I went straight to the training yard. Draven was there, moving forms like he always did. He looked up when he saw me, his jaw clenching. Draven's eyes never lied. He was my beta. He understood when I did not speak.
"Draven," I said. My voice had a hard edge now. "Listen."
He stopped and wiped his hands. "Alpha?"
"We move tomorrow," I said. I felt the words like metal on my tongue. Draven's eyes widened, then narrowed. He knew why. He knew how little time we had before the moon turned.
I told him everything Lena had said. I told him about the notes. I told him how my skin had felt like it was on fire, how my wolf had cried for her. I did not tell him that I had told her she was my mate. That was something I could not say. Not yet.
He listened, silent, then nodded once. The lines around his mouth tightened. "We prepare the army," he said. "We take no chances."
"I have been patient with them," I said, thinking of the pack that had done the worst thing to me when I was a boy. The memory was a scar I carried like a blade. "After what they did to me… I have been patient. Tomorrow, we attack."
Draven's voice was low and sure. "Your command is given, Alpha. I will call the captains. We will move before dawn."
My wolf dropped a low growl in my ribs. It wanted blood. It wanted to tear the world open to find her. I steadied my breathing. Anger was a cold thing; it made plans sharp and terrible.
"Tell the hunters to be ready," I said. "Tell the riders to ride light. Gather the fiercest. No mercy. We bring Aria back."
Draven's hand brushed mine. It was a small, quick contact. It meant the world had shifted. He would make it happen.
Before I left, I stared up at the sky. The moon was a pale coin. I imagined her somewhere beneath it, small and brave. I imagined the faint mark on her wrist glowing like a secret. My heart pulled at the thought.
I did not know how the next day would end. I did not know what Leon had done or planned. I only knew this: Aria was in danger. My wolf would not be quiet. My hands needed to act. I had waited. I would wait no longer.
I walked back to my house. My boots were heavy on the ground, but my steps were steady. I had given the command. Tomorrow we would move. Tomorrow we would answer with fire and teeth.
For the first time in a long while, I let myself think of her. Not as trouble. Not as a mistake. But as something I could not let go. The thought was a small light. It made me both fierce and terrified.
I slept for a few restless hours after that. My wolf curled like a shadow against my bones. The night kept its breath. Dawn would come, and with it, war.
Tomorrow we would fight. Tomorrow we would take back what was ours.