Chaos had truly taken hold of the palace. The search party had not yet returned, meaning the trail had gone cold. The air was thick with the scent of anxiety and fatigue.
No one dared to retire to bed; the Alpha had made his command clear. The entire pack was forced to remain awake, anxiously awaiting news.
Elsa scoffed from her regal bed. He's really turning the palace upside down over that little mongrel. A dark chuckle escaped her. How would he feel when he discovered he was the one who had driven his beloved son to run?
"I'm such a bad Luna—yet a truly great mother," she mused, sipping her tea with a smile. While she disliked the attention the Alpha was pouring into the search for Axel, it was manageable. As long as the search party didn't pick up his scent, she was sure Axel wouldn't be returning anytime soon.
"Finally, all impurities have been cleansed from the bloodline," she sighed in satisfaction, twirling her cup.
There was one thing, however, she had failed to discover: his true nature. Her investigations had yielded no clear answers, but one common thread emerged from every source—"A powerful essence is manifesting in him. His wolf is stronger than you think."
She exhaled, remembering the words of her shaman. Shamans were banished from Eleandora, but she kept one hidden, using his services for years in exchange for her protection. When she decided to investigate Axel, she had contacted him immediately. She hadn't learned much, but it didn't bother her now. The main objective was accomplished.
She had successfully made Axel hate the Alpha and driven him from the pack's territory without a fight. Wasn't life good?
Sweeping her hair back, she called a servant to dress her. "Let's go play the grieving stepmother," she said to herself.
---
Alpha Kaden sat on his throne, the weight of his authority feeling heavier than ever. He had been seated in the same spot for hours, his mind racing, his own wolf restless and agitated within him.
What could have happened to make his son, his own flesh and blood, flee the pack lands? What had he missed?
He beckoned to a guard, a low-ranking Beta who hurried to his side. "Did anything unusual happen to my son while I was away?" he asked, his voice a low growl.
The guard remained silent, his submissive posture deepening. Although he hadn't witnessed anything himself, the pack gossip spoke of the harsh treatment the young prince faced from the Luna.
"I'm waiting."
"I'm sorry, my Alpha. I didn't witness anything, but I heard—"
Before he could finish, Luna Elsa entered. Thanks to the makeup she had applied, she looked pale and drained, the very picture of a worried mother.
"My King, I haven't been able to close my eyes. How could I, when our son is missing?"
"Try to rest, Elsa. You've done what you can. And Axel will be found. I can feel it," he said, though the bond felt frustratingly silent.
She exhaled deeply, her eyes scanning the room until they landed on the guard. Noting how he avoided her gaze, her own predatory instincts flared.
"Your Majesty, let's go inside. You've been here for over five hours. Your pack needs you to be strong."
"I'll be in shortly. I need to inquire about a few things first," he said, gesturing toward the guard.
"Oh? Does he have a lead on where Axel might be?" she asked, her eyes throwing daggers at the guard, a silent challenge that screamed know your place.
"No, he doesn't. I just need to ask him some questions."
"If that's the case, and it concerns our son, then I should be present. It has been a long day for us all," she said, taking a seat. The Alpha didn't argue, but the air grew tense.
He returned his attention to the guard, whose scent was now saturated with fear. He glanced up at the Luna once, but the deadly promise in her gaze made him immediately lower his eyes in submission.
"So, what were you saying?" the Alpha pressed, his patience thinning.
The guard cleared his throat. "I—I didn't really witness anything unusual, my Alpha. It's just that..."
Elsa's grip on her chair tightened. He had better not say anything that implicates me. Or else his life is forfeit.
"After the young prince finally came out of his room, he had been acting... strange. Unhinged, even."
"How so?" the Alpha's voice was deceptively calm.
"Some of the pack maids said they heard him talking to himself often, as if arguing with his wolf. Sometimes he'd even snarl and laugh alone," the guard said, his limbs trembling under the combined pressure of the Alpha's aura and the Luna's glare.
The Luna's face softened, and she burst into convincing tears. "Yes, that's true! It slipped my mind entirely with all this commotion. His wolf seemed so agitated... I feared for his sanity."
"You may go," the Alpha said to the guard. The man bowed deeply to both royals and practically fled the room.
Alpha Kaden's jaw clenched, his own wolf stirring with fury beneath the surface. He had noticed everything: the way the guard's heartbeat had spiked the moment Elsa entered, the way his scent soured with panic, and how Elsa's own aura had flared with warning when the guard began to speak.
What was his Luna's role in his son's disappearance? He needed to get to the root of this, but he would have to tread carefully to avoid causing a rift in the pack.
"Let's head to bed now. I'm sure the trackers I sent out will have picked up his scent by daybreak."
She sighed, then nodded and followed him, the perfect picture of a devoted mate.
---
Meanwhile, Axel stared at the man in front of him, and the man stared back, his nostrils flaring slightly as he scented the air around the stranger.
Fiona glanced from her father to Axel and back again. They had been locked in this silent standoff for the past five minutes, and she nervously played with her hands. The tension in the small hut was palpable.
She had brought Axel to her father's house and found him waiting at the entrance. Her father was a hunter, a rugged lone wolf who often patrolled the borders until midnight, so his early presence had surprised her. She had tried to explain Axel's situation, but her father hadn't said a word since. He just assessed Axel with the keen, untrusting eyes of a dominant wolf facing an unknown shifter.
She cleared her throat. Her father looked at her, his expression unreadable but his posture rigid.
"Aren't you going to say something, Dad? I know I was wrong to bring a stranger to our den, but I had no choice. I couldn't leave him out there for rogues to find."
"I never asked her to bring me. She insisted—" Axel interjected, his own voice holding a defensive growl he couldn't quite suppress.
Fiona bit her lip and hung her head. It was true.
"What's your name, boy?" her father asked, his voice a low rumble.
"Lucas," Axel muttered. Fiona looked away. He had told her to hide his identity. As far as her father knew, this was a young, unmated wolf cast out by his stepmother with nowhere else to go.
"Lucas, you'll only stay here tonight. Tomorrow, we'll both go to your stepmother. She won't dare harm you under my protection. Is that understood?" His tone brooked no argument, the command of an experienced Beta clear in his voice.
Axel remained silent, a low, almost inaudible rumble in his chest.
"He's not much of a talker, Dad. But I'm sure he agrees," Fiona chimed in, trying to diffuse the tension.
Her father stood up, his frame suddenly seeming to fill the small space. He took one last, long look at Axel, scenting the strange, powerful wolf hidden beneath the surface, before retreating to the inner room.
Fiona stared at Axel for a minute after her father left, but he didn't spare her a glance.
"Thank you," he said, the words a barely audible whisper. "I'll remember your kindness. You should sleep."
She heard every word, and a smile spread across her face as she lay down on her mat, the smile still intact as she drifted off.
Axel stared into the dying embers of the fire, his fists clenched. The humiliated wolf inside him paced, angry and caged. "I shouldn't give her what she wants," he muttered to himself, the vow a sacred promise to his own spirit. "I'm going back to that palace. To hell with them all."