Chapter 98
Elara's POV
The wolves clashed in a blur of fur and fangs. Alice's sleek black form drove Dylan's massive gray body left, exactly where I needed him.
"Keep pushing!" I shouted. "Drive him toward the rocks!"
My heart hammered against my ribs. The loose stones I'd spotted earlier were just ahead. Dylan's pack mates spread wide, trying to flank us.
Classic pincer movement. Predictable.
I grabbed the rope from my pack. My fingers moved fast, looping it between two pine trees at knee height. The knot came together like muscle memory.
Dylan lunged at Alice. His massive paw hit the stone field.
His balance shifted. Just a fraction.
"Evan! Now! Right side!"
Evan's sandy brown wolf form shot from the trees. He hit Dylan's flank hard. Alice pivoted, cutting off the retreat. The triangle formation locked tight.
Dylan's teammates tried to break through. I yanked the rope. It snapped taut across their path.
The first wolf went down hard. Legs tangled. The second one stumbled over him.
"Mia, stay back!" I called out.
Dylan snarled. His golden eyes locked on me. One of his teammates was still struggling with the rope around his legs. The other had just regained his footing. Their formation was completely broken.
I didn't flinch.
He could crush me in wolf form. We both knew it. But his team was scattered. Evan and Alice held position. Any more fighting would just burn energy he'd need later.
Dylan's lip curled. "You'll regret this."
His voice came out distorted through the partial shift. Rough. Angry.
Then he was gone. His pack melted back into the forest shadows.
I stood there, breathing hard. My hands shook slightly as I coiled the rope.
Evan shifted back to human form. He stared at me. "How did you think of the rope trap?"
I kept my voice level. "Wolf form gives you speed. Makes you focus on the target. You don't watch your feet."
"I..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I shouldn't have questioned you earlier. You know what you're doing."
Something loosened in my chest. I needed these people to trust me. Not worship me. Just trust that I wouldn't get them killed.
"Thanks," I said.
Team trust mattered more than any victory. I'd learned that the hard way in the north.
Two hours later, we approached the abandoned watchtower. The sun had moved lower in the sky, casting long shadows through the pine branches.
I raised my fist. Everyone stopped.
Fresh boot prints marked the dirt path. Broken branches hung at odd angles. Someone had pushed through here recently.
"Elara?" Alice whispered.
I knelt down, studying the ground. The prints went in circles. No clear direction. Whoever came here had been searching blind.
"Someone beat us here," I said quietly. "But they didn't find anything."
Alice crouched beside me. "How do you know?"
I pointed to the disturbed brush. "Look at the pattern. They searched randomly. If they'd found the target, the tracks would lead straight out."
Mia's eyes went wide. "That's... really smart."
I stood up, dusting off my hands. My mind was already racing ahead. The other team's failure proved my theory. The transmitter had to be inside the tower. Hidden somewhere non-obvious.
"Let's move," I said.
The watchtower loomed above us. Three stories of rotting wood and rusted metal.
I stopped inside the entrance. Studied the layout. Stairs on the right. Support beams looked sketchy. Windows on every level.
"We split up," I said. "Alice, Mia—take floors one and two. Evan, you're with me on three."
Evan frowned. "Why three?"
"Think about it." I pulled out the map, traced the tower outline. "Warren wouldn't hide the target somewhere obvious. Third floor has the best view. Good for observation. But it's hardest to reach. That fits the high-difficulty profile."
I looked at Alice. "If we don't find anything up there, we'll come back down and help you search."
Alice nodded. "Got it. Comm if you find something."
I felt a small surge of satisfaction. They were listening. Not because I was an Alpha. Not because I could shift. Because my logic made sense.
That was enough.
The stairs creaked under our weight. I tested each step before putting my full weight down.
Evan climbed behind me. "You really think it's up here?"
"Sixty percent sure," I said. "Better odds than the cave or the valley."
We reached the third floor landing. Dust covered everything. But something felt wrong.
I held up my hand. Evan froze.
The dust patterns were too clean. Too uniform. Like someone had swept the floor, then carefully redistributed the dust to make it look untouched.
"Don't move," I whispered.
I picked up a piece of broken wood. Tossed it forward.
A tripwire snapped. A net of wooden stakes crashed down from the ceiling, right where Evan would have stepped.
"Holy hell." Evan's face went pale. "How did you see that?"
"The dust." I pointed. "It's too even. Someone staged this."
My pulse kicked up. Not from fear. From recognition.
I'd seen this kind of trap design before. In my past life. The methodical staging. The attention to detail.
I shoved the thought away. Focus on now.
We skirted around the trap zone. In the far corner, behind a pile of rotted boards, I spotted it. A metal box. Painted to match the wall color.
I popped it open.
Red light blinked inside. The signal transmitter.
"Alice," I said into the comm. "Found it. Get ready to move."
Evan grinned. "Yes! We're the first team back!"
"Don't celebrate yet." I closed the box carefully, secured it in my pack. "Dylan's not going to let us walk back to base unopposed. We need to assume he'll try to intercept."
Evan's smile faded. "So what's the plan?"
I pulled out the map again. Traced our position. "East route. It's longer, but there's more tree cover. Harder for them to ambush us."
"Smart," Evan said.
I didn't tell him that Dylan would absolutely be waiting on the direct route back. I'd seen the way he looked at me before he retreated. This wasn't over.
But we had the target. And we had a plan.
That would have to be enough.
We made it back to base as the sun touched the horizon. No ambush. No attacks.
Either Dylan hadn't figured out our route, or he'd given up.
I didn't believe in giving up.
Warren checked the transmitter. His expression stayed neutral, but I caught the slight nod of approval.
"Team Grey," he announced. "Mission complete. Forty-eight hour time limit. You finished in twenty-four."
A few people clapped. Most just stared.
Warren looked directly at me. "Grey demonstrated excellent tactical analysis and leadership capability. Exactly what the Council looks for in field agents."
My face stayed calm. Inside, my thoughts spiraled.
This was just phase one. The real test hadn't even started yet.
Evan stepped forward. "Sir, if I may—without Elara's strategy, we wouldn't have found the target this fast. Maybe not at all."
Alice nodded. "She proved you don't need to shift to lead. Intelligence wins battles too."
I felt something warm bloom in my chest. Gratitude. Respect.
"Thank you," I said quietly.