Chapter 14: Chapter Fourteen: The Edge Of War

The Warning That Came Too Late

The walls of the Crescent Fang den felt smaller than ever. The moment Alex read the message "You're running out of time." a cold certainty settled in his bones.

They weren’t just out of time. They had already lost something, and they just didn’t know it yet.

Alex’s claws flexed as he stepped back from the blood-streaked warning carved into the stone. The rogues had infiltrated the den again. And this time, they hadn’t even tried to hide it.

Kara was beside him, eyes dark. “They’re inside, Alex.”

The words sent a ripple of unease through him. She was right. The rogues weren’t just attacking from the outside anymore they had someone inside their walls, feeding them information.

A traitor.

Maya arrived seconds later, her breath unsteady from running through the tunnels. “Tell me I’m not seeing what I think I’m seeing.”

Alex exhaled sharply, his gaze locked onto the message. “They left it for us. On purpose.”

Maya frowned, her hand tightening into a fist. “They want us to panic.”

“They’re stalling us,” Kara muttered. “Keeping us chasing our own tails while they prepare for something worse.”

Alex’s jaw tightened. No more.

“Get everyone into the main chamber,” he said, voice low but firm. “Every single wolf in this den. Now.”

Maya hesitated, then nodded and took off down the tunnels.

Kara turned to him. “You think the traitor is going to slip up?”

Alex’s golden eyes darkened. “They don’t have a choice. Not when they know I’m hunting them now.”

Minutes later, the entire pack was gathered in the main chamber. The tension was thick, the silence heavier than the stone walls around them. Every wolf shifted uneasily, murmurs flitting through the crowd like restless shadows.

Lucas stood near the front, arms crossed, his amber gaze burning into Alex with suspicion.

“What is this?” Lucas demanded. “Why did you call the pack here?”

Alex stepped forward, scanning the faces of his packmates. “We have a traitor.”

The words sent a ripple of shock through the room. Whispers erupted instantly.

“A traitor?”

“Someone working with the rogues?”

“Who?”

Lucas scoffed. “More paranoia, Alex?”

Alex ignored him. “The rogues have been ahead of us at every turn. They know where we are when we move, and what we plan before we even do it. And now—” he pointed to the message, still fresh with blood on the stone wall, “they’re inside.”

Silence.

Then a voice spoke from the back.

“You’re sure?”

Alex’s gaze snapped toward Ethan. The younger wolf had been unusually quiet since his capture. He looked pale, uncertain.

“I am,” Alex said. “And I’m done playing defense.”

Lucas growled, stepping closer. “You have no proof.”

Alex’s claws twitched, his patience wearing thin. “We’re going to find proof. Right now.”

Kara stepped forward, her crossbow at her side. “Everyone is going to answer one question, and they’re going to answer it truthfully.”

Lucas scoffed. “You think this is how we lead? By interrogation?”

“No,” Alex said. “But it’s how we survive.”

One by one, Alex and Kara moved through the pack, asking the same question: Where were you an hour ago?

Most answers were immediate wolves who had been training, patrolling, and tending to the injured.

Then it was Ethan’s turn.

He swallowed. Hard.

“I… I was in my quarters,” he said, shifting slightly.

Alex narrowed his eyes. “Alone?”

Ethan hesitated. Just for a second.

Kara’s hand moved toward her crossbow.

Lucas growled. “This is ridiculous. You’re threatening our own pack”

“Then let him prove he’s innocent,” Alex snapped. “Ethan, who can confirm where you were?”

The younger wolf’s hands clenched at his sides. “I don’t have to answer this.”

Alex took a step forward, his voice deadly calm. “You do.”

Ethan’s breath came faster. The pack was watching now, their unease shifting to something darker.

Maya stepped in. “Ethan. Just tell the truth.”

Ethan’s gaze darted between them, panic rising in his scent. Then, without warning, he bolted.

Alex reacted instantly, lunging after him.

“Stop him!” Kara shouted.

But Ethan was fast. Desperate. He shoved past the other wolves, sprinting down the tunnels.

Alex tore after him, his claws scraping against the stone as he surged forward. Ethan had just confirmed what Alex already knew.

He was the traitor.

And he was leading Alex straight to the truth.

Ethan didn’t make it far.

Alex tackled him near the eastern tunnels, slamming him hard against the cold ground.

Ethan thrashed, snarling. “You don’t understand, Alex!”

Alex’s claws pressed against his throat. “Then make me.”

Ethan gasped for breath, his eyes wild. “If I don’t do this he’ll kill me. He’ll kill all of us.”

The words sent ice through Alex’s veins.

“He?” Alex demanded.

Ethan coughed, wincing. “The rogue leader.”

Alex’s grip tightened. “Who is he, Ethan?”

Ethan let out a ragged breath. And then he said a name Alex never expected to hear.

"It’s Cain."

The world tilted.

For a moment, Alex’s grip loosened.

Cain.

The name felt like a blade to the chest.

Cain was supposed to be dead.

The Crescent Fang pack’s former beta. Lucas’s own brother. The wolf who had vanished years ago after betraying them.

And now he was leading the rogues.

Alex’s heart pounded. Lucas had known. He had to have known.

But he said nothing.

Alex forced himself to focus. “What’s the plan, Ethan?”

Ethan swallowed. “Cain’s been using me to feed him information. But I don’t know everything. All I know is that the countdown is real. He’s planning something. He’s not trying to kill the pack he’s trying to take it.”

Alex’s blood ran cold.

This wasn’t just an attack.

This was a coup.

Cain wasn’t coming for the pack’s destruction.

He was coming for Lucas’s throne.

And now, Alex had to decide was he going to fight to protect Lucas? Or was it time for the Crescent Fang pack to finally have a new leader?