Chapter 58 The awaited night

Chapter 58 The awaited night
Jeremy's POV

"Are the armies assembled to the right locations?"

"Yes Alpha." James stood across from me in my chamber. Back straight. Voice steady. "All of them. Right angles. Every entry point covered." He paused. "And the rented armies are positioned and ready too."

"Numbers?"

"More than Benjamin's armies could take down. Even on his best day."

I nodded. Walked to the window. Looked out at the pack house grounds already filling up with people. Lights everywhere. Music starting to drift up. The annual werewolf night was already coming alive below.

Beautiful. Loud. Completely unaware of what might be coming.

"Good." I said quietly.

"Alpha." James moved to stand beside me. "Do you really think he'll attack?"

"I think Benjamin doesn't know how to back down." I turned from the window. "He told me annual werewolf night. He meant it."
"And if he attacks during the ceremony—"
"Then we're ready." I straightened my jacket. "He could try anything with me James. But Benjamin knows my weak point is the pack." I looked at him hard. "Nobody touches these people. Not tonight."

"Understood Alpha. Or should we cancel the night ceremony? I can still do it. I'll ring the emergency bell and announce for everyone to stay indoors tonight."

"That's even worse James. I need the whole pack in my eyesight tonight. I just need you to stay close. Eyes open. The moment you see anything. Anything at all. You signal me immediately."

"Yes Alpha."

"Let's go."

The grounds were alive.

Lanterns everywhere. Long tables loaded with food. Music filling every corner. Pack members dressed in their finest. Children running between adult legs laughing. Elders seated in places of honour. Warriors well positioned.

Every year this night reminded me why I did this. Why I carried all of it.
These people.

I moved through the crowd. Greeting. Nodding. Smiling when I needed to smile. But my eyes never stopped moving. Scanning every face. Every shadow. Every gap between bodies.

No sign of Benjamin.

Not yet.

"Alpha." A soft hand slipped into the crook of my arm.

Mia.

She looked beautiful tonight. Deep red dress. Hair pinned up perfectly. Glowing in the lantern light. She smiled up at me like everything was right with the world.

"You look tense." She said softly. "Come. Dance with me."

"Mia—"

"Just one dance Jeremy." She was already pulling me gently toward the dance floor. "The pack is watching. Let them see their Alpha is not worried tonight."

She had a point.

I let her lead me out.

The music was slow. She stepped into me. Hand on my chest. Head tilted up toward mine. Smiling that perfect smile she had practiced so well.

I danced with her.

But my eyes were moving. Over her shoulder. Around the grounds. Every face. Every shadow. Every corner.
And then I saw her.

Margaret.

Standing at the far edge of the gathering. Alone. A cup held loosely in her hand that she wasn't drinking from. The lantern light catching the side of her face.

She was watching us.

Her expression was impossible to read. Not angry. Not sad. Not cold. Just... still. Like a painting. Like someone who had locked every feeling behind a door and swallowed the key.

But she didn't look away.

And neither did I.

Not until Mia's hand pressed against my jaw and turned my face back to hers.

"Where are you tonight?" She asked softly. A smile on her lips but something sharper behind her eyes.

"Right here." I said.

She searched my face for a moment.

Then smiled again.

And we kept dancing.

An hour passed. Then two.
Still no Benjamin.

I moved through the crowd again after the dance. James appeared at my shoulder like a shadow.

"Anything?" I asked under my breath.

"Nothing Alpha." He said quietly. "All army positions holding. No movement at any border. No suspicious faces in the crowd. Nothing."

"Keep looking."

"Yes Alpha."

I stopped by the food tables. Picked up a cup I didn't intend to drink. Scanned the grounds again.

Nothing.

The night moved on. Laughter. Music. Dancing. Children falling asleep on their mothers' laps. Elders telling old stories. Warriors arm wrestling at a side table.
Normal. Beautiful. Completely normal.
And that was starting to terrify me more than any attack would have.

Where are you Benjamin?

A warrior appeared at my elbow. "Alpha. It's time for the speech."

I looked around the grounds one more time.
Nothing. No sign. No movement.

I walked to the platform.

The crowd gathered. Faces looking up at me. Expectant. Happy. Trusting.

I gripped the sides of the podium.

Looked out at them all.

"Another year." I began. My voice carrying across the grounds. "Another werewolf night. And Lakewood is still standing."
Cheers. Loud and warm.

"We have faced hard things this year. Battles. Losses. Moments that tested every one of us." I paused. Let it sit. "But look around you tonight. Look at the person beside you." I watched them do it. Turn to each other. Smile. Grab hands. "That is why we fight. That is why we hold the line. Not for titles. Not for thrones." I let my eyes move across every face. "For them. For each other. That is what Lakewood is."
More cheers. Louder this time.

I looked out beyond the crowd. Past the lanterns. Into the dark edges of the grounds.

Nothing.

The moment was here. The moment Benjamin had told me to announce him. To hand everything over in front of everyone.

I looked down at my hands on the podium.
Then back up.

"Lakewood will always stand." I said firmly. "As long as we stand together."

I stepped back from the podium.

The crowd erupted.

James appeared beside me immediately. Mouth close to my ear.

"I don't think he's anywhere around. Or is he up to something more dangerous?"

"I don't know James."

"Maybe he changed his mind. Maybe he's—"

"He didn't change his mind James." I kept my voice low. Kept the smile on my face for the crowd still cheering around us.
"Benjamin doesn't change his mind."

"Then what does this mean?"

I looked out at the celebrations. At the lights. At my people laughing and dancing and completely unaware.

"It means he's planning something worse." I said quietly. "An attack I could prepare for. Warriors I could count and match." I picked up a cup from a passing tray. Brought it to my lips without drinking. "But this..." I looked around one more time. "Not showing up. Not attacking. Just... silence." I set the cup back down. "That is Benjamin telling me he has something I haven't thought of yet."

James was quiet for a moment.

"So what do we do Alpha??"