Chapter 239
Cassian's POV
I sat at the massive oak table, fingers drumming silently against the polished wood, counting the seconds. Thirty-two minutes. Thirty-two goddamn minutes late.
Where the hell is he?
The conference room felt suffocating despite its high ceilings and broad windows. Alpha Austin sat at the head of the table, his posture rigid, jaw tight. Around us sat four other Alphas—Viper, Kai, and two others whose names I'd barely registered through the haze of my growing anxiety. They were discussing border patrols and territory disputes, voices measured and professional.
But I could feel their eyes sliding toward me. Assessing. Judging.
He's making us look weak, Zero growled in my mind, pacing restlessly. Again.
I clenched my fist beneath the table. Casper should have been here half an hour ago. This wasn't some casual pack meeting—this was critical. These Alphas controlled strategic territories, commanded loyalty from dozens of packs. Their alliance could mean the difference between strength and vulnerability for Thornwood.
And my brother was nowhere to be found.
I reached out through the pack mind link, trying to brush against Casper's consciousness. Brother, where are you? The meeting's already started.
Nothing. Just that familiar wall of resistance, like slamming into reinforced steel. He'd blocked me out again.
Locked out, Zero snorted. Again. Shocking.
"Cassian."
My father's voice cut through my internal spiral. I looked up, meeting Alpha Austin's ice-blue eyes—so much like my own. "Yes, sir?"
"You've been silent for the past ten minutes." His tone was neutral, but I caught the edge beneath it. The unspoken question: What the hell is going on?
"Just considering the southern border patrol rotation," I lied smoothly, keeping my expression blank. "The logistics require careful planning."
Alpha Viper leaned back in his chair, a smirk playing at his lips. He was a wiry man with graying hair and sharp features that reminded me of his namesake. "Logistics are important, of course. But first, we need unity." His gaze swept meaningfully around the table. "Your brother's absence doesn't exactly demonstrate strong leadership from the Thornwood heirs."
My fingers tightened on the armrest. Don't react. Don't give him the satisfaction.
"Casper is on his way," I said evenly, though I had no fucking idea if that was true. "He understands the importance of this meeting."
"Does he?"
The question came from Alpha Kai, and despite myself, my spine straightened. Kai was built like a battering ram—massive shoulders, scarred knuckles, and cold amber eyes that had witnessed more bloodshed than most wolves saw in a lifetime. He ruled his pack of rogue wolves with an iron fist, and rumor had it he showed no mercy to males who disappointed him.
Even I'm scared of that bastard, Zero admitted quietly. Don't piss him off.
I kept my voice level. "Of course he does. We both do."
Kai's lips twisted into something that might have been a smile if it held any warmth. "From what I've heard, your brother doesn't seem to take much seriously." He paused, letting the words hang in the air. "Especially lately."
Fuck.
Zero snarled. He's not wrong though, is he? Casper's been a mess since—
Shut up, I snapped internally.
Since she left. Since Elowen walked out of our lives six months ago, carrying our children with her. Since we'd let her go, watched her disappear into Ronan's protection, all part of that goddamn plan to keep her safe from Selene.
The plan that was supposed to be temporary.
The plan that had stretched into half a year of silence, of aching emptiness where her presence used to burn bright in my chest.
I forced myself back to the present, aware that the silence had stretched too long. Alpha Viper was watching me with predatory interest, like a snake sizing up its prey.
"Casper takes his responsibilities very seriously," I said, each word carefully measured. "Whatever delay he's experiencing, I assure you it's unavoidable."
"Is it?" Viper's smirk widened. "Or is he perhaps... distracted? I heard rumors about trouble with his mate bond."
The temperature in the room seemed to drop ten degrees.
My eyes locked onto Viper's, ice meeting ice. I let Zero's presence bleed into my gaze—just enough to make my eyes flash silver-blue, just enough to remind this asshole exactly who he was talking to.
"I suggest," I said softly, voice cold as a winter grave, "you choose your next words very carefully, Alpha Viper."
To his credit, Viper held my stare for a few seconds before his gaze dropped. "My apologies. I meant no disrespect."
Liar, Zero hissed. He meant every word.
"Enough."
Alpha Austin's voice cracked through the tension like a whip. "We're here to discuss alliances and security, not to trade insults."
He turned to me, and I saw the warning in his eyes. Handle this. Now.
I nodded once, jaw tight. The unspoken message was clear: Casper's absence was making us all look bad, and if I couldn't control my own brother, how could we be trusted to lead?
"Now," Austin continued, his tone brooking no argument, "let's move on to the matter of the northern alliance. The packs that border our territory to the north have remained neutral for too long. We need to secure their cooperation."
I forced myself to focus, to push aside my worry for Casper and the constant, gnawing ache of Elowen's absence. These Alphas needed to see strength, confidence, competence.
Even if I felt none of those things right now.
"The northern packs are strategically important," I said, leaning forward slightly. "Their territory provides a buffer between us and the more... unpredictable elements beyond."
Alpha Kai grunted. "Strategic, sure. But they're also stubborn as hell. Conservative. They don't trust outsiders, and they sure as shit don't like change."
"Which is exactly why we need to approach them carefully," I countered. "Force won't work with them. We need to demonstrate mutual benefit."
Viper raised an eyebrow. "And how exactly do you plan to do that? They've rejected every overture for the past decade."
The question hung in the air, a direct challenge to my competence. I could feel all their eyes on me—Austin's expectant, Kai's skeptical, Viper's openly mocking.
This is your chance, Zero urged. Show them you're not just Casper's shadow.