Chapter 200: 200.Bait

Hope

The air in the council hall feels too tight for my lungs.

I stand along the curved stone wall, arms folded, trying not to pace like my wolf wants. The long cedar table is carved with claw marks from meetings past—agreements struck, wars declared, alliances broken. Tonight, the scratches seem deeper.

At the head of the table stands Keith, broad-shouldered and rigid, his dark hair pulled back from a face carved from granite. Beside him, Xavior leans against the table edge, quiet but coiled. And to Keith’s right, Tessa stands with her hands braced flat against the wood, green eyes blazing.

Across from them are the chieftains.

Jeb sits heavily, fingers laced over his belly, grim but thoughtful. Damon rests back in his chair, arms crossed, eyes sharp and calculating. Riven stands like a blade, all hard angles and tension. Thorne’s knuckles are white where he grips the table. And Silas watches silently from the shadows near the hearth, saying nothing—but missing nothing.

The children have been gone for thirty-six hours.

Thirty-six.

My wolf presses against my ribs, restless and snarling.

They are ours, she growls inside my mind. Cubs. We hunt.

“I’m not sending half our fighters into what could be a trap,” Keith says, his voice even but iron-hard. “We don’t know what we’re walking into.”

“We do know,” Thorne snaps. “We’re walking into our children being used as bait.”

The word hits like a slap.

Bait.

My claws prick against my palms.

“They haven’t harmed them yet,” Damon says. “That tells me they want something.”

“Or they’re waiting,” Tessa shoots back. “Waiting for us to come running.”

“They want us divided,” Riven adds. “Pulled away from the settlement. You all know that.”

My wolf paces inside me, hackles high.

Too much talking. Not enough teeth.

Xavior’s gaze flicks toward me briefly. He can feel it—my agitation. He always can.

“We need a retrieval team,” Xavior says quietly. “Small. Precise. Fast.”

“And if it’s a trap?” Jeb asks.

“Then we spring it,” Thorne growls.

“No,” Riven counters sharply. “Then we lose our strongest warriors in one blow.”

Silence falls heavy again.

I can’t take it anymore.

“They don’t have time,” I say.

Every head turns.

Keith’s brow furrows slightly. “Hope—”

“They don’t have time,” I repeat, pushing off the wall and stepping forward. My voice shakes, but not from fear. From urgency. “The longer they’re out there, the more dangerous it becomes. They’re scared. They don’t understand what’s happening.”

My wolf pushes forward, her voice braided with mine.

Cold. Hungry. Afraid. I can smell it.

Damon studies me. “You think rushing in blind is smarter?”

“I think waiting guarantees damage,” I snap. “Maybe not physical. But emotional. Psychological.” I look around the table. “They’re children. Not bargaining chips.”

Silas finally speaks from the hearth, voice low and smooth. “So what do you propose, Hope?”

The question hangs there.

I draw in a breath.

“We send a task force. Not half the pack. Not a skeleton crew.” I look at Keith. “Balanced.”

“Define balanced,” Riven says, skeptical.

“We take our best trackers. Our fastest fighters.” My heart pounds. “And we take Lina.”

The reaction is immediate.

“No,” Riven says flatly.

Keith’s jaw tightens. “Explain.”

“Her shadows,” I say. “She can cloak movement. Conceal heat signatures. Muffle sound. She can hide the children once we get to them. Protect them while we extract.”

My wolf nods fiercely.

Shadow female is useful. She moves like night.

Damon rubs his chin. “Her abilities are strong… but she’s not frontline.”

“She doesn’t need to be,” I counter. “She’s defense. Protection. Evac.”

“She’s also one of our greatest assets here,” Riven says sharply. “If this is a lure to draw us out, they could strike the settlement once we’re gone. Without her shadows, we lose a massive advantage.”

“They’ve already struck,” I fire back. “They took our kids.”

Tessa’s eyes flash with approval.

Keith exhales slowly. “Who else?”

“We’ll need Rhys.”

Riven’s head snaps toward me. “Absolutely not.”

My wolf bares her teeth.

“Rhys is one of our strongest strategists,” I argue. “He reads terrain like a map in his head. If this is a trap, he’ll see it.”

“And if it’s a diversion?” Riven shoots back. “Rhys stays here. If they attack the settlement while we’re gone, we need his mind and his power. This is where we're the most vulnerable.”

“We can’t plan for every possible threat!” I shout.

“Yes, we can,” he growls.

The air crackles.

Xavior steps forward slightly, placing himself subtly between Riven and me—not blocking, just steadying.

“Enough,” he says quietly.

The word carries weight.

“We assume it’s a trap,” Keith says. “We assume it’s real. We plan for both.”

“How?” Thorne demands.

Keith looks to the map spread across the table. “Two rings of defense remain here. Reinforced patrols. Rotating shifts. Silas, you and Damon coordinate internal security.”

Silas nods once.

“Riven,” Keith continues, “you stay.”

Riven stiffens but doesn’t argue.

“You’ll command the settlement defense. If this is a lure, you’ll be ready.”

“And the task force?” Tessa asks.

Keith’s gaze shifts to me. “Hope, you’ll be on it.”

My breath catches.

Yes, my wolf whispers. We go.

“We move fast,” Keith continues. “Xavior leads the strike unit. Thorne with him.”

Thorne nods once, savage satisfaction in his eyes.

“Tessa,” Keith says, “you manage extraction.”

She inclines her head.

“And Lina?” I press.

A long pause.

Keith studies Riven.

Riven’s jaw works, tension radiating from him like heat. Finally, he exhales through his nose. “If she goes, she stays protected at all costs.”

“She won’t need coddling,” I say.

“That wasn’t a suggestion,” he replies coolly.

“Lina goes,” Keith decides.

Relief rushes through me.

“And Rhys?” I push.

Riven’s glare could flay skin.

Keith considers. The silence stretches.

“We split his role,” Keith says at last. “Rhys remains here. But he briefs us thoroughly before we leave. Terrain layouts. Contingency planning. Every scenario he can think of.”

It’s not what I want—but it’s something.

My wolf grumbles but relents.

We hunt. That is enough.

“Agreed,” Tessa says.

One by one, the chieftains nod.

The decision settles over the room like a drawn blade.

Keith straightens. “We leave at first light.”

“Too late,” I say immediately.

His eyes lock onto mine.

“We leave in three hours,” I clarify. “Under cover of night. Lina’s shadows will be strongest. We move before they expect us.”

Xavior’s mouth curves faintly. “She’s right.”

Thorne grins. “I like the way you think.”

Keith studies me for a long moment, then nods once. “Three hours.”

Energy shifts in the room—purpose replacing argument.

Chairs scrape. Orders begin flying. Damon moves toward the door, already issuing commands to runners. Silas disappears into the corridor like smoke.

But before we disperse, Tessa raises her voice.

“We tell the people together.”

Everyone stills.

She’s right.

They deserve that.

My stomach twists.

The thought of facing the families—the empty arms, the red-rimmed eyes—makes my chest ache.

We will bring them back, my wolf says firmly. Or we will not return.

I swallow hard.

We move as one toward the main hall.

The doors open, and the murmur of the gathered pack swells into a wave. Dozens of faces turn toward us. Mothers clutch each other. Fathers stand stiff and silent. Warriors line the walls.

I spot Mara near the front, her hands trembling.

My throat tightens.

Keith steps forward first.

“Our children were taken,” he says, voice carrying easily. “But they are alive.”

A ripple runs through the crowd.

“We have a plan,” Tessa adds.

Xavior steps beside them. “A task force leaves tonight.”

Murmurs grow louder.

I step forward without fully deciding to.

“And we will bring them home,” I say.

My voice rings sharper than I expect.

All eyes shift to me.

“We move fast. We move smart. We assume danger—but we do not let fear paralyze us.” My gaze finds Mara’s. “Your children are not forgotten. Not for a second.”

Emotion swells in the room—fear, hope, fury.

“They think we’ll hesitate,” Thorne growls from behind us. “They think we’ll fracture.”

A low rumble answers him—wolves responding.

“They’re wrong,” I say.

My wolf rises inside me, pressing close to the surface. For a split second, gold flickers at the edges of my vision.

Show them, she urges.

I let her.

My canines lengthen slightly. A low growl vibrates from my chest—not threatening, but powerful.

“We are pack,” I say, voice layered with hers. “You touch one of us… you answer to all of us.”

The answering howl shakes the rafters.

It rolls through the hall, through the settlement, into the dark forest beyond.

A promise.

A warning.

Keith lifts his hand, and slowly the sound fades.

“Prepare,” he commands. “Three hours.”

The crowd begins to disperse, movement fueled by purpose now instead of panic.

As the leaders turn away, Xavior pauses beside me.

“You pushed hard in there,” he says quietly.

“So did you.”

His eyes soften briefly. “You were right about Lina.”

“I usually am.”

A faint huff of amusement escapes him.

Behind us, Riven approaches. For a moment I expect another argument.

Instead, he says, “If anything happens to Lina—”

“It won’t,” I cut in.

His gaze sharpens. “You can’t promise that.”

“No,” I admit. “But you can.”

He studies me, then nods once. “Now I just have to convince my brother of that.”

“We will.”