Chapter 210 CHAPTER 210
The forest stood still beneath the weight of the night.
Moonlight filtered softly through the canopy, casting silver patterns across the ground, where shadows stretched long and quiet between the trees. It was far enough from Mooncrest to be unseen, far enough from Red Valley to remain unclaimed—a place that belonged to neither territory and yet was known by both.
A place chosen carefully.
Liam stood at the edge of a narrow clearing, his posture relaxed but his senses alert, listening to the subtle movements of the night around him. He had arrived early, as expected, though his mind had not been still for a moment since he left the palace.
Too much was shifting.
Too much was uncertain.
And for the first time in a long while, he found himself stepping outside the system he had always trusted.
A faint rustle broke through the quiet.
Liam did not turn immediately.
He already knew who it was.
The presence was familiar—steady, grounded, carrying with it a quiet strength that did not need to announce itself.
“You picked quite a place for a meeting,” a voice came from behind him, calm but laced with curiosity.
Liam turned then.
Alpha Reed stepped into the clearing, the moonlight catching briefly along the edges of his frame as he approached. There was a hint of a smile at the corner of his mouth, but his eyes were searching, already reading more than what had been said.
“This isn’t your usual way of doing things,” Reed added, stopping a few steps away. “No guards. No escorts. Not even a formal message?”
Liam exhaled lightly, a faint trace of something softer crossing his expression.
“That’s because this isn’t a usual request.”
Reed studied him for a moment longer, then tilted his head slightly.
“Is something wrong?”
There was no panic in his voice.
Only concern.
Liam met his gaze fully now.
“Yes.”
The single word carried more weight than a longer explanation ever could.
Reed’s expression shifted—not into alarm, but into focus.
For a moment, Liam said nothing. He glanced briefly at the surrounding forest, as though confirming once more that they were alone, before stepping a little closer.
“This meeting didn’t happen,” he said quietly. “You didn’t see me. I didn’t come here.”
Reed raised a brow slightly, but the faintest hint of amusement touched his expression.
“That serious?”
“That serious,” Liam confirmed.
Reed’s posture straightened just a little.
“Then I’m listening.”
Liam nodded once, then began.
“There’s been an attempt on Princess Lisa,” he said.
Reed’s eyes sharpened instantly.
“An attempt?”
“She was lured into a trap at Lunaris,” Liam continued. “Someone used Isabel’s phone to send her a message. They planned it. Carefully.”
Reed’s jaw tightened slightly.
“And from the look of things, you didn’t get the attacker. Right?”
“Correct.” Liam said. “They’re just…gone. No trace. No scent. No memory left behind.”
Reed exhaled slowly.
“That’s not ordinary.”
“Exactly.” Liam agreed.
He paused for a moment, then continued more quietly.
“We thought we had the person responsible. A teacher. Miss Blackwood.”
Reed’s expression remained focused.
“She confessed,” Liam said. “But it didn’t add up.”
Reed folded his arms loosely.
“There must be a story there.”
Liam held Reed’s gaze.
“Her family has been abducted.”
That landed.
Reed’s expression hardened.
“She was being forced.”
“Any idea who the culprit could be?”
Liam shook his head slightly.
“No, not a clue. But whoever it is… they’re close. Close enough to observe routines, access personal information, even something as specific as a phone’s lock code.”
Reed let out a quiet breath, his mind already moving through the implications.
“So the threat isn’t outside,” he said.
“It’s within,” Liam confirmed.
Silence stretched briefly between them.
Then Reed spoke again.
“And you don’t trust your own people.”
It wasn’t a question.
Liam didn’t deny it.
“There are too many variables,” he said. “Too many things that don’t align. We’ve already had betrayal within the council. A compromised guard. I can’t risk using the palace network for this.”
Reed’s gaze softened slightly, something more familiar settling into it.
“That’s why I’m here.”
Liam’s expression shifted then—not into vulnerability, but into something close to it. Something quieter.
“For now, the king trusts very few people,” he said. “And you are one of them.”
Reed held his gaze for a moment.
Then a faint, knowing smile touched his lips.
“That’s a heavy compliment,” he said.
“It’s not a compliment,” Liam replied. “It’s the truth.”
Reed nodded once, accepting that without deflection this time.
“What do you need?”
Liam didn’t hesitate.
“I need you to find them,” he said. “Miss Blackwood’s family. Quietly. No one must know you’re involved. No one must know they’ve been found.”
Reed’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“You think whoever took them is still watching.”
“I know they are,” Liam said. “And if they realize we’ve figured it out, they’ll either disappear… or eliminate the leverage they have.”
Reed’s expression darkened.
A brief silence passed.
Then Reed asked, “Do you have anything to start with?”
“Only this,” Liam said. “They were last seen at a park near their home. After that… nothing. No scent. No trail. Like they were erased.”
Reed considered that for a moment.
“Not erased,” he said quietly. “Hidden.”
Liam gave a faint nod.
“That’s what I’m hoping.”
Reed’s posture shifted slightly, something more resolved settling into place.
“I’ll track them,” he said.
Liam met his gaze.
“I know you will.”
Reed let out a soft breath, then gave a small, almost amused shake of his head.
“You could have sent a message,” he said. “You didn’t have to drag me into a forest in the middle of the night.”
Liam’s expression softened just a fraction.
“This wasn’t something I could risk putting into words,” he said. “Not where it could be seen.”
Reed studied him for a moment, then nodded slowly.
“Fair enough.”
A pause.
Then, more quietly, Reed added, “You look like you haven’t slept.”
Liam huffed faintly.
“Neither have you.”
Reed smirked slightly.
“That’s different. I don’t have a kingdom trying to collapse around me.”
Liam didn’t respond to that directly, but something in his expression acknowledged it.
For a moment, the tension between them eased—just slightly.
Not gone.
But shared.
“We’ll fix this,” Reed said then, his voice steady, certain. “Whatever this is… we’ll find it.”
Liam held his gaze.
“I’m counting on you.”
Reed stepped back slightly, already preparing to leave.
“You don’t need to,” he said. “I’ve always stood with you. With Ethan. That hasn’t changed.”
Liam nodded once.
“I know.”
Reed turned, his form blending gradually into the shadows of the forest as he moved away.
Then, just before he disappeared completely, he paused.
“I’ll bring them back,” he said without turning.
And then he was gone.
The forest fell silent again.