Chapter 11 Old Human Territory
Sylvie POV
I heard the door shut behind him with a soft click.
And just like that, the room felt too big.
I overheard Zarek talking to Mara, that he was going to the quarters, something about meeting Kieran and handling pack matters. He said it like it was normal. Like disappearing into the night after dropping life-altering statements was a routine thing.
I stood there for a moment, still staring at the empty space he’d left behind.
I finally moved, pulling the garment bag he brought closer and opening it. Inside were other clothes neatly folded.
Of course he got the size right.
I changed slowly, slipping out of the clothes I was in and into the new ones. The fabric fit too perfectly, soft and comfortable.
When I was done, I sat on the edge of the bed.
The silence hit harder this time. I lay back slowly, staring up at the ceiling.
That was when my wolf spoke. -You’re thinking about him again.”
I sighed under my breath. “I’m not.”
\-You’re terrible at lying.
I turned my face slightly into the pillow. “He’s just… confusing and annoying. Was I mean?”
\-You said your mind. And I can tell he’s dangerous.
“I know that.”
My wolf shifted inside me, restless. -You don’t trust him.
“I shouldn’t.”
\-But?
I exhaled slowly, staring at the dim ceiling light. “But I don’t feel like I’m in danger around him.”
My wolf went quiet for a moment.
\-That’s the most dangerous feeling of all, she finally said.
I closed my eyes. “I know.”
Outside, somewhere deep in the compound, I could feel movement, guards shifting, wolves patrolling, life continuing in a place I still didn’t understand.
And somewhere beyond that, Zarek was gone for the night. But his presence didn’t leave the room with him.
….
Zarek POV
The Gamma Hall was dimmer than the rest of the compound.
It always was.
Kieran leaned against the table when I walked in, one boot hooked casually over the edge like he didn’t just return from three nights of tracking something that had already killed two of my men.
He looked too relaxed for someone who had been in the wild.
That alone told me he hadn’t found peace out there. He’d found answers.
“You took your time,” I said, closing the door behind me.
Kieran smirked. “You say that like I went on vacation.”
“You weren’t supposed to return empty-handed.”
That made him exhale through his nose as he straightened. “Did I say I came back empty-handed?”
My gaze sharpened slightly.
He pushed off the table and walked toward the map pinned on the wall, territories marked in black ink, red lines crossing zones that weren’t supposed to be crossed.
“I tracked the rogue pack movement like you asked,” he said, tone shifting now to being more serious. “They’re not staying in one place. They’re circling the outer borders.”
“Testing boundaries,” I muttered.
“More like probing.” Kieran tapped a point on the map. “They’re looking for gaps in patrol rotation.”
I arched my brow.
That was calculated and organized. Which meant one thing.
“They’re being led,” I blurted out.
Kieran nodded once. “Yeah.”
I stared at the map.
A lone wolf operation shouldn’t have had coordination like this. Lone wolves didn’t move like packs unless someone was controlling the leash.
“They’re still hiding their Alpha,” Kieran added. “But I found traces. Old territory markers. Burned-out scent trails. Someone is cleaning up after them.”
My fingers flexed slightly at my side. “Dorian?” I asked.
Kieran hesitated.
That alone was an answer.
“Shit…” I cursed loudly.
“Maybe it is Dorian,” he said carefully. “But not directly. Whoever’s doing this is smarter. They’re keeping distance from his signature.”
My gaze hardened. So it wasn’t just Dorian anymore.
“What are you then saying?” I tried calming myself.
“It can be that whoever is behind this wants us to think it’s Dorian so we would go after him and truth be told, we are no match for him, not at this point.” Kieran let out.
“That’s bullshit.” I sighed.
“Have you forgotten what happened the last time we went against Dorian? What it caused us?” He brought back old memories.
“I haven’t and that’s why you should bear in mind that once he is done with whatever is keeping him busy, he will come for us.” I informed him of the consequences we couldn’t avoid.
Kieran leaned back against the table again, watching me now instead of the map.
“There’s more,” he whispered.
I looked at him. His expression shifted slightly.
“I picked up something strange near the eastern ridge.”
“What was it?” I didn’t have time to beat around the bush.
He paused, then continued. “A scent trail.”
My eyes narrowed immediately.
Kieran continued, slower now. “Not rogue, not pack, not werewolf. Something in between.”
That got my attention fully. “There’s no such thing,” I said flatly.
“That’s what I thought too,” he replied. “Until I followed it.”
My wolf stirred low under my skin.
Kieran’s voice dropped slightly. “It didn’t behave like a normal wolf trail. It split. Regrouped. Then vanished completely near old human territory.”
I straightened slightly. That was impossible.
“No,” I said before the thought could finish forming.
Kieran studied me. “You thinking what I’m thinking?”
“No.”
But I was and I didn’t like it. Because old human territory meant one thing, hidden experiments, witches.
Things that shouldn’t exist anymore. Things that didn’t belong in any pack record.
Kieran stepped closer now, voice lower. “Zarek… whatever’s out there isn’t just rogue politics anymore.”
I didn’t answer immediately. “Keep tracking it,” I said finally.
Kieran nodded. “And her?”
That made the room still again.
I looked at him sharply.
He didn’t flinch.
“Don’t,” I said quietly.
Kieran held my gaze for a second longer, then gave a small shrug.
“Just saying,” he muttered. “Everything is starting to connect around her. If Dorian is involved you know it’s about Cole which leads to her. I don’t have any issue with that but it’s just a matter of time before the elders finds out and you know how it will go.”
“I don’t care.” I shot out.
“You should. You might be invincible and the pack are afraid of you but don’t forget you made a deal and they have your weakness.”
I turned away. I already knew that and that was the problem.
Everything I was hunting… was slowly starting to circle the girl I brought into my house.
I need to do what I brought her here for before everything collapses on us.