Chapter 186 CHAPTER 186

Chapter 186 CHAPTER 186
The room fell into another heavy silence after Victor's last words. Rain continued to patter softly against the windows, the only sound breaking the stillness between the three men.

Victor sat motionless, his elbows resting on his knees. His hands were clasped together so tightly that his knuckles had turned white. It took him several moments before he finally raised his head.

"You asked me to tell you everything," he said quietly. "Then you need to understand that none of this started with Prince Lucien."

Daniel remained standing beside the fireplace while Leonard leaned against the edge of the desk, his arms folded across his chest. Neither of them interrupted.

Victor drew a slow breath.

"It started years earlier... when I was twenty-two."

Daniel frowned slightly.

"I had just completed my guard training," Victor continued. "I was young, eager to prove myself, and convinced there was no greater honor than serving the kingdom. A few months later, I was approached by men who never gave their names. They asked me a series of questions, watched me for weeks, then disappeared."

He let out a humorless laugh.

"I thought that was the end of it."

"It wasn't."

"They came back one night and offered me a place in an organization I had never even heard of."

Victor looked from Daniel to Leonard before speaking the name.

"The Grey Order."

Daniel's brows knitted together almost immediately.

"The Grey... Order?"

Victor blinked in surprise.

"You've never heard of it?"

Daniel slowly shook his head.

"No."

Victor's gaze shifted toward Leonard; his expression remained unreadable.

"It isn't something Alphas are told."

Daniel looked between the two men, clearly trying to determine whether they were serious.

"Don’t you think this alpha deserves to know? Everything happened in my own backyard."

Leonard pushed himself away from the couch and began pacing slowly across the room.

"The Grey Order has existed for centuries," he explained. "Long before any of us were born. Officially, it doesn't exist. You'll never find its name in military records, and no kingdom publicly acknowledges it."

Daniel listened without speaking.

"It was created to protect the kingdom in ways ordinary guards never could. Its members gather intelligence, uncover threats before they become wars, watch neighboring kingdoms, infiltrate hostile territories when necessary, and carry out assignments that cannot be traced back to the throne if they go wrong."

He stopped beside the window, watching the rain stream down the glass.

"Most of what they do never becomes public knowledge. That's why Ashwood has remained one of the safest kingdoms for generations."

Daniel folded his arms.

"And they're recruited from ordinary packs?"

"Yes."

Daniel looked at both men   in confusion.

"The Grey Order recruits promising warriors while they're still young.” Victor picked up the explanation, “We continue living normal lives inside our packs. We remain guards, scouts, warriors... whatever our public roles happen to be."

Victor shook his head.

"No one outside the order is supposed to know. Not even our Alphas."

Daniel stared at him.

"So all this time..."

Victor gave a small nod.

"The moment I swore my oath, my chain of command changed. I no longer answered to my Alpha when it came to Grey Order assignments. I answered only to the Commander."

Daniel's expression hardened.

"And who appoints this Commander?"

"The Alpha King."

Victor's voice remained steady.

"Every Alpha King chooses someone they trust completely. Someone capable of carrying the kingdom's darkest secrets without ever allowing them to see the light."

"The Commander serves until replaced."

Leonard nodded quietly.

"That's correct."

Victor lowered his eyes as old memories resurfaced.

"For years, my assignments were exactly what I'd expected. Watching border movements. Delivering confidential reports. Tracking suspicious activity inside neighboring territories."

A faint smile crossed his face before disappearing just as quickly.

"I believed every mission was for the good of Ashwood."

His shoulders sagged.

"I never questioned any of it."

The room fell silent again.

Victor finally continued.

"Then Prince Lucien disappeared."

Daniel's attention sharpened instantly.

"The entire kingdom was searching for him," Victor said. "Every Alpha received orders to search within their territories. Guards were mobilized. Patrols doubled. Information poured in from every direction."

Victor looked directly at Daniel, his expression weighed down by years of guilt.

"But the Grey Order received different instructions."

Daniel frowned. "What sort of instructions?"

Victor answered without hesitation.

"If any member of the Grey Order found Prince Lucien, we were to report directly to the Commander."

Realization slowly dawned on Daniel's face.

"So that's why..."

Victor nodded again.

"I wasn't betraying you, Daniel. I was following the only orders I had."

He lowered his gaze to his clasped hands.

"I activated the contacts I'd built over the years through the Grey Order. Quiet people. Reliable people. The kind who could uncover information without anyone realizing they were being watched."

He drew in a slow breath.

"It took weeks."

His eyes grew distant as the memory resurfaced.

"But eventually... I found him."

The corners of his mouth lifted into a sad, almost nostalgic smile.

"He was living quietly in Maplewood... with his wife and young daughter."

For a brief moment, the haunted look in his eyes softened.

"They looked happy."

Daniel remained silent, allowing Victor to continue.

"I sent word to the Commander immediately."

Victor's shoulders stiffened.

"His response was for me not to tell anyone else."

His eyes shifted to Daniel. His voice was barely above a whisper, "He told me to wait for further instructions."

The room grew still again.

"What happened next?" Leonard asked.

Victor rubbed a hand over his face before letting it fall into his lap.

"A few days later... another order arrived."

He hesitated, as though the words themselves carried unbearable weight.

"The Commander instructed me to lease a moving truck."

Daniel blinked.

"A truck?"

Victor nodded.

"He said Prince Lucien was going to be relocated quietly. The fewer people who knew, the safer it would be."

He released a shaky breath.

"It made sense to me."

"I believed they had finally decided to bring him home."

"So I leased the truck."

He paused.

"In my own name. I collected the keys and left it exactly where I'd been instructed."

His fingers curled tightly together. He stared at the floor, unable to meet either man's eyes.

"Three days later..."

His voice cracked.

"The news reached me."

Daniel's breath caught.

Victor closed his eyes for a brief moment before forcing himself to continue.

"Prince Lucien's vehicle had been in an accident."

He swallowed painfully.

"His wife died beside him."

No one moved.

No one even seemed to breathe.

Victor finally lifted his head, his eyes glistening with years of buried torment.

"The truck..."

His voice trembled.

"...the truck that rammed Prince Lucien's vehicle..."

He clenched his jaw so tightly that the muscles in his face quivered.

"...was the very truck I had leased in my own name."