Chapter 13 The crowned wolfess
Alexandra’s POV:
"We cannot afford another failure," I said sharply, my hands clasping the edges of the oak table. The council elders….my advisors, my teachers, my family…stared back at me. Some faces were stone-cold, others trembling with anger. I could feel their frustration, their fear, and the weight of expectation pressing on my shoulders. We were all gathered at Snowpack Council Hall…an ancient stone chamber atop a snowy cliff, torches flickering along the walls, banners of the Snowpack pack fluttering slightly in the cold wind that seeps through the cracks. Outside, the night sky stretches dark and stormy, giving the meeting an ominous weight.
I had been crowned the most powerful wolfess in our pack, no small feat. Tasha’s resurrection had shifted the balance of power, and though I held the crown now, my hands weren’t steady with pride. Fear licked at the edges of my mind.
She had seen me with Rhett. She knew what I was capable of. And worse… she had lived, returned, and was more dangerous than anyone could have anticipated.
I adjusted the silver crown that lay lightly atop my head. It wasn’t heavy, but it carried responsibility that I wasn’t sure I could bear fully. My grandfather, Elder Korran, the oldest among the council and a man whose voice could command both respect and fear, leaned forward. His eyes, sharp as a hawk, studied me with piercing clarity.
"Alexandra," he said, his tone unusually grave, "your spy… dead. And our eyes on her now blind. This cannot continue. How did Tasha rise again? She was gone… destroyed. Someone brought her back."
I swallowed, forcing a calm I didn’t feel. The others…Elder Ron, a blunt, straightforward strategist, and Elder Sara, a cunning, meticulous planner…glared at me. Their anger was barely contained, and I understood it. Our carefully laid plans, the subtle manipulations through Noah, had just crumbled.
"I… I don’t know, Grandfather," I said carefully, trying to keep my voice steady. "But our priority is her elimination. We need to strike before she grows stronger, before she realizes her full power."
Ron slammed his fist on the table. "We sent him to spy, and he’s gone. And if we send another spy he will be gone too. We can’t let our wolves get killed like that. Now we have no insight. She could strike at any moment. We cannot afford hesitation."
Sara’s gaze softened just slightly toward me, though her tone was still sharp. "Alexandra, holding the crown doesn’t make you invincible. You must act decisively. Fear is a weakness your enemies can exploit."
I clenched my fists beneath the table, pretending control. Inside, I trembled. I knew Tasha’s strength…her resurrection was forbidden. Whoever brought her back had broken the oldest laws of our kind. I dared not imagine the consequences.
"I understand," I said finally. My voice sounded firmer than I felt. "We strike when she least expects it. But first, we must gather intelligence. Without Noah, we are blind. And without the prophecy, we lose leverage over the other packs."
"Exactly," Elder Korran replied, his voice low, deliberate. "Noah has always been our key. The prophecies he provided… they allowed us to manipulate Emerald and Stoneclaw for our advantage. Tampering with them ensured our dominance."
I nodded slowly. He was right. Noah had been a puppet we used, subtly shifting outcomes in our favor. And now… he was missing. That meant the delicate control we had, the influence we exerted over other packs, was gone.
Ron leaned forward again, his voice sharper. "Do you realize what this means? Tasha is untethered, unbound, and now she has the power of resurrection behind her. Whoever revived her… whoever defied the laws… has changed the game. If we do not act, Snowpack itself could fall into chaos."
Sara’s fingers tapped rhythmically against the table. "The spy was meant to monitor her, learn her patterns. We had six months of preparation. And now… she’s aware. Everything we planned is useless."
I forced my lips into a line, hiding the unease twisting in my stomach. My mind raced. I had to project strength. I had to lead, though the truth gnawed at me: Tasha was more than any of us could handle, and if she set her sights on Snowpack… none of us would survive.
"And Noah," Elder Korran murmured, his tone grim, "he was supposed to be under our control. We were supposed to dictate the prophecies. Now, he has escaped. If he is the one who resurrected her…" His eyes turned toward me, full of accusation and fear. "Then he has betrayed us all. And if we find him…" He let the words hang in the air, heavy with threat. "We end him."
A cold shiver ran down my spine. The elders’ unity in purpose terrified me more than their anger. They were all thinking the same thing: Tasha was a threat we could no longer manipulate, and Noah… if he was involved in her resurrection, his life was forfeit.
I straightened my posture, attempting authority. "We cannot waste time on hesitation. We prepare for her arrival. I will gather the elite hunters tonight, and we plan our strike at dawn."
Ron frowned. "Even then, we are gambling. If Tasha senses a trap, she could turn our attack against us. She is not just powerful… she is ruthless."
I looked down at my hands, the silver crown glinting faintly under the torchlight. The weight of leadership pressed against my temples. I could pretend to be fearless, but in truth… I was terrified. Tasha had seen Rhett with me. She knew what I wanted, and she knew I wanted to rule. But she was unpredictable, dangerous, and, worst of all, she was free.
"Do you really believe we can contain her?" I asked softly, almost to myself.
Sara’s eyes softened fractionally. "Contain… no. But we can survive if we plan wisely. Fear will not save us, Alexandra. Only strategy, only control."
I drew a deep breath, forcing a sense of calm. "Then we prepare. We must show no weakness. We must act as one. Either we contain her, make her leave the town…or we will hunt her down."
The council murmured in agreement, the tension in the room almost palpable. I kept my gaze firm, outwardly composed. But inside, my mind raced with doubt and dread.
Grandfather Korran leaned back in his chair, his hand resting on his cane. His voice dropped low, deliberate, like a blade sliding through the tension. "And yet, one question remains…" He paused, looking around the chamber slowly. "How did she return? We need to erase the base problem first of all. Resurrection is forbidden. Only the prophecy seer could have done this. And if Noah did… he has betrayed us all. And if he has resurrected her, then he might help her more and that will make her even more dangerous."
I stiffened. The words hung in the air like smoke. Every eye in the room now turned to me, measuring, judging.
"If he did this…" Ron’s voice was tight with rage. "We find him. We make him pay. And then we deal with Tasha before she can harm anything else."
I swallowed hard, nodding. The reality was clear. The delicate balance of power we had fought for, manipulated through prophecies and careful control, was shattered. Tasha’s resurrection had changed everything. And now… Noah was a target.
I tightened my grip on the crown, forcing my voice to project strength I did not feel. "Then we move quickly. Gather the hunters, prepare the defenses, and locate Noah. We do not leave this to chance."
Grandfather Korran’s eyes lingered on mine, sharp and knowing. "Remember this, Alexandra," he said finally, his tone icy, "the next move we make could determine the survival of Snowpack. If we fail… Tasha will burn everything we hold dear. And if Noah betrayed us… he will pay dearly before she even reaches us."
I swallowed hard, my hands trembling imperceptibly. The crown felt heavier than ever.
"We will not fail," I said firmly, though my voice shook slightly. I forced myself to imagine a future where Snowpack remained standing, where I remained in control. But deep in my gut, I knew the truth. Tasha was no longer a threat we could anticipate.
She was a force of nature, beyond prediction, and the shadow of her return loomed over every decision we would make.
The council murmured in agreement, though unease rippled beneath the surface. I could see it in Ron’s tightened jaw, Sara’s wary eyes, and Grandfather Korran’s stern, unyielding gaze.
And as the torches flickered against the ancient stone walls, I understood: everything we had known, everything we had relied upon, had shifted. The crown I held could not protect me from what was coming.
"Prepare yourselves," Korran said, his voice final. "For Tasha is coming. And when she does… nothing will ever be the same."