A Bastard Among Us
The silence that settled after Narelle’s statement was so thick it felt tangible.
No one dared to move. Not even breathe too loudly. Her scent, still clinging to the staircase steps, awakened something primal in every wolf present. Fear... respect... arousal.
And then, she descended.
Step by step.
Like someone who doesn’t just walk — but rules.
She didn’t look sideways. Didn’t ask for space. She was the space.
Inside the council room, the members were already gathered. Veteran betas. Influential deltas. Two Alphas invited by Kael. And Aline, pale, standing in the back, trying not to tremble.
When Narelle entered, everyone straightened. A low growl or two echoed — instinctive. But none held her gaze for long.
She didn’t need to shout. Or command. She just sat in the central chair — the one no one had occupied since Rhaek.
And crossed her legs.
“Let’s begin.”
One of the counselors cleared his throat, trying to break the tension.
“The Red Protocol... it’s extreme. It ends alliances. Cuts funding. Could trigger a permanent break with the Vorn.”
Narelle didn’t blink.
“Let it break, then.”
Another tried to reason.
“But... Kael? Open war with him—”
“Kael made his choice.” Her tone was a blade. “Now we make ours.”
The oldest of them, na Alpha with gray eyes and a scar on his face, leaned in slightly.
“And what if she’s playing deeper than we think?”
Narelle smiled. Brief. Cold.
“She is.”
Silence.
“But I’m the one who digs the graves where enemies are buried.”
...
Meanwhile, at the other end of the headquarters, Lysa watched from a distance. From a side balcony, a glass of wine in hand, her body wrapped in a black robe slit at the sides, she observed the arriving cars. One by one.
She knew what that meant.
Narelle had summoned allies.
Packs Lysa thought extinct. Alliances that seemed dormant. But there they were. Awake. Hungry.
And even so... she smiled.
“She took the bait.”
Kael appeared behind her. Tie undone. Expression tense. His scent was a mix of rage, lust, and frustration — everything Lysa knew how to use.
“You pushed too far,” he said low.
“She reacted, didn’t she?” Lysa turned slowly, approaching him like a dancer. “You needed that, Kael. Needed her to show her claws so everyone would see... that Narelle isn’t stability. She’s a threat.”
Kael closed his eyes for a second. Just one. But it was enough to know his soul was at war.
“If she falls...” he murmured, “we lose more than a she-wolf.”
Lysa pressed her body to his.
“You’ve already lost. Now, you have to choose: will you try to save her...” her hand rose to his face, pulling him slightly down, “...or will you crush what’s left?”
He didn’t answer.
Because the answer... wasn’t clear even to himself.
...
In the central archives wing, Narelle walked through dark corridors, flanked by two trusted deltas. They stopped in front of a door marked with a forgotten symbol — three interlocked claws.
“Council 17 Alpha confirmed,” one of them said.
The door opened with a metallic click.
Inside, there weren’t just weapons.
There were records.
Documents from the old war.
Proof of secret alliances.
Names no one dared speak aloud.
Narelle approached the main console. Scanned her fingerprint. And then spoke.
“Unlock the files on Kael Vorn.”
The system blinked. Her eyes narrowed. Lines of data appeared. Internal council. Hidden contracts. Old images.
And at the center of it all...
A confidential file, never accessed.
She clicked.
And saw.
Kael’s origin.
The blood running in him...
Was not pure.
Was not Vorn.
It was something... older.
More dangerous.
More hybrid. She stepped back.
Took a deep breath. This wasn’t just about the pack.
Not just about power. This was about the Council.
And Kael... was part of it.
The sound of the system unlocking the files echoed in the room. Cold lights flickered on the walls as lines of data ran across the central screen. Narelle’s eyes were sharp, predatory.
She had always known something was there. Typed in the final credentials.
Restricted access. Founder Alpha only.
She smiled.
“I’m more than that.”
A beep. The screen flickered.
And then, it opened.
Na old video. Grainy.
The council chamber. A closed meeting.
Voices. Heated discussions. And then, she heard:
“— This... this cannot get out. If the pack finds out...”
“— No one will find out.” The voice of the old Vorn Alpha was cutting. “She committed the worst dishonor.”
“— But... what about the child?”
The silence in the video was heavier than any scream.
Then came the sentence:
“— The bastard cannot inherit my legacy. He’ll only take what he conquers, but he’ll carry my name... the pack can’t know that Luna... lay with na omega.”
Na omega.
Not a beta. Not a delta.
Na omega.
The Alpha took a breath. Brushed his hand across the table.
“— Eliminate the father. And... when he’s born... we’ll say he’s mine. He’ll grow up as na Alpha. Under the Vorn name. Never knowing who he really is.”
Narelle’s blood froze... for a moment.
Then... she laughed.
Low. Sharp. Lethal.
“So that’s it...”
She dove into the folders. Old photos. Hidden records.
The omega’s body — marked “death by accident.”
Luna... pregnant, kept in isolation during the following months.
And then... Kael’s birth.
Raised as a Vorn.
Treated as a beta.
But... he never was.
He was never a true Vorn. And Rhaek never suspected.
He carried in his veins the most feared, most despised blood in the hierarchy.
The blood of one born to serve, to kneel, to be hated — unless they rose.
And yet...
He became a consolidated beta.
He dominated.
He took.
He subdued.
What was once a shame... became the greatest mistake in Vorn history.
They created the shame-born son. A nameless one.
Narelle turned on her heels.
The fitted blazer, her heels slicing the silence like a blade.
She left the room, leaving the file open.
Because she knew: it didn’t need to be erased.
It needed to be used.
She grabbed the phone.
“Aline...”
“— Yes, ma’am...”
“— Send the dossier... the whole thing... to three recipients.”
“— Three?”
“Yes.” She adjusted her necklace, smiling. “The pack council. The company board. And...”
She paused, savoring every syllable.
“...to Lysa.”
The silence on the other end was absolute.
Aline barely breathed.
“— Are you sure...?”
“I am.” She stepped into the elevator. “If Lysa wants to play... then let’s play.”
The doors closed.
The elevator began to rise.
“But tell her...”
Her smile widened.
“...the next move is mine.”
...
On the other side of the city, Lysa received the holo notification.
She opened it.
And for a moment... for a single second...
Her blood turned cold.
“— This... no...”
The images. The recordings. The evidence.
Everything.
She turned, almost stumbling.
“KAEL!”
The Alpha appeared in the room.
Serious. Annoyed.
“— What now?”
She just tossed the hologram his way.
His eyes followed every frame. Every word spoken in that old meeting. Every photo.
And then...
Silence.
His face hardened.
His chest heaved.
Beneath all the power. Beneath all the arrogance.
For the first time...
Kael looked small.
Not physically. Not in body.
But in soul.
As if, suddenly, all the walls holding up his world... collapsed.
“— They lied to me.”
He stepped back. Another step. His hand pressed to his chest, as if trying to hold on to his name... his blood... his place in the world.
“— They... made me into something... I never was.”
...
On the other side of the city, Narelle exited the elevator.
Her heels steady. Her head held high.
She opened the doors to the headquarters.
The entire pack was already silent. The air thick with shock, fear, and disbelief.
And she spoke.
Firm, loud. Without a trace of hesitation.
“— From this day forward...” She looked at each one. Every lowered gaze. Every wolf struggling to understand what was happening.
“...everyone who tried to take me down...”
She stepped forward.
“...everyone who believed the lies...”
Another step.
“...everyone who dared think they could strip me of the place I earned myself...”
She stopped at the center.
Her blazer flawless. Her scent... dominant. Unden
iable.
“...will understand...”
Her smile curled. Almost cruel.
“...that a she-wolf like me... does not fall.”
Pause. She looked up. As if she could smell Kael in the air.
“If you want bones...” She lifted her chin. “I’ll give you bones.”
“But... if you want war...”
Her gaze ignited the room.
“Start digging graves.”