FOURTY ONE

Neo POV

Something shifted in the room—and I didn't like it. I felt it the second the words left her mouth.

"Out."

The command was not loud, but it landed like a pulse of raw energy, rippling across the space with invisible force. It didn't come from her lungs—it came from somewhere deeper. Deeper than it should have.

The enforcer flinched. The advisors froze, eyes darting toward me for confirmation. But it wasn't me they moved for.

It was her. They obeyed her.

I watched in silence as they dropped everything and left without a word, the door clicking shut behind them like the final note of a song I didn't write.

My fingers tightened around the armrest.

That tone—the weight behind it—I recognized it. I'd used it. Father had, too. But Sky? She wasn't supposed to have it. The Alpha Command didn't run through just any blood. It was rare. Inherited. Born.

Not earned.

And definitely not hers.

I studied her more closely now, my expression calm, but something cold slithered down my spine.

How?

Where had she learned to access that part of herself? And what the hell did it mean?

I was the Alpha. She was supposed to be a leftover. A failure. A complication.

Not a threat. Not this.

She stormed toward my desk like she hadn't just shaken the foundation of the room. Like she hadn't just taken control—for a second—and made me question what the fuck was happening to my pack.

I couldn't let her see it.

Couldn't let her know that under all my power, for just a moment—I was nervous.

So I leaned back in my chair, let my lips curl into a calm, amused smirk, and waited for her to speak.

Sky slammed her hands on my desk like she thought that would intimidate me.

Pathetic.

Her palms hit the surface with a dull thud, her chest rising and falling in rapid, angry bursts. But all I saw was desperation. Weakness wrapped in bravado.

And it made me smile.

"Well," she hissed, her eyes burning, "let's talk." I leaned back in my chair, folding my arms slowly across my chest, like I had all the time in the world.

"Why are there no women training? There are barely any at all around the pack." I wondered when she would pick up on that little change I had made since taking over the pack from her father.

"They serve their purpose," I said smoothly.

"What purpose?" Her lip curled, steam almost coming out her ears. I smirked. Goddess, she was predictable.

"The one the Moon Goddess gave them." Her fists tightened. Her jaw clenched. I could practically taste her rage. It filled the room like smoke—sweet, thick, choking. And I breathed it in.

"Excuse me?" She scoffed, her eyes widening as she yed me with what looked very similar to hatred. Poor her, I mused inwardly, if only I gave a fuck about her delicate little feelings. 

"Women are meant to breed, Sky," I expressed, my voice calm, reasonable, and even. "Not battle. Not lead. They're designed to birth warriors, not become them." She took a step back like I'd hit her.

Good.

"They are seen, not heard. Valued by their beauty, their obedience. Trained to please. Promised to the highest bidder." I ticked each one off like commandments.

"You're disgusting." Her hands shook at her sides; a smile painted my lips because I could see she meant that.

"No," I said with a chuckle. "I'm honest."

"You're insane."

"No," I corrected. "I'm in charge."

"You can't seriously believe this shit." She laughed. A single sharp bark of disbelief. 

"Why wouldn't I?" I tilted my head. "It's working."

"For who? You?"

"For everyone who matters."

"So you're just… what? Trafficking women now?" Her face twisted.

"Only the ones who don't know their place." She gasped, her eyes feral as she looked straight at me. I watched her carefully, as if one were watching a dangerous animal, not trusting it but also amused by it.

"And the ones who refuse?" she spat, crossing her arms.

"They're taken care of." I smiled, slow and cruel. Sky's lips parted, her breath shallow.

Bingo.

I leaned forward, resting my elbows on the desk, fingers steepled under my chin.

"Those who resist are given… alternate paths. Correctional camps. Transfers. Sales. A few disappear entirely. You'd be amazed how easy it is to erase a name once no one's asking questions anymore."

"You're a monster." Maybe I was, but I was a rich one.

"No," I replied again, unbothered. "I'm a visionary." Her skin had paled. Just slightly. But it was enough.

I pushed.

"You remember Brynn?" I asked, watching the colour drain further. "She's mated now. North pack. Good match. Keeps her head down. Hannah too. And Lucy—well, you've seen her. Quiet as a fucking mouse these days."

I drummed my fingers against the wood.

"Rhea?" she demanded. "And Alina?"

"Never returned." I shrugged. 

"What does that mean?" Her voice cracked.

"It means they were out of the pack. Sent elsewhere"

"What? To who?" I waved my hand, dismissively not answering until she asked again louder than before. Fed up of her dramatic tantrums, I answered. 

"Some broker. Ally packs. Alphas with money and no morals."

Her mouth fell open.

"You trade them like livestock," she whispered.

"They ARE livestock." I grinned. 

She lunged.

I was ready.

I caught her wrist before she could hit me, twisting gently—not enough to hurt, just enough to remind her she was nothing compared to me.

"Let's not pretend you're any different," I murmured. "You wear rebellion like perfume, but under all that fire? You're still my little sister. Still desperate to be seen."

"Fuck. You." Her eyes blazed.

"Charming." I laughed. She ripped her wrist free, stepping back, cradling it.

I didn't miss the shake in her hands.

Or the flicker of doubt in her eyes.

It was in that flicker I saw something else. Something I hadn't expected. Not weakness—rage. A deep, bone-carving fury that hadn't found its teeth yet but was sharpening by the second. It thrilled me.

But it also warned me.

If she found a way to channel that, if she found others to follow her... she could become dangerous. More dangerous than I'd anticipated. That same tension from earlier—the way my wolves obeyed her—echoed in the back of my skull like a threat. I couldn't allow it to grow. Not unchecked.

I hadn't broken Zeke yet, but I was ready. And Sky, she was already halfway destroyed before she even got here.