Chapter 19 Chapter 19
Rowan’s POV
I had served my Alpha for ten years.
Ten long years of war, bloodshed, and battles that most wolves wouldn’t have survived. I had watched him crush enemies twice his size without hesitation. I had seen him walk away from burning pack territories without looking back. I had even seen him smile while facing three Alphas at once.
Fear was something my Alpha did not understand.
Until tonight.
The moment the scout spoke the name–
My Alpha stopped smiling.
It wasn’t dramatic thing but he didn’t shout neither did he move which was an usual thing.
But something changed in the air around him.
Something heavy, dangerous.
The quiet in the room stretched long enough to make the hair on the back of my neck stand up. The scout who had spoken the name suddenly looked like he regretted opening his mouth at all.
My Alpha slowly leaned back in his chair, his silver eyes narrowing slightly.
"Say it again", he said calmly.
The scout swallowed hard.
"I... I said the scouts near the southern valley spotted movement".
My Alpha said nothing.
The wolf shifted nervously.
"They believe it was... him".
Silence filled the entire war room.
My chest tightened.
Because I already knew what name the scout had spoken.
Every wolf in the north knew it. Even if most of them pretended it was just a story. A nightmare used to scare young warriors.
My Alpha tapped his fingers once against the wooden table.
Then he exhaled quietly.
"Well".
The smile returned to his face.
But this time...
It wasn’t the same. The smile looks forced, and dangerous.
"If it really is him", my Alpha said slowly, "then this hunt just became interesting".
The scout looked confused.
"Alpha?"
My Alpha stood up from his chair. The room instantly felt smaller. More dangerous.
"Tell me exactly what you saw".
The scout straightened quickly.
"We were watching the southern pass like you ordered when around midnight we heard wolves moving through the forest in a fast pace like something was chasing them".
"How many?"
"Not many", he admitted.
My Alpha’s eyebrow lifted slightly.
"Not many?"
"No, Alpha. Maybe six or seven at most".
That made no sense. The wolf we were talking about didn’t travel with small packs.
He traveled with destruction.
My Alpha folded his arms.
"And you’re sure it was him?" He asked.
The scout hesitated.
"No one saw him directly".
My Alpha’s eyes sharpened instantly.
"But?" he pressed.
The scout swallowed.
"The trees were torn apart".
My wolf stirred uneasily inside my chest. I already knew what was coming.
"The ground looked like a battlefield", the scout continued. "Branches broken with claw marks were everywhere".
My Alpha said nothing.
"And we also found three rogue bodies nearby".
A quiet growl rumbled through the room.
My Alpha’s.
"How did they die?"
The scout’s voice dropped.
"They were ripped apart".
My stomach tightened.
Every wolf in the room knew exactly what that meant.
Rogues were vicious creatures. They didn’t die easily, especially not three at once.
But there was only one wolf in the north who fought like that.
He fought brutal, fast and merciless without any concern.
My Alpha rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"Did you find tracks?"
"Yes".
"And?"
The scout took a deep breath.
"They were bigger than normal wolf tracks".
My wolf growled softly.
Of course they were.
The scout hesitated again.
"And there was something else".
My Alpha looked up.
"What?"
"The rogues...."
He swallowed again.
"...they weren’t just killed".
The room grew colder somehow.
"What do you mean?", my Alpha asked quietly.
"They were dragged".
My Alpha tilted his head slightly.
"Dragged?"
"Yes, Alpha".
The scout face looked pale now. "Toward the mountains".
My heart skipped.
Toward us.
My Alpha was silent for a long moment. Then he started laughing. While the sound filled the room unexpectedly.
Low. Dark. Amused sound.
"Well", he said finally.
"That answers that".
The scout blinked.
"Alpha?"
My Alpha leaned forward, resting his hands against the table.
"He’s not hunting rogues".
The realization hit me instantly.
My stomach dropped.
"He’s clearing the territory", I said quietly.
My Alpha glanced at me with approval.
"Exactly", he said like he was proud of my answer.
The scout looked confused.
"Clearing it for what?"
My Alpha’s smile widened.
"For her".
The Omega Queen.
Of course.
My wolf growled again.
Every Alpha in the north would be moving now.
But if he was already this close....
That meant something far worse.
My Alpha pushed himself away from the table.
"Prepare the pack", he ordered.
The scout straightened immediately.
"Yes, Alpha".
"And send word to the northern patrols".
"What should we tell them?"
My Alpha’s silver eyes darkened slightly.
"Tell them if they see him.."
He paused.
"...don’t engage".
The scout looked surprised.
"Not engage?"
Even I was slightly shocked.
My Alpha never avoided fights.
Ever.
But the truth was simple.
Fighting that wolf directly would be suicide.
"Just report his movements", my Alpha finished.
The scout nodded quickly and hurried out of the room.
The door closed behind him.
Silence returned.
I looked at my Alpha carefully.
"You’re taking this seriously".
He glanced at me.
"Shouldn’t I?"
"That depends".
"On what?"
I folded my arms.
"On whether the stories about him are true".
My Alpha chuckled softly.
"Oh, they’re true".
A chill ran down my spine.
"Then we have a problem".
"No", my Alpha said calmly.
"We have competition".
I stared at him.
"Competition?"
"Yes".
My wolf growled.
"He’s not like Kael".
"I know".
"He doesn’t negotiate".
"I know".
"He doesn’t retreat".
My Alpha’s smile widened again.
"I know".
I rubbed my forehead.
"This isn’t a game".
"No", my Alpha agreed.
"It’s a race".
"To what?"
"To the Omega Queen".
Of course.
Everything led back to her.
Sable.
The girl who had unknowingly started a war between the most dangerous Alphas alive.
I walked toward the window overlooking the dark forest outside.
"How close do you think he is?" I asked softly.
My Alpha joined me beside the window.
"Closer than we’d like".
My wolf shifted uneasily.
If he reached Sable first...
The thought alone made my stomach twist.
"What happens if he finds her before us?" I asked.
For once, my Alpha didn’t answer immediately.
He stared out into the night at the moon hung low above the trees.
Then he spoke quietly.
"Then we adapt".
"That doesn’t sound reassuring", I said.
"It wasn’t meant to be".
A distant howl suddenly echoed through the forest.
Both of us froze.
That wasn’t one of ours.
The sound was deep. Powerful.
Primal.
My wolf immediately pressed forward, instinctively recognizing the dominance behind the howl.
My Alpha’s eyes sharpened.
"Well".
Another howl answered from somewhere deeper in the forest.
My chest tightened.
"Alpha…"
My voice sounded tighter than I intended.
"That howl came from the direction of her territory".
My Alpha’s expression slowly
darkened.
"Yes".
Another silence fell between us. The realization was now unavoidable.
He wasn’t just close.
He was already moving. And moving fast.
My wolf growled low in my chest.
"Do you think he knows where she is?"
My Alpha stared into the forest for a long moment.
Then he said something that made my blood run cold.
"Rowan...."
"Yes?"
"The real question isn’t whether he knows where she is".
I frowned.
"Then what is it?"
My Alpha’s silver eyes glinted in the moonlight.
"It’s whether...."
Another distant howl echoed across the mountains.
"....he’s already found her".