Chapter 268 268 The Secret Strength Returned

Chapter 268 268 The Secret Strength Returned
Keith arrived at Levi’s guest house, and for a moment Meadow forgot about training, rogues and the danger Joseph had just warned them about. The place was quiet in a way the mansion had not been for a long time. There were staff there too, which surprised her a little. She wondered why Levi had not brought Amber there instead of taking her back to the mansion where Cynthia was waiting with her poison and borrowed pride. But Meadow knew Amber well enough now to guess the answer. Amber would never let Cynthia chase her out of her own home. Still, Meadow secretly hoped Cynthia’s menace would come to an end soon, because the mansion had stopped feeling like a home and started feeling like a place where everyone waited for the next insult or attack.
The guest house was a small bungalow with three bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen, a patio and a pool at the back. It was simple but lovely, standing in the middle of nowhere with enough land around it to make the silence feel private. Learning that Levi owned all the land there made Meadow wonder why he had never bothered to start his own pack. He would have made a fine Alpha. For all the years he had been in charge of Whitewood, he had kept the pack safe, stable and secure. People could say whatever they wanted about his temper, his sharp mouth and his rough ways, but he had carried responsibility well.
They moved into the house, and Ethan was already restless. He had not come there only to train. He wanted to show Keith the truth. They had discussed it with Meadow, and she had told him Keith and Joseph had the right to know that their Alpha was back in full capacity. At first, Ethan had objected. He wanted the secret held tight. He wanted as few people as possible aware that his legs were working. But Meadow convinced him that Keith needed it. Loyalty deserved trust, and in the face of the danger surrounding them, their closest people needed confidence. They needed to know Ethan was not as helpless as their enemies believed.
Ethan wheeled himself into the house and asked the staff to leave. There were only three of them, and they looked happy to be given an early break. He told them to return before evening because they would leave by then, and he did not want the house left bare. If Joseph’s warning was accurate, then the cowardly Alpha was somehow watching them, or at least trying to. Ethan did not know what the man already knew, and because of that, he planned to be extra careful.
They waited in the living room and were served juice before the staff finally left. Once the place was empty, Keith looked around with confusion on his face. The guest house did not look like a training spot. It looked like somewhere rich people came to rest, swim and forget their problems for a weekend. Still, their warehouse had been compromised, and they would have to make do with whatever was safe.
“Keith,” Ethan began.
Keith became attentive at once.
“I want to tell you that I am grateful for your trust and loyalty. You did not leave even though I asked you to, and you were always there to lend a hand. I want you to know that I appreciate everything you have done for me,” Ethan said.
Keith frowned, and Ethan could almost see where his mind had gone. His friend probably thought he was about to ask him to leave again, to save himself before things became worse. Keith would refuse. Ethan knew that already. Keith had never been the type to abandon people he loved when danger came.
“We have known each other since we were children, and we have always been honest with ourselves, which is why I am doing this. I did not want there to be secrets between us,” Ethan said.
Keith relaxed a little when he realised the conversation was going somewhere else. Ethan sighed, then looked at Meadow. She smiled and nodded, giving him the quiet push he needed.
Ethan bent, released his legs from the wheelchair and stood up.
For a second, no one breathed.
Keith and Elaine stared at him in shock. Elaine’s hands flew to her mouth, and tears filled her eyes before spilling down her cheeks. Keith rose slowly, as if he was afraid sudden movement might make the miracle disappear. Then he crossed the space and pulled Ethan into a hard hug.
“Goddess, Ethan! Welcome back,” Keith said, patting his friend’s back.
Ethan held him too, feeling the joy in the room like warmth. Elaine went to Meadow and hugged her tightly, congratulating her because she knew Meadow had lived through the hardest parts of Ethan’s healing with him. It was joy. Pure joy in the middle of war, and for a few moments, no one wanted to ruin it by thinking about the enemy.
“Since when?” Keith asked, breaking the hug.
“A month now. I have been training with Meadow to ensure my wolf and legs worked well, and now they do,” Ethan said.
Keith’s smile widened.
“The others would be thrilled,” he said, referring to their old team waiting in Whitewood for orders.
“Not yet, Keith. Only you and Joseph will know for now. I want us to catch this bastard first, and I want to have the element of surprise. Everyone believes I am a crippled useless Alpha, and I want them to continue believing that, so they won’t anticipate my moves,” Ethan said.
There was a glint in his eyes that Keith had not seen in years. It made Keith laugh, because he understood exactly what Ethan meant. They had been a deadly team once. For the one year Ethan had been fully in charge, they had shaken their world and scared off people who thought they could challenge them. Ethan was stronger than his father had been, and Keith could not wait to see him return to those glorious days.
Ethan sat back in his chair after a while, and they spent the rest of the day planning how to mobilise their men without raising suspicion. Keith had successfully gathered a hundred people altogether. It was not enough to crush a large army on its own, but with Ceenas possibly helping them, they had hope. If Malcolm was truly training men there, then the numbers would begin to look less desperate.