Chapter 0068
Dane
'What’s our next move?' Aero growls in frustration.
'I need to talk to my Beta first.'
'This is getting out of hand. We need to get control of this—now.'
I pound on Eric’s door, my fist landing hard against the wood.
"Alright, alright!" he grumbles as he yanks the door open, irritation clear in his voice. "Are you trying to wake my kids?" His expression shifts the moment he realizes it's me. "What happened?"
"Devon," I state bluntly.
His face falls. "Damn, he told you." He sighs, running a hand through his hair. "Look, I just needed someone to vent to. And I know you’ve had—"
"That’s not the issue," I cut him off. "Whatever you’ve got going on with him is your business. But that’s not why I’m here. They can create more."
Eric blinks, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "What?"
"They can create more Lycans."
"Well, that makes sense. Just like we can create more Wolves—"
"Eric," I interrupt, giving him a sharp look. He’s missing the point.
His eyes widen as realization sets in. "Shit. You’re serious?" He exhales deeply. "But we’re taking Devon’s word on this?"
"He said it's an unspoken rule—they’re not supposed to do it. Trey likely enforced it to keep their numbers small and their existence hidden. If they had grown too large, they would have been noticed."
I recount everything Devon told me, including how Lycans can only track Neah if they’re already close to her.
"You think they were in the city recruiting?" Eric asks.
"The city isn’t just home to Wolves. It’s filled with humans who have no idea about our kind. So yes, that’s a real possibility."
"We should’ve looked into them more," he mutters.
"There was no reason to suspect anything. They smelled like Wolves, acted like Wolves—it was easy to overlook. But that contract Trey wanted? It was never about needing our support or even Neah. I think their real goal has always been to dismantle me. And it all started with what I created."
Eric exhales sharply. "They wouldn’t be the first, Dane. Plenty of people—hell, even some of your past brides—have tried to get out of their contracts or use them to gain information. If Trey and his pack start turning people, we still have the advantage. We have the numbers, and our fighters are stronger. Your brother made sure of that."
His gaze sharpens. "How’s Neah handling all this?"
"She doesn’t know," I admit. "She was asleep when I left."
A noise upstairs makes us pause. We wait for a moment to see if one of his boys comes down, but when silence follows, we decide to move our conversation outside.
"Is she okay?" Eric asks. "She was quiet on the way back from the city—not like how she was that first night we brought her here, but… different."
"I think she’s still processing everything. She’s grown attached to Klaus, and seeing him that close to death shook her." I hesitate. "It’s not panic, exactly, but she’s… unsettled."
"Thanks for getting her out of there," I say after a beat.
Eric raises an eyebrow. "You don’t have to thank me. I’m your Beta—protecting your mate is part of my duty."
"You never seemed interested in protecting the others."
He smirks. "You never claimed them."
We spend the rest of the night in his backyard, brainstorming strategies. By the time the sun rises, his sons come bounding outside, demanding food for their "starving stomachs."
Eric gives me a knowing look. "She has to be on board for our next move. It won’t work without her."
'She’s going to need a hell of a lot more confidence,' Aero mutters.
'Then we help her find it.'
'So much for our run,' Aero grumbles.
'Pack run is tomorrow night. We’ll wait until then.'
By the time I return to the packhouse, Neah is already awake, sitting in the kitchen with a piece of toast in hand. She’s braided her hair back today, and I notice she’s taken out her earplugs.
"How are your ears?" I ask, keeping my voice low.
"Trying… trying to get used to it," she mutters, wrinkling her nose. "You’re up early."
"I never slept."
"Oh."
"Aero wanted more answers from Devon, and then I went to see Eric."
She takes another bite but doesn’t say anything. She does that a lot—keeping her questions to herself.