Chapter 5
Back in the Silver Mountain Pack, Ana entered Kayla’s chamber, carrying a tray of freshly made breakfast.
The warm scent of food filled the room, but Kayla didn’t turn. She stood by the window, unmoving, her gaze fixed on something far beyond the glass.
Ana frowned. Kayla had been standing there since they returned that morning. She hadn’t changed her clothes. She hadn’t rested, nor had she spoken.
“Kayla,” Ana called gently.
Kayla turned slowly. Her eyes were red and swollen. She had been crying again. Ana’s heart clenched. She knew Kayla well, too well.
She was always strong and hardly shed tears. If she was shedding tears, the pain inside her was beyond what words could express.
Ana took a deep breath and walked toward her.
“Kay, this is not the time to cry. I know your heart is breaking, but Zayron trusted you with everything. The packs need you. They are waiting for you to lead them.”
Kayla said nothing. She just looked at her, her eyes dark with something Ana couldn’t place.
“You don’t have the luxury to fall apart,” Ana continued, her voice firm but gentle. “Not now. You are their Alpha. You have to be strong for them, for yourself, for Zayron.”
Kayla finally spoke. “My wolf, she’s hitting on something, and I can also feel it.”
Ana frowned. “What is your wolf hitting on?”
“Something is wrong with Zayron. Something painful. I can’t see it, but I can feel it.”
“It’s like a wound I can’t touch, but I feel it burning inside me.”
Ana swallowed and sputtered. “Could it be?”
“I don’t know,” Kayla quickly responded. “But it’s bad, Ana. It’s really bad. Zayron is not okay.”
Ana reached for Kayla's hand and squeezed it.
“Whatever it is, you and Zayron will rise above it just as you did with every challenge before, showing the world that nothing can stand against your bond.”
Ana’s words sparked a faint light of hope in Kayla, a strength she thought she had lost. She recalled every cruel attempt her uncle had made to break them, but fate had been stubborn, binding her and Zayron with threads no betrayal could sever.
She turned and walked straight to the closet. She opened it, grabbed some fresh towels, and walked slowly towards the bathroom.
Ana stared after her, her heart aching. The breakfast sat untouched on the table.
Inside the bathroom, warm water ran down Kayla’s skin. She closed her eyes and pressed a hand to her stomach, feeling the life growing inside her.
“This pup came at the wrong time,” Kayla muttered under her breath.
But then she closed her eyes. What time is the right time? she asked herself but found no reply.
No time was free of battles, no time without storms. Still, this pup was a part of her, a gift she could not deny. She took back her words, whispering an apology to the child she carried.
Then, the sound of a chopper ripped through the silence. Kayla's eyes snapped open.
She turned off the water instantly, grabbed a towel, and rushed to the window, droplets of water still clinging to her skin.
Her gaze locked onto the helicopter that had just landed in the middle of the courtyard. The emblem on its side made her inhale sharply.
Queen of the Northern Territory.
“Queen Danica,” Kayla muttered under her breath.
A heavy sigh escaped Kayla’s lips. She had never liked the woman, not for a single day. Queen Danica was arrogant, always carrying herself like the world belonged to her.
But Kayla’s hatred for her had deepened over the weeks, ever since Danica had convinced Alpha Zayron that the Lunar Insignia had fallen into Azure Moon Pack's territory, turning their packs into enemies. And now, she was here.
Kayla’s fingers gripped the windowsill as she stared at the chopper, her heart racing.
Why now? What does she want? Has she finally come to fix what she ruined?
On second thought, something else came to Kayla’s mind, and she froze where she stood. Her heart began to beat very fast as she asked herself, what if Queen Danica had come to deliver some bad news about Zayron to her?
The arrogant Queen of the Northern Territory never wasted her presence on pleasantries. If she appeared, it was always to unsettle or to strike.
As the chopper door swung open, two men in black suits stepped out first, their movements sharp and efficient.
Then, behind them, Alpha Denzel emerged. Kayla’s wolf bristled instantly as though Alpha Denzel had come to break the bad news.
Denzel walked forward and looked around the pack. Then his sharp voice rang through the air.
“Find her and drag her out!”
The men in black nodded and immediately spread out, heading straight for the packhouse.
“Find who? Me?” Kayla murmured and frowned.
Ana, standing by the window as well, clutched the wooden sill so tightly.
The warning Kayla had spoken about earlier, her wolf sensing something painful, flashed through her mind like a cold gust of wind. A chill ran down Ana’s spine.
Ana's biggest fear wasn't just the men searching the packhouse. It was Kayla’s pregnancy.
Ana wondered how Kayla would defend the she-wolf Alpha Denzel had come to take.
Zayron, the one person who could have protected her if anything went wrong, wasn’t even in the country.
Ana remembered the continental healing and wondered if they had run out of blood.
Today was only the second day, and there was still one more to go. Perhaps they had come to take Kayla back to the obsidian tower.
As Ana overthought the possibilities, her eyes followed the men who had arrived with Alpha Denzel. They moved swiftly, checking doors and glancing down corridors, looking for someone.
Kayla's heart continued beating very fast, but fear was the last thing she allowed herself to feel. She would not let them come into her pack and do as they pleased.
She spun away from the window, yanked open her closet, and dressed as fast as she could. Within seconds, she was out the door.
“So, you think they need more blood?” Ana asked her as she walked behind her.
“No, I gave them enough,” Kayla responded.
“I think they must have figured out that you tricked them,” Ana said.
“You presented someone to them and claimed she was the messenger of the Moon Goddess. I think they’ve realized you’re the she-wolf born with the blood of the first blood.”
“That’s impossible,” Kayla said.
“I planned everything carefully. No one would ever suspect the blood came from me. Even the woman who pretended to be the Moon Goddess’s messenger doesn’t know who I am. I just paid her to act the part, and she played it perfectly.”
“Then who did Alpha Denzel order his men to find?” Ana asked.
“I won’t know until I hear it from Alpha Denzel himself.”
Kayla stormed down the corridor, her voice ringing through the packhouse before she even reached the courtyard.
“Alpha Denzel, call your men back! NOW!”
The entire courtyard fell silent. The men who had been searching paused, glancing at one another.
Kayla stepped forward, her posture rigid with authority. Her eyes, still slightly swollen from crying, now burned with anger.
“No one enters my pack and searches my home without speaking to me first,” she declared, her voice sharp as steel.
“Withdraw your command immediately.”
Denzel turned and faced Kayla. He studied her for a moment, then smirked.
“You’re a fool,” he said, his tone dripping with disdain.
“What made me a fool?”
Denzel stepped closer, lowering his voice.
“A fool for keeping a traitor in your pack. She has destroyed you completely,” he responded, looking at Ana.
Ana quickly looked away. She was sure she hadn't done anything to deserve to be called a traitor.
“A traitor? Who are you talking about, and what did she do?”
“She is a traitor!” Alpha Denzel said, pointing his finger at Ana. “She”
Alpha Denzel wanted to explain what Ana did, but he couldn't tell Kayla what had happened to her mate.
Denzel turned to his men and shouted, “Fall back.”
The men in black instantly retreated.
“Explain yourself, Alpha Denzel. What did Ana do?”
Denzel looked at Kayla one last time. Then, instead of answering, he simply said, “You’ll know soon enough. Seize her!”