CHAPTER TWO HUNDRED & EIGHTY SIX
Talia’s POV
+25 Bonus
Nolan stood outside of Father’s room waiting for Solon and I. Solon excused himself to start the preparations for the Harvest Gathering. Nolan and I stood in silence while healers moved quietly around us carrying fresh bandages, trays of instruments, and steaming cups of herbal mixtures Leslie had ordered throughout the morning.
“How’s he doing?” Nolan asked.
“Not good,” I replied honestly. “The gray and the marks are spreading.”
“He’ll pull through, Talia,” Nolan attempted to reassure me.
“I have to accept that he may not, Nolan, even with the antidote,” I responded. I couldn’t get the image of my father sitting upright in that bed, visibly weaker despite his efforts to conceal it. My father was deteriorating faster now, and although he continued to act like he was not in pain, his façade wasn’t as solid as he thought.
A nurse approached us and said, “Alpha Nolan, there is a call for you.”
Nolan and I quickly went to the receptionist’s desk. “Alpha Nolan speaking.” His calm expression fell away. His jaw flexing in agitation.
“What do you mean destroyed?” Nolan asked.
My stomach dropped almost immediately.
Nolan turned slightly away from me while the voice on the other end continued speaking, though I still caught enough to understand that something had gone catastrophically wrong.
“How many rogues?” he asked sharply. A pause followed before his expression darkened further. “Were they followed after the attack?”
Silence stretched between each answer.
Finally, Nolan exhaled slowly through his nose. “Understood. Stay where you are. We’ll send men immediately.”
He hung up and for a moment Nolan simply stared at the phone as if it would come to life and bite him.
“Nolan,” I said quietly. “Who was that on the phone?”
“Alpha Landon was ambushed on the way here.”
Cold spread through me almost instantly. “What? What do you mean ambushed?”
“He was attacked by rogues,” Nolan explained.
“The medicine?” I asked.
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“Destroyed.”
+ 25 Bonus
It felt like the walls were closing in on me. I stumbled backwards but caught myself. “Okay, okay. We can handle this. There’s no need to panic,” I said more to myself than to Nolan.
“Lonefur was attacked at the same time Alpha Landon was ambushed,” Nolan continued. “The rogues burned the Frostmoon vines. They burned the entire field.”
For several seconds neither of us spoke. My wolf bristled and growled within me. ‘Jason. Jason did this!‘
Jason’s warning about preparing Father’s funeral had never been an empty threat meant to frighten me. He meant to remove every chance to save my father. Every move Jason made was to ensure that my father died.
Panic began to rise within me, but I forced myself to suppress it. Father could not know about this. If he saw fear on our faces, he would understand immediately that something had gone wrong, and stress alone could push the poison further through his body.
“We keep this from Father for now,” I said firmly. “Until Leslie has time to reassess the situation.”
“Right, right,” Nolan muttered before turning to me and said firmly, “Agreed.”
“No one discusses the attack anywhere near his room,” I continued. “Not the guards, not the nurses, not anyone. If Father suspects the medicine is gone, he’ll try to involve himself, and he’s already pushing his body too hard as is.”
Before I could answer, Solon emerged from the stairwell carrying several files tucked beneath one arm. The moment he noticed our expressions, he became concerned.
“What happened?”
“Alpha Landon was attacked,” Nolan answered. “The medicine was destroyed.”
“And the Frostmoon Vine?”
“Gone.”
Solon cursed under his breath before he dragged a hand down his face. I gripped his forearm in support. “Alpha Landon survived,” I said. “We’re going to bring him here. Perhaps we can salvage this somehow.”
“Agreed,” Solon finally said. “We have to keep it together.”
I nodded. “Alpha Landon made it to Fangvale, so he is safe for now, but that doesn’t mean we’re safe. I want additional patrols sent to the northern border immediately, and I want escorts dispatched to bring Alpha Landon safely into Silverfang territory before nightfall.”
Solon nodded without hesitation. “I’ll organize it now.”
“Nolan,” I said, turning toward him, “the visiting Alphas and their entourages will begin arriving within the next two days. Increase security at every border crossing and send warriors to escort each delegation personally once they enter our territory.”
2/4
“I’ll lead the escorts myself,” Nolan replied.
+25 Bonus
“Thank you,” I told him before kissing him. He was one of the few people I trusted and right now, nowhere felt secure anymore.
The rest of the afternoon dissolved into controlled chaos. Warriors patrolled the territory in force. Leslie and Della remained with Father at the hospital while Solon coordinated border security from his office, and everywhere I looked I could feel tension spreading through Silverfang like the calm before a storm.
Everyone sensed something was about to happen. They simply did not know what. By evening, I was exhausted, but I couldn’t bring myself to sleep. I stood alone inside Father’s office staring through the tall windows overlooking the dark forest surrounding Silverfang territory.
I sat down in my father’s chair and reached out to Henry through the mind link. He answered almost immediately.
‘Good evening, Luna Talia. Is everything ok?‘ Henry said.
‘I need you to come to Silverfang immediately,’ I told him.
‘What happened? Are you okay?‘ Henry asked.
‘There isn’t enough time to explain everything,‘ I admitted. ‘Can you leave tonight?‘
‘Yes, of course Luna. I will make sure someone that can be trusted is in control while I am away,’ Henry explained.
Henry was true to his word as he arrived a day later. Nolan and I waited near Silverfang’s southern border while Henry’s convoy crossed through the winding forest road leading toward the main gates. Relief moved through me as soon as I saw him. I was so afraid that he would be ambushed as well.
Henry looked exhausted from travel but otherwise unharmed. The moment his eyes found mine, concern crossed his face immediately. “You look exhausted,” he said.
I let out a tired laugh and said, “That’s because I am. How is Shadowclaw?”
“Stable,” he answered. “The borders are secure, and I left additional patrols in place before coming here.”
“At least one territory still has functioning leadership,” Nolan said.
Henry snorted softly before studying both of us more carefully. “You say that like Silverfang is falling
apart.”
Neither Nolan nor I answered quickly enough. Henry’s posture stiffened immediately. “How bad is it really?” he asked.
“I can feel something closing around us,” I admitted quietly. “Every instinct I have says this Harvest Gathering is going to turn dangerous.”
Henry’s jaw tightened. “Then we prepare for danger. I promise you I will protect Silverfang with my life.”
3/4
CHAPTER TWO HUNDRED & EIGHTY SIX
+25 Bonus
“I trust you,” I said, giving him a smile.
As I was about to leave with Nolan, Henry said, “Wait, Luna. There’s something else I need to report.”
