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Still, I feel the burning of fury, of injustice that courses through my veins. I want to remind Raiarty who sh is talking to, but I am held fast, silnet–the image of Siena, my siens looking mournfully back at me that fateful day.
It is for her I hold my tongue and respect this acting Alpha.
For her and no other.
I don’t ask for the updates, but they keep coming.
“I thought you’d want to know–Siena’s initiative with the Frost Ridge orphans has secured housing for seventeen cubs.”
Seventeen cubs. She always did care more than anyone about the abandoned ones.
“And this concerns Windhowl how, exactly?”
“The alliance she’s forming between the northern territories could strengthen our trading positions. She’s… she’s creating something impressive up there.”
Of course she is. She’s building a legacy while I’m drowning in paperwork and politics. The distance between us grows with every achievement of hers I hear about.
“Is there anything actually relevant to report? Pack threats? Border disputes? Anything that falls under your actual duties?”
Raiarity shifts uncomfortably
“With respect, knowing our allies‘ movements is my duty. And Siena’s influence is growing. Three packs now look to her for leadership, though she refuses any formal title.”
Refuses titles but accepts the power. That’s so like her. The anger burns hotter.
Why am I angry? Because she’s succeeding? Or because she’s doing it without me?
“She always did have a talent for collecting strays.”
“There’s more. She’s implementing that integration program she proposed here–the one you…”
The one I rejected. The one I called idealistic and dangerous.
“Spare me the details of her social experiments.”
“It’s working, Raiden. Werewolf medical clinics, shared educational resources. The territories under her guidance haven’t had a single exposure incident in months.”
The heat rises to my chest, my throat. I want to break something. I want to run north and see for myself. I want to ask her how she’s doing what I said couldn’t be done.
“Anything else? Or did you just come to deliver Siena’s growing list of accomplishments?”
Raiarity meets my eyes, something like pity in her gaze. My pulse thunders in my ears.
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“Alpha, her work is becoming Windhowl’s concern. Ignoring her won’t make her influence disappear.”
No, but maybe it will make this ache disappear. This fury that burns hotter with every story of her success without me.
“We’re done here.”
As he turns to leave, I can’t stop myself
“Is she-“I catch myself “Never mind. Just go.”
Is she happy?
That’s what I wanted to ask–the one answer I couldn’t bear to hear.
Every report feels like a glimpse into a life that no longer includes me. A life she’s building for herself far away from everything we were–or weren’t.
She was always enough. More than enough.
And I was too blind to see it.
***
The SOA preparation meetings are a constant reminder of Siena’s absence. The light from the high windows cuts across the conference table in harsh rectangles as Rairity spreads her notes meticulously before her.
“Windhowl proposes rotating hunting territories during the migration months. This addresses the Eastern Coalition’s concerns while protecting the wolverine populations the Southern packs depend on.”
Elder Morrow’s eyebrows lift, surprise evident in the weathered lines of his face. “That’s… unexpectedly reasonable. We had anticipated more resistance from Windhowl on this point.”
Rairity’s smile is measured, diplomatic–her fingers lacing together exactly as another’s used to. Resistance serves no one when compromise benefits all.”
11
My jaw tightens. The phrase hangs in the air like a ghost.
I know those words–the mouth they really are spoken from.
Rairity pauses, head tilted slightly. “Perhaps we’re approaching this from the wrong perspective. What if we consider the river territories as shared resources during specific seasons, with rotating primary access?”
The room shifts, murmurs of consideration rippling through the assembled representatives. The solution elegant in its simplicity. Just like—
I push back from the table abruptly, my chair scraping against the floor.
“Take a half hour. We reconvene at two.”
As the others file out, Rairity gathers her notes with careful precision. I stand at the window, back to the
room.
“Alpha, I wasn’t trying to overstep-”
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“You didn’t.”
In the reflection of the glass, I see her hesitate, her hand hovering over the empty chair that no one sits in anymore. The chair I can’t bring myself to remove.
“Will she return for the summit?”
“She hasn’t confirmed her plans,” she says, her tone careful. “But I wouldn’t count on it.”
I nod, trying to keep my expression neutral, but Rairity eyes narrow slightly, and I know she sees right through me.
“She’s finding herself without you, Alpha King,” Rairity says, her voice soft but firm. “Perhaps for the first time.”
Her words heavy with truth–no truer words have been spoken.
C
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
