Chapter 7

~ Finn’s pov~

The house was quiet when I settled into the leather chair, exhaustion tugging at me after patrol. I stretched, rolled my shoulders, then dialed the number I knew by heart.

The line buzzed, and then his voice came through low, sharp, the kind that could slice through silence.

“Tell me you’ve got news, Finn.”

“Relax,” I drawled, leaning back in my chair. “Always so eager. You miss me that much?”

He gave a dry snort. “Miss you? I’m debating which part of you to kill first when I get back.”

I laughed. “Damn. You sound older every time we talk. You’re going to be gray before you hit thirty.”

“Careful,” he warned, but there was amusement under the sharpness. “I still remember how to break your ribs.”

“That was once,” I shot back. “And you cheated.”

He didn’t deny it, and that silence made me grin wider. Some things never changed.

I grinned. “Love you too.”

That earned a pause, and then a low chuckle, the kind no one else ever heard from him.

We went on like that, throwing barbs, until I finally asked, “So? How’s the grand Selection? Any luck? Or should I prepare the pack for you returning mate-less and bitter?”

A curse hissed down the line. “Don’t start.”

I laughed so hard my stomach hurt. “You mean to tell me the mighty Alpha didn’t find his destined Luna in a sea of she wolves?”

“You’re dead when I get back.”

“Empty threats.”

“I swear on my wolf, Finn. When I set foot in that pack house, you’re the first corpse I’m making.”

He exhaled slowly, almost a growl. “Weeks wasted. My wolf isn’t stirred by any of them. I can’t even pretend.”

I quieted. He rarely spoke this openly.

“You’ll find her,” I said at last. “Nature doesn’t miss. It’s just not time yet.”

He didn’t answer, and I knew better than to push. So I shifted the topic. “Anyway, the pack’s fine. Patrols steady, no rogues in the last week. Training’s on track Lena’s been helping with drills. Kids love her.”

Another pause, but softer this time. “She’s good for you,” he muttered.

“Finally, some approval,” I teased, though I didn’t miss the edge in his tone.

We ran through more updates the treaties, repairs, the usual politics. It felt good, normal. Until—

The front door creaked below.

“Finn?” Lena’s voice called up the stairs.

“Yeah, love, I’m here,” I answered with a smile.

Then another voice carried up. Softer. Bright, almost musical. A laugh.

And my Alpha went still on the line.

“Who’s that?” His voice snapped sharp.

“That voice. Who’s there?”

I hesitated. “That’s… Lena. And—” I swallowed, choosing my words carefully, “her cousin. Aria.” She just cane back from the bonfire with Lila.

A dangerous silence. “Why the hesitation, Finn? I’ve known Lena for years. Never once heard of a cousin named Aria. Which side is she from?”

Shit.

I forced a laugh. “Distant side. You know how families are, always pulling names from nowhere.”

“You’re lying.” His voice was flat steel.

I rubbed my jaw, silent. Because he wasn’t wrong, I hadn’t told him. I’d brought Aria into the pack without his permission, betting on my instincts, betting I could handle the consequences later.

The sound of her laugh drifted up again. And through the phone, I heard him inhale sharply then nothing. His wolf surged, I could hear it in the subtle growl threading his silence.

“Kaelen?” I asked cautiously.

No answer. Just his breathing, rougher now.

Finally, he said, clipped, “I’ll call tomorrow.” And the line went dead.

⸻

Switch – Alpha’s POV (mini backstory)

He dropped the phone onto the table, jaw tight.

Black was pacing, restless, ears pricked as though hunting prey. Who was that? his wolf pressed, low and insistent.

He ground his teeth. No one. Just a voice.

But it wasn’t just a voice. Something had stirred, sharper than anything he’d felt at the Selection. Weeks surrounded by hopeful she wolves and not a flicker and now, this.

He shoved the thought aside. He couldn’t afford distraction. He’d left for one reason: to try, one last time, to find what his parents once had. To silence the whispers that the Alpha of Midnight pack was destined to lead alone.

And yet..

Black growled, deep in his chest. His wolf had leapt at the sound, clawing at the edges of control

He closed his eyes, forcing it down.

It couldn’t be her. Whoever she was, she wasn’t his.

And still the echo of her laugh clung to him long into the night.

⸻

Somewhere between midnight and dawn, he realized he hadn’t felt his wolf this alive in years.

All because of a voice.

A stranger’s voice.

And no matter how many times he told himself it was nothing, that sound wouldn’t leave him.