Seeds of Suspicion.

Keon’s POV

The door closes behind Derrick with a soft click, and for a brief moment the hallway is silent.

I turn without looking back.

If I stay there another second, if I allow myself even a single glance at the door behind us, I might do something reckless. Something the Alpha in me will regret.

So I walk.

My steps are steady and controlled as I move down the corridor, the dim lights along the palace walls casting long shadows across the stone floor. Derrick falls into step beside me a moment later, the door to Winter’s room now firmly shut behind us.

Neither of us speaks at first.

The silence stretches between us like a wire pulled too tight.

I focus on the path ahead of me, on the cool air of the hallway and the faint scent of night drifting in through the open windows farther down the corridor. Anything that keeps my mind away from the image that keeps trying to push its way forward.

Winter on that bed.

Her flushed skin.

Her damp hair clinging to her neck.

Derrick in the room with her.

Derrick fucking her.

My jaw tightens.

Beside me, Derrick adjusts the collar of his shirt and rolls his shoulders slightly as if loosening tension from his muscles. The movement is casual, almost lazy, but my wolf notices everything.

The faint scent of her still clings to him.

It hits my senses instantly.

Something hot and dangerous moves through my chest before I can stop it.

I keep walking.

My pace is slightly faster than usual, long strides carrying us deeper into the palace corridors. Derrick notices, of course. He always does.

He matches my speed without comment.

For several seconds the only sound between us is the echo of our footsteps against stone.

Then Derrick exhales quietly through his nose.

“That couldn’t wait until morning?” he asks.

His tone is neutral. Curious.

But I know him well enough to hear the edge beneath it.

I do not slow down.

“No,” I say evenly. “It couldn’t.”

The answer is simple.

Deliberately so.

Derrick glances sideways at me. I can feel the weight of his gaze without needing to return it.

“That’s strange,” he continues after a moment.

I keep my eyes forward.

“What is?”

“The timing.”

There is a faint hint of amusement in his voice now, though it is thin and carefully controlled.

“You’ve known about the vampire situation since dinner,” he says. “Yet somehow it became urgent the exact moment I was in Winter’s room.”

My steps stop.

Not abruptly.

But enough that Derrick has to slow slightly to avoid walking past me.

The corridor around us is empty. Quiet. Only the distant hum of the sleeping palace fills the air.

I turn my head just enough to look at him.

“If you are implying something,” I say calmly, “you should say it directly.”

Derrick studies my face for a second longer than necessary.

Then one corner of his mouth lifts.

“I’m not implying anything,” he replies.

The lie is obvious.

We start walking again.

This time the silence is heavier.

Derrick runs a hand through his hair, pushing it back from his forehead as he walks. The casual movement exposes the faintest trace of something on his lower lip.

My eyes catch it instantly.

My stomach turns.

A dark pulse of anger flashes through my chest so suddenly that my hand curls into a fist before I even realize it.

I force myself to breathe.

In.

Out.

Control.

I have spent years mastering that control. As Alpha, losing it is not an option.

Not here.

Not now.

Derrick notices the shift anyway.

“You’re tense tonight,” he remarks.

“I am always tense when pack business requires immediate attention.”

His gaze lingers on me again.

“You sure that’s what this is?”

My steps stop again.

This time harder.

Derrick halts as well, turning fully toward me in the middle of the hallway.

For a moment neither of us speaks.

The bond between us hums faintly beneath the surface, a quiet reminder that we are brothers before anything else. But right now that bond feels strained.

Stretched tight.

“You called me out of that room,” Derrick says slowly, watching my face. “Dragged me halfway across the palace in the middle of the night.”

His eyes narrow slightly.

“So forgive me if I’m curious.”

My voice stays calm when I answer.

“There has been another killing.”

That gets his attention.

“The vampires?”

“Yes.”

The amusement fades from his expression immediately, replaced by the focused seriousness I am used to seeing during pack matters.

“One of their middle-ranking officials was found dead tonight,” I continue. “Inside his own home.”

Derrick’s posture straightens slightly.

“Another one.”

“Yes.”

He exhales slowly.

“That makes three this month.”

“Four,” I correct.

His eyebrows lift slightly.

“When did the fourth happen?”

“Tonight.”

For a few seconds he says nothing.

The political implications of that number settle between us.

Our alliance with the vampires is not built on friendship. It is built on stability. On predictable leadership and carefully negotiated trade agreements that benefit both sides.

If their hierarchy starts collapsing from internal conflict, those agreements will collapse with it.

“And you think the rogues are responsible?” Derrick asks.

“They’re the most likely explanation.”

“Or someone wants it to look like they are.”

“That possibility has already been considered.”

Derrick nods slowly.

“So what do you want me to do?”

“You will go there tonight.”

He studies my face again.

“Tonight.”

“Yes.”

His eyes narrow slightly.

“It’s the middle of the night, Keon.”

“I am aware of the time.”

“We could leave at dawn.”

“You will not.”

The words come out sharper than I intended.

Derrick notices.

Of course he does.

Something flickers across his expression before he folds his arms loosely over his chest.

“You’re really determined to get me out of the palace tonight.”

My patience frays.

“Your presence is required.”

“You have other people who could handle this.”

“None of them carry your authority.”

Derrick tilts his head slightly.

“That never stopped you before.”

The tension snaps.

My hand slams against the stone wall beside us before I can stop myself.

The sound echoes sharply through the empty corridor.

For a second neither of us moves.

Pain shoots through my knuckles where they struck the wall, but I barely feel it.

Derrick stares at me.

Not angry.

Not surprised.

Just… watching.

“You’re acting strange tonight,” he says quietly.

I straighten slowly, flexing my hand once before letting it fall back to my side.

“There is nothing strange about wanting our political alliances secured.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“I know exactly what you meant.”

Our gazes lock.

For a moment the air between us feels dangerously thin.

Then Derrick exhales and drops his arms.

“Fine,” he says.

His voice has lost the teasing edge now.

“I’ll go.”

I nod once.

“You will take three men with you.”

“Already planned on it.”

“You will speak with their council and remind them that instability in their territory affects ours.”

“I know how diplomacy works.”

“You will also make it clear that if rogue factions continue attacking their leadership, we will reconsider certain trade arrangements.”

Derrick studies me again as I speak.

When I finish, he nods slowly.

“Understood.”

For a moment it seems like the conversation might finally end.

Thank the gods.

Then Derrick shifts his weight slightly.

“There’s just one thing I’m still curious about.”

I do not respond.

He continues anyway.

“You could have told me all of this earlier.”

My jaw tightens.

“Yes.”

“You could have called me to your office.”

“Yes.”

“You could have waited until morning.”

“Yes.”

Derrick’s gaze sharpens slightly.

“But instead you showed up outside Winter’s door.”

The silence that follows is heavy.

I say nothing.

Derrick watches me for another second.

Then he sighs softly and turns toward the staircase that leads down to the main entrance of the palace.

“Next time you want me out of a room, Keon,” he says over his shoulder, “you could just ask.”

My chest tightens.

He pauses at the top of the stairs and glances back once.

There is something thoughtful in his expression now.

Suspicious.

But not certain.

Then he shakes his head slightly and continues down the stairs.

His footsteps fade as he disappears toward the lower levels of the palace where the night patrols and vehicles wait.

I remain where I am.

Alone in the quiet corridor.

The palace has gone still again.

But my mind refuses to settle.

The scent of Winter still lingers faintly in the air behind me.

I can almost feel the direction of her room through the mate bond, like a quiet pull somewhere beneath my ribs.

My wolf shifts restlessly beneath my skin.

And the thought of Derrick touching her again makes something dark and possessive move slowly through my chest.