What Lurks Beneath The Shadows.

Keon's POV:

Logan did not keep me waiting.

That alone told me a lot.

When the door opened again, he walked in with stiff shoulders and an expression that sat somewhere between annoyance and forced respect. He bowed, but it was rushed. Too rushed.

“My Alpha,” he said.

I did not tell him to step forward immediately. I stayed where I was, one hand resting on the edge of the table, the other hanging loosely by my side. I watched him the way a predator watches prey that does not yet realize it has been spotted.

Logan was different from Richard.

Richard had been nervous. Careful. Eager to explain himself.

Logan looked irritated.

That was worse.

“You were called here because your name came up during my investigation,” I said calmly.

His jaw tightened.

“Yes, my Alpha. I assumed as much.”

That answer was quick. Too quick.

I walked slowly around the table, picking up the patrol report and holding it loosely in my hand. The parchment crackled softly as I moved. I made sure he could see it.

“You instructed Richard to take an additional shift on the day Winter was attacked instead of your assigned partner Wally.”

Logan’s eyes flicked to the paper and then back to me.

“Yes,” he said. “I did.”

No hesitation.

No fear.

Interesting.

“Why?”

“Actually Alpha, Wally was under the weather on that day, so I requested–”

Ah yes, just what I need, more information that wasn’t accounted for that I have to find the answers to.

“And you thought that was within your authority?”

“I thought it was necessary.”

Necessary.

That word again.

I stopped a few steps away from him.

“Explain,” I said.

He crossed his arms, then seemed to remember who he was standing in front of and dropped them again. The damage was already done. The instinctive reaction told me more than his words ever could.

“The patrol routes were thin,” Logan said.

“There were gaps.”

“There are always gaps,” I replied. “That is why we follow the roster.”

He scoffed before he could stop himself.

My wolf moves beneath my skin.

“The roster doesn’t account for everything.”

The room went very still.

My wolves stirred sharply under my skin.

Great. Now I have wolves disregarding my systems.

“Careful,” I said quietly.

Logan exhaled through his nose, clearly frustrated now. “With respect, my Alpha, I’ve been guarding these grounds for years. I know when something feels off.”

Oh…so he was aware of something but refused to say anything about it.

“And yet,” I said evenly, “you filed no report stating that concern.”

His mouth opened, like he just realized his mistake, then shut again.

“I didn’t think it was necessary.”

“Because?” I pressed.

“Because nothing had happened yet.”

Yet.

The word landed heavy in my chest.

I turned slightly, setting the report back down on the table with deliberate care.

“Nothing had happened,” I repeated. “Until it did.”

His jaw clenched.

“You moved a guard without authorization,” I continued. “You created an opening in another patrol zone. And you did it without leaving a trace in the official records.”

“That wasn’t my intention,” he snapped.

There it was.

The tone.

The crack.

I turned back to him slowly. My eyes glow red in the sunlight.

“Lower your voice,” I said. Not loudly. I did not need to be.

He froze, realization flickering across his face too late.

“Yes, my Alpha, I apologize,” he muttered.

I stepped closer.

“You are angry,” I said. “Why?”

He hesitated.

Then he laughed once, sharp and bitter.

“Because everyone’s acting like this was some great betrayal,” he said. “When really, it was bound to happen.”

That made my blood run cold.

“Explain what you mean by that,” I said.

Logan shook his head, pacing a short step before stopping himself again. “We’ve been stretched thin since the treaty. Extra

precautions. Extra duties. All because of one witch.”

The word slipped out with more weight than it should have.

One witch.

My wolves surged.

I was in front of him in a blink.

The sound of my hand hitting the stone wall beside his head echoed through the room. Not touching him. Not yet. But close enough that he felt the force of it in his bones.

“You will speak of Winter with respect,” I said, my voice low and dangerous. “Or you will not speak at all.”

His face had gone pale.

“I didn’t mean to…”

“Yes,” I interrupted. “You did. You think I can't smell your hatred? It doesn't matter how hard you try to hide it. I'm Alpha for a reason Logan.”

He swallowed hard.

I took a step back, forcing my temper down before it crossed a line that could not be uncrossed. Fear was pouring off him now. Thick. Acrid. The smell of someone who had finally realized how badly they had misjudged a situation.

“You resent the treaty,” I said.

He hesitated again.

That was enough.

“You resent the attention Winter requires,” I continued. “The guards. The changes. The pressure.”

“That doesn’t mean I wanted her hurt,” he said quickly.

I tilt my head.

“I didn’t say that.”

His eyes widened slightly.

That was the slip.

“You said you sensed something was off,” I went on calmly. “You said security was needed. And yet you moved one guard instead of requesting reinforcements.”

“I did what I could.”

“You did what was convenient,” I corrected.

Silence pressed in around us.

I could almost hear the pieces clicking together in his mind as he realized where this was going.

“You knew moving Richard would leave another path weaker,” I said. “You knew the timing.”

“No,” he said, too fast. “I didn’t know there would be an attack.”

“But you knew it would expose her.”

His breathing turned shallow.

“I thought,” he said, voice shaking now, “I thought if something happened, it would prove a point.”

There it was.

The truth, dragged out by anger and pride.

My hands curled into fists at my sides. It's a pain trying not to shift on the spot and rip him to shreds.

“You used my security as a statement…” I said.

“Yes my King but I didn’t think she’d almost die…” he whispered.

“You used my resources, a force that is supposed to be a symbol of my pack strength because of personal strife.”

“You knew it could lead to war, to loss of lives, of my people, of our people, yet you still took that risk.”

He says nothing.

That was confirmation enough.

I straightened slowly, looking down at him with something colder than rage.

Disappointment.

“You will be confined,” I said. “Until I decide what is to be done with you.”

His head snapped up.

“My Alpha…”

“This conversation is over. Do not even utter another sound if you plan on living to see the next full moon.”

The finality in my voice left no room for argument.

I call for guards, who enter almost immediately.

As they led him away, Logan looked back at me, fear and resentment mixing in his expression.

I exhale once the room is empty.

Derrick’s words float by.

“This won’t fix anything,”

I stared at the stone wall for a long moment, my thoughts racing.

Logan was not the mastermind.

He was angry. Reckless. Short-sighted.

I knew it couldn't have been a wolf that attacked.

But it's possible that Wally may have been a tool.

Someone among my ranks to cause confusion and a gap in security so they can gain access.

Which meant someone else had guided the blade.

And somewhere behind all of this, someone was still watching.

Still waiting.

I turned back to the table, my gaze falling once more on the patrol reports.

This was only the beginning.