The Rumours

Lilith

"Well, come on! Hurry up!" Seren whispered urgently, gesturing for me to move quietly and stay low. Her eyes darted around. I had no idea what she was so worked up about, but I followed her lead, my own heart starting to pick up its pace.

She ducked behind an enormous, twisted tree, its roots snaking through the ground like veins. I joined her, breathing softly, though the pungent smell from the bark made my nose wrinkle. I nudged her shoulder, muttering, "It stinks."

She shot me a sharp look and clamped her hand over my mouth, her eyes scanning the area over my shoulder. Then, leaning close, she whispered. "It’s the tree. It stinks, but at least they won’t pick up on our scent." With a pointed finger, she directed my gaze toward a small clearing just ahead.

I squinted, focusing on the dimly lit space. At first, it looked empty, just a patch of light filtering through the leaves above. But as my eyes adjusted, I spotted movement—three figures seated in a circle. I picked them out to be Daniel, Nate, and Ashley. All of them were our Pack members, but the three of them together usually spelled trouble, especially for someone like me who never quite fit into their little clique.

Ashley had her usual expression—some mix of hatred and superiority—but something was different. She looked almost... worried. For as long as I could remember, Ashley had only ever looked at me with a sneer, like I was some speck of dirt clinging to her polished shoes. Just being near her tested every ounce of patience I had, but today was different. Today, I felt something else creep in: 

Curiosity!

"Is it true? Could he be on his way here?" Daniel’s voice broke through the silence. The others turned toward him, nodding with equally uneasy expressions.

"That’s what he said," Ashley replied. "Milo told me Alpha Zander’s been getting nervous. He’s too old to fight him." She glanced around nervously, her voice barely above a whisper.

Who were they talking about? I glanced at Seren, who raised her eyebrows, silently urging me to keep listening. We huddled closer together, trying to stay invisible in the shadows.

"It’s been years," Nate muttered, scratching the back of his neck, clearly uncomfortable. "Why would he just resurface now? Why here of all places?"

"If Zander can’t fight him, who will?" Daniel murmured, the question hanging heavy in the air. My stomach twisted as I felt a sense of fear build within me. Whoever they were discussing, it wasn’t just a rumor. The fear on their faces was too real.

Ashley took a shaky breath, eyes darting around the clearing before she whispered, "Milo said Zander might elevate Ryder to Alpha sooner than anyone thought."

I clenched my fists, swallowing a groan. Ryder, Zander’s spoiled, entitled son, was the last person who should be Alpha of the Silverfang Pack. He wasn’t ready, and everyone knew it—yet the thought of a rushed decision to make him our leader filled me with a chill. Even the three in front of us looked skeptical.

"You’re kidding, right?" Daniel asked, echoing my thoughts. His voice wavered as he added. “Ryder as Alpha? He can barely make it through training without messing something up."

Ashley shrugged, and for once, there was no smugness on her face. "What other choice does he have? We need someone young and strong to deal with that... that madman. If he comes and finds our old Alpha on the throne, he’ll kill him and take over the pack."

Nate rubbed his arms, shivering despite the warmth of the day. "I don’t want to end up like the packs he’s conquered before. They say it took three years for the last one just to overthrow him, and even then, half of them were dead by the time it was over."

A shiver ran down my spine. I could practically feel the weight of their words. Whoever they were talking about must have been ruthless, someone who inspired terror among even the fiercest of us. My mind raced, trying to think of who could be that threatening.

Ashley continued, her voice dropping to a whisper. "If he finds Ryder as the Alpha, he might reconsider attacking. Maybe he’d hesitate if he thought he’d be facing a younger Alpha."

Seren nudged me as my breathing quickened. Suddenly, a name started to echo in my mind, connecting pieces of scattered rumors I’d overheard over the years. I wasn’t the only one who felt it—Seren looked at me, the same realization dawning in her eyes.

"That exiled Alpha, Kieran, is probably already on his way here," Daniel muttered darkly. "Zander needs to act fast."

My mouth dropped open, and before I could stop myself, I gasped, "Kieran!" The name slipped out louder than I intended.

All three heads snapped toward us, Nate yelled. "Hello? Who’s there?"

My heart pounded wildly. Seren’s hand flew to mine, yanking me backward. "Run!" She hissed, already darting back the way we’d come. I turned on my heels, running after her as fast as I could, the sounds of angry voices filling the air behind us.

Seren and I barged through the door to my room and closed the door behind us quickly. 

We were out of breath and as we ran past the Pack members in the small village, we couldn't care less about how much they stared. They probably thought that we were out of our damn minds. It wouldn't be the first time we've been stared at.

Ever since we were kids, Seren and I always got into all kinds of trouble and always seemed to bring chaos wherever we went. At one point, we were called the Chaotic Twins.

I sprawled myself on the bed as she sat on the floor beside it to catch a breath. 

Turning my head, our eyes met and we immediately burst into laughter. I knew following her could either mean two things; she was bored and wanted to share the boredom with me or she wanted us to poke our nose into business that wasn't ours to be in.

As the laughs died down, the conversation that we had just overhead started replaying in my head. "How did you know that they were going to be there?" I asked her, obviously curious as to how she knew.

Shaking her head, she responded,

"I've been watching them and of late they have been acting weird. So, when I saw the three of them making their way into the forest, trying not to be noticed, I knew something was up."

We were once again silent for a while before I asked another question. "Was what they were saying true?"

Seren didn't look at me, I knew she had the same fears as mine and it was rightfully justified. "About Zander crowning Ryder or about the Exiled Alpha?" She asked, sounding cautious with her last words.

"Both," I replied.