C4

"You need to drop this, Malakai Thornwolf," Beta Commander Tavon said, his thick fingers gripping a horn cup of wolf ale inside the private den of the Ravenwood Heights lodge.

"I am not dropping anything until I know who slashed Johnson Whitmoor," I growled, my claws scraping against the smooth stone table.

Tavon adjusted his heavy leather shoulder guards, his amber eyes looking sharp under the dim torchlight. He was older, his dark brown fur mixed with white, but his frame was still massive. He had been looking into the borders of the Western Alpha Syndicate, but he had nothing good to tell me.

"I only tracked two male omegas who fit your description in this territory," Tavon muttered, setting his cup down hard. "One was ripped apart by rogues last moon, and the other is still rotting in the isolation pens."

"It is not him, Tavon," I said, my teeth baring slightly. "The male wolf I am asking about is in our lecture circle. He limps on his left leg and his beautiful skin is covered in silver scars."

"Then whatever those beasts did to him happened over a year ago in another pack land," Tavon said, leaning forward. "Give me his true name so my scouts can run faster."

"Johnson Whitmoor," I said. "Talia Ravenscar thinks his family fled their old pack quarter to hide from some very bad Alphas."

"Whitmoor is an old blood line, but if they are hiding, they are not from the Moonreach Territory," Tavon said, his tail flicking with interest. "Where did they come from?"

"I have Zuberi Darkclaw digging into that right now," I answered, taking a deep breath of the pine-scented air. "Talia closed her mouth tight, so I told Zuberi to use his mooncode seer skills to break into the university’s spirit web network."

"Do you think a rival alpha circle did this to the boy?" Tavon asked. "Maybe some dirty rogues trying to start a territory war?"

"I don't think so, Tavon," I said, shaking my head. "The wounds look like they came from pure hatred, not a pack war. There was no pack law or honor in that attack. They just wanted him to suffer."

I poured some strong wolf ale into my own horn cup and swallowed it down, feeling the burn in my throat.

"There is one thing I know for sure," I muttered. "Johnson Whitmoor was supposed to die at that lake."

"Then the boy is a true fighter," Tavon grunted with a dark laugh. "Those are the kind of strong males we need in our alpha circle. If I were you, Malakai, I would bring him to the training grounds. Teach him to use a bone blade. He must want vengeance."

"Kade Fenrir would rip your throat out if you tried," I laughed, though my chest felt tight. "I wouldn't even be looking into this if it weren't for Kade. He smelled the boy once and went completely crazy. He has a huge soft spot for him. I even told Kade I would get our best medicine men from the Silvermoon Healing Lodge to fix the boy's face. Moon-blessed salves are very rare and cost too many pack resources, so I bet his family couldn't afford them."

Suddenly, my communication stone began to glow and hum. It was Zuberi.

"Zuberi, speak," I commanded, tapping the glowing rune.

Tavon leaned over the stone table, his ears perking up to hear the news.

"Sebastian—I mean, Malakai, the boy's pack file was completely wiped of his old address," Zuberi's voice came through fast and loud. "But I found his birth den. He was born in the ancient pack settlement of Wolfspring Hollow. I used the spirit web to send a fake alpha message to their lodge elders, and they said a male pup named Johnson Whitmoor used to live there, but he vanished at the end of his Moonrise Gathering year."

"Did you ask why the family ran away?" I asked.

"I did, and the pack female on the other side smashed her stone down and cut the link," Zuberi growled. "The Wolfspring Hollow elders are definitely keeping a dark secret."

"Good work, Zuberi," I said. "Now we have a trail to hunt. Search the old spirit web boards for any news about a mutilated male wolf in that territory. A bloody attack on an elder's son must have made the whole pack howl."

"Understood."

"What did the mooncode seer find?" Tavon asked as the stone went dark.

"A small settlement called Wolfspring Hollow is hiding a crime against Johnson," I said.

"Wolfspring Hollow?" Tavon's eyes widened, his wolf ears pinning back against his head. "That territory belongs to the Shadow Howlers. They are the most vicious pack in the Midrealm Territories. They hate our syndicate more than anything. This just got much bigger, Malakai. I will send my best scouts into the central states, but it will be dangerous."

Tavon stood up, his heavy fur bristling as he extended his massive, scarred hand. I stood up too, and we locked wrists in a strong alpha grip.

"This Johnson Whitmoor is a prize," Tavon whispered, his sharp teeth showing. "If he was broken by a Shadow Howler alpha, he is a weapon for us. The fact that he is still breathing is an insult to their pack leader. Talk to Zuberi and Kade. Kade needs to understand that if he wants to keep this boy, he has to teach him how to bite back."

"I hear you," I said. "I will tell the boys. Thank you, Beta Commander."

"Go do your duty," Tavon said, walking out toward the main pack house. "I will tell my trackers to start hunting for scents from the east."

After Tavon left, I walked down to the training pits. I needed to hit the heavy leather sandbags to stop my blood from boiling. I wanted to clear my mind, but all I could picture was Johnson's scared aquamarine eyes.

When it came to pack business, the Shadow Howlers were completely lawless. They always slaughtered their own omegas, their scouts, and their trade drivers whenever they got bored. Our Western Alpha Syndicate never shared borders with them willingly. But one moon cycle ago, some foolish trade wolves left a cache of moon-gold intended for the Shadow Howlers at our Moon Docks. It caused a massive blood feud when they accused our alpha circle of stealing their pack resources.

To keep the peace, our fathers, who are the true leaders of the Crimson Fang Pack, sent the gold directly to their dens in the southern woods using our best silver-armored wagons. Our fathers didn't think those crazy beasts would ambush our young fighters and steal our wagons anyway. So, we decided to show them how real Alphas hunt.

Zuberi, Kade, and I tracked their Grand Alpha to a great hunting valley where he had a private wooden cabin to watch the annual stag hunt. We flooded the cabin with sleeping smoke, and after his whole alpha circle passed out, we dragged him to the deep caves for questioning.

The old wolf was so scared for his life that he blamed everything on his own nephew, a young Beta Commander who was just as crazy as he was. The Grand Alpha actually offered his nephew's life to us just so he could walk free. Everyone knew he only became leader because his nephew did all his killing anyway.

After Kade tore that dirty nephew's throat out, the old Grand Alpha mysteriously dropped dead in the woods, and his wicked sister took over the Shadow Howlers. The random border killings stopped, but the hatred between our packs never died.

Could it be that Johnson Whitmoor crossed paths with a rogue hunter or an alpha from that family? Did a Beta Commander try to break him just to show his power?

No, they didn't just want to break him. They expected him to die by that water.

After my skin was slick with sweat from training, my communication stone buzzed again. It was a message from my father.

"Malakai, you need to return to the den," his heavy voice echoed through the stone.

"Father, what is it?" I asked, wiping my brow with a piece of hide.

"Our trade routes from the north just brought in the new meat and gold supply," he said. "I need my alpha circle to guard the Moon Docks tonight."

"I am on my way," I said.

It was time to hunt.