chapter 4: THE ALPHA ARRIVES

AURENNA’S POV

I was helping organize repairs on Vethara's eastern fence when I heard the sound. Every muscle in my body stiffened instantly.

I knew those horns and I knew who was coming.

"Commander." Sergeant Wren appeared at my shoulder. "The Alpha King's convoy is approaching from the South road. It looks official. At least twenty riders."

"I see." I set down the wooden post I was holding and brushed the dirt from my hands. If I moved too quickly right now, I might do something I would regret. "Form an honor line at the village entrance," I said. "Keep it simple. We're not his royal court.”

"Yes, Commander."

I had four minutes. I used them to rebuild my defenses. Nothing that could be read as anger or fear. No signs that I knew what he truly was. I locked every thought behind a wall I had erected in my mind.

In my first life, I had done the opposite. I had opened myself completely to him, sharing every hope, every fear, every dream. Now I know how to close those doors.

By the time the convoy entered the village, I had positioned myself with my soldiers in a neat line, my hands clasped behind my back and my face calm and unreadable.

Zevran rode at the front. He was as I remembered.

I had prepared for this moment. Still, it hurt. He rode a dark horse and wore traveling clothes instead of royal attire. A deliberate choice. It made him appear approachable and harmless. Like a man coming in peace instead of a king with power. He had always been skilled at this. Knowing the trick didn't make it any less effective.

He dismounted and walked toward me. The second blow came with it.

His face. The face I had trusted and had leaned against during sleepless nights. The face I had believed would never betray me. The same had looked down at me while I was dying and thanked me for being useful.

My jaw tightened. I forced myself to relax.

"Commander Voss." His voice carried the same warmth I remembered from the beginning. "I heard what happened in Vethara. I wanted to see the situation myself."

"Alpha King Drakhar." I gave a respectful nod. "The village is recovering well. Your visit is unexpected."

Something flickered in his eyes. Approval, perhaps, or the appearance of it. "I wanted to personally express my condolences," he said. "A raiding party acted without authorization. Such actions are unacceptable. Those responsible will be punished."

The lie was flawless. Anyone else would have believed him. Maybe I would have too if I wasn't carrying proof hidden inside my jacket. Of his signature, and his order.

"Thank you," I said calmly. "The village appreciates your concern."

Elder Cass joined us and smoothly took over the conversation. I was grateful. It gave me a few seconds to breathe. Although Zevran looked at me twice during that time. I noticed both glances. The first time around, I had ignored them. Now I paid attention.

***

The evening banquet was Elder Cass's idea. The villagers understood how valuable it was to host an Alpha King. By sunset, the meeting hall had been transformed as best as exhausted people could manage. And honestly, they had done well. They were alive. That alone felt like a victory.

I sat three seats away from Zevran at the head table, close enough to be included and far enough to remain professional. As always, he charmed everyone around him. He asked thoughtful questions and listened intently. He remembered names after hearing them only once. The people felt important when he spoke to them.

He was extraordinary at this. I kept reminding myself about the letter hidden inside my jacket.

"You seem quieter than your reputation suggests, Commander." His voice pulled me from my thoughts. The conversation around the table had briefly slowed.

"I've always found banquets better for listening than talking," I replied with a small smile.

He smiled back. Unfortunately, it reached his eyes. "A wise approach. Most commanders prefer hearing themselves speak."

"Most commanders haven't had the week I've had."

"No."

For a moment, something changed in his expression. “What you accomplished here was impressive. Predicting a raid that none of our intelligence reports saw coming."

"Good instincts." I said.

"Or perhaps something more." His gaze lingered longer than necessary. "I look forward to continuing this conversation with you at the summit. I think you and I see certain things differently from our councils."

In my previous life, that sentence would have made my heart race. Now I simply met his eyes.

"I think you may be right." The meaning behind my words was very different from what he assumed.

About an hour later, I stepped away from the main table to discuss departure plans with Wren when I heard a sound that was off. Someone moving through the crowd too quickly. My head snapped up. My hand instinctively moved toward my weapon.

The attacker was already charging at me. Not Zevran, me. I realized immediately it was a human attacker, not a wolf. This wasn't part of a wolf plot. It was another thing entirely.

I barely had time to think that this hadn't happened in my previous life before another figure appeared. They moved out of nowhere and placed themselves between me and the attacker. It wasn't one of my soldiers or Wren.

The masked stranger.

The fight lasted only seconds. The attacker hit the floor. Chaos exploded in the hall. Tables overturned, as people screamed. Guards rushed toward Zevran and formed a perimeter around him.

I pushed forward. I needed the attacker alive. Three steps away from him, the man suddenly jerked then went still. The moment I reached him and checked for a pulse, I knew it was too late. He was dead. Poison.

I straightened and scanned the room.

The masked stranger was already near the far exit. For a brief moment, our eyes met or at least, the mask faced me for two seconds. Then the figure slipped through the panicked crowd and disappeared. Just like before.

Wren was calling my name while guards were restoring order. A shiny object on the floor caught my eye. A flash of silver near my boot.

I crouched down. It was a small, silver pendant. The chain had been broken, not unclasped.

It hadn't been there earlier. The masked stranger might have left it.

I picked it up and turned it over. I recognized the symbol. It was not one from current politics. Neither was it from any wolf clan or the human alliance. But I had seen it before.

The symbol belonged to an ancient bloodline, a family believed to be extinct. I knew this from years ago, while studying historical records during the war. According to history, they had been wiped out forty years earlier. Every last member was destroyed in a purge that happened long before the current war.

The family responsible for that purge had been the Drakhar bloodline. Zevran's family.

I closed my fingers around the pendant and rose. My eyes met Zevran's who was observing me across the disordered hall.