Chapter 6: The Morning the Pack Looked Back

Sleep did not give me peace.

I drifted in and out of shallow, restless stretches of darkness, always pulled back by the low, stubborn pulse of the rejected bond. It felt different now that I was on Blackthorn land again, not just present, but aware. Like it had been waiting for me to return so it could start aching properly.

When I finally opened my eyes, pale morning light was pushing through the gap in the curtains. For a few seconds I stayed completely still, listening. The house was no longer quiet. Distant footsteps moved through the halls. Low voices passed somewhere below. The pack was awake, and they knew I was here.

I sat up slowly.

My body felt heavy, the way it used to after long training sessions when I was younger. I dragged a hand down my face and forced myself to stand. The glass of water Ronan had left the night before still sat on the table, untouched. I picked it up and drank it in three long swallows, more out of defiance than thirst.

I changed into clean black clothing I had brought with me, simple, fitted, nothing that invited comment. When I looked at myself in the mirror, I barely recognized the girl who had once cried on these lands. My face was calmer. My eyes were harder. The softness had been burned out of me years ago.

Good.

I needed it to stay that way.

The moment I stepped out of the room, I felt the shift in the air. Two wolves in human form stood at the end of the hallway. They weren’t openly blocking my path, but they weren’t there by accident either. Their eyes followed me as I walked past. One of them gave a short, respectful nod. The other only watched, expression unreadable.

News had already spread.

I kept my shoulders straight and my pace even as I went downstairs. The main foyer felt larger in daylight. Sunlight spilled across the dark stone floors through tall windows. Somewhere nearby, the smell of coffee and cooked meat drifted from the direction of the kitchens. Ordinary morning sounds. They felt almost offensive in a house carrying this much tension.

I didn’t make it far before a familiar presence brushed against my senses.

Ronan.

He was standing near the entrance to the dining hall, speaking in low tones to an older Beta I didn’t recognize. When he noticed me, he ended the conversation with a short nod and walked over. He looked the same as the night before, controlled, composed, silver eyes sharp with quiet assessment.

“You slept,” he said. It wasn’t a question.

“Barely.”

“That’s more than I expected.” His gaze moved over my face once, quick and clinical. “The council requested an early meeting. They want to see you.”

My stomach tightened, but I didn’t let it show. “Of course they do.”

“I’ll be there,” he said. “Kael will not. He’s worse this morning.”

The information landed heavier than I wanted it to. I hated that it affected me at all. I hated that a part of me still reacted to the idea of Kael suffering.

“Lead the way,” I said.

Ronan studied me for a second longer, as if measuring how steady I actually was. Then he turned and walked. I followed.

The council chamber was on the ground floor, behind heavy double doors carved with the Blackthorn crest. The moment we entered, the low murmur of conversation died.

There were nine of them seated around the long table. Some faces I remembered from three years ago. Some were new. All of them looked at me with varying degrees of calculation, distrust, and poorly hidden curiosity. The air smelled of old wood, faint incense, and the sharp edge of dominant wolves forced into the same room.

Ronan pulled out a chair near the head of the table but did not sit. He remained standing beside me instead, a silent, deliberate presence.

An older woman with silver-streaked hair and cold eyes spoke first. “Seren Vale. You returned without summons.”

“I did.”

“Why?”

I met her gaze without lowering my eyes. “Because I was done running from a decision that was made for me.”

A few of the council members shifted. One of the men, broad and scarred along his jaw, leaned forward. “The timing is convenient. Our Alpha is weakening. The pack is unstable. And the rejected mate suddenly walks back onto our land.”

“I don’t exist to make your politics easier,” I said.

Ronan’s voice cut in, calm but carrying enough authority that several heads turned. “She is here under Blackthorn protection. That is not up for debate this morning.”

The scarred man looked at him. “And when that protection becomes a liability?”

Ronan’s expression did not change. “Then I’ll handle it.”

The way he said it left very little room for argument.

The older woman studied me for a long moment. “The bond between you and Alpha Kael still exists in some form. We can all sense the disturbance. That makes you dangerous.”

“It also makes me useful,” I replied. “Depending on what you decide you want from me.”

A heavy silence followed.

I felt Ronan glance at me from the side, but I didn’t look at him. My heart was beating hard, but my voice had stayed steady. I had not come back to be handled. If they wanted to treat me like a problem, I would make sure they understood I was not a quiet one.

The older woman finally leaned back in her chair.

“You will remain on pack grounds until the next full moon,” she said. “You will not leave without an escort. And you will present yourself for further examination of the bond. If you refuse…” Her eyes hardened. “We will assume the worst of your intentions.”

I held her stare.

“I understand.”

I didn’t agree.  

I simply understood.

Ronan placed two fingers lightly against the back of my arm, a brief, almost invisible contact, and guided me out of the chamber before anyone else could speak. The doors closed behind us with a solid, final sound.

Only when we were several steps down the hall did he speak, voice low.

“You handled that better than most would have.”

I pulled my arm away from the lingering sensation of his touch. “I didn’t come here to be managed.”

“I know.” He stopped walking and looked at me fully. There was something unreadable in his silver eyes. “That’s why you’re still standing.”

Before I could answer, a sharp, distant sound tore through the house.

A roar.

Not human.

It came from upstairs, raw, pained, and violently familiar.

Kael.

The bond in my chest seized so hard I staggered.

Ronan’s entire body went rigid. For the first time since I had returned, the perfect control in his expression cracked.

“Stay here,” he ordered.

Then he was already moving toward the stairs, fast and silent.

I didn’t stay.

I follow