Chapter 80: The Calm Before the Storm

The entire palace was wrapped in a tense quiet, a false peace that stretched across its walls like a suffocating blanket. Outside, the wind whispered secrets through the trees, but inside, Serena’s heart beat like a war drum.

The council meeting had ended hours ago, but her mind wouldn’t settle. She paced back and forth in the war chamber, her bare feet silent against the cold stone floor. Scrolls and maps were spread across the long oak table—detailed sketches of territory lines, old battle strategies, and coded notes Theron had passed to her after his last infiltration mission into the rogue’s network.

But none of it felt like enough.

The truth was, nothing could prepare her for what was coming.

She paused and placed her hands on the table’s edge, taking in a slow breath.

“She’s stronger than she thinks,” she muttered to herself, repeating the words Elias had whispered earlier that evening. His faith in her was unwavering, and in some ways, that terrified her more than anything else. Because she couldn’t afford to fail—not now, not when everyone she loved was caught in the eye of this gathering storm.

The door creaked behind her.

She turned quickly, tension snapping through her spine, but her shoulders dropped as she recognized the figure entering the chamber.

Theron.

Dressed in black from collar to boot, he looked every bit the deadly warrior he was—but his expression was softer than usual. Concern flickered behind his ice-blue eyes as they scanned her face.

“You should be resting,” he said, voice low.

“So should you,” Serena countered. “But I’m guessing your thoughts won’t let you either.”

He walked toward her, the candlelight catching the faint scar on his neck—an old wound from a rogue skirmish long ago. “You’re not alone in this,” he said quietly.

“I know. But it feels like everything rests on me.”

“It doesn’t,” he said firmly. “Not anymore. You have me. You have Elias. The pack. We’re not fighting for you, Serena. We’re fighting with you.”

She smiled faintly, grateful for him—for both of them, even with the tension that always buzzed in the air when they were in the same room.

“I keep waiting for the moment it all breaks,” she admitted.

Theron stepped closer. “It will. That’s the nature of war. But what matters is who survives the breaking.”

His words hit hard.

She reached for one of the scrolls and unrolled it again, pointing at a vulnerable section of their borders. “I’m thinking of sending scouts here. If the rogues flank from the east—”

“Serena.”

She looked up.

His eyes held hers with startling intensity.

“Take a break. Just for a moment.”

Her lips parted in protest, but before she could speak, he took her hand and led her away from the table.

“What are you—”

“Trust me.”

Theron led her out to the open corridor, and then up a flight of stairs that ended on the palace’s highest tower. The sky stretched wide around them, stars scattered like diamonds on velvet. The moon was full, bathing the forest and their entire kingdom in a soft, silver glow.

She gasped at the beauty of it.

“Sometimes,” he said, watching her face instead of the view, “you need to remember what you’re fighting for.”

Her heart twisted.

“You could have left a long time ago,” she whispered. “But you stayed.”

He stepped closer. “I didn’t stay out of duty.”

A pause.

Her breath caught in her throat.

“Theron...”

His fingers brushed her cheek gently. “I stayed because you matter to me. Because I love you in a way I never meant to. Even if you choose someone else.”

Tears burned behind her eyes.

“I’m sorry—”

“Don’t apologize,” he said quickly. “Just... know it.”

And then he turned away, giving her space to breathe, to think, to feel.

Down below, the courtyard was quiet. Soldiers and guards rested with weapons close at hand. The lull before the inevitable.

When Serena finally descended the stairs, she found Elias waiting in her chamber.

He stood by the window, back to her, the muscles in his shoulders tight.

“I saw you with him,” he said without turning around.

She froze.

He turned, expression unreadable. “Do you love him?”

Her throat tightened. “I... I don’t know what I feel right now.”

“That’s fair,” he said after a beat, nodding slowly. “But I need you to know something, Serena.”

He walked up to her, took her hand gently.

“You don’t have to choose tonight. Not between us. Not between fear and strength. Just promise me one thing.”

She looked up at him, her heart thudding.

“When the time comes—when everything feels like it’s falling apart—don’t run. Stand and fight. Not for me. Not for Theron. But for yourself. For the Alpha you were born to be.”

The weight of his words wrapped around her like a cloak.

And she nodded.

“I promise.”

That night, as she finally lay between tangled sheets, sleep came slowly. But when it did, it carried no nightmares—only the quiet, steady sound of Elias’s breathing beside her, and the lingering warmth of Theron’s touch still fresh against her cheek.