Ink of a Madwoman

Fin sat at the head of the war table, the heavy map of Shadowclaw spread before them.

Jax leaned over one corner, tapping a region they needed to renegotiate, while Cael stood with his arms crossed, dissecting the risks like a man allergic to optimism.

A firm knock sounded at the door.

Fin didn't look up. "Enter."

Major Garrick Sparrow stepped inside and bowed his head. "Apologies for the interruption, Alpha. We've intercepted another unauthorized raven. Same seal as the others."

He held out a small packet bound in dark ribbon. "Shall I put the letter with the rest?"

Fin exhaled slowly, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "No. Let's see it."

Jax and Cael exchanged a look — not surprised, but annoyed. Garrick stepped forward and placed the letter in Fin's waiting hand, the room falling into a taut silence.

Fin turned the envelope over once, his jaw tightening as he recognized the handwriting.

"Of course," he muttered under his breath. "Her again."

Fin broke the seal with a sharp motion. "Let's find out what she's invented this time."

He unfolded the letter, eyes scanning the page. At first his brow creased in confusion... then it smoothed into disbelief... and then, slowly, his entire expression hardened. His jaw locked. A muscle ticked in his cheek. Rage flickered across his features like a storm rolling in without warning.

Jax, alarmed by the shift, reached out and plucked the letter straight from Fin's hand.

✦✦✦

To Alpha Riven Ashbane,

King of Ashbane and my dearest brother,

Riven,

I write to you with a level of urgency and distress that I have never before experienced. Matters in Shadowclaw have deteriorated beyond what any respectable court should endure, and the cause of this chaos is, as always, the bastard slave.

To start with, I woke up with her hands around my throat, attempting to suffocate me in my sleep. I am now fearful to remain in my own chambers.

She was caught sneaking into the Alpha's chambers — yes, Riven, into Finric's private rooms — unannounced, uninvited in the middle of the night. She startled him so severely he nearly reached for his blade.

In her attempts to seduce him, she has also frightened him. He fears for his safety.

She continues to hover around the Alpha Wing. I smell her in the corridors there. She knows what she's doing. Seducing the Alpha the same way as her whore mother.

And now, the greatest insult of all: the room Finric gave to me when I arrived, has been locked. Locked because I believe he caught her staying in it. It's directly across from his chambers, and now I am staying in a different wing of the castle entirely.

The insult is beyond comprehension. That room should be mine — my right, my place. Not hers. Please remove her from here at once, dear brother.

Summon her back to Ashbane. I implore you.

If this union between kingdoms is to be successful, her presence cannot continue here.

No one in this pack wants her here. She brings shame to Ashbane as a representative.

With Love,

Princess Meredith Ashbane

Future Queen of North Varos and Luna of Shadowclaw

✦✦✦

Jax handed the letter to Cael, his jaw tight.

Cael skimmed only the first few lines before his eyes widened. "You've got to be kidding me," he muttered, holding the page away from himself like it was something foul.

Fin didn't respond. He stayed standing at the head of the war table, shoulders rigid, hands braced against the wood as though steadying himself against the stupidity radiating from the parchment.

Jax exhaled sharply. "Sparrow," he snapped, turning toward the Major, "have Captain Crestwood assign two warriors to every rookery on the grounds. Used and unused."

Sparrow blinked. "Every rookery, Gamma?"

"Yes," Fin answered before Jax could. His voice was low, iron-edged. "And notify me immediately if Meredith approaches any of them. I want that understood moving forward."

Sparrow bowed and hurried out, leaving the war room thick with tension.

Cael folded the letter slowly, shaking his head as he tried to make sense of it. He'd heard the stories about Meredith, but seeing the words in ink made it real in a way he wasn't prepared for.

"She wrote this about Nova..." he murmured. "Nova Moonveil. Our Nova."

He blinked once, slow and disbelieving, then looked up at Fin and Jax. "Tell me this is a joke."

He unfolded the letter again and reread it, as if he must have misunderstood the first time. His stunned expression didn't change.

"The quarters across from yours..." Cael looked at Fin sharply. "You didn't give her those when she first arrived, did you? Tell me you didn't."

"No. Obviously," Fin said flatly.

Jax turned to Fin with a perfectly serious expression. "Alpha... are you frightened?"

Fin shot him a look sharp enough to skin a deer.

Cael snorted so hard he choked on air, doubling over. "If Nova frightens our Alpha, we have a bigger problem."

Fin's gaze darkened.

"I caught Meredith in my chambers again," he said through gritted teeth.

Cael wiped his eyes. "Again? Didn't you kick her out?"

"Yes," Fin snapped. "Multiple times."

"At this rate, we need to put guards on Fin," Jax said in a solemn tone.

Cael nodded just as solemnly. "For his protection."

Fin inhaled slowly, the way a man did when choosing restraint over homicide. His eye twitched.

"This ends now."

The finality in his tone made it clear he'd reached the absolute limit of his patience with princess-shaped problems.

Then he gave a sharp, disbelieving huff.

"This is fucked."

Jax and Cael exchanged a look and completely lost it. Jax laughed until tears stung his eyes and Cael wheezed like he was dying.

A moment later, even Fin cracked, the tension finally breaking as he joined in.

And for a moment, all three of them just stood there—exhausted, furious, but laughing anyway—because gods, this was fucked.