The tension in White Moon was thicker than ever.
Dante had called an emergency war council, gathering his strongest warriors in the packhouse's main hall.
The message was clear.
Mikhail Reznov was coming.
And this time, he wouldn't stop until blood was spilled.
Bella sat at the long table, her arms crossed as she listened to the murmurs of the pack's highest-ranking members.
They were worried.
She could feel it—the unease, the uncertainty.
Viktor Drakov had been a tyrant, but Mikhail?
He was worse.
Because Mikhail wasn't just coming for revenge.
He was coming for her.
And he would destroy anyone who got in his way.
Dante sat at the head of the table, his presence commanding, his blue eyes cold as ice.
"We strike first," he said, his voice unshakable.
Sage, his Gamma, nodded. "We take the fight to them before they regroup."
Chase leaned forward, his brows furrowed. "And if they've already built alliances? If they have rogues backing them?"
Dante's jaw tightened. "Then we burn them all."
The room fell silent.
Because everyone knew.
Dante Rodrigo wasn't just talking.
He meant it.
This wasn't just a territorial battle.
This was a war.
And then—
Bella felt it.
A shift.
A strange, unfamiliar prickle of unease crawling up her spine.
Something was wrong.
But she couldn't place it.
Not yet.
Then—
The door burst open.
A young warrior stumbled inside, panting.
"Alpha!" His voice was urgent, frantic.
Dante immediately stood, his dominance pressing down on the room like a storm.
"What is it?"
The warrior gulped.
"There's been an attack—inside the pack."
Bella's blood went cold.
"Inside?" she repeated, standing so fast her chair scraped against the floor.
The warrior nodded quickly.
"The prisoner—" He hesitated. *"The Indiana rogue we captured last week. He's dead."
Dead?
Dante's eyes narrowed.
"Who killed him?"
The warrior hesitated.
And then—
The next words shattered everything.
"It was one of us, Alpha."
Silence.
Bella's breath hitched.
A ripple of shock and tension swept through the room.
Someone inside White Moon had committed murder.
Someone had betrayed them.
Dante's blue eyes burned.
"Who?" His voice was deadly.
The warrior lowered his gaze.
"Chase."