Griff sat back down and didn’t argue.
I shrugged. “Fine. I’ll go. As long as Griff babysits.”
That earned me a dark look from Griff and a faintly amused one from Bishop. Eamon’s gaze dropped to the floor, already running scenarios in his head.
Elias’s voice was quiet but full of authority. “Find them.”
“I will,” I said.
Then I was gone.
Outside, the night pressed in close and cold. The air smelled of wet earth and pine.
I didn’t waste any time.
I shifted beyond the perimeter lights, the change rolling through me smooth as breath. Fur replaced skin. Bones rearranged. My senses flared like a door kicked wide open.
Then I ran.
Dane’s trail was obvious. There were boot prints crushed into damp soil. I could scent the pungent stink of adrenaline and self-righteous fury hanging in the air. He had moved fast, but he wasn’t careful, which made him easy to track.
I followed the trail through pines and rocky gullies, staying downwind, keeping my body low, staying silent. My paws made no sound. Then I heard the faint echo of voices ahead.
Human voices.
I slowed, slipping into the brush.
Dane stood in a small clearing with Mira and Callan. A portable radio sat on a crate, its antenna extended, the speaker crackling with static, barely holding itself together.
Dane’s voice cut through the night, harsh and urgent. “I’m telling you, sir, The Watch is compromised. Completely.”
The voice that answered was smooth.
“Compromised,” the voice repeated. “Explain, Commander.”
Dane swallowed. “Elias Kade is in control. The unit is fractured. Some of them are siding with wolves. Scratch that, most of them.”
Mira leaned close to Dane. “Tell him about the Accord.”
Dane nodded, eyes burning. “The Accord is involved too.”
“The Accord?” the voice asked.
Even through static, I heard recognition. Interest.
Dane leaned into it, desperate. “It’s time to initiate Phase Gray. We can tear them apart if you send enough ferals.”
“Very good, Commander Dane. You’ve done your duty. You will be richly rewarded,” the voice on the radio replied.
Callan exhaled shakily. “Sir—what do we do now?”
The voice turned colder. “You wait. You follow orders. And you keep your mouth shut.”
“Yes, sir,” Dane said quickly.
A pause.
Then, almost pleasantly: “And Dane? If Kade is indeed compromised as you say… remove him.”
