Chapter Forty-six

**GABRIEL**
I stormed into the house, slamming the door so hard that the walls seemed to shake. The frustration had been building inside me for weeks, and today… today, I’d had enough. Another one of my pack members was dead. The air felt thick with fear and suspicion, and it was all starting to tear my people apart. Worse, I could feel Oliver slipping further away from me with each passing day.
I threw a chair into the wall, the wood splintering on impact. A vase shattered as it hit the floor, but I barely noticed the mess. I felt trapped, cornered by this invisible force that was killing us from the inside out. I was alpha, but I couldn’t protect my pack or the person I loved most.
As I slammed my fist into the wall, over and over, the pain dulled the rage inside me, but it wasn’t enough. Nothing would be enough until I got answers…until I stopped this. My wolf surged inside me, pushing me to break free. The fury of losing more of my people and watching Oliver suffer… was too much.
“Gabriel!” Oliver’s voice broke through the chaos, and I froze, panting heavily as I felt him approach. He rushed toward me, his eyes wide with concern as he reached out to touch my arm.
“Gabriel, what happened?” he asked softly, his voice calming, even as I fought against the primal rage that was clawing its way to the surface.
I couldn’t look at him. My hands were bloody from hitting the wall, the skin torn open, but the pain was nothing compared to the anger roiling in my chest. “Another person is dead,” I said, my voice raw.
Oliver sucked in a sharp breath, and for a moment, we both just stood there, silent. I didn’t want to see the fear in his eyes. It only made me angrier-angry that I couldn’t fix this, that I couldn’t keep him safe.
“How?” Oliver whispered, his voice cracking. “How did this happen? After everything we’ve done to secure the pack?”
I nodded to Oliver, silently agreeing that we’d done everything in our power to secure the pack. Beefed-up patrols, additional security measures, and yet, people were still dying. I could see the fear in Oliver’s eyes, even as he tried to be brave, tried to stay strong for both of us. But what neither of us could admit aloud was that no matter how hard we tried, it wasn’t enough. Something or someone was slipping through the cracks, and it was coming for us.
“I’m sorry, Oliver,” I whispered, my voice catching in my throat. “I don’t know how to stop this.”
Oliver looked up at me, his gaze filled with uncertainty, maybe even doubt. It was like a punch to the gut. He always believed in me, trusted me, but now… now I wasn’t so sure I deserved that faith. I clenched my fists, angry at the helplessness washing over me.
“We’re doing everything we can,” he said, his voice soft, almost soothing. “We’ll figure it out.”
But I wasn’t sure anymore. I felt like I was spiraling. The pack, Oliver—everything was slipping through my fingers, and I didn’t know how to hold on. I ran my hand through my hair, pacing the room like a caged animal, the tension in my muscles refusing to ease.
“I can’t lose you,” I muttered, more to myself than to him. “I can’t lose this pack.”
“You won’t,” he assured me, but his words did little to settle the storm brewing inside me.
I stopped pacing and stared at him. He was strong, stronger than anyone I’d ever known, but that didn’t change the fact that something was after him. And that same something was willing to kill anyone in its path to get to him. The thought sent a shiver down my spine. I could protect the pack, I could protect him from threats I could see, threats I could fight, but this… this was different.
It was like fighting shadows. I walked over to him, pulling him into my arms, holding him tightly, as if I could shield him from whatever was coming. But I knew, deep down, that I couldn’t. “I won’t let anything happen to you,” I whispered fiercely into his ear.Oliver leaned into me, his body trembling slightly. “I know,” he said, his voice barely audible, but I could hear the hesitation in it. He didn’t believe it either.
We stood there for what felt like hours, locked in each other’s embrace, trying to pretend that everything wasn’t falling apart around us. But the truth was, I felt like I was losing control—of the pack, of the situation, and worst of all, of myself.Later that night, after Oliver had finally drifted off to sleep, I found myself staring at the ceiling, my thoughts racing. Every moment that passed without answers, more lives were at risk. More of my people were in danger.
I had to do something. I couldn’t sit by and wait for another attack.
I got up quietly, careful not to wake Oliver, and slipped out of the house. The night was cold, a biting wind cutting through the air as I made my way toward the training grounds. The scent of the forest surrounded me, familiar and comforting, but tonight it offered no solace. Instead, it reminded me of how vulnerable we all were, how little control I had.
The guards greeted me with nods as I passed, but I barely noticed them. My mind was already churning, already running through plans, scenarios, anything that would make me feel less powerless.
I walked through the training grounds, past the empty sparring rings, the quiet barracks. Everything was calm on the surface, but I knew it was only a matter of time before the next death, the next attack. It was like waiting for the world to crumble around me.
As I stared into the dark forest beyond the pack’s borders, a sinking feeling settled in my gut. Something was out there, watching, waiting. And no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t shake the feeling that it was getting closer. That it was coming for us.
And that, no matter what I did, I wouldn’t be able to stop it.
I turned away from the forest and started back toward the house, my mind racing with thoughts of my father, of the shadowy figure that lurked behind all of this chaos. I had to protect Oliver. I had to keep the pack safe. But how could I do that when I didn’t even know who or what I was fighting?
Just as I reached the door, I heard a rustle in the trees behind me. I froze, every instinct in me going on high alert. Slowly, I turned back toward the woods, my eyes scanning the shadows for any sign of movement.
But there was nothing. No sound, no movement. Just the eerie silence of the night.
I shook my head, chalking it up to nerves, and stepped inside, locking the door behind me. But as I climbed back into bed beside Oliver, my heart still racing, I couldn’t shake the feeling that the danger was much closer than I had thought.
And that it was only a matter of time before it struck again.