"They have been moving around," Ryker murmured.
Darius dropped the paper in his hand and raised a brow. Ryker had been tasked with being the eye over the Dawnbreak wolves in Blackthorn Keep. Recently they were allowed to go into Longdale, while being watched from a distance. Darius did not want to have them feeling like cage animals so he was quick to approve their leave.
"I assume you mean in bad faith?"
Ryker nodded and then tapped on his arm. "It seems like that lady Amara is looking for things they call information houses?"
"Information houses?" Darius asked.
After a beat of silence he spoke again. "I truly wonder if Dawnbreak is a pack again, in a few moons I will get word that it is now being run by vampires."
Ryker chuckled and shook his head. "Of course there will be no such in the West but I do fear that women will continue digging."
Darius waved, flicked his hand dismissively and shook his head. "There is nothing they are fishing more right now when they have so much food on their plate. Besides they are on our land, I wonder what they would have to tell us today."
Ryker sniffed and rolled his shoulders. "You say that now, but you and I both know they are not like the rest. This is something no one has dealt with."
"And do you think we can not succeed?" Darius asked, tone light but not without edge.
The two moved through the corridor that led out toward the council chambers, their boots echoing along the polished stone floors. Tapestries stirred faintly from a passing draft, sun bleeding through stained glass onto the cold flagstone.
"They are not stupid," Darius added after a pause. "If they wanted to bring this pack down, they would have done so already. No. This is about testing waters. Thalia is clever. She’s trying to see just how much of Ironshade has gone to seed, and whether there is anything left to strike bargains with."
"Mm," Ryker grunted, "I still don’t like that they are always one step ahead."
"You always hate not having the upper hand," Darius replied with a ghost of a smile. "But they do not have the upper hand, we do. Come. Let us not keep the rest waiting."
They pushed through the doors of the council chamber, where daylight streamed in through arched windows. The round table was already occupied, on the Dawnbreak side, only three seated: Riven, calm and motionless as always; Amara, her smile unreadable; and Verec, who was fiddling with a carved wooden piece on the table’s edge.
From Ironshade’s side, Livia sat straight-backed, her eyes flicking to the newcomers. Cedar gave a subtle nod of acknowledgment. General Silas was already there, deep in some murmured note-taking.
Riven rose as Darius entered and gave a polite bow of his head. "Alpha."
"Riven," Darius returned evenly, then gestured for Ryker to sit beside Silas before taking his own seat at the head.
"It seems our party grows smaller by the day," Livia noted with an arch of her brow.
Amara offered a light laugh. "Crimsonclaw’s ladies had prior engagements, I believe. We are here for the formalities."
"Then let us proceed with them," Darius said without missing a beat.
Silas unrolled the northern parchments, laying down the current proposal for safe passage from Dawnbreak’s forward camp along the foothills, skirting beneath the Crooked Ridge and threading toward the North Pass. Cedar explained the fortifications being repaired along that stretch, while Ryker filled in details about recent terrain shifts and bandit sightings.
The discussion went smoothly. Even Verec, who usually had little to say, raised a few practical observations. For a moment, it felt like the old days, business being done without friction.
But then Amara broke the silence with a seemingly idle remark. "You know, the land around the North Pass is odd. So quiet for such a hostile border."
Riven’s gaze flicked toward her, then toward Darius. "Yes. Quiet lands do not always mean safe ones. Silence can be the sign of something waiting." This update is available on novel•fire.net
Ryker tensed. Livia’s fingers tapped the table once. Darius said nothing yet.
Amara went on, tone still light. "I had thought Ironshade might post more scouts along the perimeter, but I suppose every pack has its own ways."
"It does," Darius said mildly. "Our scouts do not often make noise about their presence, but I assure you, they are there."
"Then allow me to speak plainly," Riven said at last, folding his hands together on the table. "If a Cardinal pack such as Dawnbreak is struggling to hold off rogues and outside unrest, one would think Ironshade should have collapsed already."
The room cooled. Ryker started to rise in his chair, but Darius reached out and pressed a hand flat against the table.
"We stand because we have always stood," he said, voice even.
Riven tilted his head slightly, expression unreadable. "Curious, that. You’ve been without outside aid for decades. Your lands are plagued by unrest. Communication fractured. And yet somehow, you still exist."
"Do you mean to accuse us of something?" Livia’s voice cut in now, sharp as flint.
"No," Riven said at once. "I am merely observing what many would call... unlikely. And unlikely things beg to be watched."
"Ironshade is not your mystery to solve," Silas said firmly.
Riven didn’t flinch under the old general’s stare, but he did give a small nod, accepting the line for now.
Darius leaned forward slightly, folding his hands. "This meeting is about trade routes, not histories. Unless there are objections to the current proposal, I suggest we table conjecture for another day."
Silence held, but eventually Riven inclined his head.
"None," Amara echoed, smiling faintly.
"Then we are agreed," Darius concluded, tapping the table once before rising. "We will reconvene tomorrow for final logistics."
The meeting adjourned with quiet murmurs and scattered footsteps as chairs scraped against stone and the chamber slowly emptied. Darius stood still for a moment longer, his eyes lingering on the parchment map.