Draven.
"Let your mistress know I never stopped her from seeing Xamira," I said, glancing toward Kira with a firm but steady tone. "She is free to visit the child whenever she wants. Let everything that happened... stay in the past."
Kira bowed immediately. "Yes, Alpha. I will inform her."
Then she turned and quietly excused herself from the dining room.
I picked up my cutlery again, my fingers just settling on the silverware, when a familiar voice echoed through the hall.
"Brother!"
I didn’t have to look to know who it was. There was only one person with that kind of voice and energy.
I lifted my eyes to see Dennis grinning from ear to ear, striding up to the table with the ease of a man who didn’t know tension if it slapped him across the face.
We clasped arms, and he leaned in briefly for a brotherly embrace.
"Took you long enough to join us for dinner," I said.
Dennis chuckled. "Had to clean up after someone," he teased lightly. Then he turned to Jeffery and greeted him with a solid handshake.
After that, he scanned the table and—unsurprisingly—pulled out the chair closest to my right.
The same seat Meredith had refused.
Dennis sank into the chair with a pleased sigh right next to Jeffery.
"Where is your wife?" he asked, glancing around the table and already reaching for the cutlery. "She’s not here?"
"She has a headache," I replied as I speared a piece of grilled lamb and brought it to my mouth.
Dennis smirked. "Let me guess. You said something stupid, and now she is punishing you with absence?"
My hand paused slightly above my plate. I lowered my fork. "What makes you think that?"
My brother does have interesting theories and likes throwing them around whenever he pleases.
Dennis gave a lazy shrug and looked away. "Just a guess." Then he stared at the meat on his plate as if it were a gift from the heavens. "Where do I even start..."
Two bites later, he spoke again, mouth still half-full. "So, I heard the woman you married doesn’t have a wolf. Something about a curse from the Moon Goddess. Is that true?"
I didn’t answer right away. Instead, I stared at him, watching how he casually chewed the meat as if he hadn’t just repeated the most infamous rumour from Stormveil.
"It seems the gossips of Stormveil made it all the way to Duskmoor, and straight into your ears," I said, eyes narrowing.
Dennis grinned without shame. "News travels to me at the speed of light, brother. Don’t forget that."
He was enjoying this too much. I pointed my fork at him. "Don’t just eat the meat. Eat your vegetables."
"I’m not a vegetarian," he muttered and popped another bite in.
He paused only to say, "I was looking forward to a horse ride today. Jeffery said you had a call from Father, so..." He trailed off.
"We will ride tomorrow," I replied. "I needed to brief him on the meeting with Brackham."
Dennis scoffed. "How did Brackham even manage to say those useless words to your face without choking on them? Do they think we are blind? I say the humans are tired of the truce."
I set my fork down. "We will talk politics after dinner."
I reached for the glass of water beside me and gulped the whole thing. Then I set the empty glass down, but before the server could move, Dennis grabbed the jug and filled it for me.
I gave a low hum. "Thanks."
Dennis nodded and went back to devouring his food, content like a man who hadn’t eaten in days.
But peace didn’t last.
Wanda cleared her throat.
The sound alone pulled our gazes to her, and when I looked up, her eyes were already locked on Dennis with that controlled smile of hers.
"So," she began sweetly, "did you encounter any difficulties during your investigation? And how did you cope when we were away in Stormveil?"
Dennis didn’t blink. He stared at her for a moment before responding.
"I believe you’ve known I was here for hours now. You could have asked your questions then. Why now?"
Still smiling, Wanda tilted her head as though indulging a child’s tantrum. "You are right. I should have. But I was busy with Xamira. As you may have heard, she was poisoned and nearly lost her life."
I froze mid-chew.
"Wanda." My voice was sharp. A warning.
She looked at me, arms out. "Am I wrong? Are strawberries not poisonous to your daughter?"
My jaw clenched. I held her gaze. Beneath that carefully composed exterior, I saw it—anger.
But why was she more furious than I?
I said nothing, choosing silence over words I might regret. The weight of her eyes tried to force something from me, but just then—
"Who poisoned her?" Dennis asked, his voice too casual, too disinterested. He wasn’t asking because he cared. He was daring her to just try and ignore my warning.
I turned my attention back to Wanda, my gaze firm.
Wanda blinked once, then met my warning look. Then she realized the danger in pressing further and exhaled.
"Forget I said anything," she said to Dennis.
Dennis scoffed and picked up his fork again. I downed the rest of my wine and poured myself another glass.
This night was already turning into one I wished I had skipped.
The tension between Dennis and Wanda was suffocating. It always had been, ever since their fallout ten years ago. A friendship that had once been strong... now irreparably broken.
And no one could explain why. I had asked them both over the years.
Dennis had always told me, "You don’t need to know. Just understand that we are not friends anymore and might never be."
Wanda’s response?
"He started it. Ask him. I have nothing to explain."
I exhaled again, this time longer. At this rate, I was going to lose my mind faster than anyone expected.
I had too much on my plate.
There was Wanda and Dennis, the council of Elders, the murders, and Meredith.
Especially Meredith.
A woman who wore anger like a second skin and who had every right to, which was understandable. Her entire life was unfair.
For a brief second, I wondered what it would feel like to disappear for a while. Just a moment of quiet... peace...
But I knew better than to waste my time, wallowing in mist.