In the silvery waterfall of moonlight, Jonathan Aztec, my second in command, holding rank as Beta of the Northridge pack, was something to behold. His powerful shoulders seemed to carry the waning gibbous, and the shadows that devoured the vast grounds of Battleridge manor granted him a wide berth.
He was a superior specimen. He was a male worthy of the ranking he'd been bestowed. But like all creatures, he wasn't born perfect, and his character flaw was a fault that bled out into the night like a severed artery: Concern.
It charged the air between us, a thick blanket that settled against the lungs like a boa-constrictor's loving embrace.
"What did you find?" I asked. The perverse silence that had entombed the dilapidated courtyard, screaming so loud it rang through my ears like a twisted lullaby, was shattered upon his approach. His boots smacked against the waterlogged ground, echoing in a way that spoke of his failures before he'd even opened his mouth. 
"Nothing,"
.......
"Until I can figure out what's going on, nobody finds out about the boy. Understand?"
"Understood."
"You're not going to ..." The pause that followed dragged out. "He's just a baby, Sterling."
"You're dismissed."

The Littlest Light

/"Mellowed you, that boy has. The first steps towards healing. That is good. It means there's hope for your return./" She made a ghastly sound. It was impossible to identify whether it had been a laugh, a caught or a grunt. /"The third has his part to play. He was unfortunate in his timing, but coincidences are not things in which are coincidental./"

/"You make my head hurt,/" I whispered, reflecting her contradictory words. /"My kid? How do I make sure he's safe?/"

/"He's in danger. Not yet. Not at this second, but he will be. His presence is unnoticed. Most of the beasts of the In-Between lay in dormant hibernation. But his existence is one that will bleed life through their lands; they will wake, and they will come for him. To help him, you must first help yourself./"

Chapter108