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

Breathing became more difficult with every step we took. Gale winds that spat ashen powder at us, and an intolerant edge to the back of it that made my insides feel like they were being boiled, it quickly became clear that I wasn't the only one suffering. Lumen whined and wheezed, sniffling, but seemed to have no tears left to cry, and out of the corner of my eye, I watched Cyrus flinch every time a fresh gust smacked us in the face.

It was hard to say if fear incapacitated him, or if he was submitting to my authority as Alpha, but he didn't question me. Not about the course I had set for us. Nothing.

I stood in favour of fear. He had mentioned that he didn't know where we were, or why we were here. Either he assumed that I didn't, either, or he simply didn't want to know the answer.

Chapter116