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

Clarke was the one who got over his shock first. The most brilliant of smiles lit up his face, and I was once again reminded of how easily Sterling's words could raise a man up or put them down. Especially when they were as sensitive as Clarke.

/"Did you know about this?/" Those dark, battle-ground for eyes, they landed on me; Heaven and Hell danced in his eyes, and looking into them made me want to sin and repent in the same breath.

/"Yes. I thought . . . sometimes everybody needs to be told that they're doing a good job. This is your pack's way of telling you that you are./" For all Sterling's faults, for as harsh as he could be, he had always made sure the pack's safety was maintained. It obviously hadn't been overlooked by as many people as I had once thought.

Chapter143