Chapter 003: Shadows in the Pack

Ava's POV 

I never imagined I would be back here. The packhouse was supposed to be a fortification, a haven with its lofty stone walls and dark wooden flooring. But being here today surrounded by wolves that used to view me as an alien, it felt more like a jail. 

Jackson was still staring at me, observing, evaluating, maybe even accusing. Still, it was not his stare that most troubled me. It weighed what I had to tell him. The secrets I had stored for so long seemed like chains dragging me down with every stride around my ankles.

I returned here not to be with him. I came to see my kids.

Ignorant of the conflict whirling amongst the parents, the twins quietly occupied the corner of the room. Lily was deep in concentration on her puzzle, her little forehead wrinkled, as Caleb piled blocks and hummed to himself. They were uninformed of the threat hovering over us. Not aware that their father faced as much risk as they did.

Jackson leaned against the desk, his arms folded, that austere posture making it difficult to interpret what he was thinking. He had not inquired about the twins yet, about the reason I had kept them a secret for so long. Perhaps he was not ready to hear it. Alternatively he might not have given a damn. 

That idea made me despise it. 

At last shattering the quiet, he remarked, "I need more from you, Ava." "I have to know everything if we are to keep the pack secure. Eliminating half-truths.

His words sliced across me more than I would have wanted to acknowledge; it was chilly, remote. Why would he not trust me? I had left silently, keeping his kids away from him for five years. But nowadays, this is not about us. It concerned something considerably darker and much more expansive.

I straightened my shoulders and squarely met his eye. "You assume I'm holding back, Jackson? okay. You should know, though, that I wanted to and therefore did not come back. Having nowhere else to go, I returned.

Riley uneasily moved next to Jackson. I felt the hatred emanating from him. He had never liked me, and it was obvious that had not changed. Though he said nothing, his black eyes stared at me as though I were the enemy.

Though it was loud enough for the whole crowd to hear, Riley mumbled under his breath, "You should have told us about the twins."

Though I stammered at his comments, I kept quiet about it. "I followed what I felt at the time to be best."

Riley shot back, his voice sharp: "And now look where that's gotten us."

Jackson silenced him with a hand-held gesture, but harm was done. The weight of condemnation from all around the room was pressing in on me. It felt smothering. 

Though my voice faltered just a little, I replied softly, "I'm not here to justify my choices to you." "But you should be aware of something. Something I omitted to mention earlier.

Jackson's eyelids closed and I could see the flutter of annoyance there. Get on.

My heart hammering in my chest, I inhaled deeply. Here it was. The one that might break everything, the truth I had buried far down for so long. 

"The rogues..." They are not acting in a vacuum. 

The room went into a startled quiet. Jackson's teeth clenched and his gaze darkened. " What are you saying?"

With my voice barely above a whisper, I said, "I overheard them discussing once, right before we ran. Jackson, they are not merely renegade wolves. Someone is guiding them and issuing directives. And I believe someone from inside your pack is involved here.

The quiet that followed was intolerable. Riley leaped from his seat, his face a mask of incredulity. "That's not feasible." None in the pack would turn on us.

"I am reporting what I heard," I answered, my voice now solid. "They muttered a name, but I couldn't make out. From the shadows, whatever it is, I know is dragging the threads. Using the rogues to handle their filthy business, they have been following us for months.

Jackson silently said nothing. Though I could see the storm building in his eyes, his face seemed insensible. He was computing, organizing, attempting to fit everything together. But I knew he could no longer avoid reality. That changed everything since there was a pack traitor.

"Whoever it is," I said, "they want you dead, Jackson. They won't stop either until they have what they desire.

Standing there still, he clenched his hands into fists at his sides. I considered for a second that he could snap, that the resentment boiling just below the surface would at last explode. Still, he spoke in a quiet, under control voice.

"We'll find out who it is," he continued, staring alternately between Riley and me. They will also regret ever following my family when we do.

His comments made me shiver down my back. Jackson had always guarded his pack very aggressively, but this was personal. His eyes' fury was not limited to the traitor; it also reflected mine. 

I turned away, unable to keep his stare longer. Actually, I had been running for so long without knowing how to stop. Now, though, as I stood here in the spot I used to call home, I understood running was no longer possible. Not with the life of my children online.

Tension permeated the space, and I could feel everyone staring at me. They seemed waiting for me to crack, to own that I had somehow brought this all on myself. But I wasn't going to bring them that gratification.

Riley murmured, his voice piercing the quiet, "We need to tighten security." " Nobody leaves or enters the region without permission. We will go over the pack looking for the mole.

Jackson nodded, his face becoming rigid. "Do it here. And I would like home guards placed there. Ava and the twins are not leaving without cover.

I started to object, but the look on Jackson's face stopped me. Here there was no place for debate. I was no longer in control.

The room went still once more as Riley departed to follow Jackson's commands. Unknown of the storm building around them, the twins were still playing. Their innocence and their capacity to find delight even among turmoil enmeshed me.

Jackson replied abruptly, his voice low and scratchy, "I didn't expect this." Startled by the openness in his voice, I turned to face him. "You return, the children; this was not how it was meant to go."

My throat was tight, I swallowed hard. "I had no intention of including any of this either."

He turned to face me then, truly looked at me, and for the first time since I had returned, I saw something else in his eyes than wrath. Although brief and transient, it was there. regret.

My voice was almost audible, I replied, "I thought leaving was the right thing to do." For every one of us.

"You thought wrong," he said, his voice sharp but not devoid of some anguish. You ought to have mentioned them to me.

Not able to argue, I nodded. She was right. I should have had. For that, though, it was too late now.

A knock at the door came before I could reply. Owen, Jackson's beta, came into the room looking glum. He remarked, looking between the two of us, "We have a problem."

"What is it?," Jackson asked with a tight voice.

"An attack has occurred. One of our scouts came upon a body close to the eastern boundary. The rogues seem to have hit once more.

Jackson ran his fingers through his hair, swearing beneath his breath. "How many??"

"Just one." Not only are we dealing with rogues, though. Owen hesitated, then turned to look at me. "The physical... It turned out to be a message. Ava, they know you are here. They are conversant with the twins.

An icy shudder slid down my back. Coming for us where they were. And this time they stopped hiding in the shadows.

Jackson's eyes darkened, and beyond the surface I could sense simmering anger. He moved toward me, his presence overpowering. His voice quiet but deadly serious, he continued, "We'll protect them." You must, however, tell me everything, Ava. There are no mysteries anymore. No more falsehoods.

My heart hammering in my chest, I nodded. I had already lost a great deal. Neither could I lose them too.

I understood as I stood there confronting the man I had once loved that this was only starting. The danger was nearer than it had ever been; the traitor was still out there and the rogues were arriving.

Still, this time I was not sprinting.

I felt ready to battle this time.

Ava had to accept the grim reality that someone within the confines of the packhouse wanted them dead since the traitor in the pack

was no more hiding in the shadows. Anyone may launch the next attack—including someone they trusted.