Chapter 136

Alexanders pov

As I left the elders' council, the night draped the street in a shroud of shadows. Frustration ate at me. I had stayed back after the meeting to see if there was anything else they could tell me. I wanted to be ready for whatever was about to come so I could protect the ones I loved, but they told me nothing. Their cryptic warnings about the new threat had been useless. In my role as the Alpha King, I needed clarity and strategy—not riddles. The elders’ evasiveness had done nothing but heighten my unease.

I decided to take the long way back to the hotel. It wasn't just for the sake of clearing my mind; the prospect of facing Cassandra immediately made my skin crawl.

Something across the street caught my attention: two people standing in the dark. There was something about them that made me stop and watch them. Then, a familiar smell in my nostrils. I knew that scent anywhere. Walking slowly, I crossed the street, straining to hear their conversation. I couldn’t make ou