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bCrowned /bbby /bbFate /b

bChapter /bb35 /b

Leon’s POV

bThe /bmorning sunlight beat down on the training grounds as I surveyed my domain, heat already rising from the earth despite the early hour

Last year’s Hunt Festival had marked my formal ascension when my father, James, officially stepped down and named me Alpha of Frostshadow Pack

In the months since taking the Alpha position, my days had stretched even longer. Beyond the physical training I’d always maintained, I now spent countles hours studying pack management, politics, and diplomacy.

Each quarter, I traveled to the North American Werewolf Council chambers, observing their meetings, building rtionships with influential members who would eventually vote in the Alpha King election.

All my efforts focused on a single goal: winning the Alpha King election next November.

The council members seemed pleased with my progress, and Frostshadow enjoyed an excellent reputation among the fifty–plus packs across the continent. 1 couldn’t help the surge of confidence that rose in my chest whenever I contemted my chances.

My father’s words echoed in my mind, tempering that pride.

“Don’t rush, don’t be arrogant,” he’d cautioned just yesterday. “Your greatest w has always been impatience. A worthy leader needs more than courage -he needs steadiness of character.b” /b

I rolled my shoulders, feeling the pleasant burn of muscles already worked hard despite the early hour. The dry grass crunched beneath my boots bas /bI paced the training grounds, checking equipment and reviewing today’s schedule in my mind.

Ethan waste–unusual for my Beta, but understandable. He’d found his mate recently andpleted the marking ceremony justst weekb. /bThey were still in that phase where newly mated pairs could hardly bear to leave their bedsb. /b

The thought brought an unexpected twinge. I pushed it away.

b“/bAlpha Leon!”

I turned to see a courier jogging toward meb, /bsweat beading on his forehead in the summer heat. bHe /bbowed slightly, then extended a white envelope.

“This letter arrived for Beta Ethan, but I couldn’t locate his new residence.” The courier looked apologetic. “Would you mind delivering it bto /bhim? I know bhe /bmoved after the marking ceremony…”

“Of course,” I replied, taking the envelope. Ethan had indeed moved out of his parents‘ home after mating, settling into a cabin at the eastern edge of our territory. The courier couldn’t be faulted for not knowing his new address.

I nodded dismissal to the courier, who hurried baway /btoplete his other deliveries. bI /bbwas /babout to slip the letter into my jacket pocket when the sender’s name caught my eye, and my heart stuttered to a halt.

Skye.

A flood of emotions rushed through me. bI /bgripped the envelope tighter, crumpling bits /bedge.

Three years ago, after she’d disappeared, I’d searched for her relentlessly for two months. My father and bSkye’s /bparents had berated me bdaily /bfor bthose /bbsame /btwo months.

They med me entirely for her departure–criticizing my public rejectionb, /bmy failure bto /bconsult them beforehand, my bcallous /bhandling of the mate bond.

George Anderson, Skye’s father and our pack Beta, had nearly resigned his position, threatening to bleave /bFrostshadow Pack to search for his daughter.

Only when they began receiving New Moon Festival gifts from her, mailed from anonymous locations, did the furor bfinally /bbsubside/b.

Even nowb, /b

the memory fueled a simmering anger.

bHow /bbcould /bshe bhave /bbeen so selfish? (1)

bHow /bcould she have abandoned her family, her pack, het responsibilities without a backward nce?

Just because she hadn’t shifted, just because I’d rejected her as my Luna?

She had no idea how many wolves would sacrifice everything for the family bonds she’d so carelessly discarded.

bI /bstared at the envelope, curiosity burning through me. What had she written to her brother? Where bwas /bshe now?

bMy /bfinger slid under the seal, beginning to tear it open before I caught myself. This wasn’t my letter to read. As Alphia, I needed to respect my Beta’s privacy.

With considerable effort, I tucked the letter into my pocket, resolving to hand it over intact when Ethan arrived.

bI /bresumed my training, pushing myself harder than usual, as if physical exertion could drive away the questions circling in my mind. By the time Ethan finally appeared at the edge of the training grounds, I’d worked up a sweat.

He was exactly as I’d imagined–hair wild, clothes barely slung on, his skin still burning with the raw glow of fresh, sweaty sex.

“Sorry I’mte, Alpha,” he offered, not looking particrly sorry at all.

I couldn’t help the smirk that formed. “You might want to consider some restraint at night, Ethan. How do you expect to train properly if you barrive /bexhausted every morning?”

He ran a hand through his rumpled hair, looking sheepish. “Lily’s still adjusting to the bond. bIt’s/bb… /bintense.”

The mention of the bond triggered another unwee pang. I pushed it aside and reached into my pocket.

A letter came for you,” I said, extending the envelope. “From your sister. And before you ask–no, I didn’t read it.”

Ethan’s eyes widened in surprise. He practically snatched the letter from my hand, tearing it open with none of the restraint I’d forced upon myself.

His expression shifted as he read.

“She’s shifted,” he murmured, eyes still scanning the page. After all this time. And she’s-” His gaze shot up to meet mine. “She’s joined another pack. Oasisborn, in the western territories.b” /b

“What? I rejected her as Luna, not as a pack member. Why would she join another pack?”

Has she found another mateb? /bThe question burned in my throatb, /bbut I couldn’t bring myself bto /bvoice it.

Ethan shook his head, returning to the letter. “She doesn’t mention a Second Chance mate. bJust /bbsays /bshe’s finally shifted–her wolf is bsilver/bb, /blike her hair- and that she’s been weed by Oasisborn despite her ‘unusual history.“”

“Oasisborn?” The name was vaguely familiar. “That new pack in bTexas/bb? /bThe desert wastnd?”

The absurdity struck me suddenly. She had left Frostshadow—the most respectedb, /bresourceb–/brich pack in ska–for some upstart group in the middle of

nowhereb? /b

She had abandoned pristine forests, abundant game, and the protection of her powerful birth pack for… what? Scorpions and cactib? /b

“Your sister’s choices continue to baffle me,” I said, unable to keep the disdain from my voice. A harsh snort escaped meb. /b“First she runs away like a child throwing a tantrum, and now she pledges bloyalty /bto a pack no bone’s /bbeven /bheard bof/bb./bb” /b

Anger coiled within me, unexpected in its intensity.

I had assumed that eventually, she would tire of running, woulde to her senses and return home where she belonged. I had never bintended /bto punish her permanently—had always known that when she finally returned, properly contrite, bI /bwould wee her back into the pack’s protection.

i273 /i

Yet now she had formally aligned herself with strangers. Had given her loyally to another Alpha.

I clenched my fists, struggling to maintain the steadyposure my father had so recently advised. Find out everything you can about this Datisborn Pack, I ordered, my voice harder than I’d intended.

“I want to know exactly bwhat /bkind of operation they’re running. Their Alpha, their strength, their resources. Everything.”

bChapter /bComments

Jamie DeWittfn0744 Discover more novels at FindN()vel/fn0744

that’s calling the kettle ck there buddy..