CHAPTER 77: LOOKING FOR HIM

The afternoon air was warm, filled with the faint scent of flowering vines that climbed the stone walls of the garden. I tapped my fingers lightly against the table as Raye passed me a plate of sugared fruits.

"What kind of pack affairs?" I asked, biting into one of the candied plums. The sweetness burst across my tongue, but it didn’t soothe the impatience simmering inside me. Four days without seeing Rion, and every hour made my nerves prickle sharper.

Raye brushed a lock of hair behind her ear. "There’s been ongoing construction for new homes in the Sixth District."

My brows knitted in curosity. "Construction? For what purpose?"

"To house the new people." She set her teacup down gently, the porcelain clinking against the saucer. "Some of them came from a ruined pack aboveground. They had nowhere else to go, so Alpha took them in."

That pulled me upright. "People from another pack? Why are they here? What’s happening aboveground?"

Raye’s expression dimmed. "It was war," she said quietly. "Two packs clashed. The one that fell was Rayvehill. They didn’t have enough warriors to hold their ground, and the stronger pack crushed them. Brutally."

"Rayvehill..." I echoed, tasting the name on my tongue. I had heard of them before, a small pack tucked into a forest valley far west, quiet and isolated.

Raye nodded, obsidian eyes shadowed. "I heard it was terrible. Their lands were burned, their homes destroyed. The wolves who survived... most were women and children. Their brothers, their fathers, their husbands dead. Imagine watching everything you love buried under smoke and blood, and then having nothing left but ashes."

Her words wrapped around me, like knives stabbing my heart.

I stared at her, stunned. "And Rion just... brought them here?"

"Yes," she said simply, as though it were obvious. "He gave them sanctuary when no one else would. It’s the only way they can survive."

I blinked at her, utterly disoriented. My lips parted before I could stop myself. "Rion... is building homes for them?"

The words felt strange, unnatural. The Rion I knew... arrogant, merciless, delighting in power... didn’t match the picture Raye was painting.

Raye’s faint smile returned. "You sound surprised."

"Well, I am," I admitted, not seeing any reason to lie. I was sure Raye knew what I think about her Alpha anyway. "I didn’t think the great Alpha of Undercity concerned himself with such things."

She tilted her head at me, eyes glinting warmly. "You think him a monster, don’t you?" Her voice became firm, not her usual cheerful side, like she wanted me to understand the weight of her words. "But Undercity isn’t just wolves living belowground. We are a pack, Vivien. We have rules, homes, families. Alpha makes sure it stays that way."

I leaned back in my chair, trying to mask my surprise.

In the last three days, while Raye had dragged me through the winding veins of this city, I had seen the truth of her words. The place was far more organized than I had ever imagined. Markets bustling with life, workshops humming with labor, children laughing in alleys lined with glowing lanterns.

This wasn’t chaos. It was a city, alive and thriving under the earth.

"And you’ve seen it yourself," Raye added softly, almost reading my thoughts.

I didn’t reply, though inside I couldn’t help but agree.

It was, indeed, different in many was I had expected, but it still didn’t feel like my home.

And Rion... the way I saw him couldn’t be changed easily. Not when he burned some lands of the Levian pack.

Night fell swiftly, and the dining hall echoed with silence. Only Raye and I sat at the long table, it had been like that in the past few days. The absence of the males made the hall feel emptier.

After the meal, I excused myself. My feet carried me toward the library, where the smell of aged papers and polished wood from the tall shelves embraced me.

I traced my fingers along the spines of the books until I plucked one at random. Something light, something that didn’t remind me much of the world outside. I figured I could silence my thoughts by reading.

Instead of returning to my bedroom, I followed a different path. Stairs spiraled upward until I reached the rooftop. From there, a narrow stone bridge arched toward the tower that loomed like a silent sentinel, Rion’s tower.

I stopped just short of crossing, choosing instead to settle against the low stone railing. The Undercity stretched below me in all its strange magnificence. Lanterns glowed like stars scattered across the streets, while the soft hum of distant voices floated up. It was a world hidden yet alive.

I opened the book and tried to read, letting the words distract me from the gnawing unease inside my chest.

I wasn’t sure how long I’ve been there, when a voice interrupted me.

"Seems like you are enjoying yourself very much while I am not around."

The voice was low, smooth, and unmistakably smug.

My head snapped up. My heart gave an involuntary jolt as I turned and saw him.

Rion stood only a few paces away, framed by the lantern light. He wore a dark shirt, half unbuttoned, exposing a sculpted chest inked with shadows that curled across his skin like living marks. His silver hair was disheveled, as though he’d only just returned from a long day of work.

I noticed shadows under his eyes. Did he even sleep well?

"So you care if he’s been sleeping well now?" Leika’s taunting words made me bite my inner lip.

Days ago it made me worry when I couldn’t connect with her, so I was so relieved when I felt her again when I woke up. But sometimes I’d prefer her silent.

I clenched the book tighter. "You—"

"I heard from Raye, though..." Rion stepped closer, a slow smirk tugging at his lips. "...you were looking for me?" His crimson eyes gleamed, catching the starlight lanterns. "I thought you wouldn’t miss me since I’d only be gone for a few days. But I was wrong, it seems."

I stood, snapping the book closed. My back pressed against the railing, the city’s lights glittering behind me. "I was looking for you because I have questions."

The corner of his mouth lifted, his gaze too intimidating to offer me any comfort.