CHAPTER 102: CALEB’S JEALOUSY

Caleb POV

My hand connected with Prince Ash’s perfect jaw before I even realized I was moving. The Fae prince stumbled backward, feeling his lip in surprise while everyone in the strategy tent stared at me.

"Caleb!" Lily gasped, rushing between us. "What are you doing?"

I couldn’t answer because I didn’t know. One moment I’d been listening to Prince Ash explain fight tactics to Lily, and the next I was throwing punches like some kind of animal. The worst part? I wanted to hit him again.

"I’m sorry," I said quickly, stepping back. "I don’t know what came over me."

Prince Ash fixed his jacket, looking more amused than angry. "Ah, I see what’s happening here."

"You see what?" I demanded, that strange angry feeling bubbling up again.

"Nothing," Lily said firmly, giving the Fae prince a warning look. "Caleb’s just stressed about the war. We all are."

But I caught the knowing smile on Prince Ash’s face, and it made me want to punch him again. What was wrong with me? I’d never been angry before. I was the quiet brother, the one who solved problems with books and plans, not fists.

"Perhaps we should continue this discussion later," said Dmitri the vampire, who’d been watching with interest. "When everyone’s feeling more... controlled."

As the magical leaders filed out of the tent, I noticed how they all seemed to look at Lily differently now. Not with the mistrust they’d shown before, but with something that looked almost like respect. Or worse - respect.

"Caleb, are you okay?" Lily asked once we were alone. "You’ve been acting strange all week."

Strange didn’t begin to cover it. Ever since Lily had started working closely with the supernatural friends, I’d been feeling things I couldn’t name. Angry when other guys talked to her. Protective when she went on scouting trips. Worried when she came back tired from using her new skills.

"I’m fine," I lied. "Just tired."

"You’re not fine," she said, moving closer. "Talk to me. What’s bothering you?"

How could I explain that watching her work with Prince Ash made me feel like my skin was crawling? That hearing Dmitri compliment her skills made me want to challenge him to a fight? That seeing her grow stronger and more confident while working with everyone except me made me feel like I was losing something important?

"It’s nothing," I said again, but my voice came out rougher than I meant it to.

Lily’s eyes narrowed. "Don’t lie to me, Caleb Silver. I can see supernatural energies now, remember? And yours are all twisted up with something dark."

Before I could reply, Brock burst into the tent. "We’ve got a problem. Three of the saved pack members just disappeared from the medical tent."

My stomach dropped. The wolves Lily had saved from the Void Walker had been acting strange since their rescue. They kept staring at people with eyes that seemed too knowing, too aware.

"How did they get past the guards?" Lily asked.

"That’s the thing," Brock said sadly. "The guards don’t remember them leaving. They just... forgot they were supposed to be watching them."

"Memory manipulation," I said, my scholar’s mind immediately jumping to the worst option. "The Shadow Council can make people forget things."

"Which means those weren’t really rescued pack members," Lily whispered, her face going pale. "They were spies."

We ran to the medical tent, but it was too late. The three wolves were gone, and with them, any chance of keeping our plans hidden. They’d been listening to our strategy talks for days.

"We have to assume they know everything," Aiden said when we called an emergency meeting. "Our attack plans, our weaknesses, the location of our camp."

"Then we move," Dmitri offered. "Find a new base."

"There’s nowhere to go," Prince Ash said softly. "They’ll find us wherever we hide."

That’s when the angry feeling in my chest burst into something bigger. "This is your fault," I snapped at the Fae prince. "You’re the one who said we should trust the rescued wolves."

"Actually, that was Lily’s idea," Prince Ash responded calmly.

"Don’t you dare blame her," I snarled, moving toward him again. "She was trying to save people."

"And I’m not blaming her," Prince Ash said, but his eyes were sparkling like he found this whole situation entertaining. "I’m simply pointing out that trust is a dangerous thing in war."

"Caleb, stop," Lily said, putting her hand on my arm. "He’s right. This was my mistake."

"No, it wasn’t," I said furiously. "You did what any good person would do. You tried to help."

"And now we’re all going to pay for it," Aiden said tiredly.

That’s when I realized what was happening to me. The anger, the protectiveness, the need to defend Lily even when she was wrong - it wasn’t just stress or fear about the war.

I was jealous.

Jealous of Prince Ash’s easy ease around her. Jealous of Dmitri’s impressed comments about her skills. Jealous of every magical creature who got to work with her while I felt more useless every day.

But why? We were friends, nothing more. We’d never been anything more.

"I need some air," I said, shoving past everyone to get outside.

Lily followed me, which only made the strange feelings worse. "Caleb, wait."

"I’m fine," I said for the third time, but even I didn’t believe it anymore.

"You’re not fine, and neither am I," she said. "Ever since I lost my pack ties, I’ve been feeling... different. About everything. About you."

I stopped walking. "What do you mean?"

"I mean I don’t understand what’s happening between us," she said quietly. "But I know it’s something."

Before I could respond, the ground beneath our feet started to shake. Not an earthquake - something else. Something that made the air itself feel wrong.

"What is that?" Lily asked, her new abilities clearly picking up on something I couldn’t sense.

That’s when I saw them. Dozens of figures emerging from the bush around our camp. They moved with purpose, surrounding us completely.

"The Shadow Council," I breathed.

But as they got closer, I realized something horrible. These weren’t just Shadow Council members.

They were our lost pack members. Every wolf who’d disappeared over the past few months. All of them walking toward us with those same dark, hungry eyes.

And leading them was someone I recognized.

"Hello, little brother," said a voice that sounded exactly like Aiden’s.

I spun around to see my brother standing behind us, but his eyes glowed with the same darkness as the coming figures.

"Aiden?" Lily whispered.

"Not anymore," not-Aiden smiled. "Though I have to thank you both. Watching you through his eyes has been very informative."

That’s when I understood. The real Aiden was gone. Had been gone for who knows how long. And I’d been too busy being jealous to notice that my own brother had been replaced.