🌙 Episode 31: Judgment of the Alpha
Lila's POV
The pack's territory spread before me like something out of another world. Wooden cabins stood among towering pines, their windows glowing with torchlight. Wolves padded silently between shadows, their golden eyes watching, assessing.
Every step I took beside Ethan made me feel smaller. Like an intruder walking straight into a den of predators.
"Don't look down," Ethan murmured, his hand steady at the small of my back. "They'll smell fear."
I swallowed hard and lifted my chin, even though my legs trembled. "I'm already terrified."
"I know," he said quietly. "But you're still walking. That's all that matters."
At the center of the territory rose a grand lodge, larger than the rest, its carved doors marked with symbols I didn't recognize. Wolves stood guard on either side, their forms half in shadow, half illuminated by the firelight.
The hall smelled of smoke, pine, and something wilder—power.
Inside, the air was thick with authority.
At the far end of the hall sat the Alpha.
Ethan's POV
Alpha Rowan.
He looked older since I'd last seen him, but no weaker. His hair was silver at the temples, his posture straight as steel. His eyes—sharp, gray, unforgiving—locked onto me the second we entered.
I bowed my head in respect, though I didn't kneel. My wolf bristled at the thought of lowering myself further with Lila at my side.
"Ethan," Rowan said, his voice carrying easily through the hall. "You've returned."
"Not by choice," I answered.
His gaze slid to Lila. "And you've brought a human."
Murmurs broke out among the wolves gathered along the walls. Some curious. Some hostile.
"She's under my protection," I said firmly.
Rowan's expression didn't shift. "You know our law. No human may know of us and live."
Lila's hand tightened in mine. I felt her pulse racing, but she didn't step back. Brave girl.
Lila's POV
Every eye in the hall was on me, and I had never felt more exposed. They didn't see me as a person. I was a threat. A liability.
"I didn't ask for this," I said, my voice shaking but loud enough to carry. "But Ethan saved me. More than once. If that's a crime, then maybe your laws need changing."
Gasps rippled through the crowd. Ethan's grip on my hand tightened, but he didn't silence me.
Rowan's eyes narrowed. "Bold. Do you know what we are, girl?"
"I know you're dangerous," I admitted, my chest rising fast. "But I also know Ethan risked his life for me. That has to mean something."
For the first time, Rowan leaned forward slightly, studying me. "And what do you feel for him?"
The question slammed into me. Heat rushed to my cheeks, but I lifted my chin. "I trust him. With my life."
Ethan's POV
Something flickered in Rowan's eyes—curiosity, maybe. Or warning.
"You speak with conviction," he said at last. "But trust can be broken. And bonds…" His gaze shifted to me knowingly. "…bonds are dangerous."
I stiffened. He knew. Of course he knew.
"She stays," I said firmly.
Rowan rose slowly, the weight of his presence filling the hall. "If she stays, she must prove herself. To me. To the pack. She will face trials."
Murmurs rose again. Some approving. Some doubtful.
Lila's eyes darted to mine, but I squeezed her hand. "We'll do it," I said.
"She will," Rowan corrected. "You will not interfere. If she fails, she dies. And you, Ethan, will face exile for breaking our law."
The wolf in me roared in protest, but I kept my face calm. "Understood."
Lila's POV
My stomach twisted. Trials. Death. Exile.
I'd wanted answers. Now I had them. And the price terrified me.
But as I met Rowan's piercing gaze, a strange calm settled over me.
If this was the only way to stay with Ethan, then I would face whatever they threw at me.
I wasn't going to run.
Rowan's voice rang through the hall. "So be it. At dawn, the trials begin."
The wolves howled in response, the sound chilling and powerful.
And as it echoed through the night, I realized there was no turning back.
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✨ End of Episode 31