The Silver Wolf (Diana and Talon) novel Chapter 39

Chapter Thirty Nine

“There you have it,” Talon said, turning to the crowd. “Your Luna is not the only problem.”

His gaze swept across every face.

Clam

“There is another traitor hiding among you,” Talon declared, his voice cutting through the clearing like a blade. “And it is none other than you, Beta.”

“Alpha King, you do not have proof of that,” Beta Rafe said, forcing his spine straight despite the sweat breaking along his temple. “You cannot simply stand there and accuse me. How can you say I am the traitor?”

A murmur rippled through the gathered pack-uncertain, uneasy. Rafe had been their beta for years. He had stood beside their alpha in every battle, every council meeting To hear his name spoken alongside the word traitor felt wrong, almost unthinkable.

Talon did not react to the noise.

He did not raise his voice.

He did not snarl.

That, more than anything, made the air feel heavy.

“Simple, Beta,” Talon said at last, his tone calm, almost conversational-as if he were explaining an obvious truth to a child. His silver eyes never left Rafe’s face. “You are forgetting one very basic law of our kind.”

Rafe’s jaw tightened. “And what law would that be, Alpha King?”

“The law of authority,” Talon replied. He took a single step forward. The ground beneath his boots seemed to vibrate, and several wolves in the crowd instinctively bowed their heads, their wolves reacting to the sheer weight of his dominance.

“The only wolves who possess the power to manipulate the mind of another pack member,” Talon continued, voice steady but lethal, “are those with sufficient rank to override free will.” His gaze swept briefly across the leadership-Alpha Asher, Luna Hazel-before snapping back to Rafe.

“An Alpha,” Talon said. “And a Beta.”

A sharp inhale echoed through the crowd.

Rafe’s face drained of color.

“Have you forgotten that?” Talon asked quietly.

Rafe opened his mouth, then closed it again. His fingers curled at his sides, claws threatening to break through skin.

“Mind manipulation is not proof,” he said, a crack forming in his voice. “There are other ways. Witches. Artifacts. You cannot pin this on me without evidence.”

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Talon’s lips curved-not into a smile, but something far colder. “Oh, but we do have evidence.”

Clem

“From the moment the captured rogues were found dead in the dungeon,” He turned his head slightly, just enough to acknowledge the presence at his side. “My beta and I already knew who the traitor was.”

Gasps erupted this time-louder, sharper.

Rafe’s eyes flicked, just once, toward Enzo.

That was all Talon needed.

“The guards posted at the dungeon,” Talon continued, his voice now carrying across the clearing,” reported memory loss. Complete gaps. No scent of struggle. No alarm raised. No trace of an intruder powerful enough to challenge them physically.”

“Only a command,” He tilted his head, studying Rafe as if dissecting him. “A command so absolute that it

erased itself afterward.”

Silence fell.

Rafe swallowed hard. “You are making assumptions.”

“No,” Talon corrected. “I am stating facts.”

“The rogues were never the mystery,” He straightened, his alpha aura flaring just enough to make several wolves drop to one knee without realizing it. “Their deaths were.”

His eyes burned. “They were never meant to survive.”

Rafe’s breathing quickened.

“They were bait,” Talon said flatly.

The word hit like a blade.

“Bait?” someone whispered.

“Yes,” Talon said, unflinching. “Bait to draw out the traitor. Bait to force a mistake. And you took it.”

Rafe took a step back. “You cannot prove that-”

“You ordered the guards away,” Talon interrupted. “You wiped their memories. You ensured the rogues would never speak.”

He leaned in just slightly, his voice dropping into something only the front ranks could hear, but every wolf felt it. “And in doing so, you confirmed exactly what we needed.”

“As I said before,” Talon straightened again, his voice ringing out with finality. “The rogues were never the

threat.”

His gaze locked onto Rafe, unyielding, merciless. “They were our bait.”

And in that moment, every wolf in the clearing knew:

The hunt was over.

2:5

Chapter Tutine

The word landed like a death sentence.

Talon’s gaze locked onto Beta Rafe with lethal precision. There was no hesitation. No doubt. Only certainty forged by instinct, evidence, and the ancient authority of an Alpha King who did not speak without truth.

Rafe’s face drained of color so fast it was as if all the blood had been ripped from his body. His eyes widened, darting instinctively toward Alpha Asher-seeking denial, protection, anything.

But Asher did not move.

Did not speak.

The silence was damning.

A low growl rolled through the clearing.

Not from Talon’s throat.

From deep within him.

Clam

The sound vibrated through the ground, ancient and primal, and before anyone could react, Talon’s form blurred.

Bones cracked.

Power exploded outward.

Fenrir emerged. Massive, obsidian-furred, eyes glowing like molten gold, Fenrir towered over everyone present. His presence alone drove several pack members to their knees. Wolves whimpered. Omegas bowed their heads instinctively. Even warriors struggled to remain standing beneath the crushing dominance of the Alpha King’s wolf.

Fenrir’s lips peeled back, exposing lethal fangs as his gaze pinned Rafe in place.

“You aided in the attack on my mate,” Talon’s voice rumbled, layered now with Fenrir’s, a dual-toned verdict that echoed like thunder. “And just like the Luna, you will receive no mercy.”

Rafe staggered back a step, shaking his head violently. “N-no-Alpha King, I-”

Fenrir took a single step forward. The earth cracked beneath his massive paw.

“You manipulated patrol routes,” Talon continued coldly. “You ensured the borders were unguarded. You allowed fifteen rogues to enter pack territory without resistance.”

Rafe’s mouth opened, but no words came.

“You knew where my mate would be,” Talon said. “You knew when she would be alone.”

Fenrir lowered his massive head, golden eyes burning into Rafe’s soul.

“And when those rogues failed,” Talon growled, “you ensured the surviving ones would never speak.”

A collective gasp tore through the pack.

35

Clam

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<Chapter Thuty time

was ordered-“Rafe dropped to his knees, and he blurted out desperately, “I was told-”

“Silence,” Talon snapped.

The command slammed into Rafe like a physical blow, forcing his head down to the ground. His body trembled violently as Fenrir’s aura crushed him into submission.

“You were not ordered,” Talon said with lethal calm. “You chose.”

Fenrir’s growl deepened, vibrating through every bone present.

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