Tristan\u00a0<\/p>\n
The pack compound was buzzing with activity when we arrived. Sunday night meetings were mandatory for all pack members, a time to discuss territory\u00a0<\/p>\n
issues, resolve disputes, and plan for the week ahead.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I could smell Max\u2019s scent the moment I walked through the main doors. He was in the conference room with the rest of my inner circle, probably discussing\u00a0<\/p>\n
patrol schedules or supply issues like nothing had happened.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Like my mate wasn\u2019t missing because of his lies.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTristan, Orion said quietly as we walked through the corridors. \u201cRemember, we\u2019re surrounded by pack members. You need to maintain some level of\u00a0<\/p>\n
control.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I nodded, but inside, my wolf was pacing like a caged animal. The void where Athena should have been in my mind was driving me to the edge of sanity.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When I pushed open the conference room doors, conversation stopped immediately. Max looked up from the papers spread across the table, and for just a split second, I saw something flicker across his face.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Fear.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAlpha,\u201d he said, standing quickly. \u201cI wasn\u2019t expecting you tonight. Didn\u2019t we just talk? Is everything alright?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIs everything alright?\u201d I repeated, my voice echoing through the suddenly silent room. \u201cThat\u2019s an interesting question, Max.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The other pack members were looking between us with confusion and growing concern. They could sense the tension radiating from me, could probably smell the rage rolling off me in waves.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone out,\u201d I commanded, my alpha voice making it impossible for anyone to disobey. The words carried power that hit every wolf in the room like a physical force. \u201cEveryone except Max.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The room emptied quickly, pack members filing out without question but with worried glances over their shoulders. I could hear their whispered conversations starting the moment they got into the hallway. Only Orion and Derek remained, flanking me like bodyguards.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Max stood alone on the other side of the conference table, and I could see his hands beginning to shake.His scent was changing, fear mixing with that\u00a0<\/p>\n
familiar smell.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018Alpha, what\u2019s going on?\u201d he asked, but his voice lacked its usual confidence.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018Daxon,\u201d I said simply. \u201cTell me about the day Daxon died.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Max\u2019s face went white. All the color drained from his cheeks like water down a sink. Alpha, I already gave you my report. He\u2019s dead. I disposed of the body\u00a0<\/p>\n
myself.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you?\u201d I asked, walking slowly around the table toward him. Each step felt deliberate, predatory. \u2018Did you really see him die, Max? Did you really dispose of his body?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, Alpha. I swear on my pack loyalty, he\u2019s dead.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
E\u00a0<\/p>\n
D\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
71\u00a0<\/p>\n
15:22 Sat, Jan 10\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 160\u00a0<\/p>\n
But I could smell the lie on him now. The sour scent of deception was rolling off him in waves, and my wolf was howling for his blood.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As you know, my mate is missing. I said, my voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. \u201cSomeone took her from her apartment tonight. And the man who was supposed to be dead is the only person with motive to hurt her.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Alpha, I don\u2019t understand\u2026 Derek was responsible\u2026 He got to her place and left with something\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018Strip, I commanded, using every ounce of alpha power I possessed. \u201cStrip down and prepare for punishment.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Max\u2019s eyes widened in shock. \u201cAlpha, please, I don\u2019t\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s an order!\u201d I roared, my voice shaking the windows.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Max had no choice but to obey. His hands moved against his will, unbuttoning his shirt, removing his shoes. The alpha command was too strong for him to\u00a0<\/p>\n
resist.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNow tell me the truth,\u201d I said, my voice deadly calm. \u201cWhat really happened to Daxon?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s dead, Alpha. I swear he\u2019s dead.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I nodded to Orion, who moved behind Max with a silver\u2013tipped weapon I hadn\u2019t seen him draw.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMax,\u201d Orion said conversationally, \u201cyou\u2019re about to experience a level of pain you\u2019ve never imagined. And it\u2019s going to continue until you tell us the truth.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The silver blade sliced across Max\u2019s back, and his scream echoed through the compound. Silver was one of the few things that could cause lasting damage to our kind, and the agony was immediate and intense.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was one of the things used on Daxon.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShift,\u201d I commanded. \u201cHeal yourself.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Max\u2019s body twisted as he took his wolf form, the wound healing as his body changed. But the moment he was back in human form, I gave him the same\u00a0<\/p>\n
command again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018Shift.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The constant transformation was exhausting and disorienting, preventing him from getting his bearings or formulating lies.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018Tell me about Daxon,\u2018 I said again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s dead!\u201d Max gasped between shifts. \u201cI swear on my life, Alpha!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Orion\u2019s blade found him again, this time across the chest. Max\u2019s screams were getting weaker, his body struggling to heal from the repeated silver wounds\u00a0<\/p>\n
and forced transformations.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe body, Orion said calmly. \u201cWho did you give the body to?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Max\u2019s resolve finally cracked. \u2018I\u2026 I gave it to the cleaners. The disposal team. I didn\u2019t\u2026 I didn\u2019t stay to watch.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat was my order?\u201d I said, my voice filled with deadly understanding.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Biker Alpha Who Became My Second Chance Mate\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland\u2019s breathtaking cold.<\/p>\n
Memories Drifted Into Soft Silence by Kyx Frost 160 Tristan\u00a0 The pack compound was buzzing with activity when we arrived. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[77],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26317","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-second-gear-of-love-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26317","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26317"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26317\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26317"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26317"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26317"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}