The moon hung low over Ravenshade, casting its pale light over the city as Hayley paced the edge of the training yard. Her thoughts spiraled, a tangled storm of confusion and fury. Riley. Her Beta. Her closest ally. The one person she had trusted with every inch of her pack's safety.
The name on that paper still burned in her mind.
Damien leaned against the fence, watching her with careful eyes. He hadn't pushed her for answers since they'd returned from the Society. He didn't need to. The tension wrapped around Hayley like a second skin, obvious and suffocating.
Finally, she stopped and turned to him.
"I need to be sure," she said.
Damien straightened. "You think Lucien lied?"
She nodded slowly. "He gave me Riley's name too easily. He wanted a reaction and he got one. But if I confront her now without proof..."
"It'll divide the pack," Damien finished grimly.
Hayley ran a hand through her hair. "Exactly. Riley's been with me since I became Alpha. If I accuse her and I'm wrong... it'll tear Silverfang apart."
Damien approached, voice low. "Then we find proof. Or disprove it. Either way, we find the truth."
Hayley met his eyes, surprised by the conviction there. She wasn't used to someone standing with her like this. Most people followed because they feared her, or needed her. Damien didn't need anyone and he definitely didn't fear her.
"You're not even part of my pack," she said softly.
"No," he agreed. "But someone is trying to kill you. And I don't like being played. Besides…" His eyes narrowed slightly. "I have a feeling our problems are more connected than we think."
She didn't ask what he meant. Not yet.
Instead, she gave a small nod. "We start tonight."
***
By midnight, Hayley was in the Den's war room, pulling every record she had on Riley assignments, mission logs, and security clearances. Damien worked beside her, scanning through encrypted files and council reports with unnerving speed.
"She's clean on paper," he said after a while. "Too clean."
Hayley glanced up. "What do you mean?"
"Every record is perfect. No errors, no complaints, no red flags. No one's that perfect, not even you."
She scowled. "Thanks."
"It's suspicious," he added. "If someone were hiding something, this is how they'd cover it up."
Hayley's fingers curled against the desk. "Riley's always handled our diplomatic contacts. She had access to everything including intel from the outer territories."
Damien's expression darkened. "You think she could've sold information?"
"I think it's time we found out."
***
They waited until Riley left the Den the next morning, under the pretense of scouting a neutral-zone meeting with a witch clan. Hayley gave her blessing with a cool smile, even as her heart twisted in her chest.
The moment Riley was gone, Hayley and Damien slipped into her quarters.
It felt like betrayal.
But if Riley had turned first… then loyalty had already been broken.
Damien moved swiftly, scanning for hidden compartments and encrypted tech. Hayley checked drawers, scrolls, old letters. Most were harmless but then she found something tucked beneath a false bottom in Riley's desk.
A sealed letter.
No name. No seal.
Just a wax stamp burned into the parchment two overlapping crescent moons. The symbol of the Obsidian Circle.
Hayley froze.
The Obsidian Circle was a secret faction rumored to exist inside the supernatural council, pulling strings from the shadows. Whispers said they had their hands in everything: shifter wars, vampire politics, witch uprisings. But no one had ever proven they were real.
Until now.
Damien stepped beside her. "Is that what I think it is?"
She handed him the letter.
He opened it carefully, and they both scanned the contents. The message was short but damning.
> "Phase One complete. The Alpha is destabilized. Await further instructions."
And at the bottom, scrawled in a delicate but unfamiliar script:
> "R.W."
Riley Wolfe.
Hayley staggered back like she'd been struck.
Damien caught her arm. "I'm sorry."
She shook her head. "No. No, I need more. This could be planted. Someone could be trying to make her look guilty."
Damien studied her face. "You still want to believe in her."
"She's my Beta," Hayley snapped. "She's fought beside me for years. Saved my life more times than I can count.
"But if she's part of the Obsidian Circle"
"Then everything I've built is already compromised," Hayley finished, her voice raw.
They stared at the letter in silence.
Then Damien said, "You said you needed proof. Now you have it."
Hayley didn't reply.
Because part of her still wanted to scream no.
***
By nightfall, she had made a decision.
She would confront Riley.
Not with violence not yet. Not until she looked her Beta in the eye and heard the truth from her own lips.
So she waited in Riley's quarters, the letter tucked into her coat, Damien waiting outside as backup. When the door creaked open, Riley stepped in and froze.
"Alpha?"
Hayley turned slowly. "We need to talk."
Riley's eyes flicked toward the hidden desk, then back to Hayley. "Alright. What's going on?"
Hayley took a breath. "I found something in your room. Something you didn't want me to see."
Riley stiffened. "You went through my things?"
"I had no choice," Hayley snapped. "There's a bounty on my head, Riley. Someone in this city wants me dead."
"I know," Riley said quietly. "And I've been trying to keep you safe."
Hayley held up the letter. "Then explain this."
Riley's face went pale.
Dead silent.
Hayley's voice cracked. "What is the Obsidian Circle?"
Riley didn't answer immediately. She looked… guilty.
Too guilty.
"You were never supposed to find that," she said at last. "Not yet."
Hayley's heart sank. "So it's true."
Riley closed her eyes. "It's not what you think."
"You're working with them!"
"No, I'm working against them!" Riley's voice shook now. "They tried to recruit me over a year ago. I pretended to join them to feed them false intel, to protect you. That letter… It was a bluff. Part of the cover."
Hayley's fingers trembled. "You expect me to believe that?"
"Yes," Riley whispered. "Because I would never betray you, Hayley. You're more than my Alpha. You're my family."
Hayley wanted to believe her.
Gods, she needed to.
But before she could speak, the window behind Riley exploded inward.
A shadow moved fast too fast to react. Damien burst in just as a masked figure slammed a dagger into Riley's shoulder, pinning her to the wall.
Hayley's wolf surged to the surface.
She moved in a blur, tackling the assassin and ripping the mask from his face only to freeze when she saw his eyes.
Pale green. Familiar.
It was Liam.
Her third in command.
Blood dripped from his temple. Wild fury in his gaze,
"You were supposed to die," he hissed at Riley. "You ruined everything!"
Hayley stared, frozen, as Riley gasped in pain.
"Liam," she breathed, "what are you doing?"
But Liam's glare locked onto her. "You were too strong, Hayley. Too smart. The Circle couldn't take you down without inside help."
And just like that
The real traitor was revealed.