Chapter 10: The Poison of Doubt

The summons from Alistair had been a test, a gauntlet of ice and implication. For an hour, Kael had stood in the older man’s austere office, surrounded by the relics of a hundred hunts, and defended his “cautious” approach with a calm he did not feel. “Prudence is a virtue, Kael,” Alistair had said, steepling his fingers, his gaze like a scalpel. “But hesitation can be a fatal flaw. The pack is weak now. An Omega’s distress can destabilize an entire group. This is the time to strike.” Kael’s...