Laws of the Pack | Book #1 (SLOW UPDATES)

CHAPTER X | REPORT

"You may enter."

Navira's voice echoed from within the tunnel, snapping Lunis back to reality as she and Rodwen proceeded forward.

The duo had fallen utterly silent since their worrying discovery, as the air around them seemed to fill with gloom. The Beta continuously beckoned the female to pick up the pace during their journey, urging her silently with the flick of his tail or the twitch of an ear. Lunis simply obeyed, too preoccupied by her conflicting thoughts to care. She had reviewed the evidence at least a thousand times in her mind, remembered every scent to the minute detail only to fall back into the exact same conclusion as before.

A wolf pack had taken down that deer. Not rogues, nor any coyote or fox. If the evidence is so obvious, why is Rodwen set on believing otherwise? Putting her concerns to rest, the female honed her thoughts onto the upcoming report as Navira and Rohan's appeared within the dark end of the chamber. To avoid any eavesdropping from their guests or any curious members of their pack, the leaders had moved their meeting to a smaller, isolated part of the den. Lunis recalled visiting this place only a few times before, once as a pup and a couple other times when she had just begun her Delta training.

Sitting down, the Huntress and her companion greeted their leaders curtly.

''Tell us, what did you find?'' Rohan began, veering his gaze towards the two Deltas.

Taking the lead, Lunis parted her jaw-

''We discovered a rotting deer corpse to the far South of the territory, near the swamps. It seems to have been mauled by coyotes or foxes, but nothing to be alarmed off. We marked the borders to ensure the scavengers wouldn't return.'' The female's jaw snapped shut, biting down her words as Rodwen spoke. That's not what happened...

''Hm, if the deer are already dying, perhaps Falla won't be as merciful on our pack this season.

- I wouldn't say that.'' Rodwen cut in once more, pulling Navira's towards him. ''The deer seemed to have died from age. Not sickness or hunger.'' Lunis' ears flattened onto her skull but she once again held her tongue. She was already in hot water with her leaders already from her previous antics, better stay behaved for now.

''Although a dead deer isn't an unusual sight, it will require extra surveillance considering we already have a starving bear on the run.'' Rohan's thoughts seem to echo Navira's as the female nodded in reply.

''Thank you for this information, Rodwen. We will take it into consideration for future patrols.'' Flicking her ear, Navira turned her attention towards Lunis, deep blue eyes shining dimly in the dark. ''Lunis, you've been strangely quiet. Anything you would like to add?

- I uh...'' A lump had suddenly risen to the back of her throat, stopping her from speaking. ''N-no Navira.'' The dark furred Alphess tilted her head, a gleam of suspicion hinted at the back of her eyes.

''Very well. You are dismissed.'' The Deltas dipped their heads in respect to their superiors, then proceeded to the exit. Once outside, Lunis felt rooted to the spot as a sudden wave of her previous thoughts bubbled to the surface.

''Rodwen.'' The name nearly barked out of her mouth, catching the older male off guard. ''What was that, why didn't you tell them about the marks?

- I told them what they needed to know.'' Although firm, she could tell Rodwen was deliberately keeping his voice down as though to make sure no one else could hear their conversation. ''Look, Navira and Rohan are already preoccupied as it is; Falla'S reign is only Suns away and there are already signs of hunger within the pack.'' His amber eyes settled gently onto the female, a spark of trust and hope shining within them. ''As Beta, my duty is to help keep the balance.