The Silver Wolf (Diana and Talon) novel Chapter 12

After a few hours, Talon and Enzo stood within the grand hall of the Crimson Fang pack, surrounded by glittering lights, echoing music, and the thick press of wolves gathered for the mating ball the Luna herself had organized.

The space was lavish—almost aggressively so. Crystal chandeliers hung from high stone ceilings, reflecting firelight and moonlight in fractured patterns across polished floors. Long banners bearing the Crimson Fang crest lined the walls, and the air was heavy with mingling scents: excitement, desire, ambition, desperation.

Talon felt none of it.

His posture was rigid, shoulders squared, presence cold and immovable amid the swirl of movement around him. Wolves instinctively gave him space—an unconscious reaction to the Alpha King’s restrained power. Conversations faltered as he passed. Laughter dimmed. Eyes followed him with awe, fear, and calculated interest.

And through it all, Luna Hazel hovered. She had been trying to draw his attention from the moment they entered the hall—laughing too loudly near him, positioning herself just within his line of sight, wearing a gown that seemed designed less for dignity and more for provocation.

The fabric clung to her curves, cut dangerously low, slit high along her thigh, shimmering like it was begging to be noticed.

Fenrir snarled at the sight of her.

Enzo leaned slightly closer to Talon, not speaking aloud.

'Alpha,' Enzo mind-linked, his tone dry and edged with clear irritation. 'With the look on your face right now, no one would dare approach you. You look like you’re deciding who to kill first.'

'And that Luna,' Enzo added, disgust bleeding through the bond, is doing herself no favors. 'She’s practically naked. I can’t tell if she’s trying to seduce you or challenge your patience. How can her Alpha tolerate her is beyond me.'

Talon didn’t look at Hazel again.

'My mate is not in this ball,' he replied quietly through the link.

Enzo stiffened. 'Not here? You were sure—'

'I was,' Talon cut in. 'I smelled her earlier when we arrived. Faint. Elusive. But it was her. I’m certain.' His jaw tightened. 'But now… nothing. I can’t smell her at all.'

Inside him, Fenrir stirred violently.

'Mate not here,' Fenrir growled, his voice sharp with frustration. 'You said she would be here. She is not.'

The wolf’s agitation surged, pounding against Talon’s skull.

'Let me out,' Fenrir demanded. 'We need to find mate. Need to protect mate.'

Talon’s fingers curled slowly at his side as Fenrir’s presence expanded, claws scraping, instincts screaming.

'Mate!' Fenrir howled inside him. 'Where are you?!'

The sound echoed through Talon’s mind, raw and desperate. Pain flared behind his eyes. Talon lifted a hand and pressed his fingers to his forehead, massaging his reminding temples, forcing control through sheer will.

'Enough,' Talon commanded silently. ‘You will not lose control here.’

Fenrir paced like a caged beast, his rage coiling tighter with every passing second.

'She is in danger,' Fenrir insisted. 'You feel it. I feel it. Every second we waste—'

Talon exhaled slowly through his nose, grounding himself as the music swelled around them, as laughter rang out too loudly, as Hazel moved closer once more, her scent thick with manufactured allure.

Enzo watched Talon carefully, reading the tension etched into his Alpha’s stillness.

'Maybe,' Enzo offered cautiously through the link, 'we can check with the Luna. See if all available females are present. If someone is missing—'

He never finished the thought.

The first alarm horn shattered the music.

A deep, blaring sound ripped through the hall, vibrating through stone and bone alike.

For a heartbeat, no one moved.

Then chaos erupted.

Wolves gasped. Glass shattered. The music died mid-note as panic surged like a living thing through the crowd. Guards rushed toward exits, voices overlapping, commands shouted.

“Rogues!” a pack member screamed, bursting into the hall, eyes wide with terror. “Rogues are coming!”

Fear slammed into the room.

Fenrir went deathly still.

Then—

'Rogues,' he snarled, fury igniting instantly. 'And mate is missing.'

Talon’s hand dropped from his forehead as his eyes hardened, Alpha instincts snapping into place.

'Mate!' Fenrir roared the instant the alarm horn split the air, its sound echoing through the pack grounds like a warning from the gods themselves. 'We need to look for our mate now!'

The cry of wolves followed, panicked and sharp, rising from the southern end of the territory. The scent of blood, fear, and unfamiliar wolves bled into the wind, curling around Talon’s senses. He is stiffened.

'No,' Talon said firmly, his voice calm but edged with iron. 'We eliminate the threat first. Once the danger is gone, our mate will be safe.'

Fenrir snarled inside him, a violent surge of instinct slamming against Talon’s control. 'You are wrong! Danger is already here. I can feel it. Mate is close. Mate is vulnerable. We protect first—hunt later!'

Talon clenched his jaw, boots planted solidly against the stone floor. He felt Fenrir pacing inside his mind, claws scraping against his restraint, desperate and furious.

'We cannot abandon the pack during an active attack,' He replied. 'Chaos attracts bloodshed. And bloodshed attracts rogues. If we end this quickly, we secure everyone, including her.'

Fenrir growled but did not retreat. 'If she is harmed because we hesitated—'

'She won’t be,' Talon cut in sharply. 'Not while I breathe.'

The doors to the hall stood open, warriors rushing past in disciplined lines. Talon’s gaze shifted to Alpha Asher, who stood still.

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