Rikae didn't argue. He didn't beg. He simply bowed his head, the picture of a professional Beta accepting a "no," and walked out of the conservatory. But as he passed Lisra, his hand brushed a small, silver vanity mirror sitting on a stone bench.
In a blur of motion too fast for a human eye to follow, he pressed a microscopic chip to the underside of the frame.
He drove back to the Silver-Claw territory in total silence. His wolf was pacing, clawing at the walls of his mind, demanding they turn the car around and tear the Iron-Fang Alpha's throat out.
Patience, Rikae thought, his grip tightening on the steering wheel until the leather groaned. A dead hero helps no one.
Back in his high-tech command center, Rikae bypassed the pack's main server. He opened a private, encrypted frequency he had built years ago for deep-cover operations. On his screen, a small green dot pulsed.
The chip on the mirror.
He waited. One hour. Two. Finally, the audio flickered to life. He heard the rustle of silk, the soft click of a door locking, and then... a sob. A broken, jagged sound that made Rikae's soul bleed.
"I'm sorry," he heard Lisra whisper to the empty room. "I'm so sorry, Rikae."
Rikae leaned into the microphone, his voice a ghost's breath. "Don't be sorry, Lisra. Just listen."
In the conservatory miles away, the tiny speaker in the mirror vibrated. Lisra gasped, nearly dropping the glass.
"This is a closed-loop frequency," Rikae said, his tone steady and commanding. "Valerius's trackers can't see it. Don't speak. Just tap the mirror once for 'yes,' twice for 'no.'"
There was a long silence. Then, a soft tap.
"Good. You said you're not ready for the ritual. I hear you. But I am not leaving you to rot in that monster's cage. I'm going to start draining his bank accounts. I'm going to intercept his supply lines. I'm going to make him so weak he can't even hold his own title."
Another tap. A hesitant one.
"But I need to know one thing, Lisra. And be honest with the Moon." Rikae took a breath, his heart hammering. "If he were gone... if there was no fear, no debt, and no mark... would you have run into my arms today?"
The silence stretched for an eternity. Rikae held his breath, the "Gold Standard" Beta reduced to a man waiting for a single sound.
Tap.
A single, firm strike against the glass.
Rikae closed his eyes, a feral grin spreading across his face. That was all he needed. Logic was back in the driver's seat, but it was fueled by a wolf's rage.
"Then stay quiet. Play the part of the loyal consort for a little longer. I'm going to dismantle his empire brick by brick. And when I'm done, there won't be enough left of Valerius to bury."