The Commander of Orion ✔️

Chapter 32

When I entered the study with Kaelon, the commanders and Keyan were already waiting for us. They sat in the middle table, keeping their eyes on me as I walked towards them.

I sat down in between Kaelon and Zoron, feeling a little nervous about my presence. I hadn't thought this through. Maybe this was a bad idea and I should've listened to Kaelon.

My eyes flickered between the men, wondering if any one of them was brave enough to say anything about what happened or if they were just going to pretend like it didn't happen and move on.

I felt Keyan's eyes on me, making me turn to him. I could feel the bond between us, formed during my ordeal. It wasn't sexual or anything like that, it was more like we went through something together and this was the result.

He smiled at me, slightly shaking his head. "You being here with us is not surprising. Like I said before Edrei, you're the strongest person I know."

Kaelon snapped to him, eyes shooting daggers. "You called her weak?"

"She has proven otherwise," Keyan replied. "How are you feeling?" he asked, stretching his hand across the table and taking mine into his.

I leaned forward, grasping his hand and squeezing it. "Ready to move on," I replied masking the uncertainty.

Kaelon looked between us, disliking our newly formed bond, but he didn't say anything. He was grateful for Keyan's presence as much as I was. Without Keyan, I would've been alone.

Yes, Mae probably would've volunteered someone else, but it wouldn't have helped anymore than me being myself. Keyan was perfect for the role since he smelled almost exactly like Kaelon.

"We need to start," Kaelon interrupted. He pushed me back upright against my chair, forcing my hand to slip out of Keyan's grasp, replacing them with his own. He held on to me tightly causing Keyan to roll his eyes at his brother before moving his hand back to his side.

"We know Dorian's plans, or at least what he had planned to do before we captured one of his scouts," Zoron started, leading the discussion.

Edrik sighed. "He has planned to lure most of Orion's army to Arctos, and when we were gone, he planned to attack the innocent and defenceless women, children, and elderly. Once we retreated from Arctos, that was when he would move on."

Keyan pressed his lips in a line. "He's planting doubt within us. Seems convenient that his scouts were easily captured and just so happened to tell you this. It could be a poly to end our treaty in favour of self-preservation."

"I don't see anything convenient about a search that spanned over 10 kilometres. If you're thinking Dorian has planned for one of his scouts to be captured, you are wrong. Dorian is not that smart," Kaelon replied, narrowing his eyes in discontent.

"Trust us Alpha Keyan, the scout didn't give this information out easily. We spent hours on him before he told us anything of use," Zoron added, backing up his Alpha.

Keyan still wasn't convinced it wasn't apart of Dorian's plan. "The threats he made towards Arctos are real. I have my pack on lockdown because Dorian has set and hidden traps all over my territory lines. My people have been woken up in the middle of the night by the sound of his scouts howling close by, yet for some reason, we have never caught one of them, so please excuse me when I think the one you caught was planned."

"Perhaps it's because my commanders have better-trained warriors," Kaelon hit back causing Keyan to growl.

"We have a treaty. You need to send some of your warriors back with me to help keep Arctos safe," Keyan demanded.