Maria.

The moment it became clear that Galen was gone, chaos erupted across the arena.

"What the hell just happened?" someone shouted from the crowd.

Murmurs quickly turned into loud voices as pack members looked around in confusion, trying to make sense of the sudden disappearance.

The guards standing near the execution board looked just as stunned. One of them still held the raised blade in his hand, his eyes wide as he stared at the empty board where Galen had been only seconds ago.

Davian stood up so abruptly that his chair toppled backward with a loud crash.

"Silence!" his voice thundered across the arena.

The crowd instantly quieted.

His sharp gaze swept across the entire trial ground, fury simmering just beneath the surface.

"How did this happen?" he demanded.

None of the guards answered immediately.

They all looked uncertain, glancing at one another nervously.

"We... we don’t know, Alpha," one of them finally stammered. "The smoke appeared out of nowhere. By the time we could see again... she was already gone."

Damien cursed under his breath.

"That was planned," he muttered darkly.

Aidan’s hands slammed down on the armrests of his seat.

"Of course it was planned!" he snapped. "You think someone just magically disappears in the middle of our territory?"

His Emerald eyes burned with anger as he scanned the arena.

"Seal the borders immediately," Davian ordered sharply.

Several warriors straightened at once.

"No one enters. No one leaves."

"Yes, Alpha!" they responded before rushing off.

Damien stepped forward slightly, his eyes narrowing as he studied the ground where Galen had been.

"This wasn’t just a rescue," he said slowly. "Whoever did this knew exactly when to strike."

A chill ran through the crowd.

If someone had managed to infiltrate the arena in the middle of an execution... that meant they had been close.

Too close.

My eyes drifted toward the spot where Galen had been tied only moments ago. The empty chains lay scattered across the ground.

My chest tightened.

Her words echoed again in my mind.

She is just bait.

A faint shiver ran down my spine.

Aidan’s head turned sharply toward the guards standing at the edge of the arena. His sharp gaze swept across their faces, one after the other, as if he were searching for even the smallest sign of hesitation.

"Did any of you see who threw the smoke bomb?" he asked.

His voice was calm, but there was an edge beneath it, something cold and commanding that immediately silenced the restless murmurs around us.

The guards glanced at each other briefly before shaking their heads.

"No, Alpha," one of them answered, lowering his gaze respectfully.

Another guard stepped forward slightly. "It happened too fast."

The explanation only seemed to darken the tension in the air.

Aidan’s jaw tightened.

The muscle there flexed as his eyes narrowed, his gaze sweeping across the arena again as if he could somehow force the truth out of the shadows.

For a moment, no one spoke.

The faint scent of burnt smoke still lingered in the air, drifting through the crowd like an unwanted reminder of the chaos that had just unfolded.

Davian stepped forward then.

The movement alone drew attention.

The authority in his posture was unmistakable, and when he spoke, his voice carried across the arena with firm, unyielding command.

"Search the entire territory," he ordered.

The warriors nearby straightened instantly.

His gaze hardened, cold determination settling into his expression.

"Every corner," he continued.

His eyes moved slowly across the surrounding buildings, the distant tree line, and the paths that led out of the arena.

"Every building."

The words came out clipped and precise.

"Every forest trail."

There was no room for argument in his tone. No hesitation. No doubt.

His gaze darkened further.

"If Galen is still inside this pack," he said slowly, his voice dropping into something more dangerous, "I want her found."

For a brief second, the entire arena seemed to fall into silence.

Then movement exploded all around.

More warriors rushed out from the edges of the arena, their boots striking the ground as they scattered in different directions to obey the order.

Some headed toward the pack houses.

Others ran toward the forest paths that surrounded the territory.

The sound of hurried footsteps, shifting armor, and urgent commands filled the air as the search began.

But despite the warriors moving quickly to carry out Davian’s orders, the crowd remained uneasy.

People whispered among themselves.

Low murmurs rippled through the arena like restless waves.

Some glanced nervously toward the exits.

Others leaned toward one another, their voices hushed but filled with speculation.

No one seemed to know exactly what had just happened, but everyone understood that something was terribly wrong.

The atmosphere had changed, it was replaced with tension that hung heavy over the crowd.

I remained where I was, my eyes slowly scanning the people around me.

Then something caught my attention.

A short distance away, Noah stood near the edge of the arena.

Unlike the others, he wasn’t whispering or looking confused, his eyes were moving carefully across the surroundings.

Watching.

Observing.

His gaze shifted from the guards to the dispersing warriors, then toward the darkened areas between the buildings.

He looked tense.

His shoulders were slightly stiff, his posture alert as if he were already preparing for something.

It wasn’t panic, it wasn’t confusion either, it was something else entirely, something sharper and more focused, like he was already trying to piece together what had happened.

Like he was already searching for answers while everyone else was still trying to understand the chaos.

Daniel, however, remained unusually calm.

He stood with his arms loosely at his sides, his expression thoughtful as he watched the empty execution board.

Something about the look in his eyes made me uneasy.

Almost like he had expected something like this to happen.

Aidan suddenly turned toward the crowd.

"This isn’t over," he declared loudly, his voice echoing across the arena. "Someone helped that traitor escape." he added, the accusation hanging heavily in the air. "And when we find out who it is..." his eyes darkened instantly, "...they will wish they had died with her."

The tension in the arena grew heavier.

But my mind wasn’t focused on the threats or the chaos around us.

It was still stuck on Galen’s words.

Your actions are contrary to your behavior.

You will lose it all.

And the most terrifying part...She had said it with absolute confidence.

Like everything happening now had already been planned long before today.

A faint, unsettling thought crept into my mind.

What if Galen escaping... was only the beginning?