Chapter 532: What Remains of Silver Creek

One Month Before

The punch knocked the breath straight out of Tobias.

Pain exploded through his stomach as he doubled over, a strangled sound escaping his throat before he could stop it.

For a moment he could not breathe.

His lungs refused to cooperate, his ribs tightening painfully as he struggled to draw in air.

The blonde woman stepped back as though nothing unusual had happened.

Tobias remained bent over, one hand pressed to his stomach.

"Why—" he wheezed, trying to inhale. "Why would you hit me like that?"

The woman folded her arms across her chest.

"Because you’re stupid."

Tobias slowly straightened, still breathing hard.

"I’m stupid?" he repeated weakly.

Nathan, who had been watching the exchange with clear amusement, rubbed his chin.

"Perhaps," he said calmly, "we should take this conversation somewhere more appropriate."

The blonde woman glanced around, and then she nodded.

"Fine."

She turned toward Tobias.

"Follow me."

She didn’t wait to see if he would obey.

She simply turned and began walking toward the pack settlement.

Nathan gestured sharply with his chin.

"You heard her."

Tobias sighed quietly but followed.

They walked in silence.

The Silver Creek pack members moved aside as they passed, some of them casting wary glances toward Tobias.

Others simply ignored him.

Tobias took note of the houses. They were cabins, really, built from dark wood logs. Smoke curled lazily from a few chimneys, though many of the buildings looked... abandoned.

Tobias slowed slightly as he took it all in.

People were moving through the settlement, but not the way wolves normally did within their pack lands.

They were carrying various things.

Boxes. Bundles wrapped in cloth. Animal pelts rolled tightly together.

One man passed by carrying an entire wooden crate over his shoulder.

A woman dragged a sack across the ground toward one of the cabins.

Tobias frowned.

He looked toward the blonde woman’s back as she continued walking ahead of him.

"Are you going somewhere?" he asked.

Nathan immediately smacked him on the back of the head.

He walked past Tobias and headed toward a large wooden house near the center of the settlement.

"Stop asking useless questions," Nathan said sharply.

He reached the door and shoved it open.

"We don’t have conversations outside. The trees have ears, after all."

Tobias frowned slightly but said nothing. He simply nodded and stepped inside.

The interior of the house was far larger than Tobias expected.

The ceilings were high, supported by thick wooden beams that ran across the length of the room.

The scent of wood smoke and animal fur filled the air.

It was warm inside.

The first thing Tobias noticed were the boxes.

They were everywhere, stacked against the walls and lined along the floor.

Some were open, revealing folded clothing, weapons, and thick blankets.

Others contained bundles of animal pelts tied neatly together with leather straps.

A massive bearskin rug covered part of the wooden floor near the hearth, which looked like it had been put out recently.

Above it hung several mounted wolf skulls and antlers, and also weapons of different sizes and types.

This was clearly the Alpha’s home.

Or it had been.

Now it looked like a place preparing to disappear.

The woman walked straight toward a large wooden table near the center of the room.

She picked up a cup and filled it from a nearby pitcher before handing it to Tobias.

"Drink."

Tobias accepted it gratefully.

His throat felt dry from the fight and the tension that followed.

He drained the water quickly.

Nathan pulled out a chair and sat down beside the table.

She did the same. Then she gestured toward the empty chair across from them.

"Sit."

Tobias hesitated only briefly before lowering himself into the chair.

The wooden legs creaked slightly beneath his weight.

For a moment, no one spoke.

The woman studied him carefully.

Nathan leaned back in his chair with his arms crossed.

"My name is Annabeth," she said, breaking the silence.

Tobias nodded once.

She gestured lazily around the house.

"And what you see around you, or rather what you have seen," she continued, "is what remains of the Silver Creek Pack."

Annabeth leaned forward slightly.

"But first things first," she said, her eyes narrowed. "Are you stupid?"

Tobias blinked in shock.

"What?"

Nathan coughed lightly to hide what was clearly a laugh.

Annabeth repeated herself slowly.

"Are. You. Stupid?"

Tobias frowned.

"I don’t think so."

Annabeth chuckled, but there was no humor in the sound.

"What exactly," she asked, "were you thinking?"

Her fingers tapped lightly against the wooden table.

"Why would you even consider coming to the West? Is there something wrong with you? Because that’s the only thing I can think of if you’re not stupid," she told him. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Tobias frowned deeper now.

"There is nothing wrong with me. And there’s a reason I’m here."

Annabeth raised one brow. "Oh really? Color me surprised. Explain then."

Tobias straightened slightly in his chair.

"The Nightshade Pack sent a message to the Silver Creek Pack."

Nathan and Annabeth both watched him carefully.

"But the Silver Creek Pack never replied."

Tobias continued.

"Our Alpha grew concerned."

Annabeth leaned back in her chair.

"So that concern was enough for you to ride into the West?"

Tobias met her gaze steadily.

"The Nightshade Pack considers the Silver Creek Pack allies. When the Nightshade Pack was first formed," he said, "most of the other packs refused to acknowledge us. We were criminals to them, but your pack took us in, and till date we still have some members who left the West who previously belonged to this pack in ours."

The room fell quiet.

"So no," Tobias finished. "We cannot simply ignore the Silver Creek Pack."

Nathan studied him for a moment before speaking.

"I understand that," he said. "But... you came at the wrong time."

Tobias frowned.

"What do you mean?"

Nathan exchanged a brief glance with Annabeth.

Then he looked back at Tobias.

"Regarding the message you sent to us, we couldn’t reply because the Enclave invaded our pack," he told Tobias. "They took Benny along with several others from our pack."