Chapter 161

161 Shadow In The Dark

Five days later, Kinnon Youngshaper arrived at the Silent Walkers Pack House. He was not at all surprised to find Ronan there, guarding Lucien like a precious pearl.

Kinnon was not alone. He brought Ralph with him. The little boy lit up as soon as he caught sight of Lucien.

“Mommy!!!” He shouted and threw himself at Lucien.

Lucien picked him up and gave him a kiss on the cheek. He was beyond glad to see that despite the bandages around the boy’s limbs, he did not seem to carry severe psychological trauma from the attack.

“Hello, Ralphy.”

Ronan’s face was as dark as the valley where their last war took place.

Sipping on his cup of tea, Kinnon pretended to not notice Ronan’s death glares at all.

Ronan was itching to separate Kinnon’s son from Lucien, but he did not know how to do it without appearing like a petty, jealous boyfriend.

He thus pestered Lucien using Mind Link.

.....

‘Lulu, how much longer do you want to hug him?’

‘...’

‘LULU!’

Lucien sighed via the Mind Link.

‘Seriously, Ronan? Ralph is only a little boy.’

‘He is Kinnon’s little boy!’ Ronan argued.

Lucien rolled with his eyes.

“Mommy, is this your pack house? Take me around, please~” the little boy in Lucien’s arms begged with a pair of cute large eyes and spoiled tone.

Ever since he was born, Ralph rarely left the pack house. When he did, he was only allowed to go to East Temple City with a lot of bodyguards if not his father personally.

The little boy was ecstatic to be able to leave the boundaries of East Temple City, even if he ended up in another pack’s pack house. At least it was a change of scenery.

Lucien would love to do that, but did Kinnon not come to negotiate the best way to settle the Silent Walkers Pack’s debt to the Night Prowler Pack?

“Can you do me a favor and show Ralph around, Lucien?” Kinnon asked as he leaned back on the couch. “I would love to have a chat with Alpha Ronan.”

Ronan narrowed his eyes at Kinnon. The last private chat they had took place when they were buried under mud. Despite their heavy injuries, they still managed to aggressively throw sarcastic remarks at each other’s heads.

Lucien shared Ronan’s sentiment. He draped a hand around Ronan’s neck protectively.

“I don’t think it is a good idea,” he declared, furrowing his brows at Kinnon.

Kinnon scoffed.

“Unlike Alpha Ronan, I know when to declare defeat.”

As he said the last sentence, he gave Ronan shifty eyes.

“I will not resort to violence, I promise.”

Ronan pressed a kiss on Lucien’s hand.

“Go,” he urged Lucien. He was curious about what Kinnon wanted to tell him.

“I will be fine.”

Lucien exhaled.

“Fine. Try not to rip each other’s heads while I take Ralph for a walk.”

Bjorn and Ralph’s new nanny dutifully followed behind Lucien and Ralph.

After the little entourage left, Ronan and Kinnon were left alone in the audience hall.

“Well?” Ronan cocked his head to the side. “What do you want to tell me?”

“I have some news.”

“What is it?”

Kinnon took his phone out and showed him a few pictures.

All of them depicted a dead man. Ronan did not need to ask who it was. Kinnon had forcefully transformed the rogue werewolf who tried to kill his son into a human form.

“Who is this?”

“Do you know someone by the name of Gavin Ashmore?”

Ronan’s eyes grew large at the mention of the two words.

Indeed he knew a Gavin Ashmore.

Just to be sure, Ronan looked through the pictures again.

The last time he saw Gavin, he just sentenced the young man to imprisonment on Black Reef Island for five years. One year had not even passed and the young man had conducted another crime. His last one. This time his target was the only heir of the rival pack.

“I know him,” Ronan said.

He sighed and rubbed the spot between his brows.

“He was one of my pack members. I banished him from the pack because he violated another pack member.”

“Did you just kick him out of the pack house?”

Ronan shook his head. He pushed Kinnon’s phone back to him.

“I sent him to Black Reef Island.”

“Who delivered him?”

“My Gamma, Quinn.”

Ronan could guess what went through Kinnon’s head, so he refuted it right away. “Quinn has been the pack’s Gamma for years. She served my father before me. Both her loyalty and her integrity are flawless.”

“Why did your Gamma deliver Gavin to the prison? It is too much an honor for a criminal, isn’t it?”

“Quinn raised Gavin. Gavin was an orphan.”

“Ah.”

Kinnon leaned in and spoke in a low voice.

“Lucien trusts you unconditionally. I believe to know your character after years of rivalry. You are not someone who pulls this kind of dirty scheme. But, you must admit that both the belt and the identity of the criminal point toward the involvement of someone from the Silverback family.”

“I know.”

Gavin had been banished from the pack. A probable scenario would start with a visit from someone influential in the pack. Preferably someone from the Silverback family.

The person might approach Gavin with the insidious plan. In return for successfully completing the job, he might be offered a place back in the Infinite Eclipse Pack.

For someone like Gavin, it was like a chance for a new life. No one in Black Reef Island would refuse this kind of offer.

Especially if the person who came was someone he trusted. For example Quinn.

Even if Quinn was involved — and the probability was infinitely small — there must be someone else behind the scene.

Who was the person who pulled the strings from the dark?

His father?

His father’s lovers?

His father’s extramarital children?

It could be anyone but Dane Silverback. Dane Silverback cared too much about the Infinite Eclipse Pack, particularly about the Silverback family. Even if he sought to destroy Ronan, he would not do it in a way that besmirched the Silverback family’s good name.

A plan brewed in Ronan’s mind.

“Alpha Kinnon, I have a favor to ask,” Ronan decided.

The two Alphas exchanged piercing gazes.

“Do speak up, Alpha Ronan,” Kinnon said finally.