Chapter 34. Exile Pending

The air inside the Citadel was colder than the mountain granite. The chaos Kade had caused at the gate—the ripped metal, the fleeing Enforcers, the shockwave of the Claim—was an external symptom. The true damage was invisible, delivered through an expedited Council communiqué that arrived five minutes after Kade and Aria stepped back onto Pack soil.

Kade stood in his office, the spacious room feeling like a cage. Jules, her usual sharp composure replaced by a controlled, furious energy, slapped the official notice onto his mahogany desk. The single word Reprimand was stamped across the top in block letters, but the body of the text was far more insidious.

“They moved fast,” Jules stated, running a frustrated hand through her hair. “Lyra didn't even make it back to the Central Summit before she issued the order. They didn't give you full exile, Kade. They gave you Exile Pending.”

Kade leaned his weight onto his hands, staring down at the document. “Explain