Chapter 34. The Hollow Crown

The Sovereign Circle chamber within the Council Fortress was a study in sterile, inherited power. Unlike the rough, earthy meeting places of the packs, this room was marble and silver, cold as grave dust. Today, it was too large for the twelve men and women who occupied it—the remaining delegates of the Lycan High Council. The empty seats of the defecting packs gaped like missing teeth, a silent testament to the efficacy of the Ashen Omega’s rebellion.

Alpha Kalen stood not at the center, but by the elevated, ceremonial Throne of Judgment. He wore the black and silver braid of his rank, but his eyes were fixed on the vacant seat, calculating.

“The reports are confirmed,” Kalen announced, his voice carrying the calm, measured authority of a man who had waited years for this moment. “The ambush at the Sunkenwood failed to contain the Omega. The Silver Cage was compromised, and the enemy—now calling herself the ‘Rogue Queen’—escaped.”

A grizzled, older Councilwoman na