A Warrior's Second Chance (Faye and Alexander) novel Chapter 543

Chapter 540

JASON

By the time evening settled over Silver Hollow, I felt more exhausted than I had all day.

Not physically.

Mentally.

Every new piece of information seemed to create three new questions.

Instead of feeling closer to the truth, I felt as though I was sinking deeper into a maze with no clear exit.

I remained seated behind my desk long after the investigator had left.

The work before me remained untouched.

I had tried reading them.

Several times.

Each attempt ended the same way.

I would finish a page only to realize I hadn’t absorbed a single word.

My mind refused to stay focused.

Instead, it kept returning to the same image.

The dead guard.

His body hadn’t belonged near that warehouse.

It had been placed there.

Discarded.

Silenced.

୮

Someone had wanted us to believe the explosion had killed him. But why leave his body there.

Someone had gone to considerable lengths to ensure that happened.

The realization refused to leave me.

I leaned back in my chair and stared at the ceiling.

For the first time since becoming Alpha…

I genuinely felt weak.

It wasn’t that I couldn’t make decisions.

I had made countless difficult decisions before.

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Some had been popular.

Others hadn’t.

That was part of leading a pack,

This was different.

I couldn’t even tell where I was supposed to begin anymore.

Every lead seemed connected to another.

Every answer opened another door.

And behind every door…

There seemed to be another problem waiting for me.

I slowly rubbed both hands over my face.

I needed help.

Not more reports.

Not more theories.

I needed perspective.

Guidance.

Someone who had seen crises before.

Someone who understood how Silver Hollow operated long before I ever became Alpha.

Someone I could trust.

That last thought lingered in my mind.

Trust.

It was becoming a rare thing these days.

The list of people I trusted completely had grown painfully short.

Very short.

I sat quietly for several minutes, allowing myself to think through every possibility.

My Beta?

He was dependable.

Loyal.

But he was carrying enough responsibilities of his own.

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Adding this to his shoulders wouldn’t be fair,

The council?

Absolutely not.

The fewer people who knew about the murdered guard, the better.

Besides…

Half the council would probably spend more time arguing than helping.

My Delta?

No.

He was an excellent warrior.

An excellent trainer.

But investigations and political strategy had never been his strongest qualities.

I quietly exhaled.

Then…

One person surfaced in my mind almost naturally.

Sage’s father.

I straightened slightly in my chair.

Of course.

I wondered why I hadn’t thought of him sooner.

Back when my father had still been Alpha…

Sage’s father had served as Beta.

Not just any Beta.

One of the finest Silver Hollow had ever produced.

He had practically lived inside the administrative wing of the pack house.

If anyone understood the inner workings of this pack…

It was him.

In many ways…

He had known more about Silver Hollow’s daily affairs than my own father.

Not because my father had been incapable.

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But because the Beta had always possessed an extraordinary eye for detail.

Nothing escaped him.

Not unusual movements along the borders.

Not disagreements among warriors.

Not financial discrepancies.

Not political shifts.

He somehow noticed everything.

Even after stepping down….

People still sought his advice.

Quietly.

Respectfully.

I found myself nodding.

Yes.

If there was anyone I could speak openly with…

It was him.

Not as the former Beta.

But as someone whose judgment I genuinely respected.

Someone who wouldn’t mistake my questions for weakness.

Someone mature enough to understand that seeking counsel wasn’t the same as surrendering

responsibility.

Leadership wasn’t about pretending to know everything… I learned that the hard

way.

It sometimes involved knowing when someone else’s experience could help you see what you had

missed.

I slowly stood from my chair.

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