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Kieran's jaw tightened as his father finished recounting the incident. Kieran kept his posture rigid, his shoulders squared, refusing to show weakness despite the weight of judgment pressing down heavily on him.

"So," Elder Isolde of the Shadow Pack broke the silence, her silver-streaked hair cascading over her narrow shoulders, "the Silvercrest heir has potentially exposed us all because he needed to stretch his wolf legs under the full moon."

Kieran met her intense gaze with his own. "I accept full responsibility for my carelessness."

"Responsibility won't erase footage that could destroy centuries of secrecy," Elder Thorne of the Granite Ridge Pack growled, his voice rough as the mountain territory his pack claimed. "What exactly did the camera capture?"

"The beginning stages of my transformation," Kieran replied, his deep voice carrying across the hollow. "Enough to raise questions, not enough to provide conclusive proof."

"Even suspicion is dangerous," Elder Merrick of the Tidewater Pack leaned forward, the beads woven into his beard clicking softly. "Humans with their technology are more dangerous than any hunters of old. They'll dissect the footage, enhance it, and analyze it until they find exactly what they're looking for."

Alpha Alaric stepped forward, his presence commanding the space. "The solution is clear. We must eliminate the threat."

The word 'eliminate' echoed in Kieran's mind, causing his wolf to stir uneasily beneath his skin.

"The human with the camera must be silenced," Alpha Alaric continued, his authoritative voice filling the hollow. "Permanently."

Murmurs of agreement rippled through the Council. Kieran's blood ran cold despite the warmth of the day.

"I agree," Elder Isolde nodded. "We've maintained our secrecy through far worse threats by taking decisive action."

"A human life weighed against the safety of all shifter kind is no contest," Elder Thorne added.

Before the Council could continue their grim deliberation, Kieran stepped forward. "I'll handle it."

The elders fell silent, evaluating him with renewed interest.

"This was my mistake," Kieran continued, his silver-blue eyes intensifying as he addressed the Council directly. "I'll track down the camera owner and contain the situation. Alone."

Alpha Alaric scowled. "This isn't a training exercise, Kieran. The threat must be eliminated."

Kieran locked eyes with his father. "And it will be. By my hand." The challenge in his voice was subtle but unmistakable, a reminder that while he might not yet be Alpha, he wasn't a subordinate to be dismissed.

The Head Elder, Callum of the Silvercrest Pack, leaned forward. "You're volunteering for a containment mission against an unknown human threat?"

"Yes." Kieran's voice carried no hesitation. "It was my error that created this situation. I won't risk anyone else cleaning up my mess."

The elders exchanged glances, their silent communication honed by decades of leadership.

"Very well," Elder Callum finally spoke. "The Silvercrest heir will handle the human witness. The evidence must be destroyed and the threat eliminated. That is our ruling."

As the meeting adjourned, Kieran's thoughts churned beneath his impassive expression. The casual way they'd ordered a human's death disturbed him more than he cared to admit. Who was this person with the camera? A hiker? A researcher? Did they deserve to die simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time?

He'd spent those two years traveling among other supernatural communities far away, seeing firsthand that coexistence was possible. The old ways—the swift, merciless elimination of threats—seemed increasingly archaic. Barbaric, even.

Yet here he stood, tasked with murder by the very Council he would someday need to work with when he became Alpha. The irony wasn't lost on him that his father, who preached pack loyalty above all else, seemed coldly indifferent to killing someone who likely had family and friends—a pack of their own.

Kieran flexed his hands, feeling the power in them. He would find this human, yes. But what he'd do after that... he wasn't as certain as he'd led the Council to believe.

Kieran stalked away from Moon Hollow, the weight of the Council's decree hanging heavy on his shoulders. The forest around him blurred into a green haze as his mind churned with conflicting thoughts.

"Eliminate the threat," he muttered under his breath, kicking at a fallen branch. The wood splintered beneath the force of his boot. "As if killing is the only solution we have."

His father's rigid stance on humans had been drilled into him since childhood. Humans were dangerous. Unpredictable. Enemies to be avoided or eliminated. Never allies. Never friends. Certainly never mates.

And yet, during his two years of self-imposed exile, Kieran had witnessed vampire covens with human servants who knew their masters' true nature. He'd seen fae who openly practiced magic in special human nightclubs. Hell, even the selkie colonies along the eastern coast occasionally revealed themselves to select human partners.

"Why are we the only ones still hiding in the shadows?" Kieran's voice echoed through the empty forest. His wolf prickled under his skin, sensing his agitation.