Over the next few days, I poured over the files Killian gave me to no avail. Of course, it would be much more helpful if he just told me why he was starting this stupid war in the first place, but heaven forbid he made my job any easier.

My phone rings and I don't even bother to check the caller I.D., welcoming the distraction.

"What," I answer with a frustrated sigh.

"Sounds like your trip is going as expected," a familiar voice laughs through the phone.

"General Sage, I, uhh, I wasn't expecting a call from you so soon," I sit upright, knocking the files onto the floor in a mess of scattered paper.

"I know, dear, I was just checking up on you, seeing how you were adjusting and all."

"Oh, you know me. Killian's a pain in my ass, but it's nothing I can't handle," I force out an awkward laugh.

"Killian, eh? One week and you're already on a first name basis with the alpha? You're even better than I thought."

I feel heat rising to my cheeks, embarrassed at being caught. The last thing I need is the council finding out about this mate situation and pulling me from the mission for being too attached or bias.

"No, no, I just t-thought using his name instead of his title would make him more comfortable with me, make him inclined to give me more information, ya know?"

I groan internally. If the name slip-up didn't give me away, that stuttering mess just did.

"I gotta go. I'll send you information as soon as I get it," I hang up before I can embarrass myself further and answer the knock at the door.

Killian is standing there in nothing but grey sweatpants that hang low on his hips. I keep my eyes locked on the floor, determined to prove to myself, and everyone else for that matter, that I'm not at all affected by his hard, lean muscles or the little trail of hair that disappears into his waistband...

He clears his throat and my eyes snap up to meet his. What I'd give to smack that smug look off his face.

"Are you going to answer my question or would you prefer to continue trying to burn a hole through the carpet with your glare?" He asks.

"Uhh, w-what?"

"I asked if you slept well."

He eyes the papers strewn all over the floor suspiciously, but is wise to keep his mouth shut about it.

"Yep. Fine. What do you want?" I snap.

He takes my bad attitude with good humor, the fucking saint that he is, and invites me on a pack run.

"Afterwards, I'd like you to lead our training," he continues.

I shrug and agree, with nothing better to do and no lead on who could be leaking the information from Killian. He leads me down to the edge of the forest where we ran together last time, except this time, most of his pack is there waiting for us... well, mostly him.

Most of them eye me wearily, obviously still uncomfortable with a Warrior in their territory, but some of them greet me with warm smiles and shy hellos, which I return gratefully. They're all still oblivious to the fact that I'm Killian's mate, and I briefly wonder what their reaction to me would be if they knew.

We run for about an hour and it feels good to part of a unit again, even if most of the pack keeps their distance from me. Killian, of course, stays by my side the whole time, no matter how many times I try to outrun him. When we're finished, everyone gets dressed in comfortable clothing and stands around in a circle, awaiting their Alpha's instructions.

"We're going to start training today, harder than we ever have before," he begins, his voice carrying so much power that even those in the very back perk up at the sound. "You're some of the best fighters I've ever seen. It's what's put us at the top, made us undefeated, but that's no longer good enough. We're on the verge of war, and in order to win, our weakest link has to be even better than one of their strongest. From now on, Warrior Rey is going to be leading our trainings."

"How do we know we can trust her? She works for the council! They'd rather we lie on our backs and die than start a war, there's no way she'll help us!" I turn to the sound of the voice and I'm not surprised to see who's behind it.

Lexie is sneering at me in disgust. The crowd erupts into uneasy chatter.

Killian raises his hands and shouts "Enough!" And the crowd is silenced instantly.

Patrick is standing next to him and shoots me an apologetic smile.

"As your Alpha, I need you all to trust that what I'm doing is in your best interest. I don't expect you all to easily welcome her with open arms, but I do expect that you will all treat her with respect. She's here to help us and I trust her completely. Now, let's get started."