by Robin Roseau
"Good question," Lara said. "No, but let's focus on that later."
I nodded.
"Thank you," Lara said. "Ready?"
"Yes." I took her hand as she stepped down from the porch, but she adjusted it so I was clutching her arm instead. I leaned my head against her shoulder as we walked to the barracks together.
"You know," Elisabeth observed. "I thought you guys would calm down after a while. I don't think it's ever going to happen."
"God," I replied. "I hope not."
Rory and Eric chuckled. "Neither do we," Rory said.
"Don't follow that thought!" I said. "Or you will be watching me in some exceedingly boring situations for a long, long time."
It was Lara's turn to chuckle. She leaned over and kissed the top of my head. "Now you're learning," she said.
"Will I need to cancel my flight lesson with June today?"
"I don't know yet," Lara said. "Hopefully not."
We stepped into the barracks and climbed the stairs. Wendy and Serena were guarding the outside of the conference room where the meeting would be held. Lara looked at Elisabeth. "Get rid of her," she said. "I don't want her called in to talk to the council. Angel and Scarlett are tied up. Get Emanuel and Serena out of here. Tell them not to answer the phone unless it's you, me or Michaela."
Elisabeth nodded, peeling off to talk to Serena for a moment.
As we stepped into the conference room, Lara noticed I was smiling. "Looking forward to a fight?" she asked me.
"No. You grouped me with you and Elisabeth, almost as if I'm one of the big girls."
I got a quick kiss, then it was time to play politics.
* * * *
Lara called the meeting to order on time. That was the high point. Most of the council members already knew what we'd shown last night. Most, although not all of them, were angry they hadn't been the first to know. I kept my mouth shut and let Lara handle that. No one was mollified.
Lara finally said, "There's nothing that can be done about it now. Do you wish to continue to lambast us or can we move on?"
"I want a guarantee this isn't going to happen again?" Christopher West demanded.
Lara was already running out of patience. "I promise you," Lara said. "The next time we announce that Elisabeth and a few others have learned how to shift instantly, we will tell the council first."
That was the absolute wrong thing to say. Mr. West began to sputter. "That is not what I meant!" he spat at Lara.
I reached out my hand and put it on her arm. She glanced down at me, and I watched her visibly calm down.
"This all developed this week," Lara said. "I try to include the council in the day to day operations of the pack when I can. But there are going to be times where that is not going to be practical."
"You should have told us before you announced it to the pack at large," he shot back.
"I understand why you feel that way," Lara said. "I did not believe this was something that could be easily contained. Can we move on?"
"I want assurances!" he bellowed.
"I. Am. Alpha!" Lara thundered back. Then she spoke more calmly. "Unless you intend to challenge me for that position, right here, and right now, you will address me with respect."
He backed down. He knew he had gone too far, and he also knew Lara would have kicked his ass. And if she didn't, I would have. Still, it perhaps stuck in his craw that a woman half his age was standing up to him.
Some members of the pack were still very traditional, and I had learned Christopher West was one of them.
"You are right," he said. "My apologies, Alpha. But I still-"
"You made your point," Ron Berg said. "And the alpha has made hers. She is right. Can we move on? I would like to know the details of how this happened, and then I would like to know what we intend moving forward."
"I would like to know how a child of the pack learned this trick and no one on the council has," Christopher West said.
"That's not entirely accurate," I said in a calm voice. "I already knew this 'trick'. Lara has known it for nearly two years. And now Elisabeth knows it. That makes three members of the council. Furthermore, there are no children involved. The youngest would be Angel and Scarlett, and they are both eighteen. Hardly children."
I'm not sure Lara appreciated my chosing that time to make the points I had just made, but they were accurate, and I was tired of being discounted. Either I was alpha or I was not. Either Elisabeth as head enforcer was part of the council, or she was not.
Christopher turned his attention to me. "You know what I meant," he said.
"No, Sir," I said. "I am afraid I do not. You implied no one on the council has this skill that you seem to feel is so new, but I have been demonstrating this skill the entire time you have known me, and Lara has done so for almost as long. Are we not members of the council? Is Elisabeth not a member of the council?"
"I believe," said Vivian, "If Councilor West would allow me to speak for him, that he feels perhaps a skill like this should be taught to the senior members of the pack before someone as junior as two teenagers."
"Ah," said Lara. "If that is indeed what he meant, it wasn't clear to me from his words. Thank you for interpreting, Vivian."
I wasn't sure the good Mr. West would remain a member of the council for much longer if Lara had anything to say about it.
"Yes," Christopher said. "That is what I meant."
"Well," said Lara. "That is certainly something we shall address in due time. Perhaps I should start at the beginning?"
Everyone else sat down, and Lara explained things, starting as if no one in the room knew what we were talking about. She glossed over some of the details as we'd agreed previously. She summarized at the end what we knew, what we didn't know, and that she felt this skill was a pack asset that should be protected carefully.
Christopher West again demonstrated his arrogance. "You," he said, pointing his finger at me and snapping his fingers. Lara bristled, but I put my hand on her arm again. "Fox. You are the only one who can teach this skill?"
"Councilor West," I said calmly "You seem to be unduly angered by this news. This is good news we have shared. The pack is now safer than it was a week ago, is it not? Both our alphas, our head enforcer, two other enforcers, and two young but respected members of the pack are now better able to serve the pack's needs and see to the pack's defenses. I do not understand why you are so upset and acting in such a belligerent fashion."
No one else said anything. He was digging a hole. Vivian had dug him out once, but I think they were all amused by now. I was not amused.
"Who are you to talk to me like that?" he asked, climbing to his feet.
I climbed to mine at the same time, then stepped up to stare into his face. "I. Am. Alpha! And you will treat me with the respect of my position. You may address me as Michaela or as Alpha. I may answer to Fox if said with some amount of respect. I will not respond positively to being pointed at and having fingers snapped in my face. You are a member of this council, but you are not treating your own position with the dignity it deserves. If you do not wish to be removed from this council, you will amend your behavior."
"Oh shit," Elisabeth said, loudly enough to be heard. "Pissed off the fox now."
He laughed in my face. "And who would dare to remove me from the council?"
I lifted my arms so the sleeves of my blouse would drop away from my wrists. I didn't point to the knives I kept there, but my message was clear. "I would dare. My wolf body count is over one hundred. I wouldn't blink twice at one more. I couldn't care less what your personal feelings are about me, but when we are in these chambers discussing pack business, you will address me with the respect of my position."
Christopher actually began to ball his hands into fists. What an idiot. My pregnant mate began climbing from her chair. "I am handling it, Alpha," I said without looking at her. "Try it, Councilor, and you won't live to know you never touched me."
"She's not bluffi
ng, Chris," Vivian said. "She'll kill you on the spot, and if she doesn't, everyone else in this room will if you touch her. Lara won't be able to reach you before the rest of us kill you. Apologize to the alpha and consider asking your question in a tone that is in keeping with the position of everyone in the room. You are in the wrong, and you need to admit it."
He glanced over at Vivian, then back at me. I was smiling lightly. I didn't want to kill him, but I wasn't going to be pushed around by a bully, either.
Then he took two steps directly away from me. It took him another moment, but his fists unclenched and he shook himself.
"My apologies, Alpha," he said. "Vivian, thank you. Yes, you are right. I was out of line." He offered me a small bow. "I am sorry I was ugly."
"Your gracious apology is accepted," I said, taking my own steps backwards and visibly relaxing myself. "I hope there are no hard feelings."
"No," he said. "I didn't care for how we learned the news, and it colored my judgment."
"I can understand that," I said, stepping back to my place. "Everything sort of sneaked up on us. I can understand your frustration. I can assure you, no slight was intended."
"I believe you, Alpha," he said. "Are you the only one who can teach this skill?"
"So far, that seems to be the case. But Brooke Bancroft shifts as fast as Lara and I do, so the ability to teach this may not be limited to our pack."
"Then you shall teach the members of the council," Christopher said.
"I am not sure I can," I said. "The evidence suggests there must be a certain bond between me and the person I am teaching. Understand that this is normally a skill a fox mother teaches to her young kits when they are a few days old."
"A few days?" Vivian asked. "Not years?"
"Days," I said. "Or even sooner when the situation demands it."
"If a teenage girl can learn," Christopher said, "surely everyone here can."
"We do not know that is true," I said. "It may be harder to learn later in life. We don't know that yet. And are you suggesting that you see me as a mother figure, Councilor?"
"Elisabeth doesn't see you as a mother figure," he countered. "And I am sure Emanuel does not."
"No," I said. "I am sure he does not. Elisabeth however, loves me. Do you love me, Councilor?"
He looked away. Of course he didn't.
"Serena and Emanuel are also exceedingly grateful for the small role I played in returning their children to them. Even with that, I spent far more time teaching them than I did the others." I didn't explain that was because we had been experimenting.
"This is conjecture," he said. "You stated the evidence suggests this bond is needed. Have you fully tested it?"
"No," I said.
"Well then," he said. "You will teach me this skill."
"No."
"Excuse me?"
"No, sir, I will not."
"You will do what the council orders you to do!"
I smiled. "The council has not ordered me to do anything," I said. "You have. You are but one member of this council. I count fifteen people in the room. Furthermore, I believe the council exists to advise the alpha, not dictate to her."
I glanced at Lara. We had built a series of subtle gestures for each other. If she did anything with her right hand, it meant she thought I was doing the right thing. If she did anything with the left, it meant she wanted things left to her to handle. She was resting her chin on her right hand. I smiled briefly before turning back to Councilor West.
"The alpha will do as the council decides," he said to me.
"The alpha will carefully consider any advice the council may have," I replied. "I strongly urge the council to avoid any decisions that sound like orders. They don't work when she does it," I explained pointing to Lara. "Do you really think they're going to work for you?"
Christopher didn't have a response for that.
"Furthermore, I also urge the council to avoid suggesting I teach this skill to anyone I do not completely trust. You can guess what my response will be without even asking me."
"A pack whose alpha disregards the advice of her council is a pack in disarray," Ron Berg stated.
"True," I said. "I agree completely. A pack council that asks me to teach an important skill to someone who may later use that skill to challenge my mate is not a very wise council."
Elisabeth snickered quietly. I knew she agreed with me completely.
"Quite," said Vivian. "May we all agree on that point? I for one would not welcome any challenges to the current alpha."
I looked at her with gratitude.
"Second the motion," Elisabeth said instantly. "Call the vote, Alpha."
I turned to Lara. "She meant you that time, Lara," I said, smiling.
"I believe she did," Lara said. "But you were doing so well. Vivian, what are we voting on?"
Vivian started writing, crossing words out, then finally slid the pad of paper across the table to Lara. I leaned over her shoulder to read it. Lara made some changes and slid it back. Vivian glanced at them and nodded, returning it to Lara. Lara read it.
"The motion is this: the council will not encourage teaching the instant shift skill in any fashion that may lead to a destabilization of the pack leadership. Do we need to discuss this?"
"That is a rather vague resolution," Ron said.
"True," Lara agreed. "Did you want to change it?"
"No," he said. "Making an observation is all."
"One could argue the pack leadership has already been destabilized," Dominick stated. "We are all pack leadership. What prevents Serena or Emanuel from challenging one of us for our position on the council?"
"Temperament," Elisabeth said immediately. "I can not vouch this will not change in the future, but I do not believe either of them currently has a single political aspiration."
"Angel might," I said. "But she knows she is young and inexperienced. By the time she might feel she is ready to be an asset to this council, it will be time for fresh blood, anyway."
"Scarlett wants to design houses," Elisabeth said. "As long as no one gets between her and her designs, we have nothing to fear from her."
"That's not entirely true," I said. "She will fiercely protect Angel, me, Lara, Elisabeth, her family, and the pack in general. A threat to any of us would be met with strong opposition from either Angel or Scarlett."
"Agreed," said Lara. "That is a risk I happily suffer." She smiled. "There is no way Serena or Emanuel would ever do anything to hurt Michaela. Neither she nor I would ever be at risk from either of them. Nor do I feel either of them would challenge anyone on the council unless it was to protect me. Does anyone have a problem with that?"
No one said a thing. "Call the vote," Vivian said.
"All in favor of the motion?" Lara said. Every hand went up. "Motion carried."
And I had just won a political victory. I sat back down.
After that, the discussion turned towards what we were going to do. That fell into three categories: would I teach anyone else, would we do further experimentation to learn more about this skill, and what sort of secrecy would we maintain. I stayed out of it unless asked a question, as they weren't coming close to anything dangerous, so I didn't particularly care. I zoned out.
I perked up when Violet said, "We must take careful steps this skill is not stolen from us."
I studied her carefully. So did everyone else in the room. Lara grew tense, and Elisabeth's focus turned from Violet to me.
"I agree," Dominick said. "The ability to learn this skill must not fall into another pack's hands."
That conversation went around the table. I looked over at Lara with dread, then leaned into her. "Are they going to have me killed?"
"Oh honey," she said. "No."
"Jailed?"
She tightened her lips.
"I won't put up with it, Lara. You know that. I won't. I will not let you put me in a cage."
She patted me. "Don't worry."
I listened
to the conversation. They were using euphemisms, but they were talking about keeping me safe. Someone used the word secluded. "Stop this conversation or I will," I said to Lara.
"Everyone knows I am at times somewhat overprotective of my mate," Lara said. "Perhaps one should trust me to keep her safe."
"When she was your mate, we were happy with that," Ron said. "But the stakes have risen."
"I would never give out pack secrets," I stated.
"Everyone breaks if subjected to torture long enough," Vivian said.
"I agree," I said. "Unless they die first."
"A good torturer could keep you alive indefinitely," Ron said.
I laughed. "I'm sorry," I said after a moment. "I'm not trying to laugh at you." I began to roll up the sleeve on my right arm. I removed the knife and its sheath, then I leaned forward on the table. I looked at my arm and imagined a deep cut lengthwise up my forearm.
It took a moment before everyone noticed it. There were gasps, and Lara screamed at me, "What are you doing?"
I gestured with my nose to my arm. "It's a lot like healing," I said. "Only in reverse." Blood began dripping onto the table. "Is this a sufficient demonstration? I can stop my heart, but I worry it might be difficult to start it again."
They stared at my arm while I healed it. "It hurts," I said. "But I can do it again if you doubt me."
I looked around the room. "May we now end the conversation we were just having?"
Ron slipped a piece of paper to me. Vivian had another. I read them both. Ron wanted to propose the pack make every effort to keep the nature of how this skill is taught a complete secret. I didn't have a problem with that. "Ron, are you making a motion?"
"I am," he replied.
"I second it. Am I allowed to do that?"
"It wouldn't be customary," he said.
"Second," said Violet immediately. "If Ron and Michaela agree, I know I agree."
I smiled at her.
Vivian wanted to propose the pack take all due, reasonable caution for my personal safety.
I slid Ron's note to Lara, keeping Vivian's. "I vote yes," I told her.
Lara read the proclamation to herself then read it aloud. "Discussion?" No one said a word. She called the vote and the resolution passed unanimously. I put both hands up, figuring if I got two votes, that was even better. Lara smiled sweetly at me.