by Evi Asher
Elders—titles each of the five people in the room had, yet only two were actually old, Sarah and Hamish. They were both grey with age, and the only humans that sat on the council. The rest of the council was Therin shifters, most polar bears, some, other forms, all part of the village populace.
Colt took his seat around the fire and nodded a greeting to the council.
“Colt, thank you for coming directly to this meeting.” Sarah stood, her hands braced on the table. “Well almost directly.” She smiled.
Damon—an Artic fox shifter—leaned forward in his chair. “We have been worried about you, and we would like to know where you have been.”
“Sarah, please sit,” Colt said. “This is a long story.” He stood up pushing his chair back and faced the circle of faces across the roaring fire.
“I was taken captive by Phoenixes.”
There was a murmur of surprise and disbelief before Aaron stood as well.
“The Phoenixes are a myth. You’ve never been a dishonest male, so perhaps someone has messed with your head.”
Colt laughed, the sound bitter and biting. “You will not turn this situation into a play for power, Aaron. We all know you want my seat as head of the council and leader of the village.”
“I’m not—”
“I’m not interested in your political maneuvering, and no one has messed with my head. I have proof. The prisoner I brought with me is one of the Phoenixes.”
Shocked silence filled the room.
“Tell us what happened.” Sarah motioned for Aaron to be quiet and waited for Colt to tell his story.
He stayed standing to relate about his saga, leaving nothing out. His eyes focused on the fire and he soaked in the warmth like a lifeline. He couldn’t look at the council as he told them about his repeated rape. He finished with how he had taken Angelica captive.
“She is going to pay for what she did. I will have my vengeance.”
“No, Colt.” Sarah stood, her spine stiff, her chin tilted at a stubborn angle. “You won’t.”
His head snapped up, a glare aimed at Sarah. “You won’t stop me, Sarah. She’s going to clear her debt to me.”
“Then, what?” Hamish interjected in a voice that sounded like brittle leaves. “You are going to kill her?”
“Yes.” Colt’s expression was cold. He was going to kill Geli, and he wouldn’t flinch.
Then, why did you just get a jerking sensation of guilt in your gut? You can’t do it.
Colt ignored his inner voice and focused on Sarah.
“Colt, you have known me since I was a girl.”
“Yes, what does that have to do with it?”
“You know that I have…abilities, which are more than human.”
She was trying to make a point, that much was obvious to Colt.
“Spit it out, Sarah.” He leaned forward bracing his hands on the edge of the table.
“You cannot kill Angelica because she is your mate.”
The silence lasted a heartbeat before Colt burst out laughing, and stood up straight. “She is not.”
There was no way in hell that Phoenix was anything to him but an enemy.
“The council has decided…”
Sarah’s tone was soothing, but Colt was having none of it.
“I don’t care what the council has decided,” he hissed. “So, spare me, okay. I will do with the Phoenix as I damn well please. You all got me?”
“Colt!”
The command in Sarah’s tone was so strong, Colt felt himself knocked back from the power it carried.
Sarah might be human as she claimed, and it was obvious she aged similar to one, but she had a power that no one could explain. She saw things others didn’t and could move mountains if she chose. There was a very good reason why she sat on the council. Sarah didn’t usually take the lead like this, but she was a powerful member of the group.
“You will listen to me, bear! Are we clear?” Sarah spoke in a low voice, but power seemed to coalesce around her from the air.
“Yeah, we’re clear.” Colt gritted his teeth, but when Sarah wanted to talk, she had a way of making you listen.
“The moment I touched that young woman you hold prisoner, I knew. She is destined for you, and we will not let you hurt her.”
Colt made a rude sound and Sarah pinned him with a killing look. He stood straighter, feeling like a child scolded by his mother.
“The council has discussed this, and we were divided, but after hearing what happened to you, I think we all agree.” She looked at each council member in turn, and waited until they all nodded their heads in acknowledgment.
Colt held up a hand to stop her for saying anything else. “Wait.”
“This meeting convened before I even got here?”
Sarah nodded her head. “Yes, I knew we had to discuss Angelica, and I wanted to do it before you came to the meeting.”
“You had no right to do that. I am the leader of this village. I have to be here for every meeting.” Colt sucked in his anger and held it in check. He had a feeling he was about to experience a coup de tat, or a mutiny at the very least.
“You are right, Colt, but this time, we had no choice,” Hamish determined. “If we let you carry on, you are going to regret it for the rest of your eternal life, and we can’t stand by and watch that happen.”
“Okay.” Colt felt so buzzed with furious anger, he wanted to rail at them all. This was something he knew he wasn’t going to like. He might as well hear it and get it over with, so the arguing could begin.
“This is hard for us, too, Colt,” Sarah said.
Colt barely restrained a childish impulse to spit out, It will hurt you more than it hurts me, right?
“Get to the point, Sarah.”
Sarah stood straighter, pulling her frail shoulders back.
Colt read her body language and realized that what she was about to say, she would not change her mind about.
“You have two choices, Colt Icebear. The first is exile, and with that, being removed from the leadership of this village and your people.”
Colt bit down on his teeth. He could feel his jaw muscles bulge and the urge to spit out that it was insanity. It was so strong, he clenched his fists.
“What is my second choice?”
Hamish answered and he had a glint of glee in his eye when he did, as if he was secretly enjoying the drama that was unfolding.
“We are gonna have us a shotgun wedding, boy.”
To Be Continued…
About the Author
Evi Asher is a Paranormal Romance author. Who loves to write Young Adult too. She is a die-hard romantic who firmly believes in happy endings and adores all things paranormal and exciting. She lives in South Africa with her (very patient) husband, two awesome children and her Yorkies.
Table of Contents
Dedication
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
About the Author