“That may work, Callum,” James said carefully. “We have the ability to give her an alias, a brand-new identity. We do it all the time for Pack wolves who relocate.” Werewolves don’t age normally, and over time people start to notice. “She can leave here freely if no one knows who she is. She doesn’t smell like us, and there are no other traits that would give her away.”
“Yes,” I agreed. “Nobody has ever seen me in your company, as the Alpha’s daughter. They don’t know what I look like. They only have my name.”
“I don’t like it.” My father ran a hand through his hair. “The wolves here know you. They can find you. Word can spread to other Packs.”
“Then”—I grappled for an answer—“we’ll tell them I’ve left the country. They won’t bother looking for me if they think I’m gone for good. Or we can pretend I died—we can fake my death.”
“It’s not that easy, Jessica,” my father said stubbornly. “There are other factors involved.”
“What other factors can there possibly be?” I asked, exasperated. “Because those factors can’t be any worse than getting the shit kicked out of me again at the hands of one of your wolves. You have to stop being so stubborn and try to understand! Anything that happens to me in my new life will pale in comparison to what I’ve already lived through here. The brushes with violence, my constantly being surrounded by people who would rather see me dead, happen on a daily basis. I can’t keep this up. You’re going to have to let me go one way or another, and I’d rather not leave here in a body bag.”
“That’s enough!” My father stopped in front of me. “You think I don’t know what goes on right under my nose? In my own Pack? That I’m blind to what’s been happening? I’m not. And I never have been. I’ve let you and Tyler lie to me these last few months, tiptoe around, covering your bruises. And I’ve done it in an effort to save lives—just as you both have.” He walked to the windows. “I’ve ignored it for the good of the Pack, because if I killed those wolves, the Pack would’ve been torn apart already, your life in greater jeopardy.” He turned without meeting my eyes. “I’ve been the Alpha of this Pack for over five hundred years. It’s tough to understand how long that is until you’ve lasted as long as I have. Up until nineteen years ago, my leadership was cut-and-dried, my allegiance, without question, to my Pack—to my wolves. That allegiance was returned to me without hesitation. Once you were born, things changed very quickly. It took me by surprise. The intensity and love I have for you and Tyler came from somewhere deep and previously untapped. I can’t say I’ve made the best choices along the way, especially of late, but trying to maintain a fair balance to both you and this Pack has taken its toll. Everyone has suffered. I can’t protect you without sacrificing the lives of my wolves, the same wolves who have stood beside me for centuries.”
“So your threats to harm them if they touched me have been for show?”
“Of course not.” My father spun around to face me, his eyes glinting with emotion. “All of my orders about your safety have been sincere, backed with my full power. Seeing you, of your own free will, fighting Mitch in the arena, an area off-limits except for Pack challenges, must be handled carefully. I cannot step in and kill a wolf during a challenge. It’s against Pack Law. But Mitch will be lucky if he survives. At any other time during your life, if I’d personally seen any wolf abusing you, I would have killed him instantly and without regret.” He ran both hands through his thick black hair. “Recently, as the aggression increased, every scuffle was relayed back to me, and I made absolutely sure you weren’t hurt—that the outcome wasn’t severe, that Tyler or one of the other wolves had stepped in, or that the wolf himself had walked away. If that hadn’t been the case, or any of the fights had escalated too far, the wolf in question would’ve faced death at my hands.” He blew air out of his mouth, but this time it was with regret, not annoyance. “Jessica, you have to understand that violence is a way of life for us and always has been. We are animals at our core, and fighting one another for our rightful place in this world is natural. We can’t change that.” He sighed. “But if the goddamn wolves had followed my directives instead of letting a myth lead them emotionally astray, we’d all be coexisting just fine. Once you didn’t make a change at puberty, I sincerely thought the unrest surrounding you would calm. But I can see it’s only gotten worse.” He shook his head. “I don’t understand it.”
I hadn’t understood it either, but that didn’t matter. “You have to have faith in me,” I said. “That’s how we settle it. If the wolves won’t accept me, you have to let me go. I understand everything you’ve said so far, and I don’t begrudge the decisions you’ve felt you had to make for the good of Pack. In my heart I’ve always known that, and I’m not a blind innocent in all of this. I contributed in my own way, never able to walk away from strife. I will take responsibility for my mistakes, but that’s all in the past. Everything is blown wide open now. I blew it open when I challenged Mitch in the arena. I did it for a reason, and I hope he doesn’t die for my choices. He certainly would’ve attacked me at some point down the road. He’s a huge asshole, which goes without saying, but that fight was mine. Now you have to do your part. I can’t stay here. If I do, I die. The next wolf will be stronger and smarter than Mitch. You know that Pack is better off without me. Your wolves are better off without me. We can’t coexist any longer. You have to choose.”
No one spoke for a minute.
James interrupted the silence. “What Jessica is saying is true, Callum. The wolves will no longer stay quiet. She has opened up the right to challenge. It will take time to coordinate the details, of course, but we can begin to formulate a plan to get Jessica off Compound safely by giving her a new identity. It’s a place to start. Once she’s gone, the Pack will calm and we can reevaluate at a later date.”
“I will consider it.” My father’s voice held a finality that didn’t allow a rebuttal. He was finished with this conversation.
It was my cue to go.
I stood up, gripping the chair to steady myself. My painkiller haze was finally wearing off, which was a blessed relief.
As I left, I slipped James a smile. He was going to have his hands full convincing my father it was finally time to let me go, but I appreciated the effort.
For the first time, I finally had a chance.
Chapter Three
My brother sat at the center island in the kitchen eating his breakfast. It was still early, even though it felt like a whole day had come and gone. Food overflowed the counter like it did every morning. Pancakes, waffles, bacon, eggs. It appeared to be enough food to feed a dozen people, but it wasn’t. Werewolves were constantly hungry. Their metabolisms ran crazy fast, so mealtimes were frequent and plentiful. The family ate in here; the rest of the wolves dined in the cafeteria.
“Hey,” I said as I pulled out a stool and sat. I grabbed a box of cereal with my good hand, sliding a bowl over with the forearm of my injured one. It was the least complicated of all the food choices.
“What happened?” Tyler asked between mouthfuls. “Has Dad finally gotten smart enough to send you away?”
I arched my eyebrow at him and grabbed the milk.
“What?” Tyler shrugged. “One of these times the answer is going to have to be yes. It could’ve been today.”
“It won’t be that easy, and you know it,” I said. “But he did end with a resounding ‘I will consider it,’ so hopefully he’ll come to his senses soon enough. He’s too worried about the rest of the world, especially the other supes, and he somehow still believes he can manage the wolves through their fear. Were you aware he knew about all the other small fights? The ones we tried to cover up?”
“Yeah.” Tyler shifted in his chair. “I suspected. It would’ve been impossible to keep something like that from him completely. But I knew why he let us do it. I mean, what other choice did he have? He can’t go around killing his wolves all the time. It would’ve been a bloodbath, causing too much damage to Pac
k. There would’ve been some kind of revolt.”
“It would’ve been nice to have known,” I grumbled. “We crept around like bandits, trying to protect those wolves.”
“The moment he admitted he knew about the fights, he’d have to kill someone for fighting with you. Did you want that?”
“No,” I said. “Obviously our goal from the beginning was no deaths. You and I agreed to that when everything started to change. I wouldn’t have been able to sleep at night knowing I was responsible for killing people because I refused to stay locked in my room.” No one had issued any orders to stay out of sight, but it would’ve been the only way to keep everyone from trouble. Jail wasn’t my style.
“Well, there you go,” Tyler said. “It wouldn’t have worked otherwise. Having Dad’s support would’ve led to dead wolves. We couldn’t have it both ways, and it was the right choice, if you ask me. The wolves are reacting to something they can’t control when it comes to you, something unreasonable and unstable.” He grabbed the orange juice and poured himself another glass. “You realize you’re going have to start using a bodyguard or something from now on. Things are too out of hand. You can’t challenge a Pack wolf and stay under the radar.”
“I was under the radar? I thought I was the radar. And there’s no way I’m doing that.” I took a bite of cereal and continued. “I don’t need a bodyguard following me around. That would only make things nine million times worse. The stupid girl can’t take care of herself; look at her go cry to her bodyguard. Plus, there are exactly three people who would sign up for that job—you, Nick, or Danny.”
“You’re too pigheaded for your own good.” Tyler shook his head. “All you had to do was tell me Mitch was giving you trouble again, and I would’ve taken care of it. But no, you had to almost get yourself killed. You’re too reckless. That was a suicide fight and you know it.”
“I’m reckless? Please. You should talk. You fight anyone and everyone. And for your information, I set that fight up on purpose. I wasn’t planning on losing. I would’ve gotten around Mitch somehow.” The statement wasn’t one hundred percent accurate, but I’d had a shot and didn’t regret my choice to fight. “And if I’d been successful, everyone would’ve backed down for a while.”
“Fighting for status is completely different,” Tyler argued. “It’s necessary in Pack. If you’re alpha-born, you have to move up quickly or your wolf gets restless. It’s not natural to take orders from a wolf beneath you. The only way to reach the top is to fight.”
He had a point, but I wasn’t letting him off the hook so easily. “You know as well as I do that I can’t just run and tattle to you every time someone threatens me. If I did that without fighting myself, I’d have seventeen challenges an hour—”
“Unsanctioned challenges—”
I cut him off. “Standing up for myself is all I have. So that’s what I do. Until this year, it’s worked. Once things changed, I was forced to resort to something else. It actually makes perfect sense, if you think about it. Proving to the wolves I had some moxie was a necessary step to ward off further violence.”
“Going into the ring in the middle of the night without telling anyone doesn’t make any sense on any harebrained level. You’re completely delusional. You crossed a major boundary and brought the whole Pack with you. If Danny hadn’t found out and told me, you’d be dead right now. Mitch would’ve torn you to pieces.”
“I’m not as dumb as you think I am.” I pushed my point. “Mitch isn’t that skilled, and bringing the fight into the ring gave me an advantage. You have to believe I would’ve wo—”
“Did someone say my name?” Danny Walker strode into the kitchen, looking his usual rakish self. His chestnut hair tangled in his eyes and a devilish grin played on his lips. Danny was a fairly recent transplant from England, having joined the U.S. Northern Territories, my father’s Pack, a mere five years ago. Changing Packs didn’t happen often—only when someone wanted to relocate, or if their other Pack wasn’t a great fit. He and my brother had been attached at the hip ever since he’d arrived. He winked at me as he sat. “My ears were just burning. So what’s the gossip, then? I’ve just been informed Mitch is barely recovering from quite a thrashing last night. Can’t say the bloke didn’t deserve it, but the rumor is he’s holding on by only this much.” He put his fingers a fraction apart. “Wouldn’t want to be in his shoes right now, poor bugger.”
I was glad to hear he wasn’t dead. If he was still alive, it meant he’d likely get to keep his life. And even though Mitch was a total douche, since the fight had been my challenge, his death would’ve been on me.
“The bastard shouldn’t be allowed to live.” Tyler shoveled another huge bite of food into his mouth. “Fighting…females…is beneath…us.”
“Hello.” I thwacked my spoon on his arm. “I’m sitting right here. I don’t see any females beneath you right now.” I mocked scanning the floor under his chair. “You just wish there were.” My brother was six-foot-five, with blond hair and a ridiculous set of dimples. Getting the ladies beneath him was not a problem. “And females can fight just fine. At least this one can. Especially when most of the young wolves have zero tactics, other than using their brute strength. It’s sad really.”
Danny grinned beside me. “Well, maybe you’d be willing to teach me some of your smart tactics a bit later. I’d be a grateful student, and I could sorely use some good one-on-one. That sounds quite nice, actually.”
I chose to ignore his innuendo, as usual. “Danny, I’ve seen you fight and you don’t need any lessons from me. You’d kill me immediately, and where’s the sport in that?” I had no idea how old Danny was, but he was a skilled fighter and an extremely dangerous wolf. He and Tyler sparred regularly. They were both powerhouses, wolves I knew better than to go up against. “Seriously, that English accent of yours lets you get away with saying the stupidest crap.” I laughed. “And it all sounds like a compliment.”
“I aim to please.” He reached for a plate of blueberry pancakes, along with an industrial-size bottle of syrup.
“We don’t need tactics. All we really need are these.” My brother flexed his arms. His giant biceps bounced once, then solidified into stones like they weren’t playing around anymore. “Why on Earth would we mess with perfection?” He gave me a dimpled smile.
“Ha.” I chuckled. “The last time you came anywhere near perfection was when you were ten and stood up for Nick. You made his life a little more bearable around here, and that had nothing to do with using your big, powerful guns.”
My brother’s face grew serious for a moment. He took his role as Nick’s protector to heart. Nick was like a brother to both of us. “So if you aren’t really leaving the Compound, what do you think is going to happen now? The tension around here is at an all-time high. It’s so thick you can almost see the edges. With Mitch all banged up, it’s going to get uglier. The wolves are going to be pissed.”
“I wish I knew,” I said. “I’m not looking forward to it, I can tell you that much.”
“It would be a lot easier if I could still hear you in my head,” Tyler grumbled. “Then your safety would be less of an issue. You could let me know if something was going on from anywhere on the Compound, and I could take care of it like that.” He snapped his fingers. “If you refuse to have a bodyguard and I can’t hear you, you’re taking your life in your own hands.”
“My life has always been in my own hands,” I quipped. “But you’re right; if you could hear me again, it would make the upcoming challenges easier to navigate.” As twins, my brother and I had been born with the ability to talk to each other telepathically. Every Pack wolf had that ability with the Alpha, to ensure their survival, but it was highly unusual for us to have it with each other. Dr. Jace had attributed it to our kin-bond, but he’d only been guessing. The connection had never worked consistently, and had run from Tyler to me better than the other way around, which had been cause for constant irritation when we were kids. But, no
matter what, it’d always been invaluable when I found myself in trouble. Tyler would hear me even if I hadn’t “called out” on purpose, and he’d always find me. The tenuous communication line had blinked off suddenly when he’d made his first shift—a little over two years ago. Now there was only dead space.
“We’ll find a way to take care of you,” Danny said. “Nothing to worry about.”
I snorted milk out of my nose. “Oh, Danny,” I said, covering my mouth, coughing slightly. “‘Nothing to worry about’? That’s incredibly funny. You can’t take care of me any more than you can tell the wolves how they should feel. The Cain Myth makes it impossible for them to be anything but biased against me, and you know it. They believe it to the letter, which equals worry and fear with no breaks in between.”
Danny shook his head. “Yes, the mysterious Cain Myth. The silly one citing you as the true Daughter of Evil?” He put air quotes around “Daughter of Evil” and said it in a snarky voice. “That somehow, some way, your birth has kick-started the end to our race as we know it? You know, it’s really too bad I wasn’t around when the hubbub started all those years ago. I’m telling you, English blokes are much more rooted in reality. We’re known for our infallible sensibilities, and I could’ve used my ridiculously charming wiles to explain to these American wolves the difference between true myth and reality.”
“That’s rich,” I said. “When our reality means werewolves, vamps, witches, and demons all exist. Most of our myths and legends are all true anyway—you guys are why fairy tales exist, so why wouldn’t the Cain Myth be true?” Intrinsically I knew I wasn’t evil, but it didn’t matter. “That’s the rationale the wolves use, anyway. If supes exist, the Cain Myth can exist. It’s concrete enough and they revile me for it.”
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