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Kai shook his head absently, still grasping at any explanation. When he came up short, he didn’t say anything.
Realizing I was the only one who had been affected twice, I stepped forward. “This is what happened to my men, and we must not have known it. She found a way to take them away painlessly the first time. Now we know.”
Initially, everyone held their silence, making me question if I should’ve said anything.
But Finn’s scoff caught my attention first. He shook his head absently like his anger was building up within him. He began to seethe as he carefully pulled away from River.
“You. You and your gang are the reason we don’t have our wolves anymore. You showing up here likely brought the damn thing on us! Now we’re all screwed.”
“You think I wanted this for you too? I wouldn’t wish that pain on anyone,” I snapped back, angered that he would even make that assumption.
Rage flared in his eyes as he stepped forward, squaring up to me.
“Finn, please—”
River’s feeble attempt did nothing to stop him, and he only pushed against me further.
“You don’t care about anyone but yourself,” Finn growled at me, shoving me back a step. “You only want to follow in your father’s footsteps and watch us fall. You’ve been playing the hero role, but I’m not buying that shit.”
“Finn!” River shouted, throat nearly clogged with tears. “Calm down. You aren’t being yourself, and the hostility isn’t helping anyone.”
But Finn ignored her and pressed, eyes searing into mine.
It only made my own anger flare, making me second-guess my options. I had kept my cool each time he pushed me for the sake of keeping the peace, but I didn’t know how much more I could take. Or how much more I should take from him.
Finn had been after me and my men since day one, and I could only let so much slide.
“You have been a sickness to this town, and it’s about time someone did something about you,” Finn snarled, voice dripping with venom.
“Lay another hand on him, and we’ll see who’s stronger now,” Griffin said, emerging from the group of damaged shifters.
If it came down to it, the playing field had leveled in his odds, and I had no doubt it would be an ugly fight. But he had been pushed around just as much, and Finn was in no position to question just how far he could poke that boundary.
The two of them nearly collided until Willow moved past me and put herself between them, looking sharply in Finn’s direction. The thought of her getting caught in the middle made my blood spike with fury, but he had the sense to pull back just enough not to touch her by accident.
“Stop this,” she demanded, looking between them with shared devastation on her face. “This is exactly what Keres wants—you heard her! She wants you to tear each other apart for her.”
“Then let’s start with this one,” Finn muttered, a predatory stare fixed on Griffin.
My second-in-command gritted his teeth in response, not backing down. “I’d like to see you try.”
“Finn, if you hurt anyone, I’ll never forgive you!” River shouted at him, visibly stressed and at the end of her rope with him. “I’ve had enough of this.”
While Finn still put up his aggressive front, he seemed bothered by the declaration, and he pulled back enough to show it got the better of him.
“We can’t sit here and let these goons pretend like they didn’t know this would happen,” he said, looking around our broken group. His nostrils flared with more anger at the thought. “We’re trapped by this demon too, and now we’re all screwed!”
There was more commotion as Griffin and Finn threatened one another, and I couldn’t take the thought of Willow being in the middle of it.
Reaching for her, I pulled her aside and wondered if he would ever see reason. I knew I had to plead my case, whether Kai and the others wanted to believe me or not.
“I had no idea Keres took our powers away until just now, and I didn’t know she would come for everyone here with absolute certainty. I came here to get to the bottom of it and to find a solution for everyone.”
My words seemed to fall on deaf ears then, and in one last attempt at backing me up, Willow looked toward Kai.
“Rowan tried to warn us all that something could happen, but we couldn’t find answers before she came here,” she said, swallowing hard as she tried to continue despite stumbling over her words. She knew just as much as I did that it was pointless. “I tried to find out what did it. I tried—”
But the solemn looks on their faces said enough. It was too late, and what was done, was done.
