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“What Niall said was interesting,” Ryan said, “about the compound existing in such a remote location to protect its occupants. That could be the answer they give us to Margo’s problem.”
“Then why would they send her away?” I said. “How would that help her?”
“I don’t know,” he admitted. “Be prepared to leave without knowing more either.”
“I’m more concerned about what we’ll find at the compound,” Byron said. “The way Lena spoke about them made me uncomfortable. Are they hiding from death? Or are they using it to keep people afraid?”
“Do you think it’s possible?” Ryan asked. “That they wield death?”
“When Amelia and Margo messed up after Perdita went to hospital…” I shivered. “Margo said she felt like she could reach out and touch death, use it, control it. She made it sound intoxicating, hard to resist. What if they’ve stopped resisting?”
Byron fell silent for many moments before he called Ryan’s name. “If anything happens to me out here, you’re to leave me and take Dorian with you. Both of you will make it back to the pack, tell them what happened, and prepare for the worst. Understand?”
Ryan looked uncomfortable. “Is that an order?”
“Yes.”
With a pained look in his eyes, Ryan nodded. “I’ll obey. I always obey. But know that if anything happens to you, it’s because something already happened to me.”
“I’m serious,” Byron said. “I swore to Nathan and Perdita that I would keep Dorian safe. If I can’t, you must.”
Ryan looked at him. “Then who takes your place?”
My gaze snapped to Byron. I wanted that answer, too.
Byron hesitated. “You know I don’t have an answer to that yet.”
“Then make sure nothing happens to you. Neither of them is ready for this.”
I felt offended on Nathan’s behalf. “If you’re talking about Nathan and Jeremy, you know Nathan would do a good job.”
“But Jeremy is my son,” Byron said, not unkindly. “He’s older, more experienced, stronger in many ways. He’s already running a sub-section of the pack. Plenty of werewolves would follow him without question.”
But he wasn’t Nathan. That had to be plain on my face because Byron shot me a knowing look.
“It’s hard for me, too,” he confessed. “Nathan might as well be my own son. My twin brother was his father. That makes it easy for me to forget I’m not his father. He has almost perfect control, he doesn’t care about power, and he’s able to fit into both of our worlds with ease. I know he’ll protect the younger ones, the weaker ones, anyone in need.”
“Then what?” I said. “Why wouldn’t he take over? Everyone likes him.”
“Nathan’s not ready to take over the pack yet. He’s not all-in, not ready to put the pack first, and by the time I have to step aside, it might not be his time yet. He may never want this enough to take it. You have to accept that.”
“And prepare yourself for the consequences,” Ryan said.
That took me a moment to process. What would happen if Jeremy took over? I blew out a shaky breath. “Jeremy will send Nathan away.”
“They won’t occupy the same space for long,” Byron said. “That doesn’t mean Jeremy will establish himself here, but he will have the right.”
I felt sick at the thought of it. “If he sends Nathan away then I’ll go with him. No matter what.”
“Jeremy could forbid either of you from leaving.”
“Then Nathan will have to make his own choices,” Ryan murmured. “And you, Dorian.”
“And the pack could split,” Byron said in a mournful voice. “I think about it every day. It may come down to whom the pack has the most confidence in.”
I knew what he was saying, but I had complete confidence in any plan Nathan had. I trusted him with my life. I felt for Byron though. It had to be stressful being an alpha, almost as stressful as my girlfriend’s life depending on the answers I found on a mountainside.
Ryan took the lead on the trek. We found a trail moving through spruce trees, but we took a safer parallel path, hindered by wildlife. It was satisfying to make our way through, but the weather was so inhospitable that I was glad Margo had gotten a message through to me to leave her father behind.
