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We approached the main square, which was now a giant hole in the ground from which the dragon had emerged.
Dom came out of the school, kicking debris out of the way. “Nothing in here is salvageable,” he declared.
I let out a sigh. “I apologize for dragging you two here.”
Killian put his hand on my shoulder. “I understand why you had to do it.”
“To be honest, I had to come and see it too, man,” Dom said.
I looked around, my agony growing deeper.
The sound of footsteps crunching over the charred terrain reached our ears and we turned to see four men coming toward us.
My muscles tensed and I was ready to shift if necessary. “Who are you and what are you doing here?”
One of the men took the lead and raised his hands in a peace sign. “We don’t want any trouble.” He stopped a good fifteen feet from us and gestured to his companions. “We’re from the Whitecrest pack. I heard you were back and we wanted to talk.”
Whitecrest pack. Nortrix, their former alpha, had been the one who facilitated Paimon’s entrance in this town.
“I have nothing to talk to you about,” I said through gritted teeth. The Shadow Wolf was under my skin. “Get out of here.”
“My pack is in shambles after what happened here,” he said in a rush. I took a good look at him. Short, stocky frame, graying hair, weary face. He looked to be in his sixties, which meant he was probably over a hundred and twenty years old. “Most of our able wolves died when the dragon escaped, including our alpha.”
I frowned. “I thought Nortrix had a son.”
“He has five sons, but they are all too young to lead,” the man said. “The oldest is sixteen.”
“With a good council backing him up, he should be able to lead.”
The man shook his head. “I wish it was that simple. The remaining members of our council don’t want to recognize him as the new alpha.”
“That’s not a matter of want. It’s how it goes. Ask the boy to shout a command. Everyone will have no choice but to obey.”
“You don’t understand. A war is brewing within my broken pack. We are already reduced to almost nothing. If a war breaks out, I’m not sure my pack can endure.”
My brows curled down. I knew what he meant. My pack was broken, reduced to almost nothing, but at least I was here to lead them. I didn’t want to lead anymore. I felt broken myself without Raika, but I had a duty to fulfill. Once Tyren was old enough, I would let him lead.
But the Whitecrest didn’t have that option. “I don’t understand what you want from me.”
“I want your help,” the man said.
“What’s your name?”
“Eike.”
“Eike, I don’t think I can help—“
“Your pack is in just as bad shape as ours,” he said, cutting me off. “If we united, in a way, and you helped Jean while he’s young, I believe the council wouldn’t have a say in it. They would have to bow before the alpha, and the rebels seeking to start a war would think twice before doing so.”
Beside me, Dom scoffed and muttered, “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
I stared at Eike. The idea was absurd, but not the worst I had heard. But if I ever considered this course of action, I needed to know more. “The remaining wolves, were they in favor of what Nortrix was doing?”
Dom glared at me. “You can’t be considering this.”
Eike went on, “Most wolves, even the ones involved, didn’t know the details of Nortrix’s plans. When the time came, he commanded the wolves to execute to his bidding without a choice.”
My nostrils flared. Nortrix had been a terrible alpha. “What about the council?”
