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“You know, you don’t have to do this. We can come up with another way,” he said.
I stood and took a step toward the door. “We both know this is for the best.”
He didn’t argue. Instead, he nodded, then left the room, the silent invitation to follow hanging between us through the open door.
Zoe, Scarlett, and Jasmine were sitting at the kitchen table. The nervous energy was palpable. Luke entered the kitchen just before me and Zoe stood. “We should get going.”
The walk to Luke’s truck felt too long. None of us spoke. We knew what we needed to do. We’d spent last night going over the details, then I’d excused myself to try to sleep. I heard the murmurs of conversation in the living room for hours after, so I know none of us slept last night.
“Everyone is clear on their roles?” Scarlett asked. “Remember, I get to kill the witch or sorcerer who has been pulling the strings.”
“They’re all yours,” Luke said. “As I promised.”
“Good. Mark deserved better,” she said.
“I never did find out who Mark was,” I said. “Was he a witch?”
“Hewasmy boyfriend,” Scarlett said. “One of the humans who was caught in their territory. Their brains addled by the same thing that got to that shifter you saw.”
“I’m sorry.” I was surprised to hear that this was about vengeance for her, but based on the bits and pieces I’d put together about her, it made more sense. She wasn’t fully part of the group; she was an outsider, like me.
We tried to fill the drive time with small talk, but every topic fizzled quickly and left us with long bouts of silence. I looked around my surroundings, surprised by the fact that I’d been on the major roads we used before. My pack wasn’t far from the Lost Pack. In fact, I’d been right by their territory when visiting the nearest major human city.
Unfortunately, that meant we weren’t far from our destination.
The two-hour drive wasn’t long enough. Just as the sun painted the sky in a riot of pink and orange, we pulled over right outside the wards as planned. I hugged Jasmine and waved goodbye to Zoe and Scarlett. They would sneak in undetected and meet us there so my dad didn’t know we had magic on our side.
Alone in the car with Luke, my anxiety skyrocketed, and I was certain he could hear my racing heart.
He reached over and set his hand on top of mine. “You can do this.”
I swallowed hard and kept my gaze forward, afraid I would break down or lose my nerve if I looked over at him.
Just as my nerves reached a fever-pitch, I felt the cold of the wards pass through me. I sucked in a breath. It was too late. There was no turning back now. The wards would alert the pack to our arrival and my dad would be waiting for us.
It was time to finish this.
My stomach clenched, and nausea rolled through me. The entire town was gathered, blocking our progress down Main Street. I didn’t think my dad would want an audience since he and his predecessors had always used a priest as the middle-man between an alpha and the future alpha’s powers. How was he going to explain this?
“I guess this is the place,” Luke said.
“Subtle,” I deadpanned.
“I’ll be right with you the whole time,” he said.
The thought did make me feel a little better. As I exited the truck, all I could do to make myself put one foot in front of the other was to remind myself that it would be over soon.
The crowd parted as we approached and I recognized the faces of the pack I’d grown up with. I knew all of them, every single one of them. How many of them had stood by and done nothing when someone harmed me? How many of them had known exactly what kind of shifter my dad was and remained silent? They were all just as guilty as he was. There was nothing left for me in this town. Even if I didn’t go back to the Lost Pack, I refused to stay here.
I froze as soon as I saw the wooden platform that had been hastily erected in the middle of the road. My dad stood atop it, proud as a peacock. Next to him was a woman I didn’t recognize, the priest who had done his alpha ceremony when I was young, and Owen.
Frowning, I made myself move again. So that was his play. He was going to pass his power to Owen right here and likely ask the woman, whom I was guessing was the witch, to move the power from me instead. It was a bold move, and it made sense. I had to hand it to him; he was covering his tracks well.
“We’re almost done with this,” Luke whispered. “Hang in there.” The two of us stopped a few feet away from the stage.
“Well, well, if it isn’t the alpha of the Lost Pack here to grace us with his presence,” my dad said sarcastically.
“We’re here as agreed,” Luke replied.
