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Jace and Byron were present, but he’d also called more of the pack enforcers as well as another representative from the elder’s council. That way they couldn’t claim bias against his brother.
Ryan didn’t want to allow anyone to say that he’d done anything underhanded.
“It wasn’t a challenge,” Byron spat the words as if disgusted by the very thought of what Darius had done. “He came at you in the dead of night. It was an assassination attempt!”
“We need to let cooler heads prevail,” Reymond spoke from his seat in the corner of the room.
“No, it needs to be now. Gather a team we’ll cross the border into their territory at dawn.” Ryan announced with the full weight of his power behind him. Only Jace was bold enough to oppose him.
“You need to send word ahead or it will mean war between our packs.”
Ryan crossed the room and pulled Kelly from the sofa where she’d perched on its arm. He angled her head so that the wound at her throat was visible to the others in the room.
Her blood had been cleaned away, bandages held the edges of the cut together, and dark bruising marred her flesh where cruel fingers had held her.
“Would you allow time to pass if this was Sara? These bastards came into my home and tried to take my mate from me. They are lucky they aren’t dead.”
“Send word ahead that we’re coming. Don’t give him any reason to accuse you of being the aggressor.”
“What if he kills whomever we send? He’s already proven he has no honor.” Ryan tried to reason with Jace, knowing that he didn’t trust Darius to obey the rules of their society, but he could see the other council member agreed with his brother.
He threw up his hands in disgust, “Fine send word, but do it now. I want to be there tomorrow. No later.”
He stroked Kelly’s back, not sure which one of them he was trying to comfort.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
The Sourwind pack was South-East of the Coldridge territory on the other side of the lake. The pack was small compared to his, comprised of approximately fifteen men, women, and a few children.
The fertility issues seemed to plague the Sourwind pack almost as much as did the Coldridge pack. Ryan had wondered if there was a pattern to the decline since talking it over with Kelly and had hoped for the other packs cooperation.
That wouldn’t happen now, but in his current mood, Ryan wasn’t against taking the information by force if he needed to.
He gathered a small fighting force and they made their way onto the other packs lands. The terrain was similar to theirs and his enforcers slipped through the thicket of trees easily. They had parked in town and then traveled on foot to the area where the pack would gather. They came in human form since Ryan was uncertain if the town had had a human population. He didn’t think so if Dawnecia’s behavior was any indication, but he was cautious in case he was mistaken.
There was tension in the air as he approached the main pack house. Darius was waiting on the wrap-around porch his boots up on the railing as though he didn’t care that they were there. He didn’t stand to greet Ryan as he would an alpha he considered his equal. Instead, he took a drag off the cigarette he was smoking then deliberately flicked it so that it sparked against Ryan’s boot before landing on the ground.
It was an insult that left a bitter taste in Ryan’s mouth, setting him on edge for how he would deal with Darius going forward.
“You don’t even have the decency to stand and greet me as your equal?” Ryan called Darius out on his lack of etiquette. The other man gave him the once over and sneered as if he found Ryan lacking.
“If you were my equal I would, but since you aren’t I’ll stay where I am. It seems you aren’t alpha enough to face me on your own anyhow.” His gaze went to the six men at Ryan’s back, a weary expression flitting in his eyes before it was quickly masked.
Ryan didn’t take his eyes off his adversary, “They are here to make sure that you abide by our laws. They won’t interfere.”
Ryan climbed the steps up the porch, trusting the men he’d brought with him to watch his back. He hadn’t been lying to Darius they weren’t there to fight unless the other alpha gave orders to his pack to attack Ryan.
“I’m not going to fight you. You’re beneath me.”
“So much so that you sent men to attack me in the middle of the night?” Ryan couldn’t keep the contempt out of his tone, all pretense of respect and decorum was quickly forgotten. “Next time make sure they finish the job.”
Without further warning, he kicked Darius’s foot removing it from where it was resting on the railing. When the other man still refused to stand Ryan let the power of his wolf do the talking. He unleashed the power that made him an alpha until it crackled against his skin filling the air between them.
“Get up.” The words were barely human and they had an immediate effect on Darius. The other man lumbered to his feet, fighting the compulsion to do so with every part of his being.
“You came at me. You came at my mate, and I demand to know why.” Ryan grabbed the other man’s lapels. Bringing them eye to eye he dared the other man to lie to him.
“Go to hell.” Darius cursed, trying to jerk himself out of Ryan’s hold. His grip remained firm though and the scent of fear and frustration permeated the air.
