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“Fuck, no!” Kingston said. “You tell ’em to pull up their big boy panties and prepare to kick some feral ass.”
I blinked rapidly. Well, that was one way to put it.
“Could just plagiarize something,” Dylan suggested. “Napoleon’s got some stuff you could steal. Just change all the parts about the republic to the pack, no one would be any the wiser.” Felicity and I both shot him a stern look, and he held his hands up in mock surrender. “What? It’s what I’d do.”
“Just speak from your heart, kid,” Denny suggested, as if it was that simple. “That’s all anyone can ask of you.”
I went to Felicity, who sat perched on the couch that Kingston pulled out every night to use as a bed. I dropped down to one knee and took her hands in mine.
“What do I tell them, Cheeks?” I asked. If there was anyone’s advice I trusted right now, it was hers.
Yes, she was human, but somewhere in her bloodline, we knew Denny’s wolfishness lurked.
If she’d been born a shifter, she would’ve been an alpha. The finest one I’d ever known.
She dropped my hands and cupped my cheeks, turning my face up toward hers.
“The truth,” she said, her voice ringing clear as a church bell. “You tell them the truth.”
Chapter28
Felicity
The lodge hadn’t been this full since our mating ceremony. Even during the pack runs, some families chose to spend the full moons under their own timbers, on their own lands. Since bringing the boys back, every member of the pack had been here at least once, even if only to tickle our sons’ chins and wish us well—but never all together like this, all at the same time.
From the hearth of the fireplace in the lounge, all the way to the foyer, pack members had gathered. Every single one. While Xander had tried to determine what he’d say, the grazing table that we’d set up had been picked clean. Every glass in the lodge was half-full and in hand.
Now, the pack was hungry for something more substantial.
As we stepped out of the den, the murmur of conversation dropped off. All eyes were on us.
Or, more specifically, on Xander.
He was their alpha. Their leader. In times of peace, Xander’s duties toward the pack mostly involved settling small disputes between members, officiating over ceremonies, and maintaining good relationships with the alphas of the pack’s allies. But the silence his presence commanded now spoke volumes about how important he truly was to these people.
We were no longer in times of peace. Now, Xander was the man who would tell them what was coming. The one who would decide how we’d respond when it arrived.
“Come with me,” Xander whispered, taking my hand. “If I’ve gotta do this, I want you by my side.”
“Of course,” I agreed, and he folded my fingers in the crook of his arm like he was escorting me to a ball.
Kingston and Dylan fell in behind us as we crossed into the room.
Along the back wall, the council of elders had already taken their places in front of the hearth. When we passed them, each inclined their head to Xander, then to me.
It was a striking reminder. Xander was the pack alpha, yes, but I was his mate. His partner. A human, but not an outsider any longer. If he was king of the Evergreen wolves, then I was his queen.
At the center of the hearth, Xander lowered his arm, and my hand slipped away. He turned to me, took my face in his palms, and kissed my forehead. His lips burned where they pressed, like he’d branded an imprint of them right between my brows.
With a great breath, Xander turned to face the pack.
“As I stand up here in front of you all tonight…” Xander gaze swept across the crowd. He sighed. “I don’t know what any of you are expecting me to say.”
The silence was deafening. Maybe the pack didn’t know the answer to that, either.
Xander cleared his throat and continued on. “Maybe you want me to tell you that we’ll hunt down our enemies and crush them between our jaws—make ’em pay for all the grief they’ve caused us,” he suggested. “Maybe, you want me to soothe your worries, put your fears to rest. Tell you that there’s nothing to worry about, and we can all go on with our lives.” He shook his head. “I can’t do that.”
A murmur rippled through the crowd. He was telling them the truth, they must have realized that.
