“I’m fine. I healed. We hid in the bunker for a while, but we need to tell everyone about what’s happening now. We don’t have a choice. It’s getting close.”
Kaleb ran his hand through his hair. “Are you sure they are ready for the truth?”
“We don’t have a choice. If we want to keep this place standing, we need to.”
“They are having a council meeting in an hour,” Asher said. “Most of the town will be there.”
I nodded, knowing it was the best time. If there was one, I knew more were going to be following. We needed to inform everyone about what was happening. No more secrets.
I glanced at Jade, who was quiet. I could see she was thinking. Her mind was probably in twenty different places. Sex probably didn’t help, but that was something we could discuss after we told the town the truth.
Forty minutes later, I stood nervously at the podium of the council room. It was packed with people. Everyone looked confused at what I was doing there since it was originally supposed to be run by my father for the evening.
“I want to thank everyone for coming. There has been a change to the agenda for this evening, which is why I’m up here instead of my father.”
My father sat brooding in his chair. His arms were crossed as he scowled at me with irritation and frustration.
I cleared my throat. “You all have been wondering why I came back to Belrose, and why the sudden need to start training and working on your builds and physics. I’ve stated that it was needed, which is true, but the entire story is that a new problem is on the horizon that none of you were aware of. There is a newspecies out there that we call hybrids. They are coming here and planning to take over this pack.”
The space suddenly fell silent. My father started to laugh as he pulled himself up. “You expect us to believe that? And even if it were true, you know that shifters are stronger than anything out there.”
“The hybrids are part-shifter. Part shifter and part vampire. They are a mix of the two. We have worked with them for several years and have been tracking them. This is not something I say lightly.”
My father snorted as he shook his head. “This is ludicrous, Brandon! You don’t get to come in here and spew utter nonsense like this. This is not how an Alpha runs his pack.”
“It’s the truth,” I snapped. “And if you hadn’t run this pack into the ground, maybe they would be targeting this place. You didn’t do any training, you didn’t keep up on watching your borders, and now you have a monster at your doorstep. I am here trying to clean up your mess.”
Suddenly, the room erupted in loud noise. Everyone was yelling questions about what to do and where they could hide. People argued with each other, some saying we needed to hold out ground, while others stated we needed to hide.
I slammed my fist onto the podium, and the room fell quiet. “I am your Alpha, and I am taking charge. As long as you follow my orders, everything will be fine.”
“You can’t promise that,” my father snapped. “You think you can come in here, make some orders, and act like you know what you’re doing.”
I narrowed my eyes, having had enough of his constant downgrading. “I ran a team of highly trained special ops agentsfor over two years. I’ve taken down several hybrids, and I’ve come across many more. I’ve managed to turn your crap fest of soldiers into actual soldiers, so trust me when I say that you have no say in what goes on with this pack now or in the future. I am the Alpha, and I make the decisions.”
My father had questioned if I would stay, and I was making a point. I looked at everyone else. “You want this place to stay standing, and you want them to lose, then you will fight.”
It took two hours before I was able to leave. Everyone had questions. People were unsure of what to do and if they could even go home. I had to set up patrols around the woods and ensured that everyone knew to inform me if anything happened.
It was late when I got home. Jade was sitting on the couch; the lamp next to her was on, while the rest of the house was dark. I shut the door softly, and she looked up from her phone at me.
“Long night?” she asked, softly.
I nodded. “But it’s under control.” I walked toward her, taking her in. She was wearing a baggy shirt, and a fluffy blanket was thrown over her lap.
She looked down at her phone, and I could see her hands were shaking slightly. She chewed on her lower lip. She moved the blanket, pulling it tighter to her. “Do you think they will come and try to take over the pack?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
“And do you think we stand a chance?”
I nodded. “Everyone has done well in training. There is a good chance.”
“A good chance?” Her eyebrows went up. “That’s not comforting.”
I walked closer. “You know I would never let anything happen to you or Ilsa.”
She swallowed, her gaze dropping to her hands. “I know that. But what about everyone else? This is our home.”
