He pressed in closer, his yearning morphing into desperation. “Why can’t we all rule at the top? We’re the strongest alpha pack. We deserve to rule.”
“Fletcher will never share power with you,” Hunter said, his tone resigned. “You’re a weapon, and he will dispose of you the moment your usefulness runs out.”
Talon’s eyes shimmered, and I couldn’t tell if it was annoyance or anger. “He’s the only family I’ve ever known. He’s a hard alpha, agreed, but I’m not disposable. He’s never thrown me away.”
I looked up in time to see Hunter shake his head, and through our bond I sensed a new shred of sympathy for the dragon shifter. “I think I’m starting to understand the experiment with you and Slade,” he said. “Slade, he tried to break through pain, with every touch designed to hurt him and create an unstable beast. He never could break our dragon completely though. No matter what he did, he couldn’t get him to kill or fight for him.
“You, on the other hand… His treatment of you might have been an even worse form of control. He gave you nothing andno one, isolating you from the world so all you had was him. He forced your loyalty and used you as an experiment of how to turn shifters into monsters.” Hunter’s huff of laughter was laced in sadness. “I’m not sure which of you I feel sorrier for.”
Talon’s expression remained even, but the heat in the room surged. The pulsing of his dragon through our connection was stronger, and I sensed his struggle for control.
“Think about what we discussed here today,” Hunter said, as he went to walk away, only pausing when Talon called, “Wait!”
I was once again turned to meet a darkly penetrating stare. “Will you come back to me, Emme?”
If tonight had proven anything, it was that I couldn’t stay away from him. Not long term. “Are you willing to answer more questions?”
The desperate longing that tore through his expression almost broke me. “Yes. For you. Yes.”
My heart clenched and I nodded. “Then I’ll be back.”
Talon clutched the bars, and I got the sense, even as Hunter walked away and left him there, that he would remain in that position for the rest of the night.
For the first time since we’d returned to Golden Claw, I was broken over the thought of leaving him locked down there in isolation. Slade might have a touch aversion, which I understood better now that I’d learned of his fucked up past, but Talon bore scars and triggers too. Including isolation. If we wanted to show that we were better than Fletcher, we couldn’t hurt him in the same way. But when it was so risky to let him go free, I had no idea what the solution was.
CHAPTER 34
EMME
Ihadn’t been to a council meeting since that first day I was dragged to Golden Claw.
There was a sense of familiarity as I found myself surrounded by the strongest alphas in the city, only this time there were no onlookers—if you discounted the row of chairs that had been left for the witches on one side of the table, and the four chairs on the other for Slade, Kellan, Finley and me. Only entitled alphas got a seat at the main table, and Hunter was our representative.
With Sorenson missing in action, the only other alphas I knew were Warrick and Sissily, the second who had taken up scowling in my direction, as if my mere presence was ruining her life.
When the witches filed in, I wasn’t surprised to see Jewels, along with four other unfamiliar females.
“Let’s get this started,” an alpha called as he stood at the head of the table.
He wore all white, which contrasted to his dark skin. While he wasn’t as obviously powerful as Hunter or Warrick, there was a restless energy in his brown eyes that told me his wolf held a streak of wild. Those were the ones to watch out for.
“Thank you, Alpha Stenson,” Hunter said, and I found my gaze lingering on my powerful mate in his dark gray suit. “We appreciate the full attention of the council.”
The first time I’d met Hunter had been in this very room, when he’d all but leapt the table and crowded me into the wall. My life had flashed before my eyes that day, and while I remembered the dread, my feelings as I stared today couldn’t be further from that.
My pack had only been in my life for a few short months, which was hard to believe considering how much had changed in that time. They’d shown me the truth: my mom hadn’t been killed because her pack were alphas. She’d been killed because her pack were evil fucks controlled by an even eviler fuck. Her death was part of one big experiment, and the truth of that set me free. Cliché as it was.
There was still so much I didn’t know though. Had Mom been aware of what she was getting herself into from the start? Why did she move us constantly in my earliest years? Who the heck was my father and how was he involved in all of this?
My train of thought was cut off as Hunter stood. “Now that formalities are out of the way, let’s get to business. We’re here, once again, to discuss the threat against my pack. An ongoing threat that the council has seen fit to ignore or dismiss for weeks, which resulted in our mate being stolen from us for the second time. We’ve been forced to take matters into our own hands, and if there is no action again, the next time we do, blood will spill.”
Kellan snorted on my left side as he sprawled back, his hands laced over his flat stomach, and his big feet out in front of him swishing left and right. Like he was having the time of his life watching Hunter ream the council a new asshole.
“We’re well aware you’ve taken matters into your own hands, Alpha Hunter,” Alpha Stenson drawled. “And I don’t know what you mean about bloodwillspill. We’ve had dozens of bodiesdropped in our city since the omega arrived. You even took out council members who stood in your way. I don’t honestly know why you’re not the one on trial here today.”
That had Slade sitting a little straighter, and if I was on the receiving end of his dark stare right now, I’d have run screaming from the room. Hunter handled it just fine on his own, as he leveled that alpha with his own stare, which lowered eyes around the room.
No one beat Hunter in a dominance battle. At least no one at that table, and Slade would always back him. “Her name is Omega Emmeline,” he growled, his voice warning them all that he was at the end of his patience. Already. “Use her fucking title as her status in Reeves Pack warrants. And yes, I will drop the bodies of anyone who attacks my pack or stands in the way of their safety. No questions asked. If you’re sitting here on this council, you should feel the same way about your pack. Otherwise, why are you wasting air pretending to be an entitled alpha?”
