My father rarely referred to me as his daughter, much less if there was someone from another pack present.
"Father, the thing is..."
"Hush Cathy, your father is talking, don't interrupt him," Lissandra cut me off.
"Thank you very much, my love," My father told her and cleared his throat. "As I was saying, this kind of behavior damages the harmony of the place, and besides, if someone had seen you, what would they think of us?"
"That we are savages," Linda added.
"Excellent answer, daughter, and we're not a bunch of wild beasts," he continued. "We are a family."
My father's attitude began to seem somewhat suspicious to me since he didn't include me in his family, not unless it was one hundred percent necessary.
"Father, Linda set me up," I said, raising my voice so they could hear me.
The room fell silent, and I sought Alston's gaze for support. Even though he no longer loved me, he heard the truth. But Alston averted his gaze and rested his hand on Linda's shoulder, giving me a clear message. He was on my half-sister's side.
Eric was behind me and just watching my father with respect. I never noticed a hint of fear in his eyes, but he still didn't dare to voice his opinion for the simple fact that he was in my father's territory and didn't want to disrespect us.
"Linda put something in my cup, and I..."
"Stop! That's not an important matter right now." my father raised his voice and cut off immediately. His orders were impossible to ignore, and in addition, I was overwhelmed by the situation. "I know what happened between you two," he stood up from his chair and walked over to Eric and me. "And I hope we can come to an agreement."
Linda had a winning smile on her face as Lissandra rubbed her hand, and she gave me a cold stare.
"What are you talking about?" I asked.
"Don't play dumb, Cathy," he added. "You know what I'm talking about."
Before I could formulate a response, Eric stepped forward and stood next to me.
"I'm so sorry. I have no excuses," Eric confessed. "It was all my fault, and I'm willing to take the consequences of my actions."
"That's not true! It's my fault, father," I interfered. "If anyone should take the blame, it's me. I walked into the wrong room."
"There's nothing to be sorry about," My father said. "It's a golden opportunity, don't you see?"
I couldn't believe what I was hearing, and my father's reaction was not at all what I was used to. His tone was harsh but not stern, and his gaze went straight to mine this time and not to the floor as he usually did.
"I'm not getting it," I added.
"Really... can you be any dumber?" Linda took the opportunity to attack.
"Shut your mouth!" I responded.
"Girls, please stop behaving like little children. This is a situation that suits all of us," My father said.
Lissandra placed her hand on Linda's leg and gave it a slight squeeze, and grimaced with her mouth.
"What do you propose?" Eric initiated the negotiation. "We can negotiate resources, or even..."
"A marriage, why not take advantage of this situation to bring the packs closer together," My father said, linking his fingers. "We can have a ceremony and marry you in front of the full moon and thus ask the Goddess to unite your hearts as mates."
My heart stopped, and I felt the ground beneath me disappear. I felt myself floating in the air without a foothold and very afraid. Not for me, but because of my actions now, Eric would be forced to accept me as his mate.
"No, I will not accept it," I raised my voice and felt the withering gaze of everyone in the room. "I'll not force Eric to bond with me."
"You're not thinking things through," Lissandra added. "Listen first."
