I liked her too. It was really, unexpectedly good to talk to another female shifter.
“So, you’re serious? The council thinks I’m a man?”
“Yes, and they have no idea Davey exists.”
Which I’d already known.
“Why wouldn’t they have let Titus hire me?” I asked. “You’rean Alpha.”
“I’mco-Alpha. Which allows certain members of the council to believe that’s a title I hold in name only, and that my husband makes all of the actual decisions. Not that they like that much better, considering that Marc is a stray, and they wanted me to marry one of their natural-born sons.”
“Seriously?”
Faythe nodded. “When I was Davey’s age, there were a lot of political machinations afoot, with my marriage being the ultimate goal. Those sitting on the Territorial Council back then, several of whom have since passed, were willing to destroy the South-Central Pride to get what they wanted.” She took a deep breath. “They killed my father in the process.”
“Jesus. Now I see why your alliance with Titus is so strong.”
Her smile was small, but genuine. “The Mississippi Valley and the South-Central Prides have several mutual interests. Also, we just really like Titus. And Jace. Andyou.”
I bit my tongue before I could ask about the old rumors about her and Jace.
“But my point with all this is that some men—both council members and lone wolf crackpots—have always believed it is not only their right but theirdutyto preserve the shifter species through whatever means they deem necessary. The council has spent decades trying to breed tabbies, while individual psychos try to infect human women, and neither of them have givenusany real choice in that matter. But if there were more of us—if women came into this world strong and unified, instead of scared and cowed, and isolated—we could…”
“We could what?” There was something I couldn’t see. Something I still couldn’t understand.
“We could be a force in the shifter community.”
I could only frown at her. “Aren’t you already a force?” A fuckinglegend?
“On a good day, I am a thorn in the sides of some very powerful men, and proud of it. But I want to be much more than that. I wantyouto be much more than that.”
A tingle started at the base of my spine. “You’re definitely speaking my language,” I told her. “But…Titus is the Alpha, so…”
“And he’s a great Alpha,” Faythe said, reassuring me of her support for him. “But Alphas aren’t the only ones capable of making a true impact in our world. And the leader these women are going to need isn’t an Alpha. Not really. They’re going to need more than that. They’re going to need someone who understands where they’ve been and where they’re going. Someone who understands the specific challenges they’re going to be facing.
“Weare what they need, Charley. We can bring them together and support them. We can help mold them into a unified force able and willing to stand up for itself.” Faythe looked at me with those intense green eyes, and I couldn’t understand how anyone in the world had ever told her no. How anyone had ever wanted to. In that moment I believed in everything she was saying. That I was there in that time and place for areasonand that everything that had happened to me had a purpose. That my trauma could be someone else’s power. That it could bemypower. That I could own it and turn it into somethingamazing. And that she could help me do that.
That I could helpherdo that.
So when she asked me the question I knew was coming—“Charley, are you in?”—there was only one possible answer.
“Yes. Of course. Just tell me what you need.”
“It’s early days, obviously.” She leaned against the back of the booth, evidently more relaxed, now that she had my answer. “But with you in, we can move forward. I’ll let Dr. Carver know, and we’ll keep you apprised. I think we should move slowly in public; big changes tend to scare people. But that doesn’t mean things won’t be happening quickly behind the scenes.”
My heart seemed to beat with a new rhythm. An urgency inspired by this new purpose. Somehow, despite the killer on the loose—a traitor still literally in my midst—the world seemed brighter.
I felt…focused.
“Does Titus know about this?”
“Yes, of course, and he’s in total support. As are Jace, Robyn, Abby, and Kaci, which is why they were all on board with me taking this little mid-party detour. But no one else needs to know until further notice, so I’m trusting everyone else in this room to please keep this in strict confidence. It’s my understanding that your sister is good at keeping secrets.”
“I ammadeof secrets,” Davey said from the floor, where Wilder was crawling over her left thigh to reach for a toy he’d dropped. “Vance is too.”
Vance nodded, his protective gaze still glued to Davey and the toddler.
“What do you think the first steps will be?” I asked, turning back to Faythe at our booth.
