Page 9

I have not seen Kira since dinner last night, when I royally fucked every last thing up. From the moment she sat down, I had the sense that I’d done something wrong, and it was like everything out of my mouth only made her more uncomfortable, until she finally ran from the room.

My body thrums with worry. She hasn’t had anything to eat since I got her from the market. An hour ago, before everyone arrived, I left a plate of food at her door, knocked, and hurried away.

I have no idea what she likes, so I just took my own snacks down from the cabinets—beef jerky, nuts, some dried fruit. My hands clench into fists when I think about it, and I have to stop myself from going up the stairs, checking to see if she’s even brought the tray inside.

“Dorian, what a pleasant surprise,” Kellen says when I open the door and let him in.

Pleasant for him, but not for me. I hate having other people in my home, in the home that once belonged to my grandfather. With the exception of Emin, none of them have even been out here before.

But I’m not leaving Kira here alone. I have the feeling that the moment I pulled out of the driveway this morning, she would’ve hatched an escape plan, and I’d be forced to track her down, make sure she’s okay. I am not keeping her captive, but I know that she doesn’t have anyone else.

And I know her heat is coming soon. An omega on her own, packless and without a mate, without a friend at her side? The thought of it makes the hair on the back of my neck bristle, angry and ready to fight someone.

“Come in,” I manage to say, gesturing for Kellen to come inside. I don’t want him to know Kira is here yet, so I used some of the scent blocker from Claire and spread it through my home, masking her scent the best I could.

I can still smell it. I think I’ve always smelled it, since the day she left, but that could be because, as the alpha leader, my senses are stronger.

It could also be because Kira is my mate.

Kellen is talking, but I can hardly pay attention. I push thoughts of her away and try to focus on him instead, try to ignore the fact that my mate is somewhere above me, likely completely ignoring the food I’ve left outside her door.

After that, the rest of the council people arrive and gather around in my living room. I don’t offer refreshments or make small talk. I just walk to the front of the room, cross my arms, let out a breath, and start the meeting.

“As I’m sure you can see from my presence at this meeting, I made it to the market in Grayhide territory,” I say, wondering if they can see the exhaustion I feel plain on my face. “I arrived at night, cloaked and with the scent blocker on, and I have no reason to believe anyone at the market discovered my true identity.”

“Did you find Amanzite?” Claire asks. She’s perched on the very edge of a chair, her hands clasped together, looking wan. Nodding at her, I turn, walk into my study. Open the safe on the wall, pull out the rocks, and walk back into the room.

When I set the small bag down on the table, the color drains from her face.

“This is all you were able to get?” Kellen whispers, also looking like he might be sick.

“I kept my eyes open all night. There was only one vendor, and this was all the supply he had. When I pressed him for more information, he said, in no uncertain terms, that he’d stolen this himself, and so didn’t have a concrete lead on if or when he would get more.”

“Stolen goods,” Kellen mutters, looking to the ceiling. “Great.”

I understand the sentiment—the victim of this theft might go looking for their stash, and if they’re any good, it might lead them right to us. But we’re too vulnerable without the stones. It’s a risk we have to take.

“Do we have any other ideas for getting Amanzite?” Claire asks, her voice a squeak, her eyes red around the rims when she looks up at me. “Sir, this isn’t—”

There’s a knock at the door, then it swings open, and Emin comes strolling in. Despite being ten minutes late, he doesn’t look hurried, only slightly abashed as he walks into the living room and drops down into one of the armchairs.

“Sorry about that,” he says, laughing and running a hand through his hair. “I was—”

He pauses, his body going completely still, his eyes flying to mine. The air around us goes tense, and I understand the moment he’s smelled it.

His sister. Somehow, he caught the scent before his father did. As my right-hand, his senses might be stronger. Or, as the kid who played with her for his entire childhood, he might just be more attuned to the smell of her.

No matter what the reason, Emin sits up straight in his chair, and before I can signal to him with my facial expressions not to say a thing, his eyes are darting to the ceiling, his mouth opening in shock.

“Is Kira here?”

The council goes silent, all dozen or so eyes turning to me. Claire and Leta, who are both younger than Emin and I, look somewhat confused, their brows wrinkling, like they’re trying to recall where they know that name from.

Kellen speaks first. “Don’t be daft, Emin. Of course she’s not here, right, sir?”

When Kellen’s eyes shift to me, I know that I could lie. Compel him to believe me. Perhaps I could do that to everyone in this room, with the exception of Emin.

But those would not be the actions of the leader my grandfather raised me to be. Giving in to temptation, using your powers against those you are meant to work with—both things he warned me against.

Nobody is immune to the pull of alpha abilities. But the strongest can keep their morals about them while doing the best for their packs.

Standing taller, I let out a breath, look at each of them, and admit, “Yes. She is here.”

Kellen gasps. Emin, for the first time in my life, wears an expression I can’t decipher. Claire and Leta glance at one another, eyebrows raised. The others don’t dare murmur, but share their own looks, their own understanding of what’s going on here.

“But…” Kellen finally manages, blustering a bit, his hands flying, eyes darting around the room as though he’s looking for a reason, “… why?”

I take a moment to try and figure out what to say. I can’t tell them the truth—because Kira is, and always will be, my mate. No matter the declarations I made as an eighteen-year-old. No matter how long she’s been gone, my body yearns for her, and her alone.

Telling them that I regret my cruelty to her, that I want to make up for all the things I’ve done, all the pain I have caused her—it isn’t the right thing. And besides, it’s not them I need to tell. It’s Kira.

So, finally, I settle on the one thing that might actually make strategic sense. Something that could explain why, despite our pack’s history with this woman, I would make the choice to purchase her at the market.

“Because,” I say, raising my chin, using my most authoritative tone. “I believe she does have a gift and that she could be of great use to our pack.”

“What?” Kellen practically laughs, bringing his hand to his forehead and pushing back what meager hair he still has. “No, sir, we’ve already seen proof that—”

Kellen thinks the incident years ago was proof that Kira was lying. I think it’s just proof that she didn’t understand her gift. That she was a teenager, jumping to conclusions because she was young and inexperienced.

“Kira wasn’t doing it on purpose,” Emin says softly. “She just … I think she wanted to fit in. She didn’t understand what lying might do.”

“She was not—” Kellen turns to his son, clearly frustrated. “Kira is a liar, Emin. We’ve known this for years, and her behavior led to the death of an”—he lowers his voice, glancing at me in deference—“ alpha .”

“My grandfather was eighty years old when he died,” I interrupt. “And we all told him not to engage. Kira is not a liar—she is clairaudience, and will be a huge asset to this pack if I can convince her to stay.”

“Sir, this is just—” Kellen starts, at the same time two other council members start to speak. Some of them start to murmur among themselves, and the noise volume, along with the borderline disrespect from Kellen Argent, is really starting to piss me off.

Especially given the fact that I don’t even want to be standing here right now. I want to be upstairs, talking to Kira, apologizing.

The word bursts out of me before I know that it’s happening.

“ Enough !”

Without meaning to, I’ve compelled them, invoking the power I have as alpha, and every single person in the room falls completely and utterly silent, their bodies still, their heads bowed to me. I’m breathing hard, trying to reel myself in.

In a barely controlled, breathy voice, I say, “This meeting is adjourned. You are not to share any of the information you have learned today with the other pack members until I give explicit consent, understand?”

Nods go around the room.

“We’re done here,” I say, and when nobody moves, I sigh. “You can all go.”

They rise quickly, filtering out like the building is on fire. The last one to go is Emin, who pauses, looking me in the eye and putting his hand on my shoulder.

There’s something in his eye that tells me he knows this is about more than her gift, but he doesn’t press it, just squeezes once, nods, and continues on his way out the door.