92

92
ELLA
I tried to keep my presence as discreet as possible. Kade picked up on the change in the atmosphere faster than his brother had, and I could use that as an opportunity to find out what else they knew about the murder.
I watched as Lucian led the others through the woods. They walked as quietly as they could, turning in every direction they heard a sound from.
I hadn’t heard Claire’s voice in a while, and it filled me with relief to know that I had successfully calmed down and the procedure was going well.
Or I had permanently slipped into this state with no way to come out. The only way to find out which side of the coin I had been dealt was to wait until something changed.
Time rolled by as the patrol team walked towards the other end of the woods, then decided to call it a day.
“See you at the pack meeting,” Lucian said and walked off in the opposite direction. The others mumbled a response as they walked away in different directions.
I heard a buzzing sound in my ears, then silence. Slowly, my vision blurred and I realized that the connection was fading away. I was thankful to be out of his mind, but as much as I tried to, I couldn’t bring myself to open my eyes and be back in the warehouse. Instead, everything faded to black and I passed out.
When I regained consciousness, I wasn’t where I wanted to be, and that filled me with panic. I also didn’t know how much time had passed, but I could hear voices around me.
As my vision cleared, I realized I was in a hall. Or rather, I could see the surroundings at least, because it was beginning to feel a little bit awkward—to be able to see things but not feel them, as my body was still in the warehouse.
The hall was nearly empty except for a group who sat at the podium.
“You’re late,” a voice from the gathering said.
I tried to answer but instantly caught myself when I heard the sound of Lucian’s voice reverberate throughout the room.
“Well, I don’t even want to be here,” he said as he approached the platform.
It all came rushing to me—realizing that I was still in Lucian’s head. And the thought that a few seconds ago he might’ve caught onto what was happening filled me with anxiety.
I watched as the group broke away and everyone picked a seat and settled down quietly.
“Where’s your brother?” another voice asked.
I recognized this person—I had heard their voice at pack meetings for most of my life. Meetings… I’ll be damned. I was at the pack meeting Lucian spoke about while they were on patrol.
That meant I had been knocked out anywhere between a few hours and three days. This was the longest I had ever spent in someone’s mind since I got this ability, and I was beginning to think it might just be my undoing.
I had connected the dots, and nothing about the situation brought me any relief. Knowing he was standing before the council was a constant source of uneasiness.
If I had been worried before about Lucian noticing what was going on, the bar had just gotten much higher—I had to also make sure the expert eyes and noses of these werewolves didn’t detect my presence or pick up a different scent.
“Probably doing something worthwhile with his time,” Lucian’s voice cut through my thoughts, and I observed with rapt attention. He turned his gaze to the person who had spoken, and I could see his face as clear as day.
His eyes bore into Lucian’s—and mine—as he arched an eyebrow.
“There are more important things than the fate of this pack?” he said, and Lucian scoffed.
“This meeting isn’t doing anything for the fate of this pack. The only thing happening here is some sort of coalition to spread fear among the pack.”
“Spread fear? You mean informing people about the oncoming evil? The same one we’ve talked about for years now, and you doubted the credibility of it up until now? We don’t have to spread anything. A child was hung at the school gate—even the humans are scared!”
“So why am I here?! I could be out there patrolling, searching for clues…” Lucian started to say, and the elders scoffed.
“What good has all that patrolling done? We’ll tell you why you’re here, Lucian Blackthorn—it’s because you need to get your act together.”
“Get my act together?” Lucian retorted and chuckled in a humorless way. “That’s all I’ve done my entire life. I barely do anything because I want to—everything I do has to benefit the pack somehow. Get my act together? You have some nerve bringing that up, all of you. What have you done to secure this pack from this impending end you always talk about? You sit on your high horses and try to dictate what I can and can’t do. I’m the Alpha of this pack. I’m the leader. You do what I say, not the other way around!”
His body shook with rage—it left me feeling befuddled. I knew he was a hothead, but I had never seen him this riled up. In that moment, I admitted that besides their consistency at being assholes to me, I didn’t know much about the twins.
The tension in the room was palpable, and it was evident that they had been dealing with their fair share of troubles.
If this was what their meetings with the elders were like, I could understand why they’d be miserable. I wouldn’t want such weight on my shoulders.
“You and your brother might be the chosen leaders, but we do what the Moon Goddess says,” came the response, and Lucian shook his head.
“Typical. I’d be surprised if you said anything different. What does the Moon Goddess want this time?”
“Simple. For you and your brother to get a mate—or pass the leadership to someone who can.” The answer came from a different end of the room, and Lucian moved his gaze to the speaker.
Seated in the back was a blonde-haired man. He stood up and made his way towards the podium in slow strides. Lucian broke into a hearty laugh as he got closer, then ran his hands through his hair as the hall grew quiet.
“You’re joking, right?” he asked after a long silence, then chuckled. The man shrugged and started making his way up the podium. He took his seat in the middle of the group, and I could see that he was clearly the spokesperson. I hadn’t been in enough pack meetings to put a name to the face, but his aura and—
“Who else has the ability to run this pack, and who would dare stand against my brother and me?” Lucian added, his voice cutting through my thoughts and pulling me back to the scene before me.
“We’ve asked ourselves those questions over and over again,” the blonde man replied and smiled. “We’re at the point where we’d take anyone brave enough.”