Chapter 64: Chapter Sixty-four

Chapter 64

Brie’s POV

The council chamber had long since emptied, but the air still smelled faintly of spiced wine and roasted meat. I lingered in the silence, my hand brushing over the smooth grain of the table where Edgar had sat earlier, glaring down at us with that stubborn fire in his eyes. Even weakened, half-broken, he had held himself like a wolf refusing the leash.

It was both admirable and infuriating.

He had survived the poison. Worse, he had turned it into a spectacle that left whispers trailing in the corridors. Lia’s tongue, Lia’s sacrifice, Lia’s loyalty. Already the story was growing into legend among the younger wolves. They said the goddess herself guided her lips, that fate had marked her as Edgar’s shield.

I would not let such a story harden into truth. Legends outlast strength. Legends rally loyalty. And loyalty was the one thing I needed to unravel.

I drew my cloak closer as the sound of footsteps approached from the far door. Three elders entered quietly, Councilors Halric, Fenra, and Caddel. None of them had spoken much during the poisoning incident, but I had read their faces. Doubt lived there.

“Lady Brie,” Halric greeted, his voice low, almost conspiratorial. “You summoned us?”

I inclined my head. “I asked only for a conversation among those who still value the survival of this pack above sentimental tales.”

Fenra, a sharp-eyed woman with a mouth always set too tightly, exchanged a glance with Caddel. “Careful words, Councilor. The Alpha may be failing, but he still wears the title.”

“Exactly,” I answered smoothly. “And if he falls, so will the rest of us. Unless, of course, we prepare. Unless we ensure his weakness does not drag the whole of Duskwood into the grave with him.”

They hesitated, each waiting for the other to respond. Halric finally spoke, lowering himself into a chair. “Say what you mean, Brie.”

I circled the table slowly, my fingertips brushing the wood, my voice measured.

“Edgar is not the Alpha this pack needs. Not anymore. He is sickly, poisoned by fate itself. You saw him struggle to stand, to walk. You felt how thin his authority has become. And still, he clings to his mate, an outsider, a woman whose loyalty is not to our traditions but to her own bond. Do you truly believe she would put the pack before him?”

Caddel scoffed under his breath. “You speak boldly.”

“I speak truth,” I said, pausing behind his chair. “You all saw it. She tasted his cup before him, yes. But what was that, if not a show? A calculated moment to remind you all that without her, he would have fallen. And now, already, the whispers call her chosen of the goddess. Tell me, are we wolves, or are we children following bedtime stories?”

Fenra’s lips twitched. She leaned forward, her elbows on the table. “You mean to set the council against him.”

“No,” I corrected softly. “I mean to set the council for the pack. For survival. Edgar is one man. One wolf. And one wolf cannot drag the rest of us into death simply because he is too proud to surrender.”

Silence stretched, tense but ripe. I could feel them weighing my words. Doubt was already there; I was simply shaping it into form.

Halric cleared his throat. “What do you propose?”

I allowed a small smile to curl my lips. “Patience, for now. Nothing drastic. We watch. We wait. And when Edgar inevitably falters before the pack, whether in council, or in the field, we will be ready to offer what he cannot. Stability. Leadership. A future untainted by weakness.”

Caddel’s eyes narrowed. “And who holds that future, Brie? You?”

I met his gaze without flinching. “I am not so reckless as to claim the mantle myself. But there are others who could. Others who have the strength, the lineage, and the vision. All we need is to create the opening.”

I did not say Connor’s name. Not yet. They weren’t ready to hear it, and secrecy was the armor he wore. But the idea was planted, the soil tilled.

Fenra leaned back, her eyes narrowing. “If we are discovered in such talks”

“You won’t be,” I interrupted smoothly. “Because for now, we speak only of protecting the pack. Nothing more. No oaths, no treason. Only preparation.”

The hesitation remained, but cracks were forming. I could see it in the way Halric avoided my eyes, in the way Fenra drummed her fingers against the table, in how Caddel’s lips pressed thinner with every beat of silence.

At last, Halric sighed. “Very well. We will listen. But if Edgar hears even a whisper”

“Then let him hear,” I said coldly. “Let him waste what little breath he has left snarling at shadows. While he does, we will be shaping the future.”

They said no more, but they didn’t need to. The seed was planted, watered by their doubt. In time, it would sprout into rebellion.

When the elders slipped away, I remained in the chamber a moment longer, savoring the silence. The first barrier had been breached.

Later that night, I walked the shadowed path that wound behind the council hall, my cloak drawn tight against the chill. The moon hung low, veiled by thin clouds, casting pale silver across the stones.

A figure detached itself from the darker shadows by the treeline. Connor.

“You kept me waiting,” he said, his voice low but edged.

“You’ll survive,” I replied coolly. “Patience, Connor. We are weaving a tapestry, not hacking through with an axe.”

His jaw clenched. “While you weave, my brother sits on a throne that should be mine. Every day he breathes, his legend grows. Even sick, they look to him. Even poisoned, they whisper about destiny.”

I lifted my chin. “And every day he weakens. Did you not hear? He nearly collapsed before the council today. His strength is a candle guttering in the wind. All we must do is wait for it to flicker out.”

“Waiting,” Connor spat, pacing a step away, his fists tight. “You have been whispering patience for weeks. I could end this with one blade.”

I caught his arm, forcing him to face me. “And what then? The pack tears itself apart. They call you kinslayer, monster, exile. You would not inherit Duskwood, you would salt its ruins.”

His eyes burned into mine, but I did not waver. Slowly, his tension eased, though the fury still smoldered.

I softened my voice. “Listen to me. Today I brought three elders to the edge of doubt. They are watching him now, questioning silently. Soon, they will not need my voice, they will believe the thoughts are their own. And when enough of them shift, the throne will be yours without a blade drawn.”

He said nothing for a long moment, only breathing hard, before finally pulling his arm free. “You had better be right, Brie. Because my patience wears thin.”

I smiled faintly. “And that is why you need me. You are fire. I am the hand that shapes the flames. Together, we will burn away the shadow of Edgar Nolan.”