325- The Alpha's Counsel
POV Viktor Averwyn:
The five chairs were arranged around the table in my office in the central building. At the head, I faced the serious faces of the four men I trusted most, who held fundamental roles in the village.
In times of crisis, they formed my private council. I got straight to the point:
“We will be attacked again.”
“By Alpha Konrad Cyndrael?” Emil inquired.
His freckled face showed concern. At three hundred and some years old, he lived there with his wife and children. They had six, four males and two females, Lana and Iula, the latter murdered some time ago.
He was in charge of all the village's internal supply.
“Perhaps by everyone,” I replied, preparing for the worst.
“But we were attacked first.” Lonut, head of the mines, shifted in his seat. He rubbed his large nose, showing irritation. “Were the Elders informed of the attack, Viktor?”
I could see Konrad's plans in motion. That's why I was frank:
“I sent a message before coming here. They haven't answered me yet, but it will be our word against Cyndrael's.”
“A trap.” Florian, the oldest of the group, ran his fingers through his very gray hair.
He was Daciana's husband, father of two present there: Cezar and Lonut. Today the eldest son occupied the position that was once his, as head of my guard. Retired, at 489 years old, Florian was the best gardener in our territory. And one of the wisest males in our pack.
“Why?” He stared at me. “Because of the human?”
“That will be the excuse. There's much more. I'm trying to piece things together and find out.”
I didn't tell them about the many memories I had in the snowy valley. The black-haired woman, the white-haired man, the boy who looked like Edric, and the young man, always seen from afar. Sometimes I even wondered if it could be Aldren. The ages matched.
Perhaps I was traveling too much, mixing fantasy and reality. But if I had to call any of them brothers, it would never be Konrad or Lucian.
The memories with them weren't always good. In some, we were attacked. Fire consuming everything, screams, despair. Our past was an unknown. We appeared out of nowhere. Perhaps that past was trying to return.
“But why didn't Konrad attack before?” Cezar turned to me. “Only now, after you brought the girl here? What is she to him?”
“What if she's a spy?” Emil leaned his broad arms on the table.
“We'll find out. She's under my watch.”
“Can you say why you brought her here?” the redhead asked quietly.
“Something always drew me to that village. It got worse when she arrived. I went there to find out and found Konrad in the forest, almost killing her. If I had been a second late, she would have been finished. He fled. I healed her and brought her with me.”
“So, it's much more complicated,” Lonut murmured.
“What if she knows some secret of Konrad's?”
The possibilities were wide. I didn't tell the rest. Her kinship with Jasmina, the other alpha's desperation to have her back. The interests didn't align.
“We'll find out what it is. Meanwhile, I want you to be prepared for the worst.” I unfolded the large paper that was in front of me, exposing a map of our territory. “We are protected up here on the height.”
I began to point:
“The cliff behind us is inaccessible to those coming from below. The forests between Costantini, Cyndrael, and Valmorin are prepared with traps, explosives, silver-armed devices. We have secret passages in the mines, leading out to strategic points. Perhaps we can resist for months, should there be a war. And weaken the enemy side. That's being pessimistic.”
“He might retreat. Or not have enough support for such an action,” Cezar considered.
“It's a possibility.” I was counting on the good sense of Aldren and Edric. I didn't know what the Elders' reaction to the crisis would be. “But I want you to point out now where our weak points are. What we should worry about. And whether the supplies for storage have arrived.”
“Yes, no problem there. Perhaps the northern field could be reinforced.”
They began to talk, give suggestions, as we laid out our strategies. I noticed that night was falling, with no news. There was still a hope for peace, or at least for dialogue.
We were just finishing when my cell phone rang and I saw Aldren's name on the screen. Silence fell in the room as I answered.
“Viktor, can we talk?”
“Go ahead.”
“A new emergency meeting has been scheduled for tomorrow morning.” His voice was worried.
“I left a message for the Elders. Why didn't they summon me, answering me directly?” I leaned back in my chair. Four pairs of eyes fixed on me.
“Perhaps they think you would pay more attention to me than to them. We have a friendly relationship.”
“Of respect. We were never friends. You always made it clear that you only trust Edric and vice-versa.”
I thought again of my visions. The little boy and the young man always together. Perhaps they didn't remember, but the feeling between them hadn't been forgotten. If it wasn't just an illusion of my mind.
“We are aware of what happened and want to resolve it in the best way possible, Viktor. The Elders are worried. For years we have respected the laws, maintained peace. And now...”
“I am not declaring war on anyone. I was attacked.”
“That's not what Konrad reported.”
“Go on.”
“He accuses you of aggression. You attacked him when he was with his girlfriend, near a gypsy village. You almost tore him apart, stole the girl. He tried to get her back peacefully, along with a group of gypsies. Your response was violent, killing twenty of his wolves at the entrance to your territory.”
“And you believed him?”
“Is it a lie?”
“Does it matter if I say yes?”
Even expecting that from Konrad, I couldn't contain my rage at his cowardice and his lies.
“I would like to hear your version.” Aldren remained calm.
Florian got up and served himself a drink. I nodded when he brought glasses and a bottle to the table, pouring a measure for me and the others. I took a sip before continuing:
“I went to the village last night. Something was calling me there. A different smell. I saw the woman Konrad calls his girlfriend. A gypsy, human. I left, but came back later, feeling her fear. When I arrived, Konrad was attacking her in the forest.”