Chapter 37 The chaos in the Snowpack
Alexandra:
“They sent a warning.”
The words cut through the council chamber like a blade. I was mid-sentence when Elder Kael spoke, my mouth still open as I turned toward him slowly. The low murmur of voices died around us, chairs scraping faintly as people shifted in their seats.
“A warning from who?” I asked, keeping my tone level even as my pulse began to pick up.
Elder Kael stood near the eastern pillar, his shoulders stiff, his jaw clenched so tight a vein stood out along his neck. He looked like a man bracing for impact.
“Not from a pack,” he said.
That single clarification sent a ripple through the room.
I straightened fully in my chair. “Then say it properly.”
He hesitated, then said, “From humans.”
For a moment, no one reacted. Then the whispers started.
“That’s impossible.”
“They do not know enough.”
“They would not dare.”
I lifted my hand slowly, and the room fell quiet again.
“Humans do not send warnings,” I said. “They investigate. They imprison. They kill. So tell me why they chose a warning.”
Elder Kael stepped forward and placed a black folder on the stone table. The sound echoed louder than it should have.
“Because this was not meant for the public,” he said. “It was meant for us.”
I did not reach for the folder immediately. I looked around the table instead, at the elders, the pack leaders, the advisors who had survived too many conflicts to panic easily. Every single one of them looked uneasy.
“What exactly does it say?” I asked.
Elder Myra cleared her throat. “It frames Snow Pack as a classified biological concern.”
My fingers tightened against the arm of my chair.
“Concern,” I repeated.
“They avoid words like monster or predator,” she continued. “They use phrases like non-human biological population, risk vector, long-term containment feasibility.”
A bitter laugh escaped me before I could stop it.“They always sound cleaner when they plan to dissect you.”
Kael nodded. “They are positioning Snow Pack as a security liability.”
“And a resource,” Elder Myra added quietly.
That one landed heavier.
I finally reached for the folder and opened it, scanning the first page. The language was cold, precise, stripped of emotion. Every sentence felt calculated, designed to sound reasonable while stripping us of our right to exist freely.
My jaw clenched as I read.
“Human disappearance patterns,” I said aloud. “Illicit biological trade. Experimental value.”
I looked up sharply. “They are accusing us of selling human blood.”
“They are implying it,” Elder Kael said. “Carefully.”
“Who filed this?” I asked. “I want names.”
“There are two primary contributors,” Elder Myra replied. “One is Dr. Harris.”
That name already sat wrong in my gut.
“And the other?” I asked.
Kael did not answer immediately.
“Say it,” I snapped.
“Neel Silver.”
The reaction was immediate.
Chairs scraped back. Someone slammed a hand on the table.
“That human has no right.”
“He lives among us.”
“He was warned.”
My vision narrowed slightly as I stared at the folder. Neel Silver. Of course it would be him. Of course Tasha would use someone like him.
“So,” I said slowly, “she did not just break free. She weaponized sympathy.”
Kael exhaled sharply. “You think this is her doing.”
“This has her fingerprints all over it,” I replied. “Timing alone proves that.”
Elder Myra folded her hands. “There is more.”
I looked at her. “There always is.”
“They referenced a restraint failure,” she said. “A sudden surge in anomalous readings near Emerald territory.”
My chest tightened.
“The charm,” I said quietly.
Kael nodded once. “They know it was destroyed.”
The room fell into heavy silence.
“She broke it,” someone whispered.
“Yes,” I said. “She broke it.”
I closed the folder slowly. “And Emerald Pack confirmed this?”
“They did,” Kael said. “They admitted the charm failed. They admitted they no longer have control over her.”
A sharp, humorless smile tugged at my lips. “So she is unbound, furious, and clever enough to hide behind human systems.”
“She is escalating,” Myra said.
“She is punishing us,” I corrected.
Kael frowned. “Why Snow Pack first?”
I leaned forward, resting my forearms on the table. “Because we benefited most from her death. Because Alexandra was crowned in her place. Because I am standing where she should have stood.”
No one argued that.
“She wants us desperate,” I continued. “She wants us to make mistakes in front of humans.”
“And if we do not?” Myra asked.
“Then she will push harder,” I replied. “She always does.”
Elder Kael rubbed a hand over his face. “The humans are calling for a closed hearing.”
“With who present?” I asked.
“Military bioethics division,” he said. “Medical board. Intelligence oversight.”
“And Snow Pack?” I pressed.
“They want us present,” Myra said. “Under supervision.”
I scoffed. “They want to study our reactions.”
“They want leverage,” Elder Kael added.
I stood slowly, the stone chair scraping behind me. “Then we do not give it to them.”
“And Tasha?”Elder Myra asked. “Do we confront her?”
“No,” I said immediately. “That is exactly what she wants.”
I paced a few steps, my boots echoing softly against the chamber floor. “She wants us angry. She wants us guilty. She wants humans afraid.”
I stopped and turned back to them. “We will give her calm.”
“And if she strikes again?”Elder Kael asked.
My gaze hardened. “Then we expose her.”
A murmur spread through the room.
“Expose her how?” someone asked.
“She broke a restraint meant to protect everyone,” I said. “She manipulated humans into targeting a pack. That violates every supernatural accord that still exists.”
“And if humans side with her?” Myra asked quietly.
I met her eyes. “Humans do not protect what they cannot control.”
The implication settled heavily.
“They will turn on her,” I continued. “Eventually. All we need to do is make sure they see her as unstable.”
Kael hesitated. “And Neel Silver?”
My mouth tightened. “He is her weak point.”
“And ours,” Myra added.
I nodded. “Which means she will guard him fiercely. That is where she will slip.”
I turned toward the doors, already feeling the weight of what was coming.
“She thinks she has outplayed us,” I said. “She thinks this warning makes her untouchable.”
I paused, my hand resting against the cold stone.
“But humans do not issue warnings forever,” I added quietly. “Eventually, they choose extermination.”
I looked back at the council one last time.
“And when that happens,” I said, “we will make sure they know exactly who led them here.”
I pushed the doors open and walked out, my mind already racing, knowing one thing with terrifying certainty.
Tasha was not done. And neither was I.