What's the catch?
VINCE
The thousand foot soldiers standing outside my main gate had altered the atmosphere of my Pack. The once serene ambiance I had going had morphed into something tense and shuddering.
The stench of war was in the air. Every member of my Pack who wasn't part of the war was locked in their houses out of fear.
Watching the army from my balcony window made them look really dwarfish, but a lot. Pulling this many men for a war I wasn't sure of winning had to be the most reckless shit I've ever done.
I didn't even have a core plan on how to win this. I was considering two options: either charging into Richard's Pack, where I'm sure I can find Trent, or attacking his army at the conquered Packs and taking those back first.
Both plans had their downside. If I charged into Richard Pack, my men would be at risk of being burned to ashes. If I go after the conquered Packs, I could lose many men at that attack and I wouldn't have enough to directly go after Trent later on.
So yeah, I'm stuck, weighing my options and brooding over their downsides. I'd hate to be a fucking pessimist but for the first time, I wasn't seeing myself easily winning this. Not in the slightest and that shit is terrifying me.
Because I can't afford to lose. Of all the battles I've ever fought throughout my existence, this is one that I need to win. I must win, for myself, my family, my friends, and all the helpless folks who got their packs burnt down and usurped.
But if I lose, then Richard and Leonardo would lose their Packs forever. The whole region will be subjected to the tyrannical rule of Trent and his rogue allies. My Pack will be a ghost of its original self. And Elena…God, I don't even wanna think about what's gonna become of her.
So yeah, I need to win this. Even if I have to sacrifice my whole being in exchange for that victory.
“Hey, man.”
I glanced behind me. Luke. “Hey,” we bro-hugged. “Thanks for all that.” I gestured at the army waiting outside my gate.
“Nah, don't worry about it.” He waved it off with a cozy smile.
I nodded, going back to my silence.
“Uh, just curious. Don't snap at me,” he began cautiously.
“I won't,” I assured him.
“Good. Uh, do you have any strategy on how you intend to win this battle?”
I slowly shook my head. His brows arched in disbelief. “Seriously?”
“I'll figure something out eventually. But right now, I'm blank.”
“Whoa,” he breathed out nervously. He paced a bit and his gaze found me again. “Are you really not considering involving a little bit of dark magic? I mean, I'm not saying you should go full force into voodoo shit. But at the very least, meet someone who knows about it and have them educate you. Advise you on what strategy to use in this fight.”
“I really don't see myself doing that. Not after how it turned out for Richard.”
Speaking of the devil, he just came in. We paused our conversation for a few seconds, and then Luke continued.
“Well, Richard's case is different. He invited sorcerers into his Pack. He dined with them. He gave them the keys to ruin him with. That's not what I'm asking you to do. I'm just asking you to seek a bit of help. Get a bit of knowledge.”
“I know my men are gonna burn to ashes if they set foot into Richard's Pack. And I know Trent wants Elena in exchange for the antidote. That's basically enough knowledge.”
“Vince, c'mon.” He sighed, like he was getting frustrated by my rigidity. “So do you know how many men are with Trent in Richard's Pack? Do you know what exactly Trent wants from this war? Is it just Elena, or does he want all the Packs, too? Does he want you dead or just wants to take everything from you and leave you lonely and miserable? What's the price of this battle? You should know that first before engaging in such full force.”
Crazy how I never thought about it. But yeah, he's right. What exactly are we fighting for? What's the price? What needs to happen for this war to end? What does Trent want? It couldn't be just Elena. There's got to be something else.
I could never figure out the answers to the questions. But I knew who could.
“I'd like to show you guys something,” I said and stepped right past them.
They followed me down to the small torture room where Vanessa was lying, wounded, bleeding, and alone.
The room had a single window that illuminated it. The stench of blood hit us as we stepped inside. Richard gagged, covering his nose.
Yeah, he's such a baby.
“Anastasia?” Luke gasped, looking at me.
“What did you do to her?” Richard was having his own shock.
“That's not Anastasia. That's Vanessa.”
“What?”
“Yeah, welcome to one of the perks of dark magic. It allows you to take on whatever face you wish. Like my ex mate's.” I grunted out, kicking her stomach.
She cried out, curling into a ball. I crouched in front of her, pulling her up by her hair and forcing her to sit up.
Richard was retching again. Maybe I shouldn't have brought him down here.
“I'm gonna ask once. If you don't answer truthfully, I'll take the other part of your face from you. Do you fucking understand?” I gritted out, tightening my fist in her hair.
She whimpered and nodded. She looks hideous. As hideous as her dark heart.
“What does your son want from this war? What's the catch? He can't be causing all this chaos just for Elena.”
Vanessa sobbed. “All he wants is Elena…”
What?
“...and your Pack, which rightfully belongs to him.”
I yanked her hair and she gave a piercing cry. “Talk about rightfully again and I'll leave you bald.”
“So he's cooking this much chaos just for a girl? He's one impressive lad, Vince.” Luke teased.
How could he make jokes in such a serious situation?
But yeah, what? All these for Elena? Nah. Trent's not that kinda man. He wouldn't go this much length for a woman. He has his limits. He's too selfish to sacrifice this much just for love.
Vanessa's lying.