Chapter Forty

N I C C O L O

The energy in the room shifts completely, from mocking and intense to awkward and maybe even a little afraid. I don’t know much about Alpha Amos, but it’s very clear at this moment that he always has an air of authority and people are used to listening to his every word.

That itself is apparent now, as the delegates look at each other and lower their heads in shame.

Alpha Amos steps back, but he draws himself to his full height to look at Alpha Isaac again, who is busy trying to maintain the pleasant smile on his face. “For months, you have made changes I don’t completely agree with,” he continues in a serious tone. “I was and still am indebted for the resources and the people you lent me in search of my daughter, but I am afraid that this is something I will not allow you to touch. My daughter and her mate have caused no harm—”

“We shall talk about this in private, Alpha Amos,” Alpha Isaac interrupts stiffly. “We shall talk about the matter at hand, which is the welfare of the warriors.

“Yes, because they are hurt, Alpha Amos,” the female delegate from earlier insists to Florence’s dad. “Have you no mercy for them? No sympathy? They have risked their lives to keep this unknown Alpha at bay.”

The tension in the room grows more intense, and this time I know that they will turn on me—as they originally intended. “I am not an unknown Alpha,” I say finally. They all seem surprised to hear my voice. Maybe even afraid. “My pack has existed for years. Centuries, even.”

The Alphas and the Lunas begin to pepper me with questions and the noise is so loud that I nearly have to cover my ears. They all seem eager and maybe even pressed to have their questions answered, but I don’t know who to turn to first.

Before I can tell them to ask me one at a time, Alpha Isaac raises his arms to silence everyone. They all shut up at once, which is surprising given that he doesn’t exude that authority. Still, none of them say a single thing and they all just turn to him instead.

He looks at me first. “Centuries. Is that right, Alpha Niccolo?”

“Yes,” I say confidently.

“Very well, then.” Something about his smile changes as he looks at the delegates. “He is correct. I have been doing my own research about the packs and their history and I see that Ombra Nera has been around. The last leader was Alpha Magnus. There is not much to know about him, but I guess it would be good to hear it from you first.”

My blood turns cold. I force myself to nod, but my heart is racing. Does he know about my real father and what he did? Does he know about me?

Alpha Isaac lowers his hands, peering at me with narrowed eyes. “Is everything alright, Alpha Niccolo? You seem a little hesitant. Is there something that you are wishing to hide?”

“He is not hiding anything.” Alpha Amos interjects again. “He is hesitating because he got dragged here like a criminal.”

“That’s what he’s here to disprove,” Alpha Isaac replies calmly. “I said, we will talk about our own matter in private.”

“No.” Alpha Amos shakes his head. “I know I owe you, and I will pay my dues however long it takes, but I am asking you now to leave my pack. I will keep in contact for the things I need to pay back.”

“We had an agreement,” Alpha Isaac reminds him.

Florence turns to her father. “What agreement?”

Her dad just shakes his head at her like he’s warning her to keep quiet before turning back to Alpha Isaac. “I know, but the agreement is no longer working. We must agree to adapt. After all, that is what you preached when you built this group, this alliance among the Alphas and Lunas.”

The other delegates begin to consider what he’s saying. I hate how fickle they can be, but I am relieved by the fact that they respect Alpha Amos enough to at least nod supportively at what he’s saying.

But Alpha Isaac is clearly not a fan of this. He smiles politely again, wider this time but with his cheeks shaking with the effort, then he turns to Alpha Amos. “I would love that, and I am open to packing my bags and taking my family and my people back to our home. But Alpha Amos... you are buried under loans. Last time I checked your books, I have found your vaults to be empty, and the land is what you paid me to find your daughter.”

Florence gasps audibly beside me. That dropped like a bomb all over the table. No one speaks. I don’t think anyone is able to.

Even Alpha Amos just turns pale in the face, looks around one more time, and leaves the room.

“Dad!” Florence yells after him, getting up and following him out.

I come after them, jogging to keep up as Alpha Amos tries to head to his cabin and lock himself in. Florence blocks him and forces her way inside, so I follow them.

Alpha Amos slumps on the chair. “I’m sorry. I lied about everything. I sold the pack land to Alpha Isaac. All our business ventures tanked when you were gone, Florence. I couldn’t bring myself to continue.”

“You lied to me,” Florence hisses, her face wet with tears. “You lied to my face. You could have told me all of this and I would have helped you!”

“I’m sorry,” her father whispers. “I’m so sorry...”

“I can help,” I volunteer. “My pack is self-sustained and we have enough to carry us through to the next ten generations.”

“No.” Florence whips around to face me. “This is something that my father has to fix. You are still being watched and under scrutiny. They can use that help against you. You know they are actively making shit up about your pack. What will they say if you suddenly shell out a huge amount of money after years of knowing that your pack was self-sustained and perfectly hidden? You can’t give them a reason to hurt you and your pack, Niccolo. I can’t have that on my conscience.”

“I know, and I agree with you, but I can’t watch all of this go down while knowing I can help.” I try to put my hands on her shoulders but she’s so angry that she steps back from me. “Florence, we can find a way. We’ll make it look like profit. Or a dowry for marriage. It’s not a big deal.”

“It is to me.” She takes a deep, shaky breath and turns to her father. “I can’t believe you would do this, Dad. I really can’t.” With that, she turns around and walks out of the cabin. I try to follow her but she just slams the door behind her and runs off. I’m about to go out when I hear Alpha Amos exhaling sharply, his eyes red with tears.

“I’m sorry,” I say in a low voice. “I will help you, I promise.”

“No, you shouldn’t.” He wipes his face and gets up from the couch. “I have to make this right on my own, and I will. But you... you need to get out of here.”

“What?” I splutter. “Florence is right, they will misconstrue that—”

“And I am ready to face the consequences.” Alpha Amos puts his hand on my shoulder and looks me straight in the eye. “Tonight, I want you to take Florence out of here and take her back to your pack. And when you’re there, assemble the strongest army you can muster. Don’t tell Florence about any of this. Remember your promise to me.”