Carnal

Chapter Forty-Five - Smothered Embers

We both peered down a long, empty hallway.

He opened the door completely and we both went inside quietly before he turned to close it behind us.

The walls inside were covered by the same crisp white paint that the stone outside was. The ceilings, which were nearly thirty-foot tall, were also white. But what caught my eye was the vivid, brilliant red carpet that we stood on. I almost felt guilty for walking on it with dirty feet.

Jai grabbed my hand and pulled me along the hallway, stopping when we got to the end of it to peer around the corner.

When he determined it was safe to proceed, he pulled me behind him and walked slowly down another hallway. This one, however, opened on one side to lead into a large gathering room.

Four large jade pillars sat on the one side of the hallway, stretching all the way to the ceiling to welcome guests into the gathering room.

I could hear murmurs and whispering as we got closer, our bodies pressed against the wall to remain hidden.

I saw the slow rise and fall of Jai's chest and the furrowing of his brows as he listened intently to what was being said.

"Jacob isn't in there," he said, seeming somewhat confused.

"Those three men were with him when he left the boat," I told him. "He has to be here."

Before either of us could say another word, we heard a door open and close. Looking back down the hallway, I could hear someone walking.

"Go," Jai said, pushing me in front of him.

I turned the corner and walked into the room with his hand on my back, urging me to walk quickly.

Some people, not all of them, turned to see us walk in. Among them were both Daniel and Zahra, both of whom looked shocked to see me.

Instead of saying anything, Jai pushed me between the two of them.

"Don't say a word," he said, using a low voice.

Zahra, immediately understanding what was happening, adjusted the handkerchief that was still somehow on my head and brushed my hair back into the cloth to keep it from being seen. She pulled the top over my forehead slightly to hide my face.

"Keep your head down," she said.

Daniel, picking up on the subtle cues, slid his coat off and handed it to me.

"It will help mask your scent," he said.

Just as I slid both arms into the coat, the whole room went silent.

"I'm glad you could all join me."

Jacob.

He walked around the room to stand in front of the large golden statute of Buddha that sat on the far wall.

I wondered for a moment if he realized how irreverent it had been to call a meeting like this inside a temple of worship.

Everyone gathered in closely, concealing me further even if they didn't realize it. The group counted probably forty people altogether and I recognized many of them from the meeting in Casablanca.

As I looked around, I couldn't find Cain anywhere.

Jai had said he was already inside?

"I don't wish to waste your time any more than you want to waste mine," Jacob said. "So, I'll get right to it."

I could feel everyone holding their breath.

"Those of you in this room have been given a vast responsibility to care for the people under your command. Should the same not be expected of your Alpha Sovereign? I believe it should, which is why I implore those of you that have gathered here today to help me depose my brother and advise that you should give his title to me so that it may be treated with the reverence and respect that this great Lycanthropic society has always deemed it to be."