One of them I knew personally — Zach, Alpha Asshole of the Asshole Pack. In reality, he led the least prejudiced pack I had ever met. But he was glaring at me now, and not in his normal, friendly way.
His cousin, Jaden, was also looking suitably pissed off. I remembered the names of all the rest: Cornell from Lowland, Jackson from Ember, Chris from Pine Forest and—
"You tried to kill me," I snarled at Keith.
"I don't know what you're talking about." He was a tall, lean man with dark eyes. Cowardly, but sly about it.
"Yes, you do," Jace sighed. "She knows it, I know it, the whole damn army knows it."
Keith took a second to decide if he should remain incredulous or admit to everything. Fortunately, he settled on the latter. "Fine. It's true. Jace had been making excuses for months, trying to shirk out of our deal, and I got tired of it. I'm just sorry that my man failed."
"And was it you who imprisoned those hunters?" I asked, with a sneaking glance at Cassidy. She was scowling next to her mate.
"Well ... yes. The ransom for Malcolm's men was your head. Then you mucked it all up by freeing them."
"Which is when Jace finally decided to keep his promise," I finished. It was all starting to make sense.
The other Alphas weren't looking terribly pleased with this conversation — their kind really can't stand being ignored. When Jaden started tapping his foot impatiently, I spat at his feet.
"As for the lot of you lying cowards, you didn't even have the guts to fight me openly — hiding behind a pack war to disguise what you were doing. Are we really so terrifying?"
Keith scowled. "You have no morals, no inhibitions. Need I mention what happened with the ferals?"
"I won't apologise for that. I would have set the whole world on fire if it meant my family was safe." It took every ounce of my willpower to smirk at them all. "Maybe I still will."
"You lost, Skye," Jace said, not ungently. "It's over."
"It will never be over. We're still breathing and free — and you won't get away with this. What's a fitting punishment for destroying my home and killing my people without provocation?"
"You were a danger to us. A threat that needed to be removed. When rogues gather in such large numbers, they put every lawful pack at risk," another of the Alphas argued.
I rounded on him. "Bullshit. We're not hurting anyone. You want to know what I think? You hear the word rogue and you stop listening."
"That's because the definition of the word rogue is dishonest and unprincipled. There's a reason we kick you out of our packs. How many murderers have you got in that castle, Skye?" Jace asked.
"A few," I admitted. "But more who did nothing wrong. We all have a story — a reason we went rogue. I was half-starved and outcast in your world."
I hadn't noticed my family arrive until Fion spoke up. "My parents beat me every day. No one lifted a finger to stop it until Rhodric showed up."
"I was a miserable kid. You've met my parents," Leo said by way of explanation.
"Ollie and his mother had to leave their pack when he was only a few weeks old," Fion continued, "because she refused to sleep with the Alpha, and he wasn't taking it very well."
She gave Keith a very pointed look. I didn't fail to notice when he coughed and averted his eyes.
"Ryker and Emmett, whom you tortured, were beaten within an inch of their lives for being gay." That had actually been a rogue group, but I saw no reason to disclose that to the douchebag Alphas. "Sammy was born into this life — and lost both of his parents to pack justice when they wandered over a border."
Okay, so maybe the dishonest part of the definition was correct. Sammy's father had died on a raid, his mother during Brandon's coup. But the boy was playing his part well. Tears glistened in his little blue eyes, and he half-hid behind my brother. That one was a rogue through and through.
We weren't moving them. That much was clear. Jace just looked away. Some of the other Alpha shifted uncomfortably in place, but that was all. Only Zach looked bored, which said quite a lot about his character. Not perceptive enough to care if we were lying, and not compassionate enough to give a damn either way.
"I'm sure you're not all evil," Alpha Chris allowed. "But enough of you are. This threat cannot be allowed to continue."
"Our decision is final," Keith agreed.
But it was Zach who summarised that decision. "We're not going away, Skye. One way or another, the castle will fall."
The six of them gave me a look that was nothing less than dismissive. I stood my ground, glared an awful lot, and set my jaw. I was in an aggravating mood, but not suicidally so. My family retreated at a nod from me — whatever reason I was still alive and free probably didn't include them.
Jace recognised my stance and went for the tactful option. "Could you give us a minute? Please?"
It took almost a minute, but eventually the Alphas dispersed, perhaps realising it would be less effort than making me leave. That left me alone with Jace Lloyd, once again.
"So I couldn't convince them, surprise surprise. What will happen now?"
"We could take the castle by force. It would be costly for our men, but we could do it. The alternative is this. You go in — convince them to surrender. I can promise amnesty for anyone who comes quietly. Males of fighting age will be killed or sent to the prison camp at Corwen. That's non-negotiable. But the women and children will be free to go wherever they wish, as long as they never set foot on pack land," Jace told me.
"Free," I said bitterly. "Free to leave their family and home behind and start a new life in a world which hates them."
"At least they'll have lives. If it were up to Keith, the north would be a rogue free zone already."
"And me? I can't see him letting me skip off into the sunset."
"You really need to ask?" he said wearily. "The packmeet sealed your death warrant, Skye. And your mate's. The best I can promise is that it will be quick — and that alone required hours of argument that you're not without some morals. They agreed that it is Rhodric, not you, who poses the greatest threat to us. You'll need to tell us where he is."
"Dead," I snapped.
"I'm sorry." I think he might really have meant it, which just made me feel twice as awful. "That was another part of the deal. Rhodric's head on a platter."
"So you would have killed him anyway." It wasn't a question. I didn't doubt that he would have done it.
"For the sake of peace — yes. I gave your civilians a second chance, Skye. Don't screw it up. And your brother..."
"What about my brother?" I looked at Rhys, who took a step closer automatically. I had to shake my head. We didn't need a rogue-Alpha fight right now, however satisfying it might have been.
Jace set his jaw. "The other Alphas want him dead as well. He's male, and according to them, that makes him more dangerous. It's like you said. That boy has been raiding since he was seven years old. There's not a pack in all the north who hasn't lost fighters to Rhys Llewellyn. And, well, I was outvoted."
"You don't seriously think that I'm going to let you—"
He glowered at me. "Just for once, shut up and listen. I know him. I know he's got a good heart. Zach and I managed to force a pardon, at least for any crimes committed in our two packs. He can come to New Dawn ... as a prisoner. But the second he puts a paw out of line, Keith will force my hand."
"I think he would rather die free than live in captivity. You're going to have to do better than that," I said truthfully.
"I can't. And even if I could, I wouldn't. This treaty is tenuous enough without me pushing at the boundaries. It was a big enough risk to ask for his life."
"Then why did you do it?" I asked. "Why go to all this trouble?"
"We all owe you, Skye. And your brother, as much as I hate to admit it. For getting rid of Malcolm and the ferals. Now the person who has done the most to make peace is the only thing standing in the way of it. This is an impossible situation." For the first time, I felt Jace was being truly honest. He didn't regret his actions, but he regretted their necessity.
Yet I didn't regret deceiving him in the slightest when I met his eyes and said, "Fine. I'll do it. And Rhys will come quietly."
I didn't bother waiting for his reply before walking to my family. The Alphas returned from their brief exile to hear the verdict of our conversation. They talked in not-so-hushed whispers while I sought out my brother.
Rhys raised an eyebrow and spoke quietly. "Did I hear that correctly? Jace will let me in his precious pack?"
"In essence, yes."
"Look at me — moving on up in the world," Rhys laughed.
I smothered a smile. "There's a catch."
"Yeah?"
"You have to behave."
"Sure, I can do that" —he grinned, and for a moment all was right in the world —"for maybe five minutes."
We exchanged a look which said more than words alone would ever be able to. We couldn't go along with Jace's deal, and this was the excuse I needed to justify it. I couldn't convince myself to endanger everyone under my command for my life, my mate's life, or the freedom of our raiders. But I could do it for my brother. Because sooner or later, Rhys would screw up and lose his head for it.
"They're braver than you'll ever be," Jace said aloud to Keith. The Alphas couldn't have heard, but they could see us. "When you take everything from someone and they can still smile, that's courage. Not stabbing your enemies the second their back is turned."
"Why does it feel like you're siding with the rogues, Jace?" Alpha Keith replied icily.
"I'm not on their side, and I'm not on yours. I'm only here to make sure you don't have any reason to declare a real pack war." Jace finally noticed we were listening in and folded his arms. "Come on then. Let's get this over with."
I made one last, futile attempt, "I don't suppose you'd go for single combat?" It had worked on Brandon.
"How stupid do you honestly think I am, Skye?"
"Incredibly."
He ignored the taunt and gestured at the castle impatiently. My ragtag group moved to stand in the shadow of the entrance. Leo knocked on the gates twice. Behind us, I could hear the muffled sounds of the Alphas retreating to a safe distance.
Rhys set Sammy on the ground and took hold of his hand, while we all tried to pretend we didn't notice the way Cassidy was eyeing the pair of them. Some deep part of her was basking in the revelation that her mate was good with children.
Yet the castle remained stubbornly lifeless. The closed gates loomed before us, unyielding and impenetrable. We were a strange band — four werewolves, a human, two kids, a baby and a crazy old man in the shape of a panther.
"They were asking for a password," Jace called.
Of course they were. I blinked back tears. Not out of anger or frustration, but just sadness. I had been here before.
"Last Haven."
What were we supposed to do, now that the last haven was no longer safe? Die, most likely.
Nervous muttering broke out among the defendants, who were no doubt packed like sardines in the courtyard. One familiar voice raised above the others. "Yeah, that's not it anymore. We thought it was too obvious. You have zero attempts remaining. Please try again in an hour."
As proud as I was of my friends for using common sense, it was a little inconvenient right now.
"Walnuts?" I tried.
A hush fell over the castle, only to be broken by that same voice. "Is that Skye?"
Two heads popped up above the battlements. The other set of twins. Kyle was still in his wheelchair, so I had no idea how he'd got up there, or why they were always given door-keeping duty.
"You gotta let Skye in," Kevin pointed out. "Or she'll kick your disabled ass."
"That would be redundant—I can't feel my ass. One of the few perks of being paralysed," Kyle scoffed. But all the same, the gates creaked open.
The survivors were strewn around the courtyard, perhaps as many as two hundred of them. Some were injured, many were in varying stages of shock, and all of them were staring at me. We walked through the gates. As they slid shut behind us, I turned to throw a smirk at the Alphas.
If Jace wanted us out of the castle, we would damn well leave the castle. On our own terms.
Next Friday guys, don't forget. And it might be a bit early, because I have to go chill with all the ill people for clinic. Ah, good fun. I swear I get medically examined more often than educationally examined.