Page 54 of Father of the Wolf

“Did I miss the fireworks, Brother?” Sgrios asked.

“Something like that.” Athair answered tersely.

“I did have to reset the breakers. Twice,” Steve said, grinning at Hope’s discomfort. Rath and Reultan laughed and added comments about helping to replace light bulbs.

“Steve!” Hope admonished.

“It’s about time,” Sgrios’ said. His obvious restraint kept the others from teasing too much.

Ella redirected their teasing by bringing up the burnt toast. That, and their discussion about the wonders of technology, kept the conversation relaxed throughout the rest of the meal. As it turned out, Sgrios hadn’t been as secluded as the rest of them. He knew quite a lot about the current world.

It was after everyone had finished eating that Athair said, “We need to make plans to deal with the traitors from the Bear Clan.” The group quieted and gave him their complete attention.

“This morning, they moved their campsite further into the forest. Now they are on the other side of the road closer to the park. They must know where we are, but they have pulled back the ones watching us.” Sgrios said.

“Why would they back off once they’ve found us?” Rath asked. “Why haven’t they attacked?

“Because of Ella,” Dàn said, No one seemed to understand his reasoning, and he continued, “They know she is the Keeper. She has maintained contact with the Bear Clan. She can offer protection and safe haven to any of our kind. They cannot hurt her or anyone she protects.”

“How do we use that to our advantage?” Sgrios asked.

“You don’t. I can’t offer you more than a temporary reprieve of whatever comes,” Ella answered. “It is my duty to protect them as well as you.”

“Can we at least choose our battle field?” Rath asked.

“Yes. I can think of a few places that would work well,” Sgrios said. “If we start back toward home, there is a particularly nasty wooded valley only about a day away. We can lead them to that place.”

“What do you mean by nasty?” Athair asked.

“It has lots of ravines and areas of thick woods.”

“Those would be even better if we could set traps and ambush the traitors.” Díon said.

“We won’t have much time before they catch us.” Reultan said as he gathered plates.

“Although, you will need to leave my protection soon, you can take some time to heal more completely,” Ella said with regret.

“We need to have this settled.” Sgrios added.

“How many of them are there?” Steve asked. “I take it they have powers like you do?”

“There are about half as many as before.” Rath said, with a very respectful nod to Sgrios. “Seven or eight now, I think. And a few of them may have lost interest in the fight.”

“The pack chasing me will have rejoined them,” Athair said. “I’m not sure of their numbers.”

“Can you tell us anything?” Rath turned to Dàn, who had been listening.

Dàn closed his eyes and looked anxious. “This is not our battle.” Red mist curled against his throat, clearly showing his distress. “But it will eventually come to war. The end will be either wolf against wolf, or wolf against man.”

“The traitors are few,” Athair said.

“Those few traitors of the Bear clan have ties to other clans. They may not be dangerous now, but they will have many supporters,” Dàn continued.

“Why?” Hope asked. “What do they want?”

“For many years, they have been in turmoil. There are some who feel they should be leading the clan instead of Sandulfr,” Sgrios said.

“The Shaman is the son of the leader who originally brought the Bear Clan to America,” added Dàn.

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