Page 45 of Wolf Sacrificed

Sawyer kissed the side of my head. I know you did, and you did everything you could. You tried. You can’t help it if he didn’t listen.

I tucked my bottom lip between my teeth to keep it from trembling. There’s nothing you can do to stop your dad?

Sawyer leaned his head against mine. I’m not there. My father went and left me at home. He has some other things he wants me to contend with here.

Something about the way he said that made the hairs on my arms stand on end. Something was wrong, but now wasn’t the time to have that conversation.

Sawyer grunted and stiffened against me.

I swallowed and winced as one alpha broke off from the pack and marched toward me. He’s going to challenge me, isn’t he?

Yes.

Sawyer put himself in front of me, like that would protect me. I know you don’t want my help, but I also can’t let you get hurt. Please let me help you.

I closed my eyes for a moment. This is the last time, then I want to do it on my own from here on out.

Deal.

Our bodies merged, melding together so we were one.

Together, we took a step forward until we stood toe-to-toe with the other alpha. This guy was older, probably in his forties, and he had at least a foot on me. I knew I was short, but I felt really short right now under his stare.

I crossed my arms over my chest and jutted my chin out, looking up at him. “You wish to challenge my authority?”

He frowned and his mouth worked a moment before he spoke. “I mean no disrespect, Alpha Sloane. I just think that the position will be better for someone who has more experience.”

My eyes widened, and I threw my arms out to the sides. “Oh, and I suppose you have fought in a pack war before? You’ve led a pack against a tyrant like Alpha Dane?”

He looked taken aback by my questions. His mouth hung open and he blinked at me like he couldn’t think of something to say.

I arched a brow at him and tapped my foot as I waited expectantly for an answer.

He looked at the group of alphas, then back at me. “You know what I mean, Alpha Sloane.”

“No, I don’t.” I let out an agitated laugh. “Nothing like this has ever happened before. At least not in any of our lifetimes or our grandparents’ or great grandparents’.”

I tossed my hands up in the air, exasperated. “None of us have ever done this before. The packs have lived in harmony for generations. I know I’m young, but I’ve also met Alpha Dane. How many of you have met him?” I stared at the alpha and then looked out at the crowd. “Any of you?”

Willa stepped forward, her shoes clomping on the wooden stairs as she stomped down them. She gripped the handrail at the bottom so hard that her knuckles turned white.

“I have.” She stood tall and glanced around, making sure she had the pack’s attention. “He’s a tyrant. Ruthless, and he doesn’t care who he hurts. He sent my parents’ severed heads to me. Set them in the room with me like they were trophies because I defied him. He is a monster.”

Her voice came out thick with emotion.

She marched across the grass so she stood between me and the crowd. “Sloane stood up to him. And she not only managed to escape, but she was able to bring one of his own sons here. The same son who owns our DarkSide website and knows him better than anyone else in our pack. She organized that rescue mission that brought a lot of your loved ones back, and this is the respect you pay her for that? How many of you now have your wife, sister, or daughter here because of her plan?”

Willa arched a brow as she crossed her arms over her chest.

I drew in a sharp breath and sniffled at the righteousness in her voice. She wasn’t wrong.

Willa shook her head. “If it weren’t for Sloane, most of your women and families would still be there. She’s the one who went out and got that wolfsbane for us before the previous attack. We’d all be dead if she hadn’t come up with that idea. Would any of you have done that? Would you have even thought of it?”

She looked around at the pack, her face a hard mask of anger. The vein by her temple throbbed and her lip curled up in a sneer. “Well?”

Most everyone had the decency to look away from her. She was right, and I’d never loved someone so much as right now.

Willa turned back toward me. “Sloane is my alpha. Maybe you could best her in a fight. She looks a little worse for the wear right now, but her car was already run off the road, and she’s already been in two fights today. But being an alpha isn’t just about brute strength. It’s also about how smart and resourceful you can be. And she is the most resourceful person I have ever met.”

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