Page 62 of Ascension of the Pack

‘You can say that again.’ He sighed. ‘I was very put out when you rejected the invitation to join the Domini. Do you know how long I’d worked on V to get her to agree to extend it?’

‘Geneve,’ I said.

‘Yes,’ he agreed. ‘That bitch of a dragon.’

‘You told her we were coming to steal the orb.’ It wasn’t a question.

David’s lips pressed into a thin line. ‘She had Danielle. Geneve wasn’t happy that my reports had slowed and become very short, so she took Dani as a little object lesson to show that shecould. She’d threatened her before.’

‘That’s why you pushed Dani away.’

‘I tried,’ he agreed, ‘but I liked her too much. We could have had something special were it not for all of this shit. It was my fault she was kidnapped.’ He shook his head. Whenhe met my eyes, his gaze was sorrowful. ‘I have so many regrets. I wish I’d met you first, Alpha. The Domini got to me in hospital and whispered about revenge on that prick Bernard Greenhough.’

‘Who?’

‘The werewolf that hit me with a car and turned me because he didn’t want to go to prison.’

‘Ah.’

‘Yeah. The Domini told me that the Connection wouldn’t punish him and in weeks he’d be free because his alpha would bribe the right people. And they were right – he was walking about freely, like he hadn’t ruined my life.’

I made a note of the name. I’d track down the alpha, too, and maybe I’d give the story to Elena to write up for theMystical Informer. ‘Don’t take this the wrong way,’ I started, ‘but I thought the Domini was full of powerful people.’

He grimaced. ‘The movers and shakers, yes, but every organisation needs loyal foot soldiers.’

‘And that was you?’

‘That was me. It wasn’t so hard when Lord Samuel was in charge because he didn’t see me, not the way you do. To him, I was just a misfit. Helping the Domini gave me a purpose and an identity. Even if the rest of the pack didn’tknow it, I wassomeone, not just a random stranger turned into a werewolf that they’d had to take in.’

‘You love being a werewolf now,’ I pointed out. Not that it made his illegal turning any better.

‘I do, but it took the longest time to get to that stage – too long. I was an outsider, a gardener turned werewolf. What an absurdity.’ His tone was biting. ‘Nobody thought I had it in me but the Domini said they saw power in my future, and I listened because all I saw in my future were weeds.’

He met my eyes. ‘You changed pack life for me, not just in the others’ eyes but in how I saw myself. The problem was, I’d already signed on the dotted line.’ He sighed and fiddled with the hem of his T-shirt. ‘I wish I’d met you sooner, Alpha, before I’d become part of The Order, but once you’re in there’s no getting out. They hold your loved ones to ransom. They know where my parents live.’

‘We could have relocated them. If you’d just come to me…’

His smile was bitter. ‘By then I’d done plenty of things that the Domini could hold over me.’

‘David, I’m so sorry.’

He sighed. ‘It would be easier for me if you’d just be horrible, Lucy.’

‘Ican do that,’ I said, forcing myself to be businesslike. ‘What can you tell me about The Order? What letter are you?’

He laughed sardonically. ‘Oh, I wasn’t big enough to have a letter. Isaacs had one – he was C. He was a brutal prick, content to let Rain spearhead things so he could pull strings in the darkness. The crown changed things, though. He wanted it. He thought it would give him validity because he believed he had a God-given right to rule. He wanted to get rid of you and take over. The crown would give him an advantage so he could make a play for V’s empty seat.’

‘You helped him.’

David shifted in his seat. ‘I did. I regret it, but I had no choice.’

‘We always have a choice,’ I snapped. Then I repeated, ‘You should have come to me.’ A thought occurred and I stilled. ‘You cleared my dad’s memory, tried to take him from me.’

He winced. ‘I did. I’m sorry, but I was under orders. It’s not an excuse, just an explanation.’

‘One of the brethren guards went with you. Who?’

‘She wasn’t one of Greg’s. She gave one of the guards food poisoning and offered to cover for him. He said yes.’

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