Page 134 of Wolf Roulette

I read over Rhona’s apology letter.

Short and sweet described it, but she’d done as asked. Apologising to the pack ruled by her father’s killer was a difficult thing.

I handed the letter to Pascal. “Send it. The dent to her pride will soothe pack members who aren’t convinced by her words.”

“How did things go with her?” She scanned the letter to her tablet.

“She feels remorse. No ill-intent at this point.”

Stanley joined us at the table, a mug of steaming coffee in hand. The end of day meeting was often more casual than the morning one. “Foley wants nothing more to do with her, from what I heard.”

Foley had loved Rhona, and she’d led him astray big time. Good on him for choosing his happiness and standing up to her. I didn’t think he’d have it in him.

“She attended dawn training this morning,” I said as the others joined us. “In time, I hope she’ll find a place here again.”

Roderick set his tea down. “I’m not sure how you can be so forgiving.”

“Do you have much family, Rod?”

“Four siblings and their children. Our parents are still living.”

He also had a wife and three children of his own. “I have no family except Rhona. Having gone through what I have, I hold nothing but a sincere wish she’ll find her way.”

Grief connected my sister and I and speaking of her was always a reminder that there was pain I was ignoring to play this game. Ragna’s actions were at the top of that list. I could only cast that issue aside for so long without consequences.

Trixie set down a document. “Here’s the report from our Sandstone stewards.”

My eyes widened as I thumbed through the three pages. “You’re kidding me. All this? It’s only been two days.”

“Actually, that was after yesterday. There should be more today. They took the job very seriously, Head Steward. You’ll notice there’s picture and video content for all the reported lapses.”

This was great.

I read aloud, “They were using an old horizontal shaft impact in one area instead of a cone crusher. What does that mean?”

Her face slackened.

Right. Me too.

I wasn’t a Sandstone expert. “Anyone here know what this stuff is?”

Stanley took the document from me. “I can understand some. Most are minor issues.”

“Will they get us two penalty points?”

“I’d wager not.”

And I wasn’t the wagering sort. We had to be sure before making our move. I didn’t want to disrupt the new work dynamic between the pack and tribe otherwise.

I nodded. “Okay, let’s ask the Sandstone workers to nominate ten experts to sit down with us on Friday morning. We need to know if there’s enough to work with. On the plus side, if we turn over Sandstone tomorrow, our stewards can assess the entire grid.”

Hmm.“We know very little about Clay and Water. If we turn those grids over, we’ll need to hire pack members to cope with workload. Sascha won’t hesitate to use the same tactic against us in that situation.”

This employment agreement changed the game more than anticipated.

“We could form a Clay and Water initiative,” Wade suggested.

“Good idea. I’d hate to lose a grid due to the best care clause.”

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