Page 76 of Bitter Discord

“Oh…” Zuri sounded lost for a moment. “Well… I…”

“It doesn’t matter. What did I leave in there? I couldn’t stay. I nearly told a room exactly how I felt about him. Nearly showed them the cracks were bigger than anyone could understand.”

“Oh, they all caught that you were going to say Hasan,” Zuri said softly. “Truthfully, you’re not the first of us who has disagreed with our father that spilled into the public. Now, no one has ever accused Hasan of being everything wrong in the world, but…”

“But?”

“You’re young; you’re modern. Most of them will give you a pass because you removed yourself and didn’t do it intentionally. It’s been a few highly emotional days. Some will remember it and put it in their back pocket to use another day, but those plans might not take fruit for decades, even centuries, so nothing to worry about today.

“They all think Lonan is an idiot. It’s one thing to dislike or hate werewolves and be wary, but anyone who survived to this era knows there are lines of cooperation that are necessary, especially when you’re one of the most powerful. Enemy nations are brought together by common enemies and such. These things happen. Lonan, though, is traumatized by the war in a way many moved on from centuries ago. That he’s lived this long is astounding.”

“It’s fine,” I grumbled. “He’s… As long as he stays out of the way, it’s fine.”

“I don’t think we’ll be able to keep him in the mansion tonight. He’s thoroughly disgusted,” Zuri said simply, sitting next to me. “He doesn’t want to be here. He’ll slip out the moment we’re not watching and could end up a victim. Or he could find Arlo and kill the boy. He’s too volatile to hold and too volatile to let leave. I can’t guarantee he’ll leave the city. He’s too… erratic.”

“And yet, really predictable,” I said softly, another idea forming. “What if… we let him leave?” I asked, turning to her.

“And?”

“I ask Heath to put a very particular werewolf as his tail. Lonan doesn’t want to play by the rules to help the community… I don’t need to play nice to appease him.”

Zuri blinked, then her eyes went wide.

“I think Fenris would love the chance to chase a werecat around to make sure said werecat doesn’t kill one of the pack,” I continued, smiling. “If Lonan runs off on his own, Fenris would be perfect as a contingency to protect Arlo if Lonan gets to him and the killer first.”

“Strong enough to give Lonan a fight, wild enough not to be intimidated…” Zuri nodded. “He’s mad, though. You said that.”

“I know.” I knew all too well just how mad Fenris was, but he wanted to help the pack. He was locked away on his property. If he agreed to follow orders to the last detail, this job was perfect for him.

“With a plan to handle Lonan, if necessary, do you want to talk about our fa—”

“No,” I answered quickly, standing up. “I’m going to ask Heath if he’s okay with my idea for Lonan and Fenris. Do we have a timeline on when the werecats might give their answers to help?”

“I expect they’ll begin coming up once they make their decisions,” Zuri replied.

28

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

“Yes,” Heath answered once I explained the Lonan problem and my solution. “In fact, I was considering asking you if I could put Landon on any potential werecats who left without BSA monitoring. Fenris is a good choice, though. It will keep him from attacking needlessly, especially now that I’m more dominant than him.” He leaned toward Landon, who had been listening. “Landon, get Fenris on the phone and tell him the plan. He’s not to go anywhere or do anything until I ask him to, but he should have a heads up.”

“Can do. I’ll make the call from the garage,” Landon said, pushing away from the kitchen counter. Once he was gone, Heath reached for me, pulling me into his arms.

“I hope this works,” he mumbled, putting his head on my shoulder.

Feeling how deeply he breathed in my scent, I wrapped my arms around him, holding him there. There was something perfect and comforting about holding Heath and being held by him. His lips touched my neck, and I put the brakes on whatever he was thinking to get an important question answered.

“I need to know why you’re in such a bad mood today. I could guess it’s the circumstances, but you were… calmer yesterday. Today, you’re angrier, on edge. I wish I could say it was being here or in front of the BSA, but you were like this when I woke up. I would like to know why.”

“Arlo is a boy,” he answered without lifting his head, but his arms grew tighter. “And that has me… angry. Furious. He’s a boy, and he’s in danger, and I hate it. I hate that I wasn’t able to figure out what to do to help him. I hate that I have to trust his life in the hands of others. I’m his Alpha, and he’s mine to protect, and I failed.” I felt his hand shake on my back.

I recognized the words. They had been a little different the last time I heard them, but the pain was too similar for them not to be related.

He’s remembering Richard.

“You haven’t failed.”

“Not yet, if you don’t think his kidnapping was my fault.” His head came up, and a heavy sigh showed me his stress. “I’m certain it was, but we could argue that for hours and come to no conclusion. If Arlo dies, it is. That’s the responsibility of being an Alpha, Jacky. I have to account for their potential bad decisions. Every death in the pack is mine to carry. It is my fault.” He gently pulled out of my arms.

---