Page 36 of To Challenge a Wolf

At some point Ember, Quinn, Jeremy, Lucy, and the pups had rejoined the pack. While Vivian had run outside, someone must have entered the code to open the door. A code she needed to discuss with Rhett.

Lucy held one of the sat phones and swiped slowly through images Vivian had already seen. Jeremy and Ember looked on.After the sat phones had finally stopped pinging every second or two, the pack aboveground had rapidly passed them around, studied the images and felt sure the fight had gone well for their wolves, though they had some major questions as well.

Jeremy jumped in place, pointing at the phone in Lucy’s hand. “What the heck?”

Vivian’s sentiment exactly.

When all murmurs died down, Malachi said, “The threat is gone. The pack is safe.”

A few subdued cheers, more like small cries of relief, rippled over the pack. Then questions tumbled over one another until Malachi lifted one hand. Everyone fell silent.

“How much was captured by the cameras?” he said.

Arlo stepped forward with one of the sat phones and showed him. Several images showed full-strength blows that, in the next image, knocked an opponent off his feet or several yards into the air. In the green-and-black glow of night vision, the injuries appeared limited to the trespassers, but it was still a relief to see for herself that the pack Vivian cared about was no worse than bruised.

April had insisted on looking at the phone’s feed, though Arlo had asked her not to until the pack got word from their wolves. When she saw an image of the rogue alpha Drew, she’d cried out and dropped the phone. Vivian was glad to see April steady now, no longer shaking.

Other images were plain confusing even in high-definition detail. One was a strange blur. A smudge. No one could identifywhatthe thing was. It was big as a wolf, yes. But Rhett had paid for good tech, Kelsey had told Vivian. Tech to capture a wolf moving at full speed. Another of the images showed not only a huge pale wolf, which April had confirmed was Malachi. It also showed a second wolf, somewhat smaller, more grayin the night-vision monochrome. But a second wolf was…well. Impossible.

Wordlessly Malachi examined the pictures, then handed the phone back to Arlo. “All right. A wolf council is needed.”

Not only the pack members who’d gone to Rhett’s home were nodding. Many of the wolves were too, and all of them were looking at Rhett.

“One thing at a time,” Malachi said as if he’d read their minds. A few of them nodded.

“The pictures here tell some of the story. You can see Drew brought three allies with him in addition to the two rogues who were part of the original attack. These allies were not his pack; they’d been paid and lied to. They promised not to return here, and there was no scent of a lie on them, so I allowed them to leave. One sustained a broken leg. The injuries of the other two were minor.”

Nods, a few murmurs, a few low growls as the wolves must be reliving whatever had happened out there. Vivian angled a look up at Rhett. His face was still, almost blank, his attention fixed on Malachi.

Quietly Malachi said to April, “I’m sorry, but you were right. Drew killed Kyle.”

“Because he helped me escape.”

“Yes.”

“I’d be dead, and Kyle knew that. He gave his life instead. Oh, Mal.”

The alpha’s voice gentled. “You saw Drew in the security pictures.”

“I saw him t-trying to hurt m-my pack,” she whispered.

“And now he is dead.”

A low murmur traveled the pack. April nodded slowly, clearly fighting to keep herself together. “You killed him?”

“Yes.”

“That wolf wasn’t going to stop,” Arlo rumbled, anger in his voice though the threat was over. “He’d have kept trying the rest of his life; it’s the kind of man he was.”

“Yes,” Malachi said.

“Can we please talk about Rhett now?” piped up a younger wolf named Corbin who had proved playfully flirtatious at the cookout. “What happened out there, Rhett?”

Rhett shrugged, but the telltale muscle ticked in his jaw, and he didn’t offer a flippant response. Instead he said, “I don’t know.”

The wolves gave a collective rumble at that.

“What are y’all talking about?” Kelsey said, still nestled against Trevor with her arms around his waist and no indication she’d let go of him any time soon. “Wait. Rhett, are you the second wolf in the pictures?”

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