Page 190 of Shadow City: Silver Wolf

Thank God.Griffin wrapped an arm around my waist. “I think we’ve done enough for today, don’t you agree?”

“For once, I agree with the pup.” Alex twirled a finger. “I second that. The meeting is adjourned.”

Everyone got out of their chairs and segregated into their own races except for Azbogah and Ezra.

I glanced at the other wolf shifter, who seemed to avoid my gaze.

Odd.

Let’s get out of here.Griffin placed his hand on the small of my back, leading me toward the door.The longer we hang around here, the greater the chance Azbogah will try to pull something.

He didn’t have to encourage me—I wanted to get out of there just as much as he did.Should we talk to Ezra?

No.Griffin didn’t even bother looking back.He likes to hang out after these things. I’ll catch up with him later.

Ulva opened the door, waving us through. Her irises had deepened to more of a cobalt, revealing her own worry.

I brushed past her, and the three of us rushed through the lobby with three sets of footsteps following behind us. Someonewas hurrying to catch up, which meant that another argument or threats wouldn’t be far behind.

My body was prepared for battle, but the scents of Rosemary and her family put my anxiety at ease.

“Sterlyn,” Rosemary called as wings flapped, and soon, she landed right in front of us. Her black wings feathered out behind her, giving her an unearthly beauty. She continued, “Weallneed to talk, but not here.”

Ulva glanced over her shoulder, back at the council room doors.

“Tomorrow, we’ll be at Griffin’s,” I replied. “That probably would be the safest place to meet. Talk then?”

She nodded. “Sounds good.”

Griffin marched past her, waving both Ulva and me on.

He wanted to get back to his apartment before someone tried pulling something on me again. The farther away we got from the council, the safer I’d be.

Supposedly.

Not with Dick still out there, but one thing at a time. I made sure my back was straight and walked out of the building like I didn’t have a care in the world.

My dad’s words echoed in my mind.Fake it if you have to.

The restof the day remained tense. Saga called Ulva over and over again, begging her to do something about their family’s banishment. As if she could, or would, even want to attempt to talk her son out of Dick’s punishment. At first, Ulva had tried to be nice, but it didn’t take long before she made the situation perfectly clear: Dick had tried to sabotage her son, and she had no interest in helping him or the rest of his family.

Something was off about the woman, but I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to be married to a man like that, someone so heartless and power-hungry. He probably stepped all over Saga and Luna, trying to use them to climb his way to the top. Perhaps that was why Luna had been so desperate to claim Griffin as her own.

Griffin snored gently next to me in his bed. It was close to two in the morning, and he’d just dozed off. His mom had been pacing the apartment for hours, adding to our anxiety. When she finally went to her room, he’d calmed down enough to fall asleep.

However, my wolf stirred inside me. She was on edge and continued to surface, making my skin tingle faintly. I heard nothing out of the ordinary in here, but maybe if I checked the entire apartment, she’d finally calm enough to sleep.

Given Azbogah’s push to murder me, I didn’t blame her for being on edge. The angel more than hated me. Actually…hate was too mild an emotion.

Heloathedme.

Or rather, the silver wolves.

I was pretty sure it wasn’t personal, just my genetics.

That didn’t sound much better.

Slowly and quietly, so as not to wake Griffin, I untangled myself from his arms. He grunted and tried to pull me close again, but I rolled far enough away that he flopped over on his side and resumed his gentle snoring once more.

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