Page 132 of Claimed By the Rival Alpha
It was a relief to laugh and let off a bit of steam with my pack. For just a little while, I could forget about how uncertain our future was.
Eventually, the joviality quieted, and the group filled me in on what they knew.
“According to our reports,” William said, “some of the Kings pack hunters left after Troy lost the challenge.”
My wolf growled low as my lips pulled away from my teeth. Deserting your pack after a change in leadership was a clear sign of disrespect. I hated that Bryn would need to reckon with that if she hadn’t already.
“We know how you feel, Night,” Dom said, “but this wasn’t a surprise.”
“True,” William added. “Honestly, it’s more of a surprise that less than half of them left. I guess Redwolf made their lives a lot worse than we thought.”
“So why did any of them leave?” I asked.
“As far as we can tell, it’s because Troy let them off their leashes. They were able to be more violent with the pack and they could eat as much of their kills as they wanted, even if that meant others had to pick up the slack.”
“With him imprisoned, they wouldn’t be able to keep that up,” Frankie nodded. “Also, given how sexist the Kings are, the oneswho left wouldn’t be willing to listen to a female, even if it was only temporary.”
I echoed her annoyed sigh with one of my own. I accepted this reasoning, even though it pissed me off. Now we had to worry about violent wolves roaming the forest. Allowing them to go unchecked meant there would be a team of ferals who were trained in how to fight. Their odds of surviving to make violent attacks on unsuspecting shifters or humans was far too high.
“About your suggestion to merge the packs,” Tyrell began, “that’s not going to go over well with the remaining elite within the Kings pack.”
Jasper nodded, adding, “They won’t be willing to submit to just anyone.”
I sighed. “I know, but we’ll have to handle those issues as they come up. We can try to predict the problem areas to catch anything before it arises, but we won’t be able to predict everything.”
“What do you want to do about the wolves who defected?” Dom asked.
“If Bryn isn’t already aware of it, I think we should keep that quiet for now.”
He raised a brow. “She’s going to notice that she’s short a few wolves before long.”
“She’s got enough on her plate just learning how to run the pack. I’ll tell her soon, but I don’t want her to worry about that yet.”
The conversation was over as far as the others knew, but Dom entered my mind to say, “She deserves to know, Night. Keepingher in the dark is like keeping her from playing with a full deck of cards.”
“I hear what you’re saying, but I’m worried that she’s going to be consumed with pack duties. Knowing her and the way the Kings treated her when she was human, I think she might try to prove to them that she’s worthy of her title—and she is. But I don’t want her to get in too deep and burn out.”
As the team continued to talk amongst themselves, I was the only one who noticed the way Dom rolled his eyes. That was a show of defiance that Dom rarely publicly indulged in. It was more disrespectful than I was used to from him.
“I can muddle my way through your reasoning, Alpha Night, but I think we both know what happens when you ignore the needs of the woman you love.”
That was a step too far. I whipped my head toward him, and I was ready to fucking put him in his place when a question interrupted me.
“Alpha, what do you need from us?” Jasper asked. “I mean, to make the merger as successful as possible.”
I forced myself to tamp down on the urge to snap at Dom and addressed the table. “We all need to do what we can to learn as much as possible about the Kings. The plan has always been to combine the packs to end the centuries-long feud between us, but it’s going to take a lot of blood, sweat, and tears to make that a reality. While on the Kings’ territory, we should keep abreast of their needs and shortcomings, too, to make our merger as appealing to them as possible. I need your support, your patience, and your expertise on my side.” I shot a look atDom as I said the last sentence, but he didn’t make eye contact with me.
My wolves sent nods of agreement around the table. “We’ll follow you anywhere, Alpha,” Kai said. “You’ve done more than enough to earn our loyalty.”
Their votes of confidence stilled some of the irritation roiling in my blood. I had no idea what the future of the Wargs would look like, but I was determined to make sure it was a bright and fruitful one. From the corner of my eye, I watched Dom peel away from the wall and leave the conference room.
Maybe I was right to be worried about this thing that was eating at him.
