Filed to story: The Wolf Prince’s Fated Love
Alpha,” Reed corrected from Kane’s side.
“Yes, pardon me. High Alpha.” The corner of his mouth twitched at the correction, but he was so smooth, there was no other sign to tell what he was thinking. “But the Omega Defense League serves an important role in protecting all magical species, and after the omega wars, surely you understand that the safety of all must come first.”
“Was it safety for the Kodiaks, when magical bombs were used on their ancestral home? And was it safe for our pregnant she-wolf who went into early labor as a result of the stress of the ODL’s unwarranted harassment?”
“Harassment! Please,” Councilman Aileron interrupted, fury evident on his features. “The pixies were nearly wiped from the face of the
Earth by the last omega allowed to run loose. Our population numbers are still recovering centuries later, so you’ll excuse me if I don’t give a fuck about your feelings.”
I could see the muscles twitching in Gael’s jaw from here, and I understood the frustration. These people were living in the past, and willing to kill our children to keep it from repeating itself.
The irony was, now we were the ones dwindling away to nothing under their thumbs, but nobody seemed to care.
“I understand your feelings well, Councilman Aileron,” Kane said gravely. “My own people’s numbers have struggled ever since the Omega Purge, as omegas played a crucial part in our species’ strength and vitality. Without their magic, more of our females die in childbirth than ever died in the wars. And I think it’s worth saying that the majority of omegas have been peaceful, helpful females who supported their packs quietly and without incident. None but Narcissa was ever known to have powers of war, and the children are killed now by the ODL before any testing can be completed to discern where their powers might lie.”
Fortier tapped one fingertip on the table, watching the back and forth with an inscrutable gaze.
“Your kind should suffer for what they did to us,” Aileron spat.
“The purpose of this council is to ensure peace and prosperity for all magical species under our purview. That includes wolf shifters, and if you cannot work toward that goal, then perhaps it is time for your seat to be transferred to a new pixie,” Councilman Halia said, a slight coo to his voice.
Bird shifter of some kind?
“You feather-brained son of a bitch-” Aileron began to shimmer, and a burst of sparkly light filled the room as the angry man turned into a sparkling, bouncing pixie with purple skin and wings the length of my forearm. Little squeaks and screeches poured out, but I couldn’t tell what he was saying.
I was pretty sure Halia was getting cussed out in pixie, though. It would have been almost funny if Aileron didn’t want to perpetuate the murder of innocent wolf babies.
The pounding of a wooden gavel I hadn’t noticed before snapped everyone into silence.
“That’s enough. Councilman Aileron, you’re excused from the remainder of today’s session.” Fortier waved a bored hand, and the pixie let out a few more furious squeaks before flying haphazardly out the back door of the chamber. “I apologize for his behavior. It was unbecoming for one in his position.”
Kane nodded his acceptance.
“However, his opinion is one shared by many. We understand that you are new to your role as high alpha and want to do right by your kind, but we cannot simply change the rules to accommodate any one magical species. Preferential treatment is not something we engage in.”
“And yet, we are the only species both actively hunted by this council, as well as lacking representation on this council. We formally request an investigation into the ODL’s actions and the recent uptick in persecution against wolf shifters and our allies.”
There was an edge to Kane’s rebuttal that made me shiver and lean closer to Shay’s shoulder. The temperature seemed to rise as the remaining eight council members processed what he’d said.
It suddenly occurred to me that there might not be months on this fuse. This bomb could blow today.
“You know as well as we do that there is a tenth seat. There has always been a tenth seat, but wolves haven’t ever deigned to sit on the council.” Councilwoman Grist sounded bored, but she cocked her eagle head, peering over us all with beady bird eyes and unnerving focus.
Without missing a beat, Gael spoke at Kane’s side. “As second of Pack Blackwater, I formally nominate Lucien Vasilescu to represent wolf shifters as sitting councilman for the Interspecies Governing Council.”
“Supported, as third of Pack Blackwater,” Reed said, adjusting the cuff links in his sleeves with a bit of extra flair.
Kane turned to Lucien, whose face was no longer flirty and teasing, but deadly serious. “Lucien, do you accept this nomination to represent wolfkind? Do you promise to dedicate yourself to changing the laws this council uses to oppress us?”
Lucien swallowed hard, just once. “I do, High Alpha.”
Kane turned back to the council, and I held my breath as the seconds ticked by in silence.
“Welcome to the table, Councilman Vasilescu,” Councilman Fortier finally said.
“Thank you,” Lucien said with nods to Fortier and then Kane.
“We have other business to attend to this afternoon, but I’m sure your representative will report back to you as is appropriate on the investigation into the ODL’s actions. If you need additional council support, please see Karina for appointment availability.” Fortier waved in clear dismissal to where his secretary still hovered in the door.
“We appreciate your time and making this exception to hear us out,” Reed said as Lucien walked up to the table and took the empty seat on the end.
I don’t think I exhaled until we were back safely in the SUVs, driving away from Lucien and the council.
TWENTY
Gael
Two weeks later
The council moved with frustrating slowness. Lucien returned to the pack castle each day to give us a disappointing report that investigators had been sent to question the appropriate members of the ODL, but as yet, none had returned.
A small part of me wondered if there wasn’t division within the organization. Clearly, the council itself was divided between those who saw all species equally and those who still had an axe to grind. The fury over the fact that I hadn’t even been alive during the omega wars, yet my innocent, unborn daughter was slated to pay the price, kept me up nights. Leigh and Nugget had gone back to her room after the IGC meeting, and while I didn’t like it, I didn’t exactly have a leg to stand on to force her to stay with me.
Plus, I’d been driving myself crazy trying to figure out if we did have any mate signs that I could pin down for certain. I kept thinking her scent was changing, but more than once in the past week when we’d been in the same room and I’d tried to catch a fresh whiff, she’d looked at me like I was a psycho.
So, I was giving her a little bit of space.
Which was how I ended up in the locker room at five thirty a.m., completely sweated out from a punishing ten-mile treadmill sprint followed by lifting twice my body weight until my muscles shook with the exertion.
After a quick shower and change into a fresh pair of black sweats, I stepped out of the locker room and ended up behind two members of the castle’s security team.
Karl and… Sven? I couldn’t remember without seeing their faces.