Chapter 4

Gasping, I shook my head. “W-we can fight them. Right? There is no way they could win against the pack! Or we could…go to the Alpha King. Wouldn’t he help us? Isn’t that a thing?”

“Going to the Alpha King would take too long. Plus, they are in the middle of a handoff of power right now. We are going to get lost in the weeds. I’m worried…about what they will request, Tahlia. They know of all of us. I don’t want your brother to know yet. They don’t fight fair. They fight dirty and mean and I won’t have either of you mixed up in that.”

“Dad! You are! That means we are too!” I threw myself on him, hugging him tight. “We are all we have. All three of us. You can rely on us. No matter what.”

His arms wrapped around me and held me tight. “I love you, sweetheart. You are so strong. You’ve grown up to be such an incredible young woman. Your mother would not be proud.”

Chuckling, I nuzzled his neck. “She would say I get into too many fights?”

“Yes, she would. She was soft and kind and even a slap was too much for her. Still…she upheld her justice in other ways. She was strong. Just…she’d faint at the sight of blood.”

I smiled and flopped over next to him, making sure I was crushed up against his side. “You don’t talk about her a lot.”

“It’s hard. She was my everything. When something like that, a piece of your soul, dies, it’s unbearable. It makes you want to give up entirely.”

“But you didn’t.”

Dad turned his head, kissing mine. “I didn’t. I had to take care of you and Henry. The two of you are my world now. I’ll do anything and everything to make sure you are safe.”

“Like fight some asshole rogue Alpha who is trying to take over our pack?”

Another one of his sighs came out. “I’m hoping not to fight him. I’d rather work out something with him. He wants something. If I can give him that without having anything happen to the pack and to you, then we might be alright. I just can’t stand by when I have a chance to stop any more deaths.”

“We can help, Dad. Henry and I. We can stand by you. This pack is ours as much as it’s yours. You know that.”

Sitting up, Dad turned to me. “I know. This is still one of those things that falls under my job of being Alpha. I will take care of everyone. It might not be the best outcome, but if I can make it so everyone can live, then I will.”

There was a lump in my throat. One thing that never passed to me was my dad’s optimism. Henry got all of it. There was none left for me. I got the anger, the lack of patience, and the full blown Alpha wolf instinct.

The same instinct that was telling me right now to go with my father and to fight by his side. Not let him go alone to this camp. Whoever this Alpha was, he was willing to kill people and I wondered if he was going to ask for my father’s head in exchange for the pack. Or worse, exchange for Henry and I to go free. I would murder that Alpha before he even had a chance.

“Tahlia, stop.”

I blinked, looking back up at my dad. He reached out, brushing some hair behind my ear. His eyes searched my face, worry written all over it.

“I know you’re so much stronger. I worry about you reaching into your wolf too early. Whatever you were thinking, don’t. I will take care of it. I promise. If I get too in over my head, I will make sure I talk to you and Henry. Okay?”

Nodding, I gave him a smile. I didn’t feel like smiling. I wanted to smash something. Still, Dad would worry and that wasn’t something I wanted to add to his plate. He squeezed my hand and headed down the roof.

“Don’t stay up too late. You have school tomorrow.”

I scoffed. “I thought I was getting homeschooled.”

“Please. If I ever actually had you homeschooled, you’d burn the house down.”

We laughed together and his laughter disappeared into my room. I listened to the door open and shut. His door also opened and shut as well. I could feel it through the roof, though I wasn’t be able to hear anything. What I could hear and smell was Henry smoking out of his window.

“You heard everything.”

“I did.”

My lips pursed. “I’m worried.”

“I am too. Still, we have to let our Alpha do his job.”

“It’s your job too.”

Henry let out a single laugh. “Not yet. Though, I don’t know if it ever will be at this point. Depending on the outcome.”

“What will we do?”

“At worst, you and I will be marked for death along with Dad.”

Sitting up, I wrapped my arms around my legs, pulling my knees to my chest. “We knew that was something that could happen.”

“Yeah. We did.” He paused for a moment and I saw the smoke rise up into the air. “We could be banished. Have to start our lives elsewhere.”

“That’s wouldn’t be so bad.” I looked up at the stars. “I think I would join the Alpha King’s knights. Somehow fake my age, tell them I’m seventeen. They will take me, right?”

Henry chuckled. “How you fight? Absolutely. How you follow direction? Absolutely not.”

“Hey!”

He laughed more, only stopping to take another puff. “I would too though. I’d follow you. Make sure you were okay. We could be the brother - sister duo. Mow down the Alpha King’s enemies.”

I smiled and leaned my chin against my knees. We already knew, without needing to say it, that if we were banished, Dad would die. An Alpha had to die for some other Alpha to take over. The only time that didn’t happen was when it was passed down to kin.

We would most-likely need to defeat the rogue Alpha if we were to save Dad. Something that, even with all my fight, I didn’t know if we could do. Henry was better, but he didn’t have the strength of the title that came with it. Dad wouldn’t give it to him now either, since that would put a target on his back, in case he could negotiate something for us.

“It will be okay, Tahlia. Dad will work it out. If he doesn’t, we will figure something out. I promise.”

Again with the optimism. Really, where did the two of them get it? I couldn’t even imagine walking out of this pack. There would be no chance. We would be a liability. A couple years of training and we could come back for revenge. No Alpha was stupid enough to let that happen.

“Yeah. I’m sure it will.”

“You don’t sound like you believe me.”

I snorted. “I don’t, stupid.”

He chuckled. “That’s fair. Still, Dad and I will at least try and protect you. Play up the weakness and the fact that you’re a girl. You can leave, live on with everyone else.”

“Shut up. If you’re dying, I’m dying with you. You think I could manage myself out there?” I snorted. “I would punch the first person to talk to me. I’m not civilized. I need you guys. You balance me out. Plus, I’m underage. Doesn’t that count for anything. You guys have to look out for me.”

More smoke rose and it was a while before he spoke. “I guess you’re right. We have to make sure you don’t make a fool of yourself.”

I moved down to the edge of the room. My feet dangled off the edge. Looking down, I smiled at Henry. He was leaning against the railing of his window, his hand holding a cigarette. His eyes caught mine and he smiled as well.

“Together.”

“Together.”