“What kind of rumors?” Fallen asked, letting my hand drop to my side.
“That we willingly turned a human,” Ash spit out, looking my way with more hated than was probably necessary.
“Where would he get such an idea?”
Ash shook her head. “I don’t know. He must’ve sensed Jo and got the wrong idea. As long as she’s been in the pack, that part of herself will never change.”
“The human part,” I said. “Why does it matter if I was turned or not? We all know the truth.”
“We do,” Ash agreed, “but the other packs don’t. The reason we haven’t seen a human shift in over a century is because the act of turning a human was made illegal. We all agreed our packs were large enough on their own. If we continued to turn humans the way we once did, we would’ve run out of room a long time ago.”
“So what does this mean, exactly?”
“A pack turning humans into wolves could be seen as a threat,” Fallen explained, taking her hand in mine again before giving it a squeeze. “They could see it as a pack trying to gather more recruits for an attack.”
My heart skipped a beat. “But we aren’t like that.”
“We know that but they don’t,” Ash said, the bitterness in her scent directed at Coren more than anyone else.
&n
bsp; “What do you need us to do?” Fallen asked, not leaving my side.
“Get ready for some company, and if all fails, an attack.”
Chapter Twenty
Fallen paced beside me, her hackles raised whenever the wind blew. Seeing her so unnerved was worrisome. She always seemed to have everything together, so for her to be as anxious as I was was unexpected.
Aside from a few scouts Ash had sent out to offer an early warning, everyone else had gathered in the front of the manor.
From the living room to the balconies above, we all gathered around Ash awaiting her orders.
She didn’t speak, I doubt she even breathed, her ears perked forward as she strained to hear anyone outside.
Fallen said Ash could sense everyone in the pack at all times, so when she paused and her ears went back, I knew something was wrong.
“They’re coming from the east,” she said in a hushed tone, her ears swiveling back and forth as she concentrated on the scout whose senses must’ve alerted her.
“Rosewood?” Fallen asked, her voice so low I barely heard her.
Ash shook her head, and when she spoke again, a touch of panic made it into her voice. “It’s all of them. Coren must’ve gathered as many wolves as he could.”
“But it’s a lie,” I cut in, looking at them both. “If we just explain everything—”
Ash was already shaking her head before I could finish.
“We may have made partial alliances throughout the years and called one another friend, but this accusation is as serious as they come. It’s worse than a wolf going into the human city in wolf form and far worse than killing one by accident. The act of turning and claiming more wolves is to be taken seriously no matter the cause.”
“But you had no part in this.”
“No, but until we can prove it, there isn’t much we can do.”
“But now we’re the ones who are outnumbered,” Fallen said, pausing long enough to nuzzle my cheek.
“We are,” Ash agreed, “but that doesn’t mean we’re about to run from our home. We’ll wait until they arrive, then we’ll see what they have to say.”
Ash tried to remain calm, I could hear it in her voice, but the way she held herself then with her tail tucked under her, I knew it was more for my benefit than anyone else.