26
While my old pack was busy peppering Kyle with questions, I took Alec aside. “You doing okay?”
“Yeah,” he said. “I know Kyle’s going to deal with this mess well.”
“And you and I get to deal with the bigger mess,” I said. “If my uncle was authorizing Wolf Creek’s use of the toxin to take out their neighbors, what else don’t we know?”
“I know Spencer said to give them a chance, but you sure you want a council that enabled that behavior to stick around?” Alec asked.
He had a very good point. “I’m not sure I do want them around. But I do think we need to learn from them and find out what has been going on for the last few decades.”
“You’re not out of the woods yet. You’re a walking target, you know that, right?” Alec asked.
“I know. I wish I wasn’t used to it,” I said. “But at least I’m not alone this time. I’ve got you, Sheila and Malcom. And the four of us can work together to figure out who we can and can’t trust.”
“They’re good shifters. Even before Malcom shared his story, I got the sense I could trust him. And Sheila has never let me down.”
“Don’t discount yourself in this,” I added. “I know I can do this because I have you by my side.”
He laughed. “It’s sweet that you’re trying so hard, but you’d be just fine without me. Don’t get me wrong, you’re stuck with me now, but you are the one the world needs to watch out for.”
“Says the guy who helped find the antidote to the toxin and turned a group of feral shifters into a pack,” I teased. “We’re going to make a hell of a team.”
I caught sight of Spencer walking toward us out of the corner of my eye. He was holding a cell phone in his hand and his expression was odd. He wasn’t worried or scared, but he wasn’t happy either. Something was going on.
“What is it?” I asked, turning toward him.
“Star just called. Your mom is asking for you. She’s awake. Star says she’s for real awake. No more toxin,” Spencer said.
My stomach twisted into knots and nervous flutters filled my chest. This was what we were hoping for but what was going to come of it?
“We should go,” Alec said.
“I’ll talk to Kyle.” I jogged over to where Kyle was standing. He was holding hands with his little sister and his mom was by his side. You didn’t need shifter emotion reading abilities to feel the pride radiating from her.
As I approached, the attention turned from him to me. Some of the shifters bowed while others stared at me. There was a mixture of awe and confusion coming from them and I didn’t blame them. They’d had a lot of change thrown at them today.
“Can I borrow you for a minute?” I asked.
“Of course,” Kyle said. “Excuse me.”
Kyle followed me away from the group. “What’s up?”
“I have to head back. Will you be okay here?” I asked.
“Sure,” he said.
“I should also apologize for throwing this on you. You really are the best possible person for the role,” I said.
“I never would have asked for it,” he said.
“I know. That’s part of why you’re perfect.”
“You’ll come back soon, right? I mean, I did swear to protect you. I feel bad that I’m leaving you,” he said.
“You’re not leaving me. I’m the one doing the leaving. Besides, alphas report directly to the ruler, right? So you’re still helping me.”
“We’re going to tear down the barrier, right?” he asked.