each other that their figures blurred, becoming a play of light and shadow. Fortunately for Ren’s sake, the lock of their limbs around each other made it impossible for any of the warriors to take a clear shot.
I smelled the blood before I saw it. Metallic and rich, its scent filled the air. Shay twisted, sinking his teeth into Ren’s shoulder. Ren snarled, his own jaws clamping down on Shay’s foreleg. They slid along the floor, a crimson trail staining the marble beneath them. And then they broke apart, struggling to catch their breath, bracing for the next attack. Ren howled as Shay hunched down, ready to leap back into the fray. The ring of Searchers took aim at Ren once more.
“No!” Adne’s cry broke through their growls. She threw herself between the two wolves, shielding Ren with her body. Startled, he yelped, but stopped himself from snapping at her.
Shay was equally thrown by Adne’s appearance. He scrambled back, still growling, but staring at her. He stalked sideways, angling for a new line of attack. Adne draped herself over Ren like a cloak. The dark wolf snarled in aggravation, trying to shake her off.
“Calla!” Adne stared at me, eyes wide. “You have to stop this!”
Connor strode across the room to Adne’s side. I expected him to drag her off Ren, but instead he turned around, adding his body as another buffer between her and the Searchers. He drew his swords.
“I suggest everyone else put their weapons away. Now.”
Logan was grinning, taking slow pulls off his cigarette.
Anika’s eyes narrowed. “I trust there is a reasonable explanation for this chaos?” She was looking at me.
I nodded, walking forward until I stood between the two wolves. “Shay, Ren.” I gave an icy glare to each of them. “Shift. Back. Now.”
They both hesitated, hackles raised, gazes moving from me to each other.
“Now,” I said, flashing my fangs.
Ren shifted first. Adne toppled over when the tall boy bumped into her. Connor grabbed her arms, looking like he was about to shake her in frustration. Instead he just held her, eyes alight with anxiety.
Shay was still glaring at Ren when he shifted.
They were both breathing hard. Stains darkened the shredded fabric at Ren’s shoulder, while Shay clamped his hand around his bloodied forearm.
The room was full of the scent of their blood and the sharp tang of the Searchers’ fear. The warriors had lowered their weapons, but I knew it would take only the slightest provocation to spur them into attack. Shay was their only hope at winning this war. If Ren posed a threat to the Scion, the Searchers would kill him without hesitation. I had to convince them we needed Ren’s help.
I took a deep breath, putting as much strength into my words as I could muster. “Anika, I apologize for the intrusion. Adne and I had to take care of something. A vital rescue if this alliance is to succeed.”
I was grateful Adne managed not to gape at me.
Anika arched her eyebrow. “You ran your own clandestine operation?”
A slow smile pulled at my lips. “I apologize for the surprise. I didn’t trust that I could share my plan with such an untrustworthy creature in our midst.” I glanced at Logan, whose grin vanished. My confidence bloomed.
“A rescue, you said?” The suspicion in Anika’s gaze was less pronounced, but still there.
Adne cleared her throat. “Yes, Anika. A rescue warranted by my father’s sacrifice.”
At the mention of Monroe’s death, murmurs passed among the Searchers. Worried glances, uneasy shifting of weight stirring their bodies.
“Your father was killed in combat,” Anika said. “A terrible loss, but casualties are a way of life here.”
“It was more than that.” Adne took Ren’s hand. He looked surprised but smiled at her. Shay’s brow knit together as he watched Adne draw Ren toward Anika.
“Anika, I’d like you to meet Renier Laroche. My brother.”
Gasps filled the room. Shay stiffened, glancing at me with wide eyes. I nodded. The fury in his eyes swirled with newborn curiosity, giving me a breath of hope. Shay had liked Monroe, respected him. And he’d quickly befriended Adne, who was desperate to keep her brother safe. Maybe playing on those sympathies could lessen his hatred of Ren. I had to reassure him. It was ripping me up inside that Shay might think I’d betrayed him by going to rescue Ren. When I thought about the way I’d coaxed Ren away from Vail, I felt even worse.
“Ren, this is Anika.” Adne ignored the flurry of whispers and disbelieving stares. “Anika is the Arrow. She leads the Searchers.”
“Sorry to crash your party,” Ren said, eyeing the gathered Searchers warily.
Anika frowned and looked at Connor. “The letter.” Her hand rested on her coat pocket.
Connor’s face was grim. “Yes.”
Anika stared at Ren, then glanced at Adne with a sigh. “It was a fool’s errand.”
I bristled. “No, it wasn’t.”
The Arrow turned to me. “The son of the Bane alpha is here. His presence risks everything. His first move was to attack the Scion and-”
I snarled, cutting her off. “He is not Emile’s son. He is nothing like Emile.”
This time the weapons drawn were aimed at me. Shay and Ren both growled, moving beside me. Thankfully they ignored each other, focusing their attention on the Searchers.
Anika held up her hand. “Speak your mind, Calla.”
My heart slammed around my chest. This was it. This was the moment that would make or break everything, pulling Guardians from our past and hurling us into the future. And it all rested on my shoulders. Could I bear this weight? Was I truly the alpha I’d always wanted to be?
“He is Monroe’s son.” I pointed at Ren. “And he’s your best hope to win this war.”
“He’s what?” Shay’s voice was deadly quiet.
“I’m what?” Ren kept his own voice to a whisper, but the look he’d thrown me was a bit alarmed.
Damn. That was the problem with impromptu plans. You didn’t have any time to weigh their consequences.
Ignoring them, but knowing I’d have to deal with Shay’s jealousy later and that I still had a lot to explain to Ren, I kept my focus on Anika.
“The Scion is your weapon,” I said, touching Shay’s uninjured arm. His skin was hot under my fingers and I could feel his pulse jumping. I wanted to pull him close to me, but I didn’t dare. Not yet. “But you still need an army.”
“Your turncoat pack is hardly an army,” Logan said. “And Emile’s bastard certainly hasn’t shown himself to be a leader.”
I was forced to let go of Shay so I could grab Ren’s hand, holding him back when he snarled at Logan.
“And why are you here, Logan?” I glared at him. “Because you lived up to your father’s expectations?”
He pulled his gaze from mine and I smiled, knowing I had him. “You lost your inheritance, didn’t you? Failed in your duty? That’s why you had to run. Your little kingdom has crumbled, hasn’t it?”
Logan didn’t look at me. He lit another cigarette.
“He has a point, Calla,” Anika said, though her expression showed that she had no love lost for the Keeper either. “Your pack isn’t an army.”
“But we can bring you one,” I said.
“How?” One of the Searchers I didn’t know stepped forward. His shaved head and hooked nose gave him a hawk-like appearance. When he spoke, I heard traces of a French accent. “Monroe is dead. The potential for an alliance died with him.”
I gave the sour-faced Searcher a hard look as I walked up to Logan, taking the Keeper’s shirt in my fist. “Tell me, Logan. How many Banes did your father kill when Corrine’s betrayal was discovered?”
Logan’s eyes bulged. “How can you expect me to know about that? I was a child!” He gaped at me, disbelieving that one of his former servants would now threaten him.
My blood was singing as the peppery scent of his fear filled the air. “I can hardly imagine that Efron Bane would leave his only son so poorly prepared as to not know his future pack’s true history.”
Logan’s face was growing paler by the second. “But… I…”
“Answer her.” Ethan had come to my side. I heard his dagger hiss out of its sheath.
“Twenty-five,” Logan said. “Twenty-five traitors were killed.”
“That wasn’t so hard, now, was it?” Ethan smiled.
