I stared at him. What kind of a question was that?
Logan seemed to take my nonanswer as affirmative. “Because I’d like to give it back to you. My father and I have been talking, and we agree that you’ve gotten the worst of this debacle. Poor boy.”
That rankled me a bit. Logan was only three years older than me, and despite my current state, I still believed I was more of a man than he’d ever be. Not that it mattered.
“It must be hard,” Logan went on. “Being the younger sibling of an alpha. Did you ever wish you were the firstborn?”
I stayed quiet. It wasn’t like Logan really wanted me to speak. He liked to hear himself talk and I was happy enough to let him. If I had spoken, he wouldn’t be happy with my answer. I’d never wished to be alpha-letting Calla bear all that responsibility had made me feel like I had a freedom she’d never have.
Maybe that’s why she ran.
I shoved back that thought as quickly as I could. As much as I couldn’t muster anger toward Logan, I still wasn’t willing to break down in front of him again. He’d had that pleasure too many times already.
Logan smiled briefly. “I think we’re all a bit regretful that your sister failed so miserably in her duties. But how could we know? All that’s left is to pick up the pieces.”
Beside me, Ren stirred. Glancing at him, I couldn’t tell if he was nervous or angry.
“Your mother bore the brunt of Calla’s failure,” Logan told me, and I turned my head away. “Surely you understand why her death was imperative. One female alpha failing to instill respect for law and duty into her heir… shameful.”
My breath became ragged, and it made my chest burn. I tried to keep my face blank as I stared ahead, not blinking. My eyeballs were rapidly drying out, but I couldn’t risk blinking. I knew if I did, I’d see my mother. See her splayed on the stone slab in the Chamber. See Emile’s muzzle bathed in her blood.
“And your father has lost his place as alpha,” Logan continued, taking a long pull off his cigarette. “But you, Ansel. You could be all you were and more.”
I didn’t so much as glance at him, but I listened hard, straining to hear any truth in what he was saying.
“Ren,” Logan said abruptly. “If you wouldn’t mind.”
Ren crouched beside me. His voice was low, calm. “You could return to the pack, Ansel. Come back to us.”
I dared to lift my head, peering at him. “What pack?”
There was a brief flicker of uncertainty in his gaze. Logan coughed delicately, and Ren quickly went on: “It will take some time to sort that out. Right now, we’re all one pack. Reunited as Guardians to prove our loyalty to the Keepers, recognizing all they’ve done for us.”
He paused, taking a long breath. “And all that Calla betrayed.”
“But… my wolf…” When I said it, I couldn’t stop the sucker punch my mind threw at me. It didn’t take much for me to feel all of it again. The wolf being peeled from my human body, like scraps of skin torn away one piece at a time. The way its shape burned in front of my eyes, scorched out of existence. The husk I felt like every moment since they took it away.
Logan piped up. “Have you so little faith in us, Ansel? What we’ve taken away we can give again.” The quasi- delight in his voice pulled my gaze to him.
The shaking began at the base of my neck, creeping slowly over my shoulders, gripping my arms. In moments, my entire body was close to seizing up.
“Breathe, Ansel,” Ren murmured.
Logan’s smile curved with pleasure.
“But it’s gone.” I could barely whisper. “You killed it. Killed that part of me.”
“That’s true.” Logan nodded. “But you’re forgetting your history. Once, there were no Guardians. The first wolf warriors had to be made. Do you think we’d be careless enough to lose that magic?”
I swallowed hard, clenching my fists with what little strength I had as I tried to gain control of my limbs. “You’re lying.”
“He’s not,” Ren answered.
The smoke from Logan’s cigarette had filled the airless room. I wheezed, but Logan shrugged, flicking ash from the burning tip.
“It’s not worth my time to concoct a lie for you,” Logan said. “We’re on a timeline here and if you want to be whole again, I can offer you a deal.”
“What do you want?” I squinted through the haze of clove-scented smoke.
“Your sister has chosen some unsavory allies,” Logan said, grinding his teeth. “The Searchers have deluded her with their lies. We need to put a stop to their collusion before matters get even worse.”
“She’s with the Searchers?” I couldn’t imagine how that was possible. Running away was one thing, but seeking refuge with our enemies? “That’s insane,” I muttered.
Logan laughed. “That’s the consensus we’ve arrived at as well. We think Calla somehow convinced herself that she’s in love with Shay and that by offering to help the Searchers, she can be with him.”
A quiet growl rolled out of Ren’s throat.
“But we’re going to fix that.” Logan looked at the alpha. “Aren’t we, Ren?”
“Yes, Logan,” Ren answered.
Logan stood up, dropped his cigarette, and put it out with his heel. With his hands folded behind his back, he paced the cell. “We need to get your sister and Shay back. In order to do that, we first have to find them.”
“How can I help with that?” I asked. “I’m worthless.”
“Actually, in your current state, you’re quite priceless.” Logan smiled. “Though your sister is a traitor, I’d wager she’s also guilt ridden about leaving her family behind. She knows how our punishments work.”
Ren growled again, louder this time. I glanced at him, but he turned his back so I couldn’t see his face.
“If you don’t know where she is, how am I supposed to find her?” The more I talked, the easier it became, as if my vocal cords were remembering how to work.
“An apt question,” Logan said. “We’ve known for some time that the Searchers have a hideout in Denver, from which they pester us in Vail. But the precise location is cloaked by enchantments. We have to break down those spells so we can attack.”
“So why don’t you?” I frowned.
“These sorts of enchantments can only be dispelled from within,” Logan said. “Obviously, we can’t get inside the Searchers’ hovel if we don’t know where they are.”
Logan threw a sharp look at Ren. The alpha pivoted to face me, crouching low to be at eye level with me.
“Calla will want to help you, Ansel,” Ren told me. “You can get inside.”
“But I don’t know anything about Denver.” I balked at the idea. I could barely stand, much less hunt down Searchers-who would kill me on sight if they knew who I was.
“Leave that to us,” Logan quipped. “Being the wretched creatures they are, it wasn’t too hard to narrow down the parts of Denver where they might be. We’ll send you out into those areas one by one, until they pick you up.”
“What if they kill me before I get to their hideout?” I asked.
“We consider that an acceptable risk” was all Logan said.
I sat silently, my head trapped in a vise of confusion, sadness, and futile hope.
Beside me, Ren said, “You have to, Ansel. You have to bring her back.”
Looking at Ren, I narrowed my eyes. “Are you going to kill her?” I hated that I harbored mixed feelings about the question. Calla had left us all behind. Left us to imprisonment, torture, and death. But she was still my sister.
Ren shook his head, but I kept searching his face for signs of deception, not knowing if I could really trust him.
“We don’t think killing Calla is our best course,” Logan interjected. “After all, we’ve already lost one alpha female in this debacle.”
“But she’s a traitor,” I said to him before I’d even thought about my words.
Logan attempted a somber nod, but he couldn’t stop himself from beaming at me. “She is, Ansel. But we think with time that Calla can be… re-educated and eventually brought back into the fold. Don’t we, Ren?”
Ren’s answer was little more than a snarl. “Yes.”
