Desmond didn’t respond.
“Come, I’m sure you remember. Meat wasn’t it? Aged between seven to ten years old…”
“I did what I had to do.”
“Yes, I’m sure. But I wonder did you even hesitate before when you realised what you had to do: steal children from an orphanage. And you went ahead still.” Tynan pressed his hands to his chest. “I am not one to judge on past actions. We all have done things others would question. But when it comes to the lives of our families, our packs, we would never apologise. Never regret. Never fear. This is why our world is in chaos. It has led to infighting and bitching. Over and over. Alphas torn down while new ones replace them. Always looking over your shoulder. Do we not all want prosperity?”
A silence followed this that gave Nicole an indication Tynan was getting to them.
“Join me. Together we will wipe out any and all who dare defy us. One unified pack. Think of it. All the packs of England. Together. As formidable a force as any we have ever seen. Sharing resources and aiding each other. Who in the world would dare challenge that?”
“Perhaps none,” came the voice of Rykard for the first time. “But you do not see how you sound, Tynan. One could easily mistake you for a Connelly. Changing our way of life simply because it does not suit your view. While absorbing one strong family into your ranks and completely obliterating another are no small feats, they mean could list my accomplishments on the battlefield. None of them mean I could hope to be a voice for all wolves. Your proposal is as wishful as it is preposterous. You sound like you are organising a military defense against an as yet unseen enemy.”
“Perhaps I am…”
Rykard scoffed. “I have real problems to deal with. Making sure my people are fed throughout the next seven months. One of the females in my house is pregnant and is claiming she was raped by two of my soldiers. I need to find out the truth. I’ve discovered a nest of vampires close by that must be dealt with. Two of my men have disappeared after investigating it and I fear I will soon be seeing them again at the end of my shotgun. These are real problems, Tynan. Things an Alpha must deal with every day. Every week. Every year. While you are busy playing toy soldiers with grand imagination.”
“This disappoints me, Rykard. Of all my guests, you were the one I thought would see my point.”
“I see the real world. Not fantasy. These are wolf matters that will affect us for years to come. You can’t be taking this seriously when there is a human here.”
Tynan smiled. “And so there is. Gentleman, let me introduce my guest and her son. An eleventh-generation wolf.”
Rykard shifted in his seat, looking over Nicole. “That is impossible.”
“Not so. The son of Nicholas Slade.”
“Well…” Rykard said, leaning back. “That does throw a spanner in the works.”
“You said the Slades were no more,” Matheus said.
“And I wasn’t lying. The child is my ward. I will raise him as my own. The only link he has to the Slades is his grandmother.”
“And I’m sure that sits very well with her? Her grandson, here with you? Or have you managed to convince her of your new world order?”
“Alicia was always too small minded for my vision. Though I have tried many times over the years to convince her, she is a lost cause.”
“As long as Alicia is alive, I can’t think she would stop coming for him,” Rykard said. “Makes me wonder why you haven’t finished her?”
“She is one woman. My brother’s widow. She holds claim to nothing and no one.”
“Except this child,” Rykard said.
“She means nothing,” Matheus said. “Only ever a nice piece of arse behind a strong pack. She has no pack but would be a great trophy fuck now. What difference does it make, Rykard?”
“For one woman, she seems to be giving you a lot of trouble,” Rykard said, addressing Tynan. “If she hadn’t, she’d be dead by now. You’d make sure of it.”
“Is that what you want, Rykard? What it would take to convince you? Alicia slaughtered?”
Rykard smiled. “Perhaps. If I thought you could. No. What I want is five minutes alone with this young lady here. After that, I will tell you my decision.”
Nicole looked up, surprised that she was the one being talked about now. Without a word and but a few glances at her, the others left. When they were alone, Nicole took in his appearance, trying to decipher what this was for. He had black hair, well oiled with a part on the right. A hooped earring and a small tattoo of a rams head under his right side jaw. “You don’t want to be here.”
It wasn’t a question. And Nicole didn’t lie. “I don’t.”
“I thought not…” Rykard leant his head left and right. Studying. Listening. “There is no surveillance equipment in here. We can speak freely. I know Alicia.”
Nicole stilled. “You do?”
“We were not quite friends, but we were not enemies. I always said she should’ve been the Alpha of Slade house. I lost respect for her when she didn’t push Wilson out of the way. But that’s love I suppose. In any case, Alicia helped console my wife after the death of our daughter. My wife was suicidal for months until Alicia came. It…bothers me that I couldn’t do
