"If it wasn't for you, I'd be here as a werewolf," I snapped without thinking.
That enormous dragon looked back at me and I flinched, waiting for that terrible surge of power. This time, it didn't come. "Explain."
"Tommy, the pup in my arms, bit me when he got lost from his folks. He got stuck in a dog trap," I said, daring to look up at that massive scaley head. "I work in animal rescue, you see, and when he got stuck in a dog trap my neighbors had set out, I had to help him. It was cold. He was scared. And I knew he didn't belong with them. He nipped me, drew blood, and Hudson and the others showed up to set it to rights."
The dragon glanced at my pack as I continued, changing the story so Gabe wouldn’t get in trouble. "But I freaked out. I shapeshifted and I ended up under Tommy's crib. They thought they couldn't change me back after that and, your honor-" I hesitated. Were you supposed to call a dragon that? "...Mr. Nightflight? I was happy. I was happier than I've ever been and..."
My voice stuck in my throat and I had to turn away from him. A line of tears rolled down either my cheeks. "I had a family. I was so happy. And I just want that back, please. If you'd give them permission to do it this time, I'd be really grateful. They're all I want, and I promise, I'll do whatever I have to and keep all this a secret. I wouldn't want any of you to be hurt. You're all too amazing for that."
"And so, how are you human again, o great savior of mortal beasts?" sneered the griffin.
I turned my attention to him and shrugged. "I don't really know, sir. Lillian invited me out to a restaurant and she spiked my drink with something. I don't know what it was. But it nearly killed me and it hurts so much to be disconnected from my pack, I-"
"You attacked your own guest?"
The dragon's attention locked on Lillian, who was paler than the snow around us. I blinked and looked back at the alphas near me. Hudson, who had rejoined us, had an expression of realization on his face. He stepped forward. "She did. She poisoned Sadie."
"It was hardly poison," Lillian protested, stepping back from the stone. "But she wasn't one of us, she didn't need to be one of us to be here."
"You poisoned your own guest in a public place," the dragon stated, walking toward Lillian. "A place that could have endangered the humans present, killed this woman, and exposed us all to a cataclysmic amount of humanity."
He stopped when he was a few feet away from her, smoke curling from his nostrils. "What did you give her?"
"Emperweed," Lillian whispered, shrinking beneath him.
The smoke increased tenfold. "A plant known for its toxicity. You attempted to murder one of your own kind rather than bring her to justice."
"No!" Lillian cried, spreading her hands wide. "No, I was told it would just reverse the change in her. There was a small chance it could hurt her but- Eskal, you have to understand. Hudson killed my little sister, he doesn't-"
The dragon's eyes narrowed as he interrupted her. "Doesn't deserve to be happy. You pull the Meet into a family matter of jealousy, nearly kill the woman who has brought joy to your old pack, and expect us to cast them into the flames to somehow sanctify your sister's death. Becca was an idiot. She hunted soft sheep on human land. Hudson was no better but he didn't get himself killed doing it. He has atoned for his mistakes and your sister atoned with her life. But you..."
"Me?" Lillian choked. "I want justice. My nephew illegally turned-"
"I don't concern myself with a puppy's mistake when the mistake turns out to be an asset," he snapped, jaws clapping in front of her.
Each tooth was nearly as long as she was tall. I sure wasn't going to argue with that mouth.
The dragon turned, his tail smacking into Lillian and knocking her off her feet. She glared at him from the ground as he mounted the stone once more. "We must come to a consensus."
Our judges came together, speaking quietly but quickly. Lillian glared hatred at me from across the clearing, tears in her eyes. Had it really just been the potential of me replacing her sister? Was that all? People moved on from the death of a loved one, eventually, no matter how sad it was. I wasn't trying to replace the woman she'd lost, but my alphas needed an omega.
Tommy needed a mom.
I cradled him closer and turned my back on her. There was an urgency in the air, as if the supernatural beings in the area couldn't wait to get away from this Meet. I agreed with them. I wanted to go home, to bury myself in my men and make Tommy smiley-faced pancakes in the morning.
But it was possible that I never would. I held down the urge to run, to flee into the night. I had been an apex predator.
I needed to act like I deserved to be one.
"Little one. Sadie, yes?"
Eskal peered down at me from inches away. I jumped when I turned
