Chapter 64

Ava

The council chamber felt stifling, the heavy oak table and dim lighting only serving to amplify the tension simmering between us all. For hours now, the eight of us had been locked in heated debate over the three finalists, our tempers slowly fraying the longer we failed to reach a consensus.

“I believe that Dedrick displayed incredible strength, cunning, and leadership today,” Elder Fatima insisted, her voice rising over the others. “His team absolutely decimated the others during that final chess match.”

“All thanks to his instructions,” Bradley added with a nod of his head. “Sam and Allen were truthfully nothing more than followers beneath him. They hardly had minds of their own.”

Elder Claire shook her head. “I disagree. Dedrick may have been domineering, yes, but Allen made a lot of smart moves during the chess match—not to mention his slow and steady demeanor during the one-on-one combat trial, when he—”

“When he wore down his opponent, yes,” Elder Elise interrupted. “But his opponent was also a brute who didn’t know how to pace himself. It’s hard to tell whether that was just sheer dumb luck on Allen’s part.”

Chris exhaled a weary sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose. “What about Sam?” he asked. “He’s a member of Moonstone pack, so you’ll all have the pack member who you wish to be in command rather than an outsider.”

Elder Degas tented his fingers and nodded, leaning back in his chair. “Sam… He’s a smart boy. A sweet and good boy, too. I’ve known his family for generations.”

“But is he a good leader?” Elise snapped. “He’d be a lame duck. He’s too sweet and good. He would be a pushover.”

As the Elders continued to bicker amongst themselves, my gaze flicked sideways to where Olivia sat utterly rigid, her face an inscrutable mask. Throughout the entire proceedings, she had remained completely silent, neither supporting nor criticizing any of the candidates.

It was highly unlike her usual outspoken, opinionated self.

Something wasn’t quite right… but I couldn’t put my finger on what.

“We’re going around in circles here,” Chris sighed again, leaning back in his chair. “Ava, you’ve been fairly quiet. Any thoughts?”

I bit my lip, considering my words carefully. I had been holding my tongue, but one issue had come to mind on more than one occasion throughout the day.

“They all possess numerous strengths, but I can’t help wondering if perhaps we made a mistake by not implementing a more… useful assessment,” I began.

Chris arched one eyebrow skeptically. “Go on.”

“Well,” I began slowly, “we tested them on teamwork and stamina in the Moonball game, raw strength in the hand-to-hand combat, logical thinking in the chess match… but what about more applicable abilities? Like their skills in organizing the pack’s affairs, delegating responsibilities, maintaining order and supply lines?”

A thoughtful murmur rippled through the Elders as they mulled over my words. Even Olivia’s chin lifted slightly, her gaze sharpening as she regarded me intently.

“You make a fair point,” Chris conceded. “As Alpha, duties extend far beyond simply being a skilled warrior or stoic leader.” He paused, his lips pressed into a grim line. “So what’s to be done?”

I leaned forward, resting my forearms on the table. “Maybe we could hold one final test first thing tomorrow morning. Something to properly assess their leadership acumen and decision-making capabilities in a more applicable way.”

“You’d suggest delaying the decision, then?” Elder Fatima asked, shooting me a curious, almost hopeful look—perhaps she and the other Elders thought I was stalling, but I wasn’t.

“Just until tomorrow,” I replied coolly.

There was a brief silence before Chris spoke up. “I think it’s an excellent idea. We’ll hold one additional private trial for each of the candidates first thing in the morning. Now… all of you leave me be, so I can think.”

…

“Delivery for the lady.”

Chris held out a small wrapped box as he stepped into the kitchen, and I recognized the logo on the brown paper immediately as our local bakery. Smiling, I carefully unwrapped the box and opened it to reveal two perfect, glistening loaves of brioche bread.

“You didn’t have to go to this trouble,” I said, although I couldn’t hold back my smile.

Chris smirked and leaned against the counter island. “They were having a sale. You know I can’t say no.”

I grinned and pulled one of the loaves out, placing it on a cutting board and slicing a few pieces off. Next, I pulled the wheel of brie that I had been baking out of the oven, and prepared a board for us along with jam and some apple slices.

“Are these from Leonard’s orchard?” Chris asked, inspecting one of the apple slices between his fingers as he followed me to the living room.

I nodded and set the board down on the coffee table. Chris sat down on the couch, already sipping his own wine and holding my glass out to me. I took it and sat beside him, and our knees touched.

He smirked at me and wrapped his arm around me, pulling me closer and causing me to blush. But here, with the curtains closed and no one around but us, I allowed our bodies to remain flush against one another.

“Long day,” he said.

“I’ll say.”

A companionable silence fell between us as we sipped and nibbled, allowing the tension of the day to slowly bleed away. At length, I sat back and regarded him over the rim of my glass as the fire flickered in the fireplace.

Chris glanced over at me, his green eyes glinting in the flickering light. “I have to ask you,” he said, leaning back a little to look at me. “What were your actual thoughts about the candidates?”

“Was it that obvious?” I asked.

He nodded. “I know you were holding your tongue.”

I took a steadying breath, sorting through my scattered thoughts. “Alright, then. If you want the truth… Sam is steadfast and true, I’ll give him that. He knows our pack and our ways inside and out. There would be no uncertainty or learning curve with him, at least.”

“Fair enough,” Chris murmured, motioning for me to continue.

“And Allen, well…” I grimaced slightly. “He seems immensely powerful, certainly, but that insatiable bloodlust is concerning.” I shuddered as I thought back on Allen’s hand-to-hand combat performance, when he broke his opponent’s nose. “I’m not sure he’d be a temperate, even-handed Alpha.”

“I tend to agree.” Chris frowned down at his wine, his lips pressed into a thin line.

I hesitated, steeling myself before finally addressing the looming presence weighing on both our minds. “Then there’s Dedrick.”

Chris glanced up sharply, his intense stare piercing into me. “Your thoughts?”

“He’s… ruthless,” I began slowly. “Single-minded, shrewd as hell, and absolutely lethal when he needs to be. Today more than proved that.” I paused, licking my lips nervously. “And yet… I can’t shake this feeling that there’s something not quite right about him.”

Leaning forward, I propped my elbows on my knees and dropped my voice to a murmur, even though we were alone now. “Did you notice how easily his claws extended? How quickly his fangs dropped, even though he’s supposedly been living in the human world for years?”

Chris arched an eyebrow at me. “What are you saying?”

“I’m saying that it doesn’t line up,” I said. “I mean… think about when you first returned to Moonstone, and you had difficulties with the same things. That’s a common side effect of being in the human world for so long. Others who came from the human continent that performed today also exhibited similar issues.”

A contemplative frown creased Chris’s brow as he mulled over my words. “So you think Dedrick was lying?” he asked.

“I don’t know.” I sighed, suddenly feeling exhausted after everything. “He has all the resources to be a highly effective Alpha, I’ll give him that much. But that nagging feeling just won’t go away, no matter how hard I try to reason it out.”

There was a long silence then, one that was only punctuated by the sound of the crackling fire and the crickets beneath the window. For a moment, I chanced a sidelong glance over at Chris, who was wearily running his hand over the back of his neck. Noticing me looking, he looked over at me and shot me a tired, but kind, smile. I felt my heart lurch, but I didn’t look away.

“Well…” Chris finally tipped his glass back, draining the last few drops of his wine before refilling his glass. “I suppose we’ll find out tomorrow.”