Chapter 149

The pack headquarters was in an ordinary brick building, tucked away right in the heart of the city. The activity was minimal, except for nights when the council met - usually on the full moon. Even then, it was never bustling. It was a seat of immense power, but it looked an awful lot like a local Elk’s Club.

Today was different.

Pack members, raw with emotion, gathered like storm clouds at the downtown HQ. As dawn broke, Council Elders fought to maintain control of the room, elbow-to-elbow with Weres demanding answers.

The vampire attack had come without warning, had been brutal and swift. The enemy was fueled with a devastating strength, leaving many injuries and fatalities.

Amidst all of the chaos, one question loomed over them all: Where was their Alpha?

It was into this pressure cooker that Kadeem allowed himself to be dragged in by Bob.

The room erupted at the sight of him. Even the stoic Council gasped in shock. Bob was barreling in Kadeem with a ruthless force - leather boots scraping the floor, grunting, putting on a show of herculean effort.

Kadeem pretended to resist - not hard to do in his still weakened state. He struggled just enough to give his uncle the effect he was going for: Bob dominating the strongest member of the pack. All hail Bob.

The commotion was barely muffled by the pounding of the Elders’ gavels and cries for order. Confused omegas serving the Council frantically pushed the crowd back for Bob to pass, attempting to hold a would-be mob back like a parted sea.

At its edge was Sara, the lone gamma representing Kadeem’s close unit of wolves - the others still recovering from the attack. Kadeem met her eyes for the smallest moment.

It will be okay.

That’s what he tried to tell her, as much as he could without words.

Don’t worry, Sara. It will be okay.

And maybe it wouldn’t be okay… but Kadeem was a werewolf with a lion’s heart. Every instinct told him to convey reassurance and strength. He was, and had always been, every inch of the hero his uncle could never be.

“What in the name of the moon goddess is going on?” Wanda, a silver-haired Council Elder, asked in disbelief as Bob dropped the battered young Alpha at their feet.

“He’s a traitor,” Bob shouted, igniting another outburst from Red Moon.

It was a match to gasoline. With a quick nod, an Elder signaled for two burly warriors to swoop in and seize Kadeem. Sara let out an outraged yell and hurled herself forward as other Weres struggled to restrain her, and uproar and dissension sparked among the Council.

“This is preposterous,” Wanda protested, arguing with the Elder who’d signaled the warriors, but her words were quickly lost in the cacophony.

Their orderly, hierarchical world was descending into complete disarray. Thuds of gavels, fighting and yelling, futile calls for decorum - Kadeem watched it all with a sinking heart, feeling the cracks form in his pack’s foundation.

“Stand down! Now.”

Bob’s booming voice cut through the air like a knife - commanding attention, demanding respect. “I will reveal the truth,” he declared. “And together, we will ensure that justice is served.”

Honestly, it was sort of a shining moment for Bob.

Fuck it all, Kadeem’s uncle was actually going to pull it off - he’d become Alpha. The pack would crown him faster than a bikini-clad Miss Texas at a beauty pageant.

Only one figure remained defiant in the face of Bob’s usurping dominance - Sara. She was still in a full-on brawl with a group of outmatched omegas, refusing to back down.

Pride is not a strong enough word for what Kadeem felt, but it was rapidly extinguished by concern. This would cost her dearly. Loyalty overrode the sense of what his actions might cost him, and he let out a guttural growl to subdue her.

Sara's muscles went rigid, mirroring the sudden stillness of everyone else in the room. Even Bob froze in place.

Kadeem could feel the guards' grip loosen on him, but he knew better than to make a move. Bob had been explicit in what would happen if Kadeem veered from the plan. It filled Kadeem’s mind with so much darkness he could have suffocated on it. He also knew this: Bob wasn’t bluffing.

The room fell into an unearthly hush as Kadeem’s assertion of authority washed through the Weres. Red Moon could ignore it - their wills weren’t enslaved - but their first instinct would always be deference. It went deep.

And that was why exile and imprisonment were delusional hopes. It was why Bob would kill him the first fucking chance he got. The reality crashed down on Kadeem like lead.

Ray, a wiry Elder in a crisp pinstripe suit and tie, stepped forward. “Sara Garou, you will continue to yield, or face the consequences.” He fixed his eyes on Bob with a calculating stare. “Mr. Hadid, we will hear your allegation.”

Bob stood up straight. “Everyone knows Kadeem is my nephew,” he began, intoning like a preacher on Revival Sunday, “But what few appreciate is, he’s been much more than that. I took him under my wing after his own parents rejected him! I helped him become Alpha - helped him become the man he is today.”

Kadeem clenched his jaw tighter with each word out of Bob’s mouth.

“And that is why this is so hard,” Bob continued, feigning emotion, “That is why I cannot believe the things he has done. If I didn’t see it with my own eyes, I couldn’t - I would have never believed -”

Bob wiped away crocodile tears and Kadeem resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Then, the usurper dropped his first bombshell.

“He killed my fiancé, Susan Sadler. She was pregnant with our cubs.”

This elicited the expected gasps of horror. Kadeem scanned the pack, finding an ocean of stunned faces, with their gaping mouths and their wide eyes fixed right on him.

“He snapped her neck like it was nothing,” Bob spat. “She knew his secret - and he had to silence her before she could expose him.”

He missed his calling as a trial lawyer, Kadeem thought. His uncle was visibly sweating now with fake passion. Bob paused to build the drama, then he went all in.

“Kadeem made a deal with the vampires!” he yelled. “He let them in! He told them that they could set up their covens in our territory without being bound by the Were Rule of Law. He is the reason they are here! He is the reason for the attacks!”

A furious roar went up from the pack, as Bob continued to shout, “But I, single-handedly, did what no one else could have done,” he bellowed over the din. “I captured the traitor Alpha so that he will be brought to justice!”

Feeling the mob-like anger build in the room, Kadeem buckled in with a steely resolve.

Here we go.

The Elders smacked their gavels and called for order, while Wanda raised her hand and waited for quiet and cooperation from the pack.

"These are serious allegations," she stated firmly, her gaze lingering on Bob. "They will be thoroughly investigated." She adjusted pink-rimmed glasses before turning to Kadeem. "Alpha, you have the right to present your response before the Council."

Bob's head snapped towards Kadeem, his eyes flashing with warning.

At the back of the room, a commotion was building. Omegas rushed in to quell it, but movement continued to ripple through the crowd.

Kadeem swayed unsteadily on his feet, body still weak, hands bound behind his back. He cleared his throat, preparing to address the Council with a half-truth. “Last spring, I-”

“Wait!”

Kadeem's heart stopped as a familiar voice yelled out. Silence fell over the crowd as Mateo pushed his way to the front, shoving aside anyone in his path, including two teenage girls. His eyes were wild with emotion and he was panting heavily.

"Kadeem is innocent,” Mateo shouted, trying to catch his breath. “His family was taken hostage! Bob is trying to force Kadeem into going along with this charade so he can -”

“I have no idea who this man is,” Bob interrupted, yelling towards the Council. “He has no right to -”

“Mr. Hadid you’ll have a chance to respond,” Ray interjected. “Until then, remain quiet.” He looked at Mateo, speaking sharply, “State your name.”

“Mateo Grimshald.”

“And what is your relation to the parties in question?”

“I’m a friend of Kadeem’s.”

“We’ll hear your information, Mr. Grimshald,” Wanda said.

“I went to Kadeem’s house early this morning,” Mateo began, “I found Bob’s cronies breaking in. I called for the authorities, but no one came - maybe because the vampire attack was underway and help was overwhelmed, or maybe Bob has someone on the inside.”

Bob's face contorted with rage, resembling an angry bull ready to charge. He snarled through gritted teeth, just loud enough for Kadeem to hear, “Get your friend under control,”

Kadeem shot him a disbelieving look. What the hell was he supposed to do in this situation? There were hundreds of eyes on them.

Mateo swallowed hard. “I saw Kadeem’s mate and Beta brought into the cabin. His mate was tied up and the Beta - she was injured.” Mateo’s voice faltered with emotion just as Bob jumped in.

"This is absurd!" he exploded, his face turning a furious shade of purple. "How can anyone believe this?"

Wanda slammed her gavel while Mateo pressed on desperately. “If you don’t believe me,” Mateo shouted, “Go see for yourselves! They’re being held at Kadeem’s home -”

“Where just yards away, you will find my dead, pregnant mate!” Bob interrupted.

“Silence, Mr. Hadid!”

“Kadeem has had a million opportunities to wring Susan’s neck,” Mateo argued, “And plenty of reason, too - but he never did. And your M.O. is framing people, isn’t it, Bob?”

“Mr. Grimshald, the Council will do the questioning!”

“You framed Kadeem,” Mateo shouted, his face blistering red as he ran over both the Council and Bob’s fake indignation. “Just like you framed Ardal years ago. Just like -”

“How dare he,” Bob bellowed, looking wildly to the council for support. “This is slander!” He growled in Kadeem’s direction, transmitting a menacing warning - that went totally unheard.

Kadeem was struck with waves of emotion so strong they nearly knocked him broadside. He blinked and tried to steady himself from the torrent breaking over him.

“Refrain from unrelated accusations, Mr. Grimshald!”

Fear. Anger. Loyalty. Love. Hope. Dread.

But Mateo wasn’t stopping - wasn’t giving an inch, or a breath, otherwise. “And this isn’t the first time Bob and Susan have tried to kill Kadeem!” Mateo directed at the pack. “It’s not the second, and it’s probably not the third either!”

The place was in an uproar. Bob and Mateo devolved into a yelling match - their screams echoing through the room and rage ready to explode into a violent brawl. The Elders frantically called for more pack warriors to intervene.

Kadeem was only halfway in the world. He focused on Ardal, trying to decipher what was happening. Her emotions were so big. Was she okay? Were the kids safe?

“Daddy!”

Sunlight poured in through the open doors, blinding light briefly obscuring the sight of quintuplets.