Page 191 of Claimed By the Rival Alpha
I could be ruthless when necessary, but doing it this way would put me on the same level as Gregor and Troy. Needless cruelty went against everything I believed, and it went against everything I’d thought the council believed. I remembered what Bryn had said about wanting to give the Kings an alternative to violence. Was this the sort of thing she was worried about? A forever-escalating scale of violence to the point of outright cruelty? If so, I could see her position much more clearly than before. What a shame that my own council had brought her argument into such focus.
“Do not forget,” I said in a low growl, “that when I win the challenge,Iwill be the alpha, not the five of you. And once I’ve claimed the land that should always have been mine,Iwill decide what happens to it. Do not overstep your bounds as council members.”
Wayne smiled, but none of his usual joviality shone in his eyes. “We’ll have to agree to disagree for now, Alpha Night. But I hope we’ll see eye to eye when the time comes.”
“So do I, Wayne.” I took the time to meet each of their gazes, my fists clenched at my sides. “If there’s nothing else, I’ll end this meeting here.”
Wayne inclined his head. It looked like a dismissal, which only increased my temperature. Gritting my teeth, I turned and stormed out of the cabin.
I could hardly think with the angry rhythm of my heart beating against my ribs. The last thing I’d expected was the council to drop that kind of bomb on me. Still, I shouldn’t have shown so much emotion in front of them—it wasn’t becoming of an alpha to lose his cool in front of his council. I ran my hands through my hair and took a few deep breaths. If I had time, I’d have loved to head to the hot springs and clear my head, but I didn’t have that luxury.
Instead, I gathered my best fighters and trackers and told them I wanted them to seek out and kill Troy. Among the members of this team was Jasper, hanging onto my every word.
“I want this as discreet as possible,” I said. “There’s also a search party looking for Troy. Don’t get in each other’s way. Even better, don’t cross paths with them unless you can’t avoid it. Do you understand?”
The group of seven nodded. Their eagerness to get out there and tear into Troy blazed from their eyes. I couldn’t blame them for their excitement. Part of me felt the same, despite my meeting with the council. I couldn’t summon even an ounce of pity for the shitstorm that was headed Troy’s way.
“Report to me the moment you’ve found something,” I said. “Don’t make a move until I give the word.”
“Yes, Alpha.”
“Good. Get going.”
With their orders given, they shifted and sprinted into the forest. As their quick footsteps faded, I pinched the bridge of my nose. I had nothing pressing to do now. My mind was free to return to uncomfortable territory: the council and their thirst for blood. I had to figure out what to do about them.
As old and as esteemed as they were, the council had a lot of sway within the pack. As the alpha, I had a ton of sway myself, but if we were publicly in opposition, it would cause a huge rift among the Wargs—those who were most loyal to me and those who were most loyal to the council would be in direct conflict with each other. From what I remembered of wolf history, conflicts like those ended poorly for everyone, and those who survived the turmoil either tried to rebuild or were forced to join other packs.
It was a shitstorm waiting to happen, and I couldn’t let it reach that point. Fortunately, I had over two weeks before the alpha challenge. I was sure I could come up with a plan by then.
76
BRYN
Irushed into the bathroom and dropped to my knees in front of the toilet. The contents of my stomach burned my throat as I heaved into the porcelain bowl. My thoughts became a swirling mess, tears stinging my eyes as I trembled. I gripped the bowl, willing the sickness to pass quickly. I had so much to do today and so little time to get it done, but here I was, reduced to a shaking, sweating mess in my bathroom.
When the sickness finally subsided, I dabbed at my forehead and wiped my mouth with some toilet paper. Feeling a little more in control of myself, I flushed the toilet and sat on my ass with my back pressed to the bathroom wall. I closed my eyes and rubbed my stomach back and forth. I hadn’t slept well last night, which had probably made my symptoms worse. My body pulsed with a bone-deep ache while my stomach swam with nausea. My brain was starting to function properly again, but all it did was tell me that I needed to get up and go to work.
Was this what I had to look forward to for the next nine months? I hoped the Fates would spare me months of this torture.
This was the first time I couldn’t rely on my body. Even when I was unable to shift, and my body lacked the strength and speed of the wolves around me, it had always gotten me where I needed to go. It operated exactly as I wanted it to, and even when I got sick, I got better within days. Now that I was pregnant, things were different. The only thing I could count on was ending up on my knees in the bathroom each morning.
I ran my hands through my hair and took deep breaths. I needed to get up, make some tea, and get to the office. If I was quick, I might be able to make up for the work I’d missed by being stuck in the bathroom.
I opened my eyes. I’d spent two nights alone in bed, but I hadn’t come any closer to figuring out how I wanted to tell Night about my pregnancy. There were only a couple of weeks left until the alpha challenge, and I still had so much confusing paperwork to wade through. I had to meet with the council today about the duration of my service as their alpha, and I wouldn’t have Night at my side.
The alpha challenge itself was still a mystery to me. I knew Night would have to fight, but I wasn’t sure about the specifics. Would it be a battle royale with wolves fighting wolves, or more of a tournament setting where one wolf fought another, progressing until the final two contenders faced off? What if it was a different setup altogether? Night was strong and used to fighting, but I didn’t want him to get hurt again. He’d looked so weak the day after Evan shot him, and I didn’t want him to go through that pain again.
The council, of course, hadn’t been very forthcoming about the rules. That meant I needed to be firmer when I met with them, but I wasn’t looking forward to the potential pushback.
I had so much on my mind, but I couldn’t catch a break. I wished I could push my worries onto someone else while getting work done. Unfortunately, I had to bear the full burden.
My butt was starting to hurt from sitting on the cold, hard floor, so I pushed myself to my feet. Fortunately, by the time I straightened, I felt well enough not to throw up again. There was still a bit of dizziness, but that went away when I stepped into the hot shower. I cleaned up, and when I was done, I pulled my hair into a bun. With a towel wrapped around me, I went to my vanity and tried to cover the bags under my eyes with makeup. Knowing this pack, any sign of exhaustion would be taken as weakness, and the last thing I needed right now was some asshole trying to challenge my authority.
I blended in the makeup, set it with some spray, and looked at myself in the mirror. My shoulders slumped; I still looked exhausted even after all that effort. Why did I even bother?
“It’s the best you can do,” I whispered to myself. “Just take it one thing at a time.”
I repeated those words like a mantra, and after another deep breath, I dressed and headed out.
