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“I’ll pay you back a hundred times for each injury,” I swore. I was so angry, my ears were ringing.
Troy snorted. “No, you won’t.” He ended the call and slipped the phone back into his pocket. “You have twenty-four hours to make your decision, Night.”
“I don’t know if you understand, Troy. I am making a promise to you now that I will make your death a slow and painful one.”
Troy chuckled. “I’m the one with all the power here, Night, like I’ve always had. You’d be smart to remember that. And by the way? I win whether you accept this or not. When you’re dead, your pack and your land are as good as mine.”
Without another word, Troy shifted and ran with his men—back to the Kings’ compound or to the girls, I didn’t know which. But once again, we were going home empty-handed.
9
NIGHT
I paced in the living room of my cabin. Both Dom and Mom were there with me. I’d just finished telling Mom about the meeting and the details of Troy’s deal. I was waiting for her to digest the information and give her opinion, but in the meantime, I couldn’t sit still. My wolf was the same, treading back and forth inside me, just as eager to get out and do something.
Mom was sitting in the armchair, her fingers rubbing absently at the bandage that covered the Alpha wound. She was still dealing with the effects of it on the fifth day since Troy’s attack, but according to Dr. Stan, she was doing better than all of his best predictions.
Suddenly, she burst into a string of curses and launched out of her chair. I stopped pacing to watch her take up my rhythm, walking back and forth between the walls. Dom moved away from the wall and reached for her, but she waved away his helping hand. I crossed my arms over my chest and waited for her to say something that wasn’t just a curse on Troy’s head.
Finally, she said, “Night, you can’t do this. It’s suicide.”
"I don’t want to do it, but he has Bryn and Tavi.”
“But you won’t survive it.”
It stung to hear her say that, but she was right. Agreeing to the plan meant agreeing to die by Troy’s hands. If I was being honest, I would have told her that I’d never felt weaker or more sluggish than I did then. I was sure that I could have killed Troy yesterday in a one-on-one fight—I was certainly angry enough to do it after seeing Bryn and Tavi—but I wasn’t as confident now.
“I don’t have a choice at this point. I have to bring them home.”
“But you know that Troy isn’t an honorable man. He’s not going to give them back to you even if you lose.”
“I know. That’s why fighting him is only part of the plan.” I glanced at Dom.
He looked away from me, his face pinched tight with fury. I had already discussed this with him, and he hated my plan.
“I’ll show up for the challenge,” I explained, “but I’ll have wolves searching for the girls. I’ll stall during the fight. I’ll let Redwolf believe that I’m falling in line with the plan. But when I get word that they’re safe, at that point, I’ll kill the fucker.”
Mom frowned. I could see the questions already forming on her brow, and I let her ask them. “What if you die during the fight? What if you end up killing each other? What then?”
“Then Dominic will take over the pack,” I said, nodding to my beta. “If I die, I die.”
Dom said nothing, just continued to scowl at the ground.
Mom was quiet as she considered my plan. After several moments, she let out a long, deep sigh and seemed to release most of her anger. She reached up for my face, and I bent so that her hands could touch me. Her fingers were warm, rough with age and with work, and soothing against my skin.
“My boy,” she said gently, “it’s really, really not easy hearing you say these things. When you were a little boy, it just about broke my heart every time you came home with a bruise, though I knew you had to experience those things to grow up. When you fought Peter and the other wolves to become Alpha, I wished I could feel every blow in your stead, so that I could keep you safe.” She ran her fingers through my hair. “I know I haven’t been the most tender of mothers to you, that I had to raise you to be strong to face the struggles that I knew were headed your way, but I’ve only wanted your happiness.”
I briefly closed my eyes. Her words penetrated deep in me, achingly sweet. “You are a great mother,” I assured her. “I wouldn’t be the man I am without you.”
“And don’t I know it.” She smiled and ruffled my hair. “I know how far you will go for Bryn. It would be stupid of me to fault you for choosing her life over yours. There’s no shame in fighting for love, but remember that Troy is evil, and evil men never fight fair. He’s definitely up to something more than you or I can see.”
When she lowered her hands, I stepped back. I glanced at the wall clock. In about ten minutes, I was due to explain my plan to the rest of my team. “I agree. I’ll be as careful as I can be, and we’ll have backup plans in place to make sure Bryn and Tavi are safe.”
“I suppose that’s all I can ask for.” She gave me a sad smile. “I love you, Night.”
“I love you, too.” I hugged her tight, and then left with Dom to head over to the conference room.
We entered the mess hall and walked to the conference room door. The table I’d broken had been removed from the room and converted to a pair of benches. Our current table was unvarnished oak. The surface was sanded, but it would need to be treated with wax to be of any long-term use.
