Page 15 of Forbidden Moon
Now, he sat at the table waiting for the other party to appear, motionless, even as the Supreme Alpha tapped the table with his pen, a scowl on his face. “You did specify the time and location, Charles?”
“I did, Alpha. In writing and on the phone,” he confirmed in a firm tone.
They had selected a neutral spot between both territories, a small town on the border between Massachusetts and New York, in the Berkshires, that had served as a meeting place for their packs before when negotiations were necessary. The humans in the town were nervous at hosting three alphas, but they had the state police to protect them. They didn’t realize that human police were no protection against a shifter intent on damage.
Simon frowned and glanced pointedly at his watch again. In that moment, they heard a commotion in the lobby and the door opened. Linc Colvin and two other wolves strode into the room as if they owned the place. Maya recognized Linc’s brother and leader of the eastern den for Saranac, Shane, and Garrett. She stiffened, as did the other wolves in the room.
Simon glared at them. “Where is your alpha?”
Linc dropped into the chair opposite Duncan with a careless wave. “He has better things to do than be bothered by bullshit accusations. He’s authorized me to handle this.”
Charles walked over to Linc and casually wrapped a hand around the male’s throat, then, in a swift move that stunned the room, pinned him to the table. Then he looked at the Supreme Alpha, who stared at Linc. “Care to rephrase your statement, Beta?”
A wave of alpha power accompanied the statement and all the wolves, except Charles, Simon, and Duncan, hit the floor, baring their throat instinctively. Linc snarled and struggled against the hold, but Charles leaned down and whispered something in his ear, subvocally so no other wolf could hear. Linc froze and went ghost white.
“Care to rethink your comment, Beta?” Simon’s voice was silky as he leaned back in his chair, his lip curling a bit to show his displeasure.
Maya glanced at him from the corner of her eye, fascinated by the interplay and terrified to catch his attention. Now she understood what prey felt like when she was in wolf form on a hunt.
Charles must have eased his grip slightly, for Linc choked out a few words. “Apologies, Supreme Alpha. I’m just following orders.”
After another long moment passed, the power lifted, and she felt like she could breathe again. Linc gasped and fell back in his seat, rubbing his throat where a few lines of blood dripped. The rest of them slowly struggled to their feet, all looking anywhere but at the Supreme Alpha. Maya chanced at glance at Linc, wondering how he would handle the embarrassment and she caught a speculative look aimed directly at her, though he said nothing. That chilled her more than anything said or done in the past few minutes. The last thing she wanted or needed was attention from the Saranac Beta.
“Now that everyone is finally here, we can begin. Yesterday there was an attack on Dirigo, on their most vulnerable—pups and non-combatants.”
“We had nothing to do with it,” Shane Colvin burst out.
Simon cut a glare his way, his dominance rolling over the room. “You will speak when spoken to.” Shane stiffened, then looked away, unable to maintain the eye contact in the face of strong dominance. “As I said, the attack occurred on non-combatants. The location was well within the boundaries of Dirigo land. Several members were killed and pups were kidnapped. I don’t have to add that this is a declaration of war.”
“And this affects us how?” Linc asked, having recovered his composure and arrogance.
Duncan leaned forward, but Maya saw his fists clenched on his thighs under the table, betraying his intense emotion. “You know that you’re responsible.”
Linc only lifted an eyebrow. “You’re mistaken. I think you’re trying to find any excuse to attack my pack.”
Simon raised his hand. “And who do you suppose did it, Colvin?”
Linc shrugged. “Could be anyone with a beef against Dirigo. Rogue shifters, humans, former members of the Tri-State Pack. They weren’t too happy about the loss of their pack after the war. They’ve caused some problems for us, too.”
“You allied with them in the war. Why would they attack you?” Isaac asked.
Linc turned a bored look on her boss. “Because they think we betrayed them.”
“Did you?” Isaac challenged.
A flash of anger flared in Linc’s eyes, quickly suppressed. “Of course not. But they lost, didn’t they? So they had to blame someone. Maybe they want to retrieve their formers members, the ones you absorbed into your pack.”
Duncan turned back to Simon. “We scented wolves we know are from Saranac. This is pure misdirection.”
“But a valid possibility. One that should be considered. Charles, have your enforcers check into the Tri-State pack and any remaining members who may have gone rogue and have an axe to grind.”
Duncan opened his mouth as if to speak, and Simon held up his hand. “We will explore all possibilities, Duncan. Enforcers will also investigate Saranac for their involvement.”
“We formally protest. We will not allow outsiders on our pack lands,” Linc declared.
“Tough. If you disagree, you are admitting guilt and will be punished accordingly. Is that what you’re doing, Colvin?” Linc subsided to a sullen silence. “Good. Now, we need local assistance. Paws on the ground. I assume your local wolf is Maya, Duncan?”
Duncan nodded. “She’s our second on the western border and knows the people and the land better than anyone except Isaac. She also has a background in investigations.”