Page 17 of Forbidden Moon
“How do you know they were superior? They were cowards, sneaking onto other pack’s lands and attacked pups and non-combatants. You don’t need warriors for that. You need insane cowards. Honorable wolves would never do that.”
Linc lunged out of his seat for her. Caleb North and Garrett smoothly stepped in to block him from reaching her. She snarled from behind them. “I can defend myself.”
“Enough,” Charles’s voice echoed in the conference room, his power pressing on all of them to submit.
They all bowed their knees, even Linc. When everyone was quiet and calm, Charles relaxed. “Colvin, you said it wasn’t you. Maya never indicated you were there, but your brother was. Where was he?”
Linc shrugged. “He was with me. We were reviewing the border patrol plans. I didn’t want any more skirmishes with Dirigo.”
Maya’s eyes flashed. “You’ve been pushing the borders for several months, attacking our patrols and our people.”
“Enough,” Charles repeated. “We’ll assess the border maps later. Right now, we have pups to find. A couple of my enforcers are interviewing your brother now. I hope his story matches yours. I am sending two enforcers to Saranac to talk to your border guards. Garrett, you’ll coordinate. I expect no surprises.”
His tone implied that there had better be no surprises or funny business. Garrett nodded. “Understood. I’ll share what I learn after I review the patrol plan and talk to everyone.”
Linc shot him a sharp look but said nothing. Charles nodded. “Take Caleb as your partner in the interviews. I don’t think you should bring a Dirigo wolf into Saranac lands. Maya, you’ll work with Rafe Mendoza to gather reports from Dirigo. Everyone will report to me here daily. Clear? Now move.”
He stood and strode from the room without a backwards glance. After a moment, Maya headed for the door, one of the enforcers peeling off to follow her. Garrett nodded to Caleb to head outside, and he left.
Linc gave Garrett an appraising look. “Awfully protective of a girl that you’re not mated to.”
“Instincts.”
Linc grunted. “You’ve been gone too long, pup. Besides, that one would just as soon gut you than let you protect her. Stay close to her and let me know if you feel any mating bond forming. We could use her fire in our pack, once she learns her place.”
He got to his feet and ambled over to Garrett. In a swift move, he gripped the back of Garrett’s neck and yanked him close. “You report everything to me first, you hear? And you keep Saranac’s secrets. Remember, pack first. Always.”
Garrett nodded the few inches the tight grip allowed. His uncle let his own dominance shine through for a moment, then, as if satisfied that he’d made his point, released Garrett with a shove and strode out of the room.
Caleb re-entered, his impassive gaze taking in his former partner. “So where do we start?”
“We review the patrols and talk to them, see where they all were at the time of the attack.”
“Assuming they’ll tell us the truth,” Caleb said.
Garrett sighed. “Assuming that.”
Based on his uncle’s not so deft handling of the interview, he wasn’t sure what to think any longer.
CHAPTER NINE
Maya hadn’t worked with Rafe Mendoza before, or any of the Council Enforcers. He followed her to the pack jeep and got in the passenger side without any protest, which earned him points in her book. A male wolf confident enough not to demand to take over, even though they were on her pack’s lands, might be okay as a partner, even for the short term. She headed for their border headquarters and gave him a quick run of the situation to date, both the attack and the ongoing tensions.
He didn’t say much, just listened to her, which she studied him out of the corner of her eye and checked with her wolf to see if there was any kind of recognition. He was a handsome male, dark in a Spanish way, with medium tanned skin and dark wavy hair that brushed his collar and looked silky to the touch. His eyes were dark brown and watched her with a sharp intelligence but didn’t demand her submission as so many male shifters did, even as she sensed his dominance was stronger than hers. He was adjusting his presence to work with her, not control her, something she didn’t expect, and that somehow made him even more attractive.
Yet her wolf didn’t react to him like a potential mate, damn it. If she had to find a mate outside her pack, why did it have to be from their enemies, Saranac?
Just thinking about Garrett soured her mood. He couldn’t be her mate. She could never mate with a male from Saranac, not with their outdated ways of treating females, especially strong females like her. When mating across packs happened, one member had to leave and join the other pack. Garrett’s whole family was integral to the Saranac pack structure. He would never leave and, even if he was willing, Dirigo couldn’t trust him, not with Dirigo and Saranac being enemies. So she would have to leave. In Saranac, she would never be allowed to be anything more than a mate and mother to the next generation, not an enforcer and a member of the pack’s hierarchy. That was unacceptable to her or her wolf. She had worked too hard for her position.
She’d been thinking of a way out for the entire month and couldn’t think of any options, unless Garrett was willing to leave his pack, except her pack hated all of Saranac, especially the Colvins. And now, with the latest attack, it was only going to be worse. Would there ever be a chance for them?
“You and Colvin seem to have a history.”
“Yeah, I hate the bastard and don’t trust him at all,” she spat without thinking about who she was talking to. No, she didn’t care that she was talking to a Council Enforcer. They needed to know who they were dealing with.
“He seemed awfully protective of you.” Rafe’s tone was amused, but he stared straight ahead.
“Protective? Oh, you mean Garrett.”