Page 33 of Shadow of Fury

Mavis dutifully lifted the turkey to her mouth and chewed. Wren didn’t feel hungry at all, not with her stomach churning and her anger with her parents making her skin itch. Still, she too lifted a bite to her mouth and chewed as the others did the same. The table fell quiet as everyone began to eat but Mavis looked up suddenly, eyes focusing on Wren.

“How is work going, Wren?”

She paused with a spoonful of corn halfway to her mouth, “Um… fine.”

“You’ve been working for the Alpha. I hope you’re doing a better job than just fine.” Her mother made a tsking sound.

“I’m doing my job, Mom.” Wren assured her.

“We’re so proud of you, ya know, for what you’re doing.” Mavis continued, her eyes beginning to drift again.

A shiver of unease raced down Wren’s spine. Her mother didn’t know what she was doing. She barely remembered where she was half the time. There was no way that her mother had figured out she took the job in the Alpha’s office in order to dig for information about Lark’s murder… was there?

Wren put the spoonful of corn gently back on her plate, “What do you mean?”

“Everything you do for the Alpha. We’re so proud of you for taking care of him, for helping him. You’re doing good for the pack by supporting him. He’s a good man and he needs good people around him.”

Wren’s stomach turned and she was shaking her head before she could stop herself, “He’s not a good man.”

“Wren…” Raven started to reach a reassuring hand towards her again but she flinched away this time.

“He’s evil, Mom. He’s a vile, evil old man and you’d know that if you ever got it together long enough to leave this house and see what he’s done to our pack.”

“Don’t you dare speak that way in my house!” Her father snapped. “It’s treason and I won’t listen to it under my roof.”

“It’s the truth. Just because you choose to blindly follow him doesn’t mean I have to.”

“You will respect the Alpha or I will…”

“You’ll what?” Wren yelled over him as his voice rose, the anger they’d been stoking in her all night suddenly bursting into a furious scream. “Send me to my room? Ignore me the same way you always have? I’m not a child anymore and you can’t...”

He roared over her, “You’re my child and you will show the proper respect!”

“Bullshit. I haven’t been a child since the night Lark was murdered. She died because you ignored me, because you were too worried about your precious connection to the Alpha to stop her. I lost all respect for you and him that night and I…”

His huge hand shot out so fast that Wren didn’t have time to dodge and it landed with a sharp smack across her cheek. Her head spun from the impact and her wolf lunged for the surface, snarling and ready for a fight. Wren blinked, so surprised that her father had slapped her that it took her a moment to pull the wolf back and regain her humanity. When she did, she realized that she was on the floor, one hand pressed to her stinging cheek, and Raven was standing over her, putting herself between Wren and the hulking figure of their looming father.

“Stop it! Stop it right now!” Raven was screaming now too.

“Oh gods…” Their father stumbled a little and caught himself on the edge of the table, “Oh gods, pumpkin? I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to… I.. you provoked me and I…”

“Don’t you dare.” Wren hissed as she forced herself up from the floor.

She could feel the swelling erupt on the side of her face already. Her head ached and her vision felt fuzzy but she found her feet with some effort. Raven caught her when she swayed but she shoved out of her sister’s grasp, guilt already warring with the anger and pain.

“Are you okay?” Raven’s dark eyes searched hers but Wren could only shake her head.

“I’m sorry I ruined your dinner.”

“You didn’t… it’s… we’ll figure it out.”

“Wren, please.” Their father spoke and when she looked past Raven she saw that he had his head in his hands just as she saw that their mother had curled into a ball in her chair and was rocking herself in a self-soothing way.

“I have to go.”

“Wren, no…” Raven tried to grab for her again but she backed away.

“I can’t be here. Not right now. I just… I need to go.”