Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Hunter
The pack meeting is scheduled for seven tonight, which gives me exactly three hours to prepare for what I know is going to be an interrogation disguised as a security briefing.
I spend most of that time pacing through the house, mentally rehearsing arguments I know I'll need to make.
The Alpha's place has hosted countless meetings over the years.
First under Curtis's leadership, now under mine.
The large study at the back of the first floor has become our de facto council room, big enough to hold twenty wolves comfortably, with the added benefit of privacy.
What's said here stays here, protected by thick walls and pack loyalty.
I'm arranging chairs when Caleb lets himself in through the kitchen door.
"You look stressed," my brother observes, grabbing a beer from my fridge without asking. "Want one?"
"It's not even five o'clock."
"So that's a yes." He pops the cap and hands it to me, then gets one for himself. "How bad do you think tonight's going to be?"
"Gregory cornered me yesterday after I got back from taking Ava to Clearwater Creek. He's worried. Marcus has been talking to the elders about my 'distraction' with the human researcher." I take a long drink. "And Garrett's been making noise about the rogue showing up right when Ava did."
Caleb winces. "That's not great timing, I'll admit."
"It's a coincidence. It has to be." But even as I say it, doubt creeps in. The rogue's pattern of behavior is too deliberate, too focused on our territory specifically. "Either way, I'm not backing away from helping her. Her research could be vital to the pack."
"Is that the only reason?" Caleb asks, and there's no judgment in his voice, just honest curiosity.
I meet my brother's eyes. "No. But it's the reason I can give them."
He nods slowly. "You know Rachel and I went through this too. The pack questioned whether I was compromised, whether she was a threat, whether I was fit to be your Beta if I couldn't even keep pack secrets from my girlfriend."
"I remember. I defended you."
"You did. And now I'm going to defend you." He raises his beer in a mock toast. "Brothers stick together, right?"
"Right." I clink my bottle against his. "Thanks."
Wolves start arriving at six forty-five.
Marcus and Garrett are first, as usual, taking their customary spots near the door where they can see everyone who enters.
Wade and Alex follow a few minutes later, nodding respectfully as they settle into chairs.
Gregory arrives with Arthur, Robert, and Thomas, the elders moving with the careful dignity of wolves who've seen decades of pack politics.
By seven, my study is full. Twenty wolves, ranging in age from Garrett's twenty-three to Gregory's seventy-one, all watching me with varying degrees of curiosity, concern, and in Marcus's case, calculation.
I stand at the head of the room, behind the large oak desk that's been passed from one Alpha to the next since the pack first settled in Willow Creek.
Curtis sat behind this desk when he chose me as his successor.
When the pack voted and confirmed his choice.
When I took the oath to protect them, to lead them, to put their safety above my own.
Tonight, I need to prove I still can.
"Thank you all for coming." I keep my voice calm, authoritative. "I know it's been a busy week, and I appreciate you making time for this. Let's start with the rogue situation. Marcus, your report."
Marcus stands, and for the next ten minutes, he details every sighting, every track, every scent marker the enforcers have found over the past week. The pattern is clear. The rogue is systematically exploring our territory, learning its boundaries, its resources, its vulnerabilities.
"What's your assessment?" I ask when he's finished. "Is he looking to join the pack, or is this reconnaissance for something else?"
"Hard to say, Alpha." Marcus crosses his arms. "He's not behaving like a wolf seeking membership. No attempts at contact, no submissive displays. But he's not challenging us either. My gut says he's looking for something specific."
"Or someone," Garrett mutters, and several heads turn toward him.
"You have something to add?" I keep my voice level, but I can feel my wolf rising, alert to the challenge in Garrett's tone.
"Just that the sightings started around the same time as that researcher showed up. The human woman." Garrett meets my eyes, and there's calculation in his gaze. "Seems like quite a coincidence."
The temperature in the room drops several degrees. Every wolf here knows I spent yesterday with Ava, helping her collect samples. In a pack this size, there are no secrets.
"Dr. Sinclair is conducting legitimate research in our territory," I say carefully. "Research that, I might add, could be valuable to us. She's documenting environmental changes that are affecting the entire ecosystem."
"Environmental changes?" Gregory leans forward, his expression sharp. "What kind of changes?"
I explain what Ava has told me about the mutations she's observing, the contamination she suspects, the water samples she's collecting. As I speak, I can see the concern growing on the elders' faces.
"This could explain the issues we've been having with the deer population," Wade says thoughtfully. "The herds have been smaller this year, and some of the animals seem off. Lethargic."
"The rabbits too," Alex adds. "And I've noticed some of the younger wolves complaining about feeling weak after their hunts, like the meat isn't as nourishing as it should be."
The room erupts into conversation, wolves comparing observations, sharing concerns they hadn't previously connected. I let it go for a minute before calling for order.
"This is exactly why I encouraged Dr. Sinclair to continue her research," I say once they've quieted. "If there is contamination in our territory, we need to know about it. We need to understand what we're dealing with."
"And you trust this human to tell us the truth?" Arthur's voice cuts through the room like a blade. "To protect our interests instead of her own?"
"I trust her to do good science," I reply. "Whether she shares her findings with us is a separate issue. One I'm working on."
"By spending time with her?" Robert's tone is neutral, but the implication is clear. "And helping her access our most remote locations?"
"By building a relationship that might give us advance warning if her research uncovers something we need to know about." I meet Robert's eyes. "Would you prefer I ignore her? Let her wander our territory unsupervised, collecting data we have no access to?"
"I'd prefer you keep your distance from a human who's asking too many questions," Arthur says bluntly. "Marcus tells me she saw wolves. That she's been insisting they were real wolves, not dogs or coyotes."
My stomach tightens. Of course Ryan reported that. It's his job. "She saw the rogue and me. She didn't see us shift. She has no reason to suspect they’re anything other than wildlife."
"Yet," Gregory says quietly. "She has no reason to suspect yet. But she's smart, Hunter. You've said so yourself. How long before she starts connecting dots that we'd prefer remain unconnected?"
"Which is another reason to stay close to her," Caleb speaks up for the first time, drawing surprised looks from around the room. "If she does start asking dangerous questions, better that Hunter knows about it than having her publish findings that expose us."
"Or you could ask the witches to make her forget what she saw," Garrett suggests. "Make her leave the area entirely. Clean break, no loose ends."
My wolf snarls, and it takes every ounce of control not to let it show on my face. "No."
"No?" Garrett raises an eyebrow. "With respect, Alpha, that's the safest solution. One spell, and the problem disappears."
"Dr. Sinclair is not a problem to be disappeared." My voice is harder now, carrying the weight of command. "She's a scientist doing important work that could benefit our pack. We don't use magic on innocent people just because they're inconvenient."
"Even when those innocent people threaten our security?" Arthur challenges.
"She's not threatening anything. She's researching plant mutations.
" I force myself to take a breath, to rein in the anger building in my chest. "And before anyone suggests otherwise, my interest in keeping her safe has nothing to do with the fact that she's young and attractive and everything to do with the fact that she could help us identify a genuine threat to our territory. "
The lie tastes bitter on my tongue, but it's necessary. I can't let them see how much I care about Ava, not yet. Not when half this room would see it as a weakness to exploit.
"Is that all it is?" Gregory's voice is gentle, but his eyes are knowing. "Just strategic thinking?"
Damn him for seeing too much.
"That's all that's relevant to this meeting," I say firmly. "Now, unless there are other concerns about the rogue situation, I'd like to discuss patrol schedules for the next week."
We spend the next thirty minutes hashing out logistics like who patrols where, when, and how to coordinate sightings without making it obvious to any human hikers that we're running organized sweeps. It's productive, professional, and gives me time to get my temper under control.
The meeting breaks up around eight-thirty. Most of the wolves file out quickly, heading home or shifting to run patrol routes. But Gregory lingers, as I knew he would.
"Walk with me to my car," he says once we're alone.
We step out onto the front porch. The moon is just starting to rise over the trees, and the air smells of pine and the first hint of autumn cold.
"You're playing a dangerous game, Hunter."
"I know."
"I don't think you do." He turns to face me fully. "I saw how you reacted when Garrett suggested using the witches. You’re acting like a wolf protecting what’s his."