Chapter 7 #2
“I…” Rhett falters, then speaks again, more quietly. “I had a plan. The pack member who stole the money was caught. She’ll be handed back to Jefferson for punishment, though I know now the council probably won’t accept that.”
My breath catches in my throat. Me. He’s talking about me. And he’s lying through his teeth.
“Handing them over doesn’t fix what you’ve done,” Soren replies. “You raided his boats. You attacked his livelihood. Now you’re trying to placate him with some bargain? A thief isn’t going to solve this, Rhett.”
“His daughter is the one who stole from me,” Rhett says, his voice heavy with the weight of the revelation.
His daughter. I thought my father hated Rhett because he was vicious, that they clashed over the usual Alpha conflicts.
Now I realize it was always about power, money, and the ports they control.
And I, caught in the middle, had no idea.
It also makes me wonder if this was Rhett’s intention all along.
He clearly didn’t want me as a mate, which now makes me wonder if he only convinced me to stay with him to use me over my father.
“Jefferson’s daughter?” Soren sounds surprised, and I can hear the wheels turning in his head. “This is why he’s so enraged.”
Rhett doesn’t add anything to his statement, and I feel cold sweat forming at the back of my neck.
I’m the reason for all of this. If Soren knew…
if he realized I’m the thief who started this chain of events, everything would collapse.
I swallow hard, fear coursing through me like ice in my veins.
I need to get out of here, need to think, but I can’t move.
My ass feels glued to the chair as I listen to their voices.
“You can’t keep playing both sides, Rhett,” Soren says. “You need to settle this. I can’t keep covering for you. And if Jefferson comes for you, I won’t intervene. He wants your pack dissolved. And frankly, at this point, I’m inclined to agree.”
Rhett doesn’t respond immediately. When he does, his voice is flat. “I’m handling it. I just need more time.”
Soren’s reply is quick, cutting. “You’re out of time.
” I bite my lip hard enough to taste blood.
And now, I’m more terrified than ever. If Soren finds out…
no, I can’t think about that. I can’t tell him.
Not now. Not when I know he’s been protecting Rhett.
I never knew how deep his involvement went.
I thought this was just about resolving a pack dispute, but it’s so much more.
“The council believes you’ve lost control of your pack. If you can’t even keep a pack member from stealing from you, how can you expect to prevent a war? And why was Jefferson’s daughter in your pack?”
“Her mate was part of my pack; I think she was also trying to escape her overbearing father,” Rhett lies.
“The council is worried about your ability to lead, Rhett. The fact that a pack member was able to steal from you without your knowledge is proof of that. You need to regain control, or the council will have no choice but to step in.”
Rhett’s jaw tightens, his frustration evident. “I’ve already told you she escaped and fled before I could bring her to justice.”
I force myself to keep my gaze on Max’s coloring book. The lie stings, but what else did I expect from Rhett?
Soren leans forward, eyes hard as he regards Rhett. “Exactly, she escaped your entire pack. What do you plan to do when she’s caught now? Giving her back to Jefferson won’t be an option.”
Rhett doesn’t answer immediately. The tension in the room rises like a storm waiting to break. “She’ll face whatever punishment the council deems appropriate,” Rhett finally says, his voice even, but I can sense the underlying menace.
Soren crosses his arms, clearly unsatisfied. “The council needs assurance that you’re in control, Rhett. A runaway pack member stealing from you doesn’t inspire confidence. What exactly do you suggest as a suitable punishment, especially when they learn she is Alpha Jefferson’s daughter?”
My stomach churns, bile rising in my throat. I’m the thief they’re discussing, the runaway pack member who Rhett failed to control. They’re talking about me as if I’m nothing more than a criminal to be dealt with. They don’t know I was framed. That I had no choice but to run.
Rhett shifts again, his voice cold and calculating. “Exile would send a message to the pack that this kind of betrayal won’t be tolerated. Stripping her of any rights, any ties to the pack or her father’s. It’s what the council would expect.”
I flinch inwardly because that is not what he had planned at all.
He’s already painting me as a traitor, as someone who can’t be forgiven.
The man who once claimed to love me, who once promised to protect me, is now discussing my fate as if I’m nothing more than a problem to be solved. My heart clenches painfully.
Soren’s voice pulls me back to the conversation.
“Exile may be what the council expects, but it doesn’t seem like enough now given all the drama this woman has caused.
The fact that she escaped from your pack in the first place is troubling.
If she’s found, the council may require a harsher punishment to show that this kind of disobedience won’t be tolerated. ”
My blood runs cold. Harsher punishment. What does that even mean? All I know is, I don’t want to find out.
Rhett nods. “I understand, Soren.”
The silence that follows is unbearable. I need to leave this room, to get away from these discussions about my fate. “Max, honey, I need to go to the bathroom,” I say softly, standing. “I’ll be right back.”
Soren glances at me briefly, his expression softening for a moment, his attention quickly shifts back to Rhett as I slip out of the room.
I move down the corridor, trying to breathe through the panic clawing at me.
I make it to the bathroom and lock the door, leaning against the cool tile wall as I try to calm my racing mind.
Rhett is hiding the truth from Soren, pretending like I’m some runaway criminal who betrayed him. He’s framing me for something I didn’t do. And now, the council is involved, worried about the brewing tensions between his pack and my father’s.