Chapter 31
Nathan
I shifted back to human form, the lingering adrenaline still thrumming through my veins. Around me, Gavin, Kendrick, Marcus, and Ula did the same, grabbing for clothes.
"Get dressed quick." I yanked on my jeans.
I glanced over at Elle and Bryce, huddled together, eyes wide with shock and fear. My heart clenched. They'd seen too much today already.
"Ula," I called out. She looked up from lacing her boots, grey-streaked braid swinging. "Can you take the kids to my house? Get them settled, and we'll meet you there."
"Of course." She straightened and strode over to Elle and Bryce, speaking to them soothingly.
They'd be safe with her. Ula had a calm, steadying presence that inspired trust. Plus, her tracking skills were unparalleled. If anyone could get them home quickly and discreetly, it was her.
Marcus and Kendrick efficiently checked the ropes on Caleb, expressions grim.
I stalked over to where Caleb was lashed to the chair, his head lolling to the side. Grabbing a fistful of his hair, I wrenched his face up to meet my gaze.
"Talk," I snarled. "Why are you doing this?"
Caleb just glared at me defiantly, his lips pressed together in a thin line. I could feel my wolf rising, pushing me to force him into submission. To rip the truth from his throat if I had to.
Suddenly, Rissa was at my side, her small hand on my arm. "Let me try," she murmured.
I blinked at her in surprise, some of my rage fading. Rissa winked at me, a glint of mischief in her eyes despite the tense situation.
"Watch this," she said conspiratorially.
Leaning down so she was nose to nose with Caleb, Rissa locked eyes with him. Power rolled off her in waves, smacking into me like a physical force. My wolf went wild, howling and scrabbling inside me to be let loose. To claim what was his.
"Talk," Rissa commanded, her voice layered with alpha authority.
I sucked in a harsh breath, fighting the overwhelming urge to shift and take her right there in front of everyone. She was magnificent. A true alpha female. My mate.
Caleb's face went slack, his eyes glazing over slightly. Then the words started pouring out of him like water from a burst dam.
He glared at me. "Your brother killed my father."
I rocked back on my heels, shock reverberating through me. "What are you talking about?" I bit out. "Quinn would never—"
"It's true," Caleb spat, his gaze venomous. "He murdered him in cold blood."
Krystal let out a choked sound of distress and denial. She lunged forward, slapping Caleb hard across the face.
"Don't you dare speak of my father that way!"
Caleb just laughed, a cruel, brittle sound. He jerked his chin towards the other room.
"I have proof. There's a letter in my bag." His smile was sharp and vicious. "My mother got it years ago and hid it from me. I only found out about it after she died. Ever since then, all I've wanted is to make you all suffer the way I have. The way they did."
My mind was reeling, a maelstrom of confusion and dread. None of this made sense. Quinn, a murderer? It wasn't possible... Was it?
I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to think past the pounding in my skull. When I opened them again, Rissa was watching me, her gaze steady and full of quiet strength. She gave me a small nod, letting me know without words that she was with me. That we would face this together.
I blew out a long, slow breath. Then I turned to Marcus.
"Go get that letter."
"Your mother, Cara, she's dead?" Kendrick asked. “We thought she moved. You told us she moved.”
Caleb's face twisted with grief and rage. "She withered away. Died of a broken heart after losing her true mate."
The words hit me like a punch to the gut. I understood that pain all too well, the gaping, endless void left behind when your other half was torn away. My heart ached for Cara, for everything she must have endured. And for Caleb, so lost in his fury and despair.
Marcus returned, the letter clutched in his hand. He passed it to me wordlessly, his expression grim.
I unfolded it with shaking fingers, steeling myself for what horrors it might contain. Then I began to read aloud, my voice rough with dread.
Dear Cara and Caleb,
For the last seven years, I have lived day in and day out with this guilt. I never meant to hurt Jonah.
It was when we were having all those problems with the Greene pack. I was alone when I was ambushed by two of their wolves. I fought hard, and when it was over, there were three bodies on the ground. Two I didn't recognize and one I did. Jonah Calloway.
A choked sound escaped me. Krystal pressed a shaking hand to her mouth, tears spilling down her cheeks.
He must've jumped in to help me fight them off, but in my blood rage, I killed them all.
After that, I panicked. Buried the bodies and covered the scents by burying skunks with them.
I can't live with what I did to you anymore.
I'm so sorry, and all I can do is hope that my sacrifice gives you peace knowing that the wolf who murdered your loved one is now dead.
The letter crumpled in my fist. I couldn't read anymore. Couldn't bear to see Quinn's anguish and self-loathing laid bare in his final words.
I remembered Jonah well. He'd been a good man, loyal and true. Always the first to volunteer for extra patrols, to put the pack's needs above his own. To think that Quinn… that my own brother had…
No. I couldn't process it. Couldn't reconcile the male I'd known and loved with this confession of unthinkable violence.
I thought of Quinn, his easy smile, his terrible jokes, the way he'd always ruffled my hair. The brother who'd been my best friend and staunchest ally.
How could this be real? How could any of it?
My vision blurred as hot tears spilled down my face. I pulled Krystal into my arms, holding her tight as the letter fluttered to the floor. Her slender frame shook with silent sobs, and I stroked her hair, trying to offer some measure of comfort even as my own heart shattered.
"I never knew," I whispered brokenly. "All these years, and we never knew why he..."
Krystal's fingers dug into my back. "He must've been in so much pain. Carrying that guilt, that shame."
A harsh, bitter laugh cut through the room. "Pain?" Caleb spat. "You want to talk about pain?"
I lifted my head, meeting his cold, accusing glare. The anger radiating off him was palpable, a living, breathing thing that sucked the air from the room.
"I've spent the last five years living with the knowledge that my father was murdered," Caleb snarled. "Murdered in cold blood by your brother. And you have the audacity to sit there and cry about his pain?"
His words were like a knife to the gut. I flinched, but I couldn't look away. Couldn't deny the truth of his accusation.
"Caleb, I'm so sorry," I began, my voice thick with emotion. "I can't even imagine what you've been through, what you must be feeling—"
"You're right. You can't." Caleb's eyes flashed with a feral light. "But you will. I want you to hurt. I want you and your precious family to suffer like I have. To know the agony of losing everything that matters."
My wolf stirred within me, responding to the threat in his tone. I fought to keep my voice steady, even as conflicting emotions warred inside me.
"I understand your anger. I do. What Quinn did, it's unforgivable. But this? Going after my family? It won't bring your father back. It won't ease your pain."
"Maybe not," Caleb conceded, his smile razor-sharp. "But it sure as hell will feel good."
I closed my eyes, struggling to find the right words. The right path forward. As much as I understood Caleb's thirst for vengeance, as much as a part of me even sympathized with it, I couldn't let him hurt the people I loved. Couldn't stand by and watch him destroy everything I held dear.
But how could I condemn him, knowing what Quinn had done? How could I pass judgment on a man driven half-mad by grief and rage?
There were no easy answers. No clear-cut solutions. Only an impossible choice that would haunt me no matter what I decided.
I looked at Krystal, at the tears still streaming down her face, and my resolve hardened. She was my priority now. My responsibility. I had to protect her, even if it meant making the hard call.
Even if it meant living with the consequences for the rest of my life.
I turned to Marcus and Kendrick, my voice low and grave. "Make sure those ropes are tight. Don't take your eyes off him for a second."
They both nodded, their expressions grim as they moved to double-check Caleb's restraints. I gently touched Krystal's trembling shoulder, guiding her towards the door. Rissa and Gavin followed close behind, their faces etched with worry and uncertainty.
We stepped out onto the pack house porch. I took a deep breath, trying to clear my head, but the weight of the decision before me seemed to press down on my chest like a physical force.
Krystal collapsed onto one of the wooden benches, her body shaking with silent sobs. Rissa sat beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders in a gesture of comfort. Gavin paced back and forth, his jaw clenched tight and his eyes blazing with barely contained fury.
"We have to kill him," he said, his voice sharp and unyielding. "Pack law demands it. He attacked one of our own. There's no coming back from that."
I shook my head, running a hand through my hair in frustration. "I make the laws, Gavin. I decide what happens next."
"And what will you decide?" he challenged, stopping to look me square in the eye. "Can you really let him live, knowing what he's done? Knowing what he might do if given the chance? You heard him. He’s lost. There’s no coming back from this. He’s gone feral."
I hesitated, the words caught in my throat. Could I? Could I really condemn a man to death, even one who had caused so much pain?
"We don't have a prison," Gavin continued, his tone softening slightly. "We can't just lock him up and throw away the key. If we let him go, he'll always be a threat. Always be a shadow lurking in the back of our minds."
Damn it. He was right. However much I might want to find another way, there was no easy solution. No path forward that didn't involve blood on my hands.
But still, I couldn't shake the feeling that there had to be something else. Some other option I hadn't considered. Some way to find justice without sacrificing my soul in the process.
Slowly, I pulled Krystal into my arms, holding her tight as sobs wracked her body. I stroked her hair, murmuring soothing words as best I could, even as my own heart ached with the weight of what I knew I had to do.
When at last her tears subsided, I cupped her face in my hands, looking deep into those amber eyes I loved so well. "I want you and Rissa to go to the kids," I said softly. "I have to finish this."
Her eyes widened as understanding dawned, and for a moment, I saw the briefest flicker of fear. But then she closed her eyes, sucking in a deep breath, and when she opened them again, I saw only strength and determination shining back at me.
"That's my girl," I whispered, pulling her close and pressing a kiss to her forehead.
Rissa stepped forward then, and I gathered her into my arms as well, the three of us clinging to each other as if we might never let go. A moment later, Gavin's massive arms encircled us all, holding us together as one.
When we finally pulled apart, Rissa stayed in my embrace, tilting her head back to look up at me. "Are you going to do what I think you're going to do?" she whispered.
I nodded once, not trusting myself to speak.
She closed her eyes, and a single tear slipped down her cheek. "I'm wishing you all of my strength," she said softly. "I'm so sorry you have to do this."
She stretched up on her toes, pressing a gentle kiss to my lips, and then she and Krystal walked into the trees, leaving Gavin and me alone on the porch.
For a long moment, we stood there, the weight of what lay ahead hanging heavy between us. Then, with a sigh, I turned and headed back inside, steeling myself for the task to come.