Chapter 37 — Rhiannon
“We need to move against Holden now.” I plant my hands on Xander’s desk, the wood grain rough beneath my palms. “Every moment we wait, he could be planning another attack through Jayme.”
Akila paces near the window. “He turned Jayme into a weapon. Made him attack people he’d die to protect.”
“I want to rip that bastard apart.” Conan pounds his fist into the arm of his chair.
“The Osorin Temple is north of here. We can get there in three hours if we push hard.” I straighten, meeting Xander’s silver-blue gaze. “We should go as a small team: me, Branson, Akila, and Conan. We know the terrain, and we can handle whatever magic Holden throws at us.”
Xander leans back in his chair. “You’re asking me to authorize an attack on a Shaman Elder’s son while his father lies unconscious in our infirmary. The political ramifications—”
“Screw the politics.” The words burst out before I can stop them. My wolf bristles at challenging my Alpha, but I press on. “Holden’s controlling one of our own. He tried to murder his father. He’s sabotaging all the work you’ve done for this summit—”
“Commander.” The single word from Xander stops me mid-breath.
Ethan reaches into his pocket. “Haron wants him stopped too.”
The crystal catches the torch light as he sets it on Xander’s desk. The protective charm gleams like captured starlight, its delicate chain pooling around it.
“She gave me this.” Ethan’s fingers hover over the crystal. “Said it would protect me from the worst of Holden’s magic. A Shaman doesn’t just hand over their protective charm to anyone, right?”
Xander picks up the necklace, examining it closely. “No. They don’t.”
“She’s choosing our side.” Ethan’s voice stays steady, but I catch the tightness in his shoulders. “She knows what her brother is, what he did to their father, and she wants us to end this.”
“My Lord, you know I would lay down my life for you if you asked.” Branson speaks for the first time since we entered Xander’s study. “But Jayme’s my brother. The only family I have left. I won’t leave him under that monster’s control.”
The room falls silent. Xander sets down the charm, his fingers drumming once against the desk.
“Fine.” Xander stands, decision made. “You can have your team, but I’m coming with you.”
“My Lord, you shouldn’t—” I start.
“A member of my pack was tortured and used to sabotage our peace talks. An Elder Shaman lies dying in my infirmary. Should I have the chance to stand before Stasio after we confront his son, I need to have been there myself to explain exactly what happened.” His voice doesn’t allow debate.
“I’m coming too.” Ethan’s declaration cuts through the room.
“Absolutely not,” I snap before I can temper myself. “This is a Lycan operation against a dangerous Shaman. You’re—”
“The only one here who can read people. The one who figured out Holden’s plan.” Ethan crosses his arms. “And, apparently, the only one Haron trusts enough to give her protective charm to.”
You’re staying here. The thought blazes in my mind, directed at him with all the force I can muster.
Ethan’s eyes widen slightly, but he recovers quickly. Like hell I am.
You could die out there. I keep my face neutral while my thoughts rage in his mind. Holden’s magic, the rough terrain, even being around us when we’re in wolf form — it’s suicide.
So was jumping between Jayme and you in the dungeon, but I did it anyway. His mental voice carries that infuriating stubbornness. I’m not letting you do this without me.
This isn’t about us—
Of course it is.
“Commander?” Xander’s voice breaks through our silent battle. “Do you object or not?”
I realize everyone’s staring at me. At us. Ethan and I have been locked in a silent standoff for too long.
“He’s human,” I say aloud, forcing my attention back to Xander. “He’ll slow us down.”
“He kept up during perimeter patrol,” Conan points out. “And he’s right about being able to read people. Could be useful if he can predict Holden’s moves before we can.”
Branson nods. “The Truth Seer has proven himself.”
“He’s faced down Jayme twice without flinching.” Akila’s support surprises me. “He’s earned the right to see this through.”
Xander studies Ethan, then me. A flash of understanding crosses his face. “Ethan will come. He needs to stay back during combat, but his insights could prove valuable.” He turns to Ethan. “Wear the charm Haron gave you, but the second anything feels off, get rid of it immediately.”
My wolf snarls in frustration, but I force myself to nod. “Yes, My Lord.”
This discussion isn’t over, I send to Ethan.
His mental voice carries a hint of warmth that makes my chest tighten when he responds, I know.
“Draw up a plan, Commander,” Xander continues. “You’ll be the lead. This is your operation.”
I nod. “Branson, gather supplies. Akila, organize rotations to watch over Jayme in our absence. Conan, prepare the armor and weapons. We leave at sunset.”
Everyone files out of Xander’s study, and Ethan trails closely behind me. His stride matches mine down the corridor toward my chambers.
“We should coordinate entry points,” he says, falling into place by my side. “If Holden’s holed up in that temple, he’ll have a defensive vantage point. Maybe we could—”
“Stop.” I whirl on him as we reach my doorway. “Military strategy is my job. You keep undermining me.”
“How am I undermining you?”
“You insisted on coming with us to Osorin Temple, despite my opposition, and convinced Xander to allow it.” I step into my chambers. “But you are not a soldier. You’re not trained for this.”
He doesn’t wait for an invitation and steps in with me, closing the door behind him.
When he meets my stare, his green eyes blaze with wounded pride that morphs into anger.
“Your Alpha sees my value. Akila, Conan, and Branson all supported me too.” He takes a step closer, his cinnamon scent flooding my senses despite my attempts to block it out.
“I never thought I’d get benched by you, of all people, after everything I’ve contributed.
But I guess that’s all I am to you, a liability of no real use to the pack. ”
My wolf whines at his pain, but I push through it. “Haron said herself that Holden is ‘very dangerous.’ Those were her exact words.”
“And she gave me her protective charm.” His fingers touch the crystal at his throat.
“You’re a human.” I sigh with exasperation. “Even with that charm, Holden could rip you apart. For all we know, it’s a trap, something that marks you for his magic.”
“Or maybe it gives me a fighting chance in this crazy world. It would be the first real one I’ve had since I got here.” His fingers tighten around the crystal protectively. “My instincts tell me that Haron was being genuine.”
“Your instincts,” I scoff. “Your gift doesn’t automatically mean you understand Shaman magic. It could be designed to fool you, to make you trusting while it does Goddess-knows-what to you.”
“So what’s the alternative?” His voice rises slightly. “You’d rather I walk into this unprotected? Or better yet.” He spreads his arms wide, his expression twisting with raw desperation. “Sit back here and let you all die?”
“We’re not—” I start, but he barrels on.
“And another thing, Haron isn’t the enemy here. She told us where to find Holden.”
“After she endorsed a plan that turned Jayme into a puppet to sabotage the summit.”
“She admitted she was wrong, and now she’s terrified—”
“Regret doesn’t erase her crimes.” I slam my palm against the door frame.
“She’s not some innocent bystander. She’s a co-conspirator who got cold feet when daddy ended up a victim.
Haron wanted to use you to bear the brunt of the attack that she orchestrated.
And now she’s perfectly happy to let you go to battle with Holden as if she’s making things right. Don’t you find that suspicious?”
“Holden tricked her.” His body leans in, refusing to give ground. “I don’t like that she was going to use me as a sacrificial lamb either, but I know she’s genuinely horrified by what happened. She wants to fix this—”
“For all we know, her waterworks in the garden were all part of the act. She and Holden can communicate telepathically, and we don’t know the range of that connection. She could be talking to him right now, feeding him every detail of our plan.”
“She’s not like Holden.” Ethan’s voice rises to match mine. “She’s trying to redeem herself.”
“And you get to make that call on your own, do you? Just like you decided you could step between her and me twice during my interrogation.” My wolf prowls beneath my skin, agitated. “You didn’t consult me on my strategy. You just announced yourself as a Truth Seer and took over my questioning.”
His eyes flash. “Because what you were doing wasn’t working.”
“I’m the Commander! In this investigation, I lead. You literally hindered my work by blocking me from questioning a witness.”
“If I hadn’t stepped in, we might not have gotten anything from her at all.”
“You revealed information we wanted to keep secret. The Shaman didn’t need to know about your gift. Now they have knowledge we can’t take back.” My nails dig into my palms. “You undermined my authority. Just like you’re doing now with this mission.”
“If it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t have gotten Haron to admit where Holden is right now.”
“You don’t know that.” My wolf prowls beneath my skin, agitated. “I was fully in control.”
“Control?” Ethan laughs humorlessly. “You grabbed her by the collar and backed her against the wall. Your claws were out, Rhiannon. You were seconds from ripping her apart.”
The memory comes flooding back. My wolf’s rage had taken over. I wanted to crush Haron’s fragile bones beneath my claws.
“I had to play the role of the good cop.” His voice continues to climb, saturating the air around us. “If I wasn’t there, you would’ve killed her. Then what? Stasio would’ve awoken from his coma to his daughter being dead and waged war on Kortan.”