7. Asher

ASHER

C onnor summoned me, yet again, while I was in the middle of my run. It annoyed me more than his usual summons did, because it meant I would have to deal with him before I'd had the chance to work out my frustration. I was going to be a short fuse.

The guards caught me while I was in my wolf form and dragged me back to the shed. They tossed me inside.

"Shift and get dressed. Connor wants to see you."

I bristled at being commanded and handled like this. I snapped at them, a low growl emanating from my throat.

"I won't ask again, mutt," he said.

I was growling even as I shifted. Blood still pumping from my run, I glared at the guards. I was a prisoner, and my pack was being held hostage in exchange for obedience, but this asshole had tested my limits.

"I'll tolerate you manhandling me, but if you call me that again, I'll break your fucking arm," I said.

His glare wavered before hardening again. "You'd get beaten for insubordination."

"I am an alpha," I growled, since he seemed to have forgotten. "I want you to think about all of the ways I could hurt you and your friend here before the rest of the guards got to me. I'd get beaten for it, but you'd be maimed before that. Do you really want to take that risk?"

I had the pleasure of watching his confidence waver again. He looked at the other guard, who said nothing. Seeing he wasn't going to get any support from the guy, , he turned his back to me, and the two started walking. I guess he'd decided it wasn't worth the pain.

Good.

I followed them into the manor. Most of this monstrosity of a building's layout was a mystery to me, but I recognized the path to the ballroom. As we headed that way, I caught the scent of blood. It set me on edge, until I saw a silently sobbing Penny Salcedo with a maid. Blood dripped from Penny's hands.

Curse aside, I hated the Salcedos on principle because they allowed the supposed "elite" of their pack to live in extravagance while the rest of their people had to work for every penny. But there was no need for me to be an asshole to the youngest Salcedo when she was injured and clearly emotional, so I averted my eyes as they passed us.

Once we reached the ballroom, my eyes widened with surprise. Of course Connor was there, this time with Randall, but I hadn't expected to see Phaedra and Selene. It was a bit like whiplash standing in the room with the four of them. If it was just Selene, Connor, and Randall, I'd be pissed off and growly, but seeing Phaedra's face soothed me. Even in a room filled largely with my enemies, she made my heart skip a beat.

"Great," Connor said. "Now that you're here, I want you to summon your pack."

My gaze snapped from Phaedra to Connor. "I won't," I said, my voice very close to a growl.

He glared back at me. "You will."

"No," I said. "Whatever you need from my pack, I can do it myself. There's no need to summon them here."

I was willing to do anything, even carrying the burden of this shitty bargain all on my own if it meant I could keep my pack away from Connor a bit longer.

But, of course, my words did nothing to convince Connor. "You can either call them here, mongrel, or I will have my men hunt down the women and children while they're in their human forms."

I growled, and my teeth sharpened to points.

"Connor," Phaedra said. Her voice was stern, like that of a teacher scolding a child, but when I looked at her, the tension in her shoulders told me that she was just as horrified as I was. "Killing any member of the Dagger pack is against our bargain."

He rolled his eyes as he walked toward her. "I suppose you're right, Phaedra," he said. "But I only promised to keep them alive. Maybe instead of hunting them down, I'll have them tortured." The way he grinned at her, the words he said, the fact that he was so close to her… all of it sent my blood boiling. My wolf howled with rage. "Is that better?"

She started to take a step back, but he grabbed her wrist and pulled her against him.

"Maybe you ought to start acting more like a true mate if you want me to treat that pack of curs better."

I wanted to lunge at him, but I knew I wouldn't get far, not with the curse, the guards, and Randall there to stop me. Not to mention, Connor had put Phaedra between us. My hands were tied, so, although it was the very last thing I wanted to do, I reached out to my pack through the bond we shared.

I was never able to put that bond to proper use with the curse. It was difficult to focus enough to call them to order, and it was hard for them to listen when they were constantly fighting ferality. But it was surprisingly easy now—as easy as reaching out to my wolf and shifting.

"I've called them," I said through gritted teeth. "So stop being such a tyrant."

He didn't take his eyes off Phaedra. "You're in no place to make demands, mutt." He trailed a finger back and forth over her cheek. I felt like I was going crazy standing there while this happened. But why was I reacting so strongly to all this? Our fated bond was dissolved, and yet my wolf was on the verge of jumping right out of my skin.

Phaedra stood as still as she could, but after a few moments, she pushed his hand away.

"Please," she said.

Connor chuckled and stepped away. "Fine, since you asked so sweetly."

I wanted to fucking kill him.

Slowly, my pack began to trickle in. It took a little while for them to find their way into the ballroom. As they entered, Connor had Randall, Selene, Phaedra, and I moved to the far end of the room. His guards stood between us and my pack, creating a wall. My pack was so close, if I reached under the arm of the guard in front of me, I could touch them.

Despite the circumstances, it felt great to be near my people again. Having them close helped calm me and my wolf, and I think they must have felt the same, because their anxious looks softened a bit when they looked my way. And it was a relief to see that they looked healthy. Scared but healthy.

Once everyone was crammed inside, Connor clapped his hands to get their attention.

"I hope you enjoy being in my manor," he said. "I wanted you all to know how your betters live. So, enjoy. It's the closest any of you will get to experience happiness." His laughter was the only sound in the room.

My people weren't swayed by his attempts to belittle them. They were scared, of course, but none of them would want to live in this manor, anyway. Why would they want to be separated from each other? They knew it was much better to live near the pack. I almost said this, but Connor spoke again.

"Now, Selene. I believe you have an announcement."

As every eye in the room shifted to Selene, her face reddened. She looked at Connor. "I didn't know I was going to be speaking in front of an audience, Connor."

He shrugged. "So what? You don't care about these people, anyway, do you?"

She pressed her lips together.

"Do what you're told, Selene," he said. "Tell them.

She ground her teeth together. Being told what to do would never sit well with someone as proud as Selene, but like the rest of us, she was in no position to push back. She took a moment to calm herself, then gazed out at my pack.

"As of this morning," she said, "my pack started moving into Dagger Pack territory. We've already claimed the cabins on the northern curve of the spiral for ourselves."

Immediately, my pack erupted into restless talk. I felt the indignation just as powerfully as they did. It was a shame to have our land taken over by another pack. Especially when I was still alpha. It would be one thing if I was killed and Selene had taken over, but this wasn't the case. The Coldcrows were stealing from us like fucking cowards.

Selene was well aware of this. That was why she was reluctant to tell us, and why she stared at the floor now instead of meeting my gaze or looking at my pack.

"Hey, hey," Connor shouted to be heard over my people, but they were ignoring him. "Silence! I said be silent, you curs!"

But they refused to obey. I couldn't pretend I wasn't feeling some level of satisfaction seeing Connor lose his temper. The last time I'd seen him, he seemed more in control of himself, but when he was in a room filled with people who didn't respect him, he fell apart.

I would have been happy to let him continue to make a fool of himself in front of his right hand and his guards, but I remembered his earlier threats. I needed to rein my people in.

As I took a deep breath, my stomach dipped. What if Taig and my uncle were wrong and my pack didn't believe in me.

"Quiet down," I said firmly. It wasn't a yell or an alpha command, but they listened. It started with those closest to me, and when they went quiet, the next rows followed suit until the room was silent except for Connor's heavy breathing.

My heart swelled with pride and relief. They were still my people. They still trusted and respected me.

Connor smoothed his hair, which had become disheveled while he tried to call for order. "Finally some peace," he said, brushing the wrinkles out of his silk shirt. "Return to the clearing in the forest, but don't expect to sit around the way you have the last few days. By sundown tomorrow, each of you will return with one kill or suffer the consequences."

He winked at me, which told me if they didn't succeed, his men would be hunting them down.

"Asher, you will not be hunting. I have other tasks for you to do here. If you leave the grounds, even to run, your people will be punished."

That feeling of validation I'd had just seconds ago quickly vanished. Phaedra, who had been quiet through this, suddenly rushed out of the room. I couldn't help but watch her go. I yearned to go to her, but there was no way Connor would allow that. Besides, what she needed wasn't me comforting her, it was distance—from Connor, from me, and from this island.