Chapter 44

"Did she wake?"Talia asked when I returned from carrying Sage to our bed.

"No. She didn't stir." I settled on the sofa.

"You seem hopeful," Talia said, her gaze locking on me.

"I have to be." I continued this fa?ade.

Talia stood. "Unless you have need of me, I'm going to go out with my camera."

"Be safe."

"I'll be fine."

After she left, Sig stared at the door.

"News?" I knew that he had been in contact with the Redds.

"Anton has asked your secretary twice when you will return. The Burkes have not paid. Anton's staff is trying to convince the Lycan Council that he should be heard regarding the outstanding bill."

"He ignored their order to turn over Charles Burke. He gave sanctuary to a criminal and bragged about flaunting the order." I shook my head. "This won't turn out well."

"I've read the correspondence. Anton offers the defense that the Redds do not deserve punishment because they, too, were injured by Travis Burke." Sig lifted his tablet from the end table.

"Only Anton would try to defend his actions, defying a direct order, by stating he is the injured party." I rested my head against the back of the sofa.

"You know he will wish to send us to Edinburgh." Sig ran his fingers over the tablet.

"I do not savor the idea of being imprisoned by the Council," I said dryly.

"Anton might not fully appreciate you, but he must know he needs you. Spending fifty years imprisoned would not help the Redds."

If I was alive in fifty years. "We both know I might be unable to help going forward."

"Anton may consider you a threat, but you are the threat that he is familiar with. The other packs respect you." One side of Sig's mouth turned downward. "Anton will be angry with you for a while, but he would be a fool to make a move against you."

"Sage is my priority. If she does not improve, it won't matter what Anton does. I will choose to follow her."

"If the witch can help, then your mate will be fine." Sig tried to sound confident but failed.

That would only solve one of the problems we were facing. "Anton will never accept Sage. I will have no choice but to vacate my position because I will not give her up."

"Are you sure about leaving the Redds?" he asked quietly.

"If we wish to survive, we will need to leave… eventually."

"Then we will all go," Sig declared.

"All?"

"I cannot leave Talia without protection." His eyes flashed angrily at the thought. "She will be happier knowing that she will never see Anton or the Reddlands again."

"He might place a bounty on our heads." I had to be sure that Sig understood the ramifications not only to him but to Talia.

"There is no doubt about that. He will." Sig frowned. "He will look at our defection as a loss of face if he does not declare us criminals."

We had bandied about the idea of leaving the Pack over the years. This time, it felt different, final.

It had transformed from a thought to an impending reality.

I had money deposited all over the world, and Sig had done the same. I was not overtly rich, but Sage and I would be comfortable until I found another way to make money.

"The majority of Packleaders and Seconds will understand why you left. You heard Black when we handed over Charles Burke. He would grant us sanctuary. There is mutual respect there, and he will never forgive Anton for housing Burke. Our going to Novus would be another victory for him."

I had worked to amass goodwill throughout the Lycan world for this reason. Others might look down on the Redds, but if they had to deal with the Pack, most preferred to deal with me. I sighed again. There was so much to consider, and my priority was Sage. "I think it best that we keep our plans fluid."

Sig dipped his chin. "Of course." He probably had multiple thoroughly thought-out and ready-to-be-activated strategies.

I disliked my half-brother, and at times, it amplified to hate. Sig's antipathy was a white-hot anger that was barely concealed.

Early in the morning, I received a call from Theresa, the healer. They wanted to meet again.

Sage was more sluggish this morning. She barely ate and returned to the bedroom to rest.

Midmorning, Sig answered the door and escorted Simon and Theresa in.

When they were seated, Simon asked, "Where is your mate?"

"She is asleep," I told them. "She was lethargic upon waking and returned to bed. If you wish, I will wake her."

"It might be best to discuss our findings before I see her. She is new to our world and ways." Simon waited for my response.

I nodded. "What have you learned?"

Simon nodded at Theresa.

She slid to the edge of the chair. "I have access to records amassed over several centuries. The problem is that languages change over time. The forms of measure are not exact. I have the information. I found two cases recorded regarding bites that would not heal."

I settled back in my chair and barely breathed. I buried the spark of hope in the pit of my stomach.

"One case stated that a Lycan bit a human. The human was immediately put in a kind of quarantine because, at that time, the witches believed that a bite would cause the victim to lose their mind. Others thought it turned the victim into a Lycan." Theresa shrugged her shoulders. "An elder, the victim's grandmother, became concerned when nothing happened except the wound would not heal. She treated the wound with salves made from herbs to no avail. She exhausted her knowledge."

I felt my mouth tighten.

"The elder witch turned the victim over to the local Pack, and the witch was changed. She served the Pack in exchange for her life."

Early in our relationship, before she'd learned I was Lycan, I had wondered what her feelings about being changed to a Lycan might be. "Sage will need to be changed?"

"Not necessarily." Theresa looked away as she answered. "The other case I found was from a much older text. It did not go into specifics. However, the Lycan called to The Lady to spare his mate. His prayer was heard. Within days, his mate exhibited signs of an adolescent on the cusp of their first change."

I frowned and let out a sigh. Now, there were strict rules about unauthorized changes. Only Packleaders were to perform the ceremony. The Council required records to be filed.

"There are no medical cures?" Sig asked.

"No," Simon answered.

Theresa's gaze moved from Sig to me several times. "I did not want to say anything until I verified that I remembered the story correctly."

"If she does not wish to be changed, I can make her comfortable until her end," Simon offered after first dipping his chin.

"Thank you." I stared at the floor in front of me, brokenhearted.

"Perhaps now is not the best time to look in on Sage," Sig told them. "We can arrange another visit when she is stronger."

Neither Simon nor Theresa pushed. "You know our number."

When Sig returned from showing them out, I said, "I need time to think."

Sig nodded. "I will leave you to it."