Chapter 54

"You spendyour time cleaning up Anton's messes." Sage was sitting at the table where her classes in Lycan life were held.

"I smooth over the upset feelings," I corrected.

"Or he uses misdirection," Sig added.

"Like he's doing now?" Sage asked Sig and then winked at me.

"Since birth, he has been taught to keep the Pack's secrets. Even though he knows Anton is horrid, he has difficulty talking about it." Sig frowned.

"I don't want to make you uncomfortable." She did not meet my gaze.

"You must learn our ways," Sig continued. "Keeping secrets now will do you no favors."

I nodded because he was correct.

She relaxed back into her chair. "Sig, I love that you tell the truth, but there are times that you scare the shit out of me."

"I want to keep you alive." Sig looked a little flustered by her honesty.

Sage flashed Sig a wide-eyed look, then asked me, "As your mate, what is expected of me?"

"To stay out of the way." Talia was lying on the sofa with one leg stretched toward the ceiling.

"I don't have to go to events and walk five steps behind you with a fake smile frozen on my face?" She flashed a fake grin.

The muscle at the side of my jaw began to pulse, and I looked away for a moment. This topic made me uncomfortable because even though Sage was mine, her position within the Redds was precarious. Therefore, she was unsafe.

"You must be introduced and accepted by Anton before you two can be seen together in any official capacity as representatives of the Redd Pack," Sig said.

"I don't understand. I thought The Lady approved our mating." Sage gave me a confused look, and my jaw tightened more.

"Because Anton is the Head of our family and Pack, the rules are a little different," Sig began slowly. "There will be a formal introduction and possibly a test before you will be accepted into the Redds as a member and recognized as Bredon's mate."

Talia chimed in. "You know how he hates humans and dislikes you even though he tends to go on and on about bloodlines, and the Goddess knows that you are the best that has come from the Redd bloodline in centuries."

Sage did nothing to hide her frustration. Her hands were in tight fists as she looked from Talia to me. "Okay." She closed her eyes and, took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I need to know what to expect. Will he consider me human even though I can shift?"

All three of us answered, "Yes."

"Great." Sage frowned. "He already hates me. He sent me away from you once," she reminded me. "I don't think he will be thrilled that I'm back and we are mated."

"He can choose not to recognize the mating," Sig said, his gaze holding mine.

"He would not dare," I growled, my wolf pushed to the surface.

"She wants the truth," Sig said, giving me an exasperated look. "She needs to know."

"I did say that," Sage admitted, nodding as she tried to appear brave. "What happens if he doesn't approve of our mating?" I dreaded the answer.

Sig answered, "It would put you in an unsafe position. You would have no standing, and most likely, one of Anton's supporters would murder you to gain favor."

Sage frowned. "Well, that sucks. I now wished that I'd paid better attention to Game of Thrones."

My Mate was playing a game that she didn't fully understand.

"Anton tried to discourage me from looking for you. Then he tried to forbid it," I admitted.

"I'm glad you didn't follow his instruction." She poked my calf with her foot playfully.

Sig rubbed a hand over his face. "If Anton learns that you turned to Novus for assistance, he will not be pleased."

"When you say things like that…what are you really saying? Like he will lock you in your room without dinner or cut off your head?" Sage pressed.

"My position keeps me safe from death by his hand unless he can prove an act of treason," I told her carefully.

"That does not mean he would not send an assassin after you," Talia told us. "Remember when he tried? It was what a fifty, no forty-five years ago."

"What?" Sage's mouth hung open.

"He was not a good assassin," I assured her.

"Anton would not spend the money on a truly gifted killer," Sig said, shrugging.

"He failed," I said. "Obviously."

Talia's lips twitched. "You delivered his head to Anton. He walked into a meeting carrying the head and placed it in the middle of the table."

"I felt it was necessary to prove a point." I shrugged.

"And they call me dramatic." Talia flipped her hair over her shoulder.

Sage's attention returned to me.

"His attempt at killing me has not been repeated. I believe that I made my point."

"He could excommunicate Bredon, strip him of his position, and expel him from the Pack," Sig said, his tone more cheerful.

"Then you would be free of your responsibilities to Anton." Sage was trying so hard to understand our ways.

"It would leave us unprotected," I reminded them. An unaffiliated wolf has no sanctuary.

"What does that mean?' she asked.

Sig answered, "That any wolf who has felt slighted by Bredon, whether he was acting on orders from Anton or not, could kill Bredon and you as his mate. There would be no formal repercussions."

"Do you think that could happen?" she asked me, her voice slightly strangled.

"Look, he will be angry about our mating. We will deal with his outbursts, and hopefully, something else will capture his attention. Eventually, he will accept our mating because he will need me to deal with the next disaster that needs to be averted." I believe we had the history of Anton's behaviors on our side.

"What happens if he kicks you…us out?" she asked.

"We have options. Sig and I have always had contingency plans."

"You are saying that we must be patient," she said. "That we must see how this plays out."

"Patient and under the radar," Sig said, nodding.

"And prepared," Talia added. "Hope for the best, but with Anton, we usually must endure the worst."

"You said something about a test." Sage watched Sig closely. "I don't always do well under pressure."

Talia joined us at the table. "I don't recall there ever being a test."

"There have been," I said quietly. "It is rare because most couples leave or break up before it gets to that point.

Sage looked down at the table.

"It has been decades since Anton has called for a test," Sig told her.

She puffed out her cheeks as she exhaled. "If the others ran or broke up… I take it that the odds of passing the test are low."

"It's ridiculous." Talia flipped her hair over her shoulder. "I can think of four Packleaders that are mated to humans. It's biology. We need fresh blood so that the familial lines continue."

"Will you tell him that I can change forms?" Sage asked in a husky voice.

"Yes." I frowned. "I can't lie. That could be worse for us down the line."

"Hopefully, The Lady will help me with the test." Sage packed up her notebooks and headed toward our bedroom.

"It will work out," Talia told me.

It had to.