Chapter Twelve

"What do you mean, a retaliation?" Cole demanded. "You're saying the Black Winds didn't start this?"

Blaine dipped his chin in a nod. "That's exactly what I'm saying. Alpha Cain sent out a hunting party three days ago—into Black Wind territory."

"Fuck. He forced their hand." Cole slammed his fist down on the table. "What the hell was he playing at?"

"Honestly, I don't know," Blaine said. "I counselled him against it, I warned him something like this would happen, but he wouldn't listen to reason. Cole, your father started this war…and I think he did it deliberately. We have to find a way to stop him."

I sucked in a sharp breath. Blaine had once told me that so much as suggesting there might be someone better to lead the Iron Shadow pack was treason, and what he'd just said? That was a whole lot worse.

Cole turned to his friend. "Jax, if you want to leave now, I won't hold it against you."

Jax snorted. "Like hell. You're my future alpha. Whatever's happening, I'm already part of it."

Cole held his gaze for a long moment before nodding.

"But, uh, just out of curiosity, what are you planning?"

"Hell if I know," Cole grumbled. "Blaine?"

"There's been talk recently," he said. "There are people who think Cain shouldn't be leading the pack. And after tonight, there are going to be a lot more."

I blew out a breath. "You're talking about rebellion."

"I'm talking about an alpha challenge. Cole's alpha challenge."

Cole shook his head quickly. "Blaine, I'm not ready. I'm still in the damn academy, how the hell am I supposed to lead the pack from there?"

"You've had the pack's respect for a long time. If you challenge Cain and win, they'll follow you."

"And if he loses?" I demanded. "Hell, even if he wins. Blaine, that's his father."

"And this is inevitable. Cain cannot lead this pack."

"Then why don't you challenge him?" I demanded.

"Cali," Cole said, reaching for me, but I jerked my arm away.

"No. Why should you be the one to take the risk? What's wrong with him? He's twice your age, if he thinks things are so wrong, why doesn't he do something about it?"

"That's not how it works," Cole said.

"Why not?" I spun round to glare at Blaine. "You once told me anyone in this pack could challenge for alpha, so tell me, why can't that be you?"

"I'm not a leader. The pack wouldn't follow me."

"But they'd follow him?" My voice came out angry, but deep down, I knew it was true. The pack would follow Cole. He was everything an alpha should be—except ready. "That's bullshit."

"It's not, and you know it. Yes, I could challenge Cain, and maybe I could even win. But if the pack won't follow me, then it's all for nothing. We're not trying to tear the pack apart, Cali, we're trying to hold it together."

"And then what, you'll just follow the next leader who takes over, become beta for whoever's the winner? You're talking a lot about ‘we', but tell me, what are you risking here, exactly?"

"My damned life," Blaine hissed, "if Cain gets so much as a whisper of what we're planning, so maybe lower your voice and get a hold of yourself. And no, I don't expect to become Cole's beta. That job's spoken for."

He jerked his chin at Jax.

I sucked in a breath. Blaine was right: I needed to calm down before someone overheard our conversation and dragged the whole lot of us in front of Cain. As for the rest of it?

It wasn't that I didn't believe Cole could lead this pack. I did. Of course I did, how could I not? It took exactly ten seconds in his presence to know what he was capable of. What kind of man he was. I knew it, Blaine knew it, the whole pack knew it.

"Shit." I sagged back against the counter behind me. "Blaine, there's got to be another way." I turned to Cole and met his eye. "There has to be."

Because I could not stand the thought of Cole going toe-to-toe with his father. Cain had led the pack his entire adult life—his entire abnormally long, thanks to shifter genetics, life—and he'd held that position by force, not by peace. It wasn't love for him I'd seen on the faces of the pack all summer, it was fear. And it was justified.

And none of them would have been fighting their own fathers.

The look on Cole's face was all the answer I needed: there was no other way. No easy way out for us, for him. He crossed the kitchen and wrapped me in his arms, drawing me against him.

"It'll be okay," he murmured. Blaine opened a cupboard, getting out some mugs and making more noise than was necessary—giving us what little privacy he could in a room full of people with supernatural hearing. Cole hooked one finger under my chin and lifted my eyes to meet his. "I was born to lead this pack."

"But now?" I searched his face. "Cole, you're nineteen years old. How can you possibly be ready?"

"I'm not." He set his jaw. "But I will be."

"Not to interrupt your chick flick moment," Jax said, scraping his chair back, "but does anyone happen to have a plan to go with all this big talk? Because much as it pains me to admit it, Cali's right. Cole, I've got your back, you know I do, but if you pull this off, how are you going to lead the pack from the academy? I mean, has it even ever been done before?"

"I could research," Ling said, then flushed red and ducked her head as we all turned to look at her. "At the academy, I mean."

"You're a student?" Blaine asked, freezing as he reached for the kettle.

"What else would she be?" I asked.

"Good question," Blaine muttered.

I rolled my eyes. "Not this again. What she is, is the best damn researcher I know, and the most loyal person I've ever met. You should be thanking, not interrogating her, and if you think for one minute that—"

Blaine raised his hands with a smile. "I was just curious." He sent a look at Ling. "No offence intended. Right now, we need all the allies we can get, and since Jax is our backup, I'm not about to turn away anyone who's handy with a book."

"Hey!" Jax protested. "I can use a book."

"For research, not for throwing at people," I said.

"I did that one time," he grumbled, and then grinned. "Way more fun than that reading lark."

"It might…I mean, it could take some time," Ling said quietly. "There are a lot of books."

"She's not wrong," I agreed, thinking back to all the time I'd spent holed up in the library last year, barely scratching the surface of what was there. Darkveil really needed a database.

"How much time do we have?" Cole asked Blaine.

"I'll do what I can to stop Cain from aggravating the situation, that might be enough to buy us some time with the rest of the pack. But I can't hold them at bay forever. If you don't challenge Cain before the buck moon, there'll be no pack left."