35. Mai

Chapter thirty-five

Mai

" W ell?" Talia prompted me.

"Our nomination for the Wolf Council seat is…Sam Shaw."

I said the only name that popped into my head. The only choice, really. The only one who had the skills and the big-picture worldview that this role required and someone we knew would protect the Three Rivers at all costs. Me and Ryan, our place was here. My bond with this land, the Three Rivers territory, thrummed in response to that thought and I knew I'd made the right decision.

"Can you repeat that?" said the hulking bear of a man, leaning forward so his face filled his box on the screen.

Had I just signed my brother's death warrant? I closed my eyes and sent a quick prayer to the Goddess that Ryan had found Jem. "We nominate Sam Shaw," I confirmed.

"We thank the Three Rivers Pack for their nomination," the silver-haired elder said. "We look forward to working with Mr. Shaw. Talia will do the initial on-boarding training and we expect to see him in person in front of the Wolf Council in three days."

Fuck! I had just changed Sam's life without even talking to him. He had family here; he ran a business here, and I'd signed him up for a four-year term.

My phone rang. Ryan.

"Excuse me, I have to take this." I said to the Council before standing up and walking out of the living room.

I ducked into the study and shut the door.

"Please tell me you have him."

"I have him."

My heart missed a beat.

"Say that again." I needed to be sure I hadn't misheard.

"I have him, Mai."

Oh, thank the Goddess! I slumped against the wall, not even trying to stop the tears streaming down my face.

"He's not in great shape, but he's alive. We'll take him straight to Thomas's."

"What about you?"

"Some injuries. Sam's pretty banged up, but we've stopped the bleeding. Waylen will stay here with a team to sift through any papers and laptops they can find."

"And Brock?"

"No," I heard the anger vibrating in Ryan's voice, "that fucker wasn't on site."

It was too much to hope that we'd get lucky enough to get Jem and Brock.

"Did I call in time?" he asked. "Did you nominate Brock? "

I shook my head, relief coursing through me. Relief at Jem being found, at stopping Brock's plans, at least for now, at Ryan being safe.

"You missed the nomination by a couple of minutes. But I didn't go for Brock."

"Thank f—"

"Ryan, it's Sam! We've got to move, now!" a voice in the background yelled.

"I gotta go, Mai. Meet us at Thomas's." The line went dead.

I took a deep breath to compose myself before heading back to the living room. I walked in and found that the Wolf Council link had already been disconnected, the screen now dark and silent. Another laptop stood open on the table. Talia was busy dismantling the rest of the equipment, her movements efficient and practiced.

Her eyes narrowed slightly as I walked in. "I hope you know what you're doing, Mai Parker."

I met her gaze, refusing to be intimidated. "I do."

Talia raised an eyebrow. "And this Sam Shaw? Why him?"

"Because Sam is the best person for this role. He has the skills, the experience, and the integrity that the Wolf Council needs. You're damn lucky to have him."

"That remains to be seen."

I stepped closer to her and lowered my voice. "Let me be clear, Talia. If you ever pull a stunt on Sam like the one you pulled at the lab? Then, fuck politics. You won't just have the whole Three Rivers Pack to answer to, you'll have me. There are no second chances, Talia. You get Sam hurt, and I'll make sure you hurt in return."

Talia's eyes flashed with anger, but her voice was calm when she answered. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind. "

I bared my teeth at her. "You do that, Talia Johnson."

I turned to face Jase. "Ryan found Jem," I said. "He's alive."

Jase let out a sigh of relief. "Thank the Goddess," he murmured.

I turned back to Talia, my expression serious. "Brock's been trying to blackmail us into nominating him to the Wolf Council," I said. "It turns out that Hayley didn't finish the job and Brock has been keeping Jem alive to force our hand. He has big plans for the Wolf Council and getting a seat on it was just the first step. He won't give up. This isn't going to be the end of it, Talia. The Wolf Council needs to be prepared."

"The Wolf Council can look after itself. I'd be more worried about yourselves, if I were you. I've had dealings with Brock Madden in the past, and if you've managed to thwart his plans, I doubt he'll let that go easily."

"We can handle Brock."

Talia tilted her head to one side. "The Brock Madden I met was ruthless. If you've crossed him, he won't stop until he's made you pay."

A sense of unease spread across my stomach at her words. But I pushed it down, focusing on the task at hand.

"Are you done here?"

Talia moved over to the open laptop. "Not yet. You have documents to sign."

"Documents?"

"Yes. They must be signed within a hour of the nomination. You have the Official Nomination Form, the Candidate Verification Form, the Alpha Endorsement Form, the Confidentiality Agreement, the Terms of Service Agreement, and the Oath of Allegiance. It shouldn't take too long. "

Talia was wrong. It took fucking forever. Page after page had to be annotated with my initials and each document needed at least five signatures. By the time we were done, I wanted to throw the laptop against the wall.

As Talia clicked the computer closed, I stood up. "Your business is done here, Talia. It's time for you to leave the Three Rivers. I want you out of our territory."

Talia's lips quirked in a small, humorless smile. "You would do good to remember that the Wolf Council considers all Packs, all territories, as under our control."

I stared at her, not rising to the bait.

Talia nodded. "You're learning, Mai Parker. You might survive this yet. As you wish, I'll leave your territory, but I'll be close by." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a business card, holding it out to me. "Give this to Sam Shaw," she said. "Have him call me. He has his own documents to sign and we have a lot to go over."

I took the card, glancing down at the embossed letters on the front and the wolf insignia that matched her pin. When I looked back up, Talia was already heading for the door, her bag slung over her shoulder.

"Don't forget what I said about Brock Madden, Mai Parker," she called back, not bothering to turn around. "Watch your backs."

With that, she was gone; the door closing behind her with a soft click.

I turned to Jase, my expression grim. "Let's go," I said. "We need to get to Thomas's."