29. Mai

"He's such a prick." Sofia glared at Brock's retreating back as he sauntered out of Bottley"s.

"You get many visits from Brock these days?" I asked, wondering if he had changed at all since school or still dropped by to ridicule and belittle Sofia. He always did think he was better than us. That because his dad was close to Oliver, his place in the Pack hierarchy was assured.

Sofia shook her head. "No, thankfully not. He's too busy kissing up to Hayley to bother with me."

I raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yeah, he left just after Jem and Hayley took over. Rumors say he ended up working for the Wolf Council, but I'm pretty sure he was the one who started them," Sofia said, rolling her eyes.

If Brock had somehow managed to work with the Wolf Council, that was big. The Council was our ruling authority. They decided on our laws. They gave Alphas a lot of leeway and trusted surrounding Packs to take care of any who broke the laws, but their priority was to make sure that any problems with werewolves didn't spill over into the human communities. We might be stronger, faster, more efficient killers, but humans outnumbered us significantly, and if they saw us as a real threat to their survival, we'd be fucked.

The Wolf Council was known to be ruthless and protected the peace between the humans and werewolves with vicious efficiency. I'd heard of a Pack out west where the Alphas felt humans were the lesser species. Good for slaves and the occasional meal. The Council got wind of it, and within twenty-four hours, the entire Pack was either dead or had been split up and moved to Packs that had more egalitarian views who would keep an eye on them.

How had Brock managed to end up working for them? Membership of the Council was complicated. There were the core seats, made up of those who shared an ancient lineage of the Bloodrender Pack. They were viewed as a sort of werewolf royalty. They didn't just have the advantages of a normal werewolf. They had some sort of magic that gave them extra strength and other powers—although they had always been highly secretive about these supposed powers—that they believed gave them a right to rule.

Next, ten percent of the seats were reserved for those werewolves selected by the Trial of the Moon competition. Held every ten years, those interested could compete in a test of strength, cunning, leadership, and understanding of Pack laws. Only the best were chosen to serve on the Council. The last competition had been six years ago, so Brock couldn't have got in that way.

Another ten percent of seats were reserved for those whom the Council sought out. These were werewolves who had shown extraordinary service to their Pack or the werewolf community. I knew Brock; there was no way he'd done anything in the service of his Pack or our community.

Finally, once every five years, a selection of Packs could nominate a werewolf to serve on the Council. Come to think of it, I was pretty sure it was the Three Rivers' turn this year to nominate a werewolf for the Council.

"Brock's been back about eighteen months," Sofia continued, breaking me out of my thoughts. "Since then, he's been working his way up the hierarchy. The Shaws don't trust him, I know that. But he works with Hayley's team and stays out of their way."

Wally leaned forward. "Do you think Brock's involved with the Pack's recent troubles?"

Sofia shrugged. "Maybe."

I frowned at Sofia. "What troubles?"

"Jem and Hayley aren't exactly on the same page these days. Everyone feels it. The tension in the Pack bonds keeps on growing. There have been rumors that there are some in the Pack who aren't too happy with the leadership. There's talk that perhaps Jem should take a permanent vacation and let Hayley rule solo."

I felt a chill run down my spine. Hayley couldn't run this Pack by herself for long. There was a reason why the strongest Packs always had an Alpha couple. Packs needed the balance of two werewolves in charge. They kept each other grounded, stopped one from imposing their will over everyone, like Oliver had. Who knew what kind of Pack Hayley would run? What damage she could do?

If there were people in the Pack who were unhappy with Jem's leadership, then that was bad news for all of us. I'd seen first-hand what growing up in an unhappy Pack was like.

I watched as a woman walked in the door. She looked to be in her early thirties, with a mane of lustrous black hair that went down to her waist. She was followed by a small girl, about ten years old, wearing a blue checked skirt and a Minions T-shirt that looked brand new.

"Mom! Can I have a hot chocolate? Please? And a muffin?"

"A small hot chocolate. And a blueberry muffin, Tammy, not the caramel one."

A wide smile spread across Tammy's face as she looked at the different blueberry muffins and pointed at the largest one.

Jem and the Shaw brothers had worked hard to change the Pack, to make it a safe place for kids to grow up. Tammy was here, in this bar, safe and happy because of them. Jem would never voluntarily give up the Pack. His permanent vacation was death. With the Pack feeling like this, though, it would only be a matter of time before someone challenged Jem and Hayley for the top spot. I couldn't leave now. I'd always be on edge, just waiting for the call that told me Jem was dead and that Hayley was undoing all the work that Jem and the Shaws had done. I had to stay and find out what was going on.

"Do you think they will make a move to force Jem out?" I asked, looking at Sofia.

"It's possible," Sofia replied. "More people are talking about it each week. That something isn't right in the Pack bonds, and Jem needs to fix it or leave so someone else can. There isn't another couple who are strong enough to take over, so that doesn't seem to be an option right now. Brock's been busy, saying the weak Pack bonds are all Jem's fault but that Hayley could make it right if Jem was out of the way. So, I don't know whether it would be a direct challenge on Jem or some plan to force him to leave the Pack and let Hayley rule as Alpha alone. Hayley's people have certainly been out and about a lot these last few months, whispering in people's ears."

Wally rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "That's not good. We need to find out what they're planning."

"Surely the Shaws know about this?" I asked, knowing that as enforcers, they were supposed to keep an eye on things like this.

Sofia shook her head. "They're pretty cut off up in the compound. I know there are troubles with the Bridgetown Pack these days. It's kept their focus on that threat, not the one inside. I tried to tell them a couple of months ago, but Derek told me I didn't know what I was talking about and I should stick to making coffee."

My eyebrows shot up. That didn't sound like the Derek I used to know. He always had an eye for Sofia, and even though she claimed she wasn't interested, I'd seen the way she looked at him when she thought no one was looking. I'd always thought they'd end up together. There was definitely more to this that Sofia wasn't telling me. I'd have to corner her later and get her to spill.

"We're going to have to work out what is going on and get proof," I said.

"Oh, detective work! I like it! Do I get to wear a trench coat and smoke cigarettes?" Wally asked, with a glint in his eyes.

"No!" Sofia and I answered at the same time.

I stared out of the door, thinking about where to start. "Brock. He knows what's going on."

Sofia looked at me skeptically. "He's not going to tell us anything."

"No," I agreed. "We'll need to be sneaky."