The Shadow's Heir

Conflicting Opinions

The pack gathered at the back of hospital well before midnight. Each member came forth, offering their support in my time of need as Damien remained unconscious in the same room we had left him in earlier, he was still in too bad shape to move into a proper caring room. Kathleen approached me as the other pack members chose their place to seat or stand, her face was paler than usual and her red curls was in a mess atop her head.

“I’m so sorry about Damien, I should have come with you.”

“Kathleen, we had no idea that the Harpies were still in the clearing where Fane and his pack members were attacked. We thought us three and the Hunter were enough... Obviously not.”

Kathleen looked at her feet, the feeling of uselessness emanated from her body, I rested a hand on her shoulder, “Kathleen, I don’t want to think about this... But if Damien doesn’t make it... Will you be my second in command? You love this pack just as much as he did and you will do anything to protect it. I trust your judgement.”

Kathleen nodded, “It is great honour to be appointed this position, but in all honesty Angeline, I hope I won’t have to ascend to it.”

She bared her neck and returned to the rest of the pack. I checked my watch, nearly midnight. I stepped up onto one of the chairs out the front and clapped my hands, getting everyone’s attention.

“The Hunters will be arriving soon, please take your chosen spot and get comfortable. It’s going to be a difficult meeting.”

The pack members arranged themselves in order of rank, Fane stood at the front as he was a guest to the pack and a future Alpha, Kathleen stood with him. The eldest members stood at the front, the rest descending by age. I stepped down from the chair as I heard a car pull into the driveway, everyone heard it, some even growled.

“No, growling. Manners are to be used at this meeting.” I notified the pack. Caroline, Henry and Will made their way to where the pack was. Caroline had her mouth in a straight line, obviously not happy this turn of events, Henry looked flustered and nervous, and Will simply stared at the ground, refusing to look anyone in the eye, especially me. It didn’t hurt me at all, I was too pissed off with him to feel any other emotion. They took their position out the front with me, keeping well away from the rest of the pack in case anyone attacked out of rage or hatred.

“Now, we have organised this late minute meeting to discuss today’s events. We will begin by readdressing what happened to the rest of the pack.” I announced, I looked at the pack, allowed them to nod their heads and continued. “Damien, our guest wolf Prince Fane, myself and Hunter William Devonshire decided to retrace the steps of Prince Fane and his men in order to determine what had happened when they were attacked here in our woods. We encountered the two Harpie sisters who had attacked the Prince, killing his men and nearly himself. We were provoked therefore we engaged. Admittedly it was what they wanted, Damien attacked first, he incapacitated, Myself and Fane changed and attacked second. Killing one of the Harpie sisters, leaving one for Mr Devonshire to capture. Damien, as you all know, was badly injured and needed immediate medical attention. Mr Devonshire chose to take the creature directly to the Hunters base of operations with the only  vehicle we had access to rather than assisting us in bringing Damien to this hospital here. Mr Devonshire left the clearing with the creature, leaving us to carry Damien through the woods to the hospital, during which we could have been attacked a second time and possibly killed. It is positive that this scenario did not occur, but Damien’s injuries grew worse from being carried through the trees and the bushes, aggravating his wounds. He is still unconscious and in critical condition.”

I paused a moment, allowing the recount to sink into the minds of  the pack members. The elders looked upset as they looked upon the Hunters, whom they have trusted for many years. The younger wolves just looked pissed off. I took another breath, “After confronting the Hunters this afternoon, I decided that you, as members of this pack, deserve a vote as to what happens next. I will allow those who would like to speak to voice thoughts, however, allow me to voice my own.” I waited the pack’s nods of approval before I continued, “I truly do wish for this treaty to remain strong, but after what happened during and after that attack, I cannot ignore the fact that the trust I had in the Hunters was severely weakened, and I can see that I am not the only one. But trust can be healed, it simply depends on if we as a pack are willing to go the distance to repair it.”