Chapter 194: [Bonus ]What Else Do We Have

"Samhain is nearly here. Don't you think it's time to bring your mate to meet the council members? They will meet her there whether you are prepared for it or not," Sylvia stood in Graeme's office, arms folded.

Graeme sighed and ran his hands through his hair. He had intended to bring August here weeks ago, but then Andreas and Pearce had dumped copies of the entirety of the horrific alyko tales on each individual council member's desk. They had been prepared to plead their case, to say the least.

That day, the council voted to reinstate the map and a fierce revival of old fears had begun as eyes were glued to it. The council members were obsessed.

After August had gone to the market that day—the same day that Graeme had killed Auden—the pack was in silent upheaval. Council members returned to their areas with stories of what they had read about the alyko in the pack house—clandestine information gathered from the elders' alyko team that had been working in the shadows for years to protect the pack from infiltrating witches. And now that the Alpha had returned to claim power with his alyko Luna, the elders had deemed it prudent to share the information they had gathered. A last-ditch effort to protect the pack from the witches who were obviously bent on revenge. That was the narrative. And Graeme didn't know how to stop it.

It hadn't helped that Graeme had killed Auden and the council members were allowed to carry that gruesome story to their constituents as well. Graeme was pissed that he was in a position to actually start regretting that action. That ignorant little shit deserved what he got.

And how could he tell his mate any of this? How could he bring her here to let the vultures peck away at her piece by piece? He knew that she was hurt that he hadn't included her yet, but he couldn't allow them to do that to her. He was protecting her the only way he knew how. But now Samhain was speedily approaching, and there wasn't much time left to try to figure this whole bloody mess out.

"You are not trusting her. You are not trusting yourself," Charlotte's gentle voice came now, and he shifted his head from the burrow of his protective hands to rest instead on his fists as he gazed at both of the females who had so graciously agreed to see him through problems like this.

It was always going to be a rocky start. This was no surprise.

"Okay," he nodded before clamping his mouth shut again. His eyes ran along the coarse woodgrain of the rustic desk before him, seeking answers. Seeking his truth. "That will be all for today. I thank you both."

The gazes of both females lingered before they belatedly departed. He did not meet their eyes. He couldn't.

"Have we been able to find anyone willing to negate the written accounts of the alyko?" Graeme asked his Beta who was seated across from him.

"There are a few whose names are recorded who deny the stories attributed to them and their packs, but they are both international. It will take some time before they are able to leave their packs to offer the in-person testimony the council requests," Sam answered.

"Honestly, I can't see it mattering anyway. What are two voices from remote, unknown packs against the elders here?" Graeme grumbled, running a hand down his beard.

He was touching his face a lot these days, he realized. Perhaps it was for comfort. Perhaps it was a symptom of how little he had been finding comfort with his mate.

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He was avoiding her. It pained him, but he was simply… afraid. And he was ashamed of that fear. He didn't wish for her to see it in his eyes or feel it in their bond. She was undeserving of it. How could he let her down in this way? She deserved so much more than this. She deserved a pack who was proud of her. A mate who could prove her worth to all. Why was he left fumbling around like this, blindly seeking his way? It felt like a repeat of the past was looming ever so closely, and that was the most terrifying thought of all. His heart shuddered to imagine it. If he lost her… if he failed the alyko again…

There had to be another way to uncover what the elders had been up to all these years… to show to the pack how the elders had worked against them—against all of them—rather than this narrative of the elders ceaselessly working for their protection.

"Finn called and said he has a location on Violet. He was supposed to connect with her today. If he can convince her to return, they should be back close to the time of the festival," Sam reported.

"Was it wise to send Finn? I'm still not sure," Graeme replied gruffly.

"He realizes it was a ruse, and there is no benefit for Violet to maintain it. Maybe she feels guilty and will return to help us," Sam suggested.

Graeme groaned. "I'm not staking any hope on it. What else do we have?"

Sam evaluated the notes in front of him. "Uh, aside from Penelope appearing with some kind of earth-shattering revelation? We have Zoe and her team, the rest of which have still been conveniently absent aside from Kai."

"It's not like the elders can keep all of this from imploding on them forever. Don't you get the feeling that they are simply biding their time?" Graeme slumped behind his desk.

"Definitely," Sam replied without hesitation. "And we are left spinning our wheels while they do."

"They have something up their sleeves yet that we don't see coming. How do we prepare ourselves for it?" Graeme thought aloud.

"Protection. For you and your mate," Sam offered.

"That hardly matters if it is pack opinion that they are weaponizing. It's the pack we are here for. It's the pack we want to help," Graeme huffed, frustrated. "Why can't they see that?"

"Who? The pack members?" Sam asked for Graeme to nod in response. "How do you know that they can't? You haven't trusted them with it. You assume what everyone is telling you about what they believe and how they are feeling. Admit it, you are scared brother."

Graeme shot a glare at his Beta, but it had no weight behind it.. Because Sam was right.

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