Chapter 148
Connor POV
News about what Conrad had done has spread pretty quickly. There was no way to hide it as everyone noticed when their Alpha King was in such a good mood. They were all horrified as to why, though.
This is a very slippery slope for Conrad. I get the bloodlust that can come from the need for revenge, but the fact that he enjoyed the act is what worried me the most.
As head of the hunters, I called a meeting as we had to discuss what was going to happen now. We need to plan.
One person from each household is a tight fit, but this needs to happen.
“As you all know, I have called this meeting to discuss what the Alpha King did yesterday and his recent change in demeanor. We need a plan on how we are going to handle this situation if things get out of hand“.
One of the hunters speaks up. “Do we really need to, though? That bastard brutalized his pack, raped his daughter, and then sold her. Only his Luna and sons will ever be crying at his grave“.
Another backs him up. “Exactly, he was doing our job for us so good riddens. We should just let him free on all the others in there for what they have done“.
1
There is a round of cheers from the hunters, which infuriates me.
“Firstly, as hunters, we go for the kill to protect others. Not for the enjoyment of it, which is why he is doing it. Secondly, once he has run out of prisoners, then what? What if we can never get the Luna Queen home?“.
The silence that washes over the room is deafening. They clearly hadn’t thought about this possibility.
“I get we are all OK with Blake dying, but the way Conrad did it, torturing him. We need to set a limit or something. Have a plan in case he goes completely feral. In case he goes rogue“.
One hunter speaks up. “We can’t kill him. The other Alpha Kings were off limits until they had a heir in case all wolves went feral overnight without pack leaders“.
“Well, Cordelia claims to be pregnant with the next heir, so if we can confirm that, that might be the solution“.
“Any pup from that demon is going to be just as corrupt“. He retorts. “There’s also the likely possibility that it is not his, and then we are back to square one anyway“.
A timid voice from the back of the room is next. “Do the wolves really need an Alpha King? Lewana survived just fine in the human world. Better even. If we did kill him, how do we know for sure that the wolves would all go feral and not just
adjust?“.
There is a murmur of agreement. “Besides, if the wolves go feral, we would just hunt them down like we’ve always done“.
“You all know there are thousands of wolves. Hunting that many would mean war. Humans would get killed in the crossfire. Also, the goal wouldn’t be to restore order. Wiping out an entire species would be genocide and throw off the balance between magical creatures even more than it is“.
A small, familiar voice from the back stops me in my train of thought.
1/2
Ghapter 140
“So finding Lewana really is our only hope then“.
Crap. When did Kimberly get here? I rush over to her, as she shouldn’t be involved in these conversations.
I speak in a low voice so only she can hear me. “You shouldn’t be here, babe. You know this is the hunter’s business“.
She is clearly angry and has no intention of keeping this conversation private. “Well, if you’re only going to talk about killing one of my best friend’s mates and not rescuing her, then I’m going to be here to speak for her. Killing Conrad would kill her, so that is not an option. You need to be focused on finding her“.
She’s right. I redirect the questioning to that.
“Do we have any leads or info on this? Hell, at this point, I will take random theories“.
Nothing but silence in the room.
I start talking out loud just to see if we can come up with anything.
“It has to be an Alpha, as he had too many in his control over other wolves to coordinate the attacks not to be. We would have noticed an Alpha Heir going missing or going rogue, so he must have been born in that world. He has to have human connections, as he had a timed–release gas device made, and he wouldn’t have the money for his operations in just the wolf world. My main question is, who the hell put the device there? It has to be someone in the pack who is loyal to him. Someone who goes unnoticed here, as that is the only way to get past the guards“.
One of the experienced hunters who finally has an idea speaks up. “I think that is where we start. We should run drills tomorrow. Copy what the guards do during the day and night and see how we would get a gas canister in unnoticed and how we would get Lewana out unnoticed“.
“OK then. We have a plan. But we need to start meeting regularly to keep discussing this in case …. we need to take a different approach“.
Everyone leaves my house slowly to return to their own home, leaving me alone with a fuming Kimberly, as Stella is at her friend’s house for the night.
“I get your mad, but it’s hunters‘ business. We have to consider everything to protect everyone“.
“I understand that. I do. But you need to remember her in these equations. I don’t want her coming home to a dead mate and broken family because it was the easier option at the time. I know finding her is going to be hard, but we have to keep trying. No matter how long it takes“.
By the end, she is crying, so I go and hold her as we feel the weight of the entire world now resting on our shoulders.
Balance of Light and Shadow
