I had a hunch! Even before I brought my right-hand man, Stephen, into the hospital room. The scent was unmistakably wolf.
I had a feeling she was part wolf, or at least I had a strong suspicion.
Her Blackthorne features were a dead giveaway, and if she was a Blackthorne, there was a good chance she was a hybrid.
What did catch me off guard was the existence of a female wolf hybrid in Blackthorne’s pack.
She was so flawless, though.
Her scent, as subtle as it was to me, was so enticing.
I struggled to keep my wolf in check.
This could definitely stir things up.
Her father had done an excellent job of brainwashing her into believing that werewolves were the enemy.
That we were beasts.
Every hybrid from the Blackthorne, Oakwood, Rougemont, and Sanderson packs that we brought in was stunned when they discovered the truth.
When they realized their fathers had fed them lies.
When they realized their fathers were the real lie.
I needed to have a chat with her brother, Callum.
We had brought him in just shy of two years ago.
From my conversations with him, helping him through his transition, I knew he had two full siblings.
Devon, his older brother, and Erin, his younger sister.
All three of them shared the same mother.
Of course, there was no guarantee that either of them would be hybrids.
But now I knew Erin was.
As for her older brother, only Simon Blackthorne would have that answer.
I left the hospital wing of the pack house and headed towards my office, my thoughts centered on Erin and her brother Callum.
But more so on their father, Simon Blackthorne.
The world of werewolves and humans had come a long way.
Yet he still insisted on teaching his children that we were monsters, tormenting humans.
I would have to bring this up at the next council meeting.
We really needed to put an end to this nonsense before more people got hurt.
This wasn’t just a risk for werewolves, but for humans too.
Especially if they ended up in the line of fire.
From what I gathered from Callum, it was also a risk for the young men and women under Blackthorne’s so-called care.
He and his counterparts were creating an army of hybrids, who didn’t even know they were hybrids.
Why?
Once I was back in my office, I pulled out Callum Blackthorne’s file. I needed to review his history again, compare it to what we knew about Erin Blackthorne.
I hadn’t been back in my office for more than about five minutes when there was a knock at the door.
“Come in!” I called, barely lifting my gaze from the file on my desk.
Hearing the door open and close, I looked up. I was surprised to see my right-hand man, Stephen, standing there with arms crossed, looking rather frazzled.
I gestured to the chair in front of the desk.
“You look stressed, Stephen. What’s up?”
I waited patiently. Stephen was a damn good right-hand man and only came to see me if something serious was going on.
Stephen sighed, “I’ve spent the last half an hour getting an earful from Oliver Grey!”
I frowned slightly.
“Correction,” he added, “Councilman Oliver Grey.”
I sighed. “And what couldn’t wait until the next council meeting?”
He shook his head. “Specifically, Erin Blackthorne!”
I closed my eyes and shook my head. “Erin Blackthorne is a hybrid, which means she falls under my jurisdiction,” I sighed, “he knows that!”
Stephen nodded. He knew as well as I did, any humans apprehended were dealt with by humans. Any werewolves or hybrids were my responsibility.
“He’s questioning her heritage. The patrol found a silver knife on her. Hidden in her boot.”
I rolled my eyes. “She’s a Blackthorne, I’m surprised she didn’t have a crossbow laced with Wolfsbane!”
Stephen bit his bottom lip and furrowed his brow. By the look on his face, I knew that there was more.
“Go on,” I sighed, “what else!”
Stephen shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
“There’s been an incident in East Haven,” he hesitated.
I closed the file on my desk; this would have to wait. Stephen wouldn’t be here unless the incident was something serious.
“Go on!”
“They caught a Rougemont, doing a similar run to the Blackthorne girl!”
I sighed. “Stephen! Her name is Erin!”
He shook his head. “Whatever!” he mumbled, “anyway, the boy in East Haven...he wasn’t a hybrid, he was human!”
I stared at Stephen.
“But... that’s not possible!” I exclaimed.
Stephen nodded. “That’s what I thought!” he sighed. “He was carrying a silver knife too, so the human court charged him and hung him.”
I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair.
“I’ll bring it up at the next council meeting. How the hell can we get any intel if they keep killing the suspects before we’ve had a chance to question them!”
Stephen glanced at the floor. “He wants us to hand over the girl, unless we can confirm that she’s a hybrid.”
I stood up and leaned forward onto the desk, glaring at my right-hand man.
“That’s not gonna happen!” I growled.
Stephen looked at me nervously. “Why, unless we’re sure?”
I took a deep breath in an attempt to calm my wolf.
“Because, Stephen, Erin Blackthorne is my mate!”
Stephen left the office to let Councillor Grey know that I wasn’t particularly happy and that there was no way he was going to get hold of Erin Blackthorne.
I was certain she was a hybrid anyway, although there were some rare cases of human mates.
On his way out, he mentioned that Callum was waiting to see me. Or as Stephen described him, ‘the Blackthorne boy’. I wasn’t sure if Stephen had a problem with hybrids or just Blackthornes.
I waited a few moments to compose myself before opening the office door again to see Callum sitting outside.
I put my hand on his shoulder.
“Come, Callum. In my office.”
He followed me in.
Since his arrival, I had taken it upon myself to be his mentor.
I hadn’t done that for all the hybrids, but given the Blackthornes’ history, they needed all the help they could get.
I moved around the large oak desk and settled into the chair behind it.
Callum stood before me, his head bowed in respect to his alpha.
I was proud of him. He’d adapted well, especially to the werewolf hierarchy. I wasn’t sure his sister would adapt as smoothly, but only time would tell.
“Sit.” I motioned to the chair across from me. “So, Callum, what’s bothering you?”
He lifted his gaze to meet mine. “My sister, is she okay?”
I offered him a reassuring smile.
“You did a good job, Callum. You did the right thing by alerting us about her.”
His brow furrowed. “She turned eighteen today. I knew he would send her away, I’m just relieved we found her.”
I nodded in agreement. His werewolf side had thrived since he came here. I was immensely proud of his progress, though slightly disappointed that he hadn’t been able to shift yet.
“I’m not sure your sister sees it the same way, though. She had to be restrained; she tried to take her own life,” I said, keeping my tone steady.
He gasped. “Why? Is she...?”
I rose from my chair and circled the desk. I placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
“Don’t worry, Callum, she’s receiving the best care. We’ll help her through this,” I assured him.
Callum let out a sigh. “Is she a hybrid too?”
I nodded. “And she has more Wolfsbane in her system than you did,” I added.
I watched as Callum’s shoulders sagged. Before he could voice the question that was clearly on his mind, I answered it for him.
“I don’t know if she’ll be able to shift; we’ll have to wait until the effects wear off. She’s denying her heritage, just like you did.”
Callum’s brow furrowed again. “Can I see her?”
I nodded. “Absolutely. It might help her if she hears the truth from you,” I paused, “she’s going to need all the support she can get, Callum, when her wolf comes out.”
Callum nodded, a serious expression on his face.
“Is there anything we can do... to make it easier?” he asked.
I shook my head. “It’s going to be painful, and she’s going to be angry. She’ll also experience mood swings.”
Callum nodded again.
Even though he wasn’t thrilled about watching his little sister suffer, he understood that there was no other choice.
I’d been there with him when he went through the same thing.
Wolfsbane was akin to a drug, and the withdrawal was agonizing.
“There’s one more thing, Callum...” I started.
He looked up at me, curiosity lighting up his eyes.
“Your sister, Erin... she’s my mate!”
