Chapter 47

RYKER

"What's your problem, Ry? It's so early in the morning. What do you want to talk about?" Samuel asked, rubbing his eyes as he trudged into the room where kept Draven's unconscious body.

He was still dressed in his pajamas, and clearly didn't appreciate being woken up, but I had to make some things clear.

Starting with our uncles being alive.

"What happened to the Brothers of Doom?" I asked, and the change in Samuel was abrupt.

His stance straightened while his eyes glared daggers at me. "What the fuck is wrong with you? What lies did Ishmael fill your head with?"

"That's funny seeing as Ishmael wasn't conscious when Benjamin and I got there." I walked over to Draven. He was strapped to a bed pushed against the wall, and above his bed hung Eris's bloodstones.

"Why are you asking me this?"

"Because I never saw their bodies. Raises some questions in the air, don't you think?"

"Do you think I'd lie about their deaths? For fuck's sake, what type of fucked up person do you think I am?" He asked, his stance tight like he was ready to jump at me any minute.

I shrugged. "I don't know, Samuel. I don't know anything anymore." I shoved my hand into my pocket, feeling the cool blade against my palm. It would be so easy to end it all. I was closer to his body, and before Samuel could do anything, Draven would be gone from this world, but did I do that? No. I was giving him the benefit of the doubt. "A deity wouldn't tell lies, would he?"

"Ozark? He filled your head with these lies?"

"No. You filled my head with lies. You're not who I thought you were. You're conniving, Samuel. Do you have any idea how many people have told me this?"

"And what? It took the words of a deity to confirm this?" He huffed. "Get real here, Ryker. I never doubted you for once, so why would you doubt me?"

"Because I've always been transparent with the things I do."

"Yeah? Did you kill the Nighthowler who attacked us that day?" His smirk turned smug, running my blood cold. "What? You thought I wouldn't find out? Remember, Ryker, if there's one spell I've perfected over the years, it's illusion. Remember the old hag at the inn? Yeah, you don't do something like that without practice. Your spell wore right off."

"Why didn't you confront me about it?"

"I didn't because you're my brother. I trust your decisions, but that feeling is clearly not mutual." He shot me a disgusted look that sent guilt washing over me.

I sighed, sliding down the wall until I was sitting on the floor. "I'm sorry, Sam. It's just that..."

"They've been getting to you," he completed. He walked over to me before crouching in front of me. "Don't beat yourself up, Ry. These people want to tear us apart because they know we're unstoppable together. You know who Ozark is. He's a shitstarter. Don't believe anything he says."

"I know that now."

"Would you like to see their graves? Our uncles, I mean."

My ears perked up. "Really?"

"Really. Anything for my little brother." He squeezed my shoulder. He helped me up to my feet, and we both walked out of the room, locking the door behind us.

"Go get dressed. We both know you wouldn't want to look anything less than perfect in front of them."

"Give me a few minutes. We'll meet back here." I turned on my heels, heading for my room. All the while, I chastised myself for even doubting him for a second. He was my brother. We'd been through thick and thin, and I knew him better than most.

Yes, his plan to go to war against Nathaniel might seem evil to others, it was his way of taking back control.

Growing up, we'd had a lot of things taken away from us, and we hadn't been able to do anything to stop it. This was a way for him to reclaim that power. Besides, he was just paying the Blacks in their coin.

I changed in less than ten minutes, but I waited in my room to give Samuel some time to shower and dress. When I felt like enough time had passed, I made my way back to Draven's room.

"He's suspicious," I heard Samuel say, and I paused in my steps right before I took the curve down the corridor.

"Yeah?" Benjamin asked. "What'd you tell him?"

"That I'd take him to their graves." Samuel sounded annoyed.

"But there is no grave."

No grave? I balled my fists in anger. Ozark was right. Samuel had been lying all along. But why? Why would he want to start an unprovoked war with Nathaniel?

"You think I don't know that? Our uncles think he'll come around soon, but I don't think so. Ryker isn't the same person he used to be. I think he's been talking to Nikita."

"I think so too. Ryker used to do everything I asked, but now, I don't know anymore. You heard him call me a pussy the other day."

Samuel huffed. "You are a pussy."

"Says the guy who can't do shit without the help of his little brother. That's why you've been fooling him. You know he won't do your bidding otherwise, and without him, you're fighting a lost battle."

Samuel was using me. Our uncles weren't dead.

I took a step back as I repeated those two sentences in my head. Nikita and Ishmael were right. I've been a fool all along.

I had to get out of here. And then, I had to find a way to end this war. I swiveled around to make my quiet escape when I came face-to-face with someone I thought was dead.

"Hello, little nephew."

***

NATHANIEL

I rolled out a map of The Borough on my table, holding the edges down with the things on my desk.

"This is the underground safe house." I pointed at the center of the map.

"Where exactly are we looking at here?" Logan asked, squinting at the spot.

"It's not on the map, dummy," Kai grumbled. He still wasn't fully healed, but he'd insisted we started laying down a few plans. "It's called an underground safe house for a reason." He looked up at me. "Go on."

"We get the women and the children here prior to the war."

Logan nodded in agreement. "There's no way we won't be able to hear if their legions are marching toward us. There should be enough time for prepping."

"No," Kai objected. "That's gonna cost us some time."

"What do you have in mind?"

"We make sure they don't get close to our border at all. If they do, we won't be able to win. That's guaranteed."

"How?"

"It will be easy for them to bring down the shield with Ryker's magic. That gives them access to the island. They could find the safe house, and the women and children would be in jeopardy. Even if we do win, they'll leave the island in ruins."

"That means we need soldiers' placements. How many people do we have on the island?"

Kai shrugged. "Two hundred at most."

"We need definite numbers." I turned on my computer, typing around to bring up the record for the pack members. "Two hundred and twenty. Twenty-one children have been born since Ayra arrived on the island. Out of two hundred and twenty people, fifty are under the age of eighteen."

"Those ones will sit the war out."

I nodded in agreement with Logan's statement. "That leaves out one hundred and seventy people. Females make up seventy-eight out of those numbers.

"That's ninety-eight males. Fifteen of those are already Enforcers. We're left with eighty-three males."

Kai ran his hand down his beard. "We need to curate a list. How many people are willing to fight in this war? Until we know that, we can't come up with war strategies."

*'Alpha Nathaniel, there's someone who wants to see you at the border,'* Andino's voice drifted into my head.

*'Who is it?'* I asked.

*'He said his name is Knox.'*