Chapter 43 - The Price of Loyalty
1181 Words
Elliot, Kevin, and James sat at the long table in the council room.
Papers covered nearly every inch of the polished oak surface—maps, contracts, land records, and patrol schedules.
Timothy stood near the window with a glass of whiskey in his hand, listening.
The late afternoon light fell across the maps like pale blades, highlighting the thin red lines marking territorial borders.
Most of those lines now pointed toward the same problem.
Anthony’s territory.
Kevin tapped one of the maps with his finger.
“The majority of these lands border Anthony’s territory,” he said.
James nodded slowly.
“That’s the issue.”
Elliot remained silent, studying the documents.
Kevin leaned back slightly in his chair.
“If we buy them,” he continued, “we will extend our borders directly toward his lands.”
Timothy swirled the whiskey in his glass.
“And right now,” he said quietly, “relations between the two packs are… cold.”
James gave a humorless smile.
“That’s a polite way of putting it.”
Kevin exhaled slowly.
“Which means more patrols.”
Elliot finally spoke.
“Yes.”
The word was calm.
Final.
Kevin looked back down at the map.
The lands were valuable.
Strategically positioned.
Too valuable to leave for another pack to buy.
James crossed his arms.
“If we do buy them,” he said, “we’ll have to increase patrols immediately.”
Elliot shook his head slightly.
“No.”
Both Kevin and James looked up.
“We will buy the land,” Elliot continued, “but we will leave it without supervision for now.”
James frowned.
“That creates a weak border.”
“It avoids unnecessary provocation.”
Kevin thought about it.
It was risky.
But Elliot rarely made decisions without seeing ten moves ahead.
After a moment Kevin nodded.
“Fine.”
The decision was made.
Kevin gathered several documents together.
But something had been bothering him since the meeting began.
He finally spoke.
“Why did you give the house to Marcus’s family?”
The room fell silent.
Elliot slowly lifted his eyes.
Kevin avoided his gaze, staring at the table instead.
“Because I decided to.”
The answer came easily.
Too easily.
Kevin clenched his jaw.
James felt the irritation instantly.
Kevin had never been very good at hiding his emotions.
Elliot continued watching his son.
“If Florence still concerns you,” Elliot said calmly, “then leave her alone.”
Kevin’s head snapped up.
His eyes flashed with anger.
“That disgrace to the pack,” he said sharply, “is now occupying a place she never should have had.”
Elliot folded his arms across his chest.
“You should concern yourself with your future bride,” he said, “instead of interfering in politics that are far beyond you.”
Kevin stared at him.
“My what?”
Timothy turned toward Elliot slowly.
James watched silently.
Elliot reached for a document and slid it across the table toward Kevin.
Kevin looked down at the paper.
But did not pick it up yet.
Timothy took a slow sip of whiskey.
“Father?” he asked cautiously.
Elliot finally spoke.
“Leonard Littlewood sent that this morning.”
Kevin’s eyes moved to the seal.
The crest of the Littlewood pack.
He opened the letter.
The message was short.
Formal.
Cold.
Elliot continued.
“After the wedding of Amber and Anthony,” he said calmly, “we will announce your engagement.”
Kevin frowned.
“To who?”
Elliot looked directly at him.
“Fellicity Johnson.”
The name settled heavily in the room.
Fellicity Johnson.
Leonard Littlewood’s niece.
Beautiful.
Sharp.
Dangerous.
Kevin had met her several times.
She had always looked at him like someone studying an enemy.
Kevin was not opposed to marriage itself.
Alliance marriages were normal.
Expected.
Necessary.
But before he could respond, his eyes shifted toward Timothy.
His younger brother stood frozen near the window.
Timothy looked like a man who had just watched someone walk into a trap.
Kevin understood immediately.
Timothy had known.
Elliot noticed the exchange of looks.
“And regarding your… relationship with Stephanie.”
Kevin stiffened.
James spoke before Kevin could.
“We believe it would be better if Stephanie married one of our warriors.”
Kevin’s chair scraped slightly against the floor.
Stephanie.
His girlfriend.
The only relationship in his life that had not been arranged by politics.
Elliot continued calmly.
“I will personally provide her dowry.”
Kevin’s hands curled into fists.
Stephanie had worked too hard to reach the university.
Her education meant everything to her.
Kevin opened his mouth.
But James spoke again.
“If necessary,” James said calmly, “I will send Stephanie to the eastern border of the pack.”
Kevin froze.
James continued.
“She has an aunt there.”
The implication was obvious.
Stephanie would be removed.
Far away from the university.
Far away from Kevin.
“And she will not finish her education.”
Timothy gasped softly.
He stared at his father.
But James raised his hand.
Silence returned instantly.
“You all need to understand something,” James said quietly.
His gaze moved between the three young men.
“You,” he said calmly, “and your personal interests do not matter.”
Kevin’s jaw tightened.
James continued.
“You have a duty to the pack.”
His voice was steady.
Cold.
None of you have found your true mate.
His eyes settled on Kevin.
“Which means your futures belong to political alliances.”
The room was quiet.
Elliot raised his hand.
The meeting was over.
Kevin stood.
Timothy followed him.
Neither spoke as they left the room.
The door closed behind them.
The hallway outside was empty.
For several seconds they walked in silence.
Then Timothy spoke.
“I told you.”
Kevin did not answer.
“I warned you,” Timothy continued quietly. “Your relationship with Stephanie would end badly.”
Kevin stopped walking.
He turned toward his brother.
For the first time in a long while something unfamiliar moved inside him.
Shame.
And anger.
Stephanie trusted him.
Believed he could protect her.
But now…
He realized how little power he actually had.
His father.
His uncle.
The pack.
They could destroy her future with a single decision.
Kevin clenched his fists.
Timothy watched him carefully.
“What are you going to do?”
Kevin looked down the hallway toward the training fields outside.
Warriors sparred in the distance.
Everything looked normal.
Peaceful.
But Kevin felt something darker rising inside him.
“No one will take Stephanie from me.”
Timothy stared at him.
Kevin turned slowly.
His eyes were hard.
Determined.
“Even if they marry me off.”
Silence filled the hallway again.
Timothy shook his head.
“You’re starting a war you can’t win.”
Kevin’s expression hardened even more.
“We’ll see.”
He turned and walked away.
Timothy remained standing in the corridor.
Watching him go.
And for the first time that day…
He felt afraid.
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