Chapter 217 Rowan’s Outburst
ROWAN
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I sneezed once more for what felt like the fifth time in thest fifteen minutes. My head jerked forward, and I sniffed before I straightened in my seat.
My father turned to look at me from the head of the long table. “Are you listening?” he asked.
I ignored his question and continued rubbing my still–itchy nose. Was someone talking about me? This was what they said in superstitions, right?
The elders droned on, their voices like background noise until Elder Harren mmed his palm on the table. “This is getting out of hand,” he dered. “Even the Praetor’s wife has been attacked in ournd. That is embarrassing.”
I nearly snorted. Embarrassing?
Embarrassing was them sitting here for hours, talking, wringing their hands, and doing absolutely nothing. Embarrassing was thinking that talking about the problem was the same as solving it.
I leaned back in my chair, staring at the ceiling, tuning out half the words as Elder Harren went on about the sanctity of our borders and what this meant for our faction’s reputation.
“Wilder, too, has a lot on his shoulders,” another elder said. “He’s been too busy guarding.”
I bit back augh. Guarding what? His fucking ego?
The chuckle slipped out before I could stop it, and my shoulders shook with it.
Everyone went quiet, and before I knew it, all heads turned to me.
“Do you find this funny, Rowan?” My father’s voice cut through the room.
I lifted my brows innocently, straightening in my chair.
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My mother, sitting just a seat down from him, gave me a pleading look, probably hoping for me to stay quiet and neutral.
However, I couldn’t stop my mouth from twitching.
“Do you have anything to say?” my father pressed. “Our faction has the most breaches. Along with that, we cannot manage all of our territory as thergest in the country. Do you know what the other factions say about us in the United Faction meetings?”
I shrugged, leaning my cheek against my fist. “I wouldn’t know,” I saidzily.
“You don’t let me go anyway,” I added. “Elias goes. Abel goes. Even Honey <i>goes</i>. However, since I’m not inaugurated—since I’m not the real Alpha of the South—I don’t have the right, do I?”
“Rowan-”
I cut him off. “You just want me to act like one. That way, when something goes wrong, there’s someone to me.”
The room was so quiet that you could still hear a pin drop.
Elder Harren stood, his voice booming. “Rowan! You do not disrespect this sacred conference room!”
My father rose too, his chair scraping loudly against the floor.
“What?” I asked, standing as well. “Isn’t that the truth?”
My father’s jaw clenched. “That’s all you have to say about this? You’re victimizing yourself in such an important meeting?”
“Oh, you want me to say more?” I said, and this time I smiled.
Fine. I’d say more.
“You want my analysis?” I asked, ncing at all of them. “Here it is. First–there’s clearly a problem, and it’s not the number of breaches or the number of rogues.
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The problem is, we don’t know the intention. We don’t know who’s sending them or why, because every single one of these rogues dies before we can question them.”
I nned on just listening in this meeting, and from the looks on their faces, they didn’t expect me to speak like this, too. Still, I continued.
“These rogues are evolving. They’re faster, smarter. Yet we’ve been containing them well, better than anyone gives us credit for–despite casualties.”
I turned my head deliberately toward Wilder. “And do you know why we have casualties?<b>” </b>
He stiffened.
“Because Wilder can’t control his guards.”
“Excuse me?” Wilder snapped.
“Your men panic. They don’tmunicate. They don’t have formation discipline. Every breach costs us more men than it should, and that’s on you.”
He opened his mouth to argue, but I talked right over him.
“Second,” I said, looking around the room, “your pride is too high. You don’t want help from the other factions because you think that would make us look weak. Especially from the North and Cade Cahan. You’d rather bleed our own people dry than admit we need a few more patrols and reinforcements.”
My father’s mouth was pressed into a hard line now.
“Why?” I went on. “I guess you still can’t stop thinking about Honey Cahan. You still me her for Elijah’s death. When in reality, it wasn’t Honey. It was Allen Winters, who’s already arrested and is serving his time well in prison because of Cade’s and Arden’s courage.”
“Rowan!” my father barked, mming a hand down on the table. “Do not bring your brother’s name into this!”
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“Oh, I’m sure he would love to be here to tell all of us how stupid we’re being,” I shot back, my voice rising. “We sit here pretending ournd is strong, when really it’s fractured. It’s divided because we’d rather have our pride than unity. We’d rather befortable than effective.”
No one said a word.
“You want to know what this really is?” I asked, leaning forward on the table. “It’s corruption. The kind that doesn’t need stealing. The kind where the elders sit at the top and take all the credit when things go right, and when things go wrong, they throw the me on us. On me. The not–quite–Alpha.”
I pushed my chair back hard and stood, shaking my head.
No one stopped me as I nced at my watch. “I can’t believe I wasted my timeing here,” I muttered.
I could have been with Tessa instead.
I turned and strode toward the door, not bothering to look back.
“Rowan!” My father shouted behind me. “If you don’t stop right now-”
I spun around, meeting his gaze squarely. “What?” I asked. “What are you going to take from me this time? My title? Your family name? My house?”
I let out a bitterugh.
“You’ve already taken my everything,” I said, my mind shing to Tessa. “So you can’t take anything else<i>.</i><i>” </i>
And with that, I walked out, not giving them a chance to reply.
I stalked out of the conference room, my hands shoved into my pockets. Every step I took back to the clinic felt lighter than thest. I couldn’t wait to see her again. I knew that her presence was all I needed right now before I lost my mind.
The moment I arrived at the pack clinic, I didn’t waste any more time. I went to the biggest room and shoved the door open.
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The first thing I noticed was Tessa’s lingering scent, and along with that, Arden’s clear and bright face. She looked infinitely betterpared to this morning, <i>so </i>I knew Tessa must have been here.
Cade was sitting next to Arden, but there was something annoyingly knowing in his eyes as he looked at me.
I frowned. “Where is she?”
“You just missed her,” Cade said while peeling a banana for Arden.
I groaned out loud, dragging a hand down my face and muttering a curse. The sound of my own frustration echoed in the room. “Seriously?”
I pinched the bridge of my nose and exhaled through my teeth. I had rushed all the way here just to find out I’d missed her. Perfect.
“You missed someone else, too,” Cade added casually.
That made me pause, and I turned to look at him, my brows furrowing. “What?”
Just then, Arden reached out and pped the back of his head, causing his expression to falter a bit.
“Cade,” she warned.
“What did I miss?” I demanded, narrowing my eyes at him.
Cade didn’t answer and instead gave me a look that appeared infuriatingly amused.
“You missed out on a lot,” he finally said.
“A whole lot.”
Chapter 218 Rose From Montrose
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Noelle bit her lip and started fidgeting with her fingers. “It’s my first time docking here… ever,” she muttered. “I’m scared.”
Sol raised a brow as we drew closer to the ominous stretch ofnd. “Isn’t that a bit discriminatory?”
“Shut up,” Noelle snapped. “I’ve been to other witch countries before. They’re great people! But even they don’t talk about Montrose. It’s a godforsaken country.”
“Quiet,” Imanded as we approached the docking area, where a lone man was already standing. Instantly, the atmosphere on the boat turned awkward as he boarded. Then, realization struck me–this was the same man I had encountered thest time.
Our eyes met for a moment, but I quickly looked away, not wanting to associate myself with him. Does that sound bad? I didn’t even know this man! Still, he just gave me the impression that he wasn’t someone to be trusted.
“He’s walking toward us,” Noelle suddenly whispered, making my eyes go wide. I turned slightly to look at him and confirmed he was walking over our direction. My breath hitched, and I tightened my hold around Ca.
Why the heck was he going closer to us?
“It’s you again,” he said, his deep voice reverberating in the small boat. Noelle and Sol were frozen by my side while I put a smile on my face, not wanting to appear rude.
He must have realized how stiff the air had grown, because he pulled back his hood. My eyes darted to his face, and for a second, I forgot to breathe.
He looked… normal. His features were sharp and clean, his skin pale against the dark cloak, and his hair, a messy brown, fell into ce along with his hood. His most questionable feature was his eyes. It was still yellow like thest time. However, paired with everything else, it didn’t look so strange.
“Handsome,” Noelle whispered.
Sol and I both snapped our heads toward her at once.
Chapter 218 Rose From Montrose
“Noelle,” I whispered.
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Noelle flushed and quickly shook her head, waving her hands. “Sorry! I didn’t mean to say that out loud.”
I narrowed my eyes at her, but the man just chuckled, brushing it off.
Still, there was something familiar about him, though I couldn’t ce it.
His face had that look, the one angels are painted with. But I had learned a long time ago that people who looked like angels often had the sharpest fangs. That, more than his yellow eyes, kept my guard up.
“Mind if I sit?” he asked, his deep voice rolling out easily.
We all exchanged nces, and before we coulde up with a decision, he had lowered himself onto the bench opposite us.
“Let me introduce myself,” he said, smiling lightly. “I’m Kyle Rose.”
“Rose?” I muttered before I could stop myself.
“Yes,” he chuckled, “Kyle Rose from Montrose. Ironic, isn’t it?”
Heughed like he was sharing some kind of joke with us, speaking so casually that I wondered if maybe I was just being prejudiced.
“I’m Sol,” Sol finally said, leaning forward, trying to sound polite but still wary.
“Noelle,<i>” </i>Noelle followed quickly, brushing her hair back nervously.
Then his yellow eyes locked onto me.
“And you are?<i>” </i>he asked.
I swallowed, shifting Ca slightly in my arms as she stirred. “Tessa,” I answered simply.
His lips curved into a smile. “Nice to meet you all.”
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The atmosphere turned silent once more, so I asked a question to fill the silence. “What brings you to rc?” I asked.
“Business,” he said smoothly. “I have some business there. You know humans and their overconsumption. It’s easy to exploit them.”
The bluntness of his tone caught me off guard, but then Sol let out a chuckle, and even Noelle stifled augh. Against my better judgment, I found myself smiling just a little.
Maybe he wasn’t so bad after all.
However, I found myself feeling worried once more when his gaze slid toward Ca. Even though I found his impression to be better than before, I adjusted her in my arms so her face was tucked safely against me, hidden from his line of sight.
“Your daughter?” he asked softly.
I hesitated for a second, then gave a small nod.
“She’s pretty,” he said, and his eyes flicked back to mine. “The two of you are.”
I pursed my lips, not sure what to make of that.
Meanwhile, I could feel Noelle and Sol’s grins burning into the side of my face. I wanted to elbow them both, but my hands were upied.
“Thank you,” I managed, keeping my voice even.
“I can tell the two of you have been through a lot together,” he said suddenly.
My eyebrows furrowed. “What do you mean by that?”
He only smiled faintly. Before I could press on, the captain’s voice rang out –“Docking at rc!”
The boat jolted slightly as we neared the wooden nks of the port. Kyle stood, pulling his hood back over his head.
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“You know wizards,” he said with a shrug. “We just… know these things.”
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And with that, he turned and stepped away, disappearing into the flow of people disembarking.
I looked at his retreating figure, unsettled, before Ca stirred against me. Her tiny hand tugged at my shirt, and she mumbled groggily, “Home, Mommy?”
“Yes,” I whispered. “We’re home.”
Noelle, however, wasn’t about to let things slide.
“I think that wizard has the hots for you,” she said in a sing–song voice.
My eyes flew wide. “What are you talking about?”
“I don’t know,” she said with a shrug, a grin tugging at her lips. “You’re just too popr, Tessa. Owen, he who shall not be named, and now Kyle.”
“Noelle!”
Her grin grew mischievous. “Ah, I envy you so much.”
I groaned, wishing I could throw her overboard.