pack had a friend
or two in Tucson at some point or another."
"What
can the two of you tell me about Tasha? How powerful is she?"
Ash
shrugged. "I have some suspicions, but that's all they are.
Jaclyn keeps a very tight lid on her people, so there is very little
information out there when it comes to her pack members, but there's
even less information than normal on Tasha."
I
pinned Donovan to his chair with my gaze for several seconds before
he answered. "Ash's suspicions are correct. Jaclyn has been
ruthlessly suppressing the information, but Tasha hasn't ever
manifested a hybrid form. Some of her pack believe it is her father's
legacy, but you would tend to disprove that theory. I know that
Jaclyn is very worried about the future though. She so completely
outclasses the dominants in her pack that she's been able to protect
Tasha from most of the infighting, but once Jaclyn is gone, it is
almost certain that Tasha will lose her position and be relegated to
a role out on the fringe of the pack."
I
nodded, understanding a bit more about her plan now. "So by
combining our packs Jaclyn strengthens her position against the ongoing
incursions from the south, and by buying me time to manifest my
power, she'll also be ensuring her daughter's future after she's gone.
It's not a bad plan, assuming that the Coun'hij will let her get away
with it, and the dispossessed are a nonissue because she can drop any
of them pretty much instantly."
I
had to hand it to Tasha and her mother both. It was bold, almost to
the point of recklessness, but it was the best option available to
them. Sending Tasha to deliver it was risky. It would only be a
matter of time before our whole pack knew that she was only a wolf,
but without her presence here their plan wouldn't have had any chance
of succeeding.
"What
are the downsides?"
Donavan
was first this time. "Your mother won't be willing to leave
Sanctuary. Forcing her to do so would set her progress back decades."
I
nodded and turned to Ash, who didn't look entirely happy to be
sitting in the hot seat.
"When
you get right down to it, Jaclyn doesn't really need anyone but you.
You're the one who guarantees her daughter's position. The rest of us
are just foot soldiers to help beat back the cats. Anytime you try
and integrate two packs you're going to have some really, really
nasty fights as the dominants try to sort out the new pecking order.
Doing it on short notice, like we'd have to do for this to work, just
makes all of that twenty times worse. If you go through with this,
there's a very good chance that a couple of us will die."
The
thought had already crossed my mind, but it was good to have Ash's
perspective on it. He had spent a good chunk of his life being kicked
around by Onyx, so he sometimes had a different take on the power
struggles inherent in pack life than I did. I turned to go, but
Donovan spoke up before I could leave.
"Master
Alec, we haven't mentioned the most important consideration. This
alliance will only go through if you marry Miss Annikov. Jaclyn
Annikov is too shrewd to risk her daughter's future on an alliance
that doesn't bind you as tightly to her as possible. Should you marry
Miss Annikov, her mother will be watching you like a hawk. Any sign
that you plan to do other than remain faithful to your vows after her
death would lead her to take severe steps."
"I'd
figured as much already. Let's keep all of this between the three of
us for now. Also, anything we can do to keep Tasha clear of Addison
would probably be worthwhile to pursue. We all know that she's the
biggest leak we have, and I'd rather not start the negotiations out
by letting Tasha's cat out of the bag."
I
left Donovan's study and headed to Rachel's room. Dominic looked up
as I entered the room and motioned for silence as she walked me back
out into the hall.
"How
is she doing, Dom? Any sign of improvement?"
Dominic
shook her head, obviously distressed by Rachel's condition. She'd
assumed the bulk
or two in Tucson at some point or another."
"What
can the two of you tell me about Tasha? How powerful is she?"
Ash
shrugged. "I have some suspicions, but that's all they are.
Jaclyn keeps a very tight lid on her people, so there is very little
information out there when it comes to her pack members, but there's
even less information than normal on Tasha."
I
pinned Donovan to his chair with my gaze for several seconds before
he answered. "Ash's suspicions are correct. Jaclyn has been
ruthlessly suppressing the information, but Tasha hasn't ever
manifested a hybrid form. Some of her pack believe it is her father's
legacy, but you would tend to disprove that theory. I know that
Jaclyn is very worried about the future though. She so completely
outclasses the dominants in her pack that she's been able to protect
Tasha from most of the infighting, but once Jaclyn is gone, it is
almost certain that Tasha will lose her position and be relegated to
a role out on the fringe of the pack."
I
nodded, understanding a bit more about her plan now. "So by
combining our packs Jaclyn strengthens her position against the ongoing
incursions from the south, and by buying me time to manifest my
power, she'll also be ensuring her daughter's future after she's gone.
It's not a bad plan, assuming that the Coun'hij will let her get away
with it, and the dispossessed are a nonissue because she can drop any
of them pretty much instantly."
I
had to hand it to Tasha and her mother both. It was bold, almost to
the point of recklessness, but it was the best option available to
them. Sending Tasha to deliver it was risky. It would only be a
matter of time before our whole pack knew that she was only a wolf,
but without her presence here their plan wouldn't have had any chance
of succeeding.
"What
are the downsides?"
Donavan
was first this time. "Your mother won't be willing to leave
Sanctuary. Forcing her to do so would set her progress back decades."
I
nodded and turned to Ash, who didn't look entirely happy to be
sitting in the hot seat.
"When
you get right down to it, Jaclyn doesn't really need anyone but you.
You're the one who guarantees her daughter's position. The rest of us
are just foot soldiers to help beat back the cats. Anytime you try
and integrate two packs you're going to have some really, really
nasty fights as the dominants try to sort out the new pecking order.
Doing it on short notice, like we'd have to do for this to work, just
makes all of that twenty times worse. If you go through with this,
there's a very good chance that a couple of us will die."
The
thought had already crossed my mind, but it was good to have Ash's
perspective on it. He had spent a good chunk of his life being kicked
around by Onyx, so he sometimes had a different take on the power
struggles inherent in pack life than I did. I turned to go, but
Donovan spoke up before I could leave.
"Master
Alec, we haven't mentioned the most important consideration. This
alliance will only go through if you marry Miss Annikov. Jaclyn
Annikov is too shrewd to risk her daughter's future on an alliance
that doesn't bind you as tightly to her as possible. Should you marry
Miss Annikov, her mother will be watching you like a hawk. Any sign
that you plan to do other than remain faithful to your vows after her
death would lead her to take severe steps."
"I'd
figured as much already. Let's keep all of this between the three of
us for now. Also, anything we can do to keep Tasha clear of Addison
would probably be worthwhile to pursue. We all know that she's the
biggest leak we have, and I'd rather not start the negotiations out
by letting Tasha's cat out of the bag."
I
left Donovan's study and headed to Rachel's room. Dominic looked up
as I entered the room and motioned for silence as she walked me back
out into the hall.
"How
is she doing, Dom? Any sign of improvement?"
Dominic
shook her head, obviously distressed by Rachel's condition. She'd
assumed the bulk
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