36

"Deal," Savannah said instantly, a smile tugging the corner of her mouth at the major victory won here this morning.

If Phoenix could take this positive step towards a new life, was it too much to hope her own mate could do the same? Fingering the lost pendant that now hung on a stronger chain around her neck, she was beginning to believe anything was possible.

________

"Okay, one more time, and then we'll finish for the afternoon. On the count of three," the skate instructor counted the beats as the young girls got into position, then began moving in synchronised moves to the music.

"Wonderful! You're all going to be such pros by the time championships begin this year," the instructor praised them, giving the girls high-fives and thumbs us as they finished the routine.

"Miss Hal, can I go play now?" one of the students asked with a gap-toothed grin.

"Of course, darling. You've more than earned it," Hal waved them off, smiling as the girls skated off quickly, some racing each other to the end of the ice rink, others joining hands and spinning in tight circles. They always looked forward to the fun time at the end of class.

The door to the rink opened, letting in the faintest breath of warm air that reached Hal in seconds. Her eyes locked with hazel orbs that searched out one particular little girl.

"Daddy!" Darya skated over to the edge and clasped his hands as he leaned closer to greet her. "See what I can do! I learnt how to do a scratch spin." She immediately skated backwards in a large arc then turned quickly on the spot, pulling her arms and leg in to rotate at a faster speed.

"Wow, brilliant, Darya. You're very good!" Zion clapped his hands together, giving her a bright smile that rivalled her own.

When she skated off to join her friends, Zion found a seat on the stands and caught Hal's eye.

She skated over, tugging off her gloves as she stepped from the rink and joined him. "How are things?" she asked before he could say anything. Beginning the conversation was always her way of approaching situations like this, never letting anyone intimidate her into silence or confusion by starting first.

"Just peachy." His expression was bland as he said this, but she didn't miss the slight narrowing of his eyes as if the words had a second meaning he was suddenly reminded of.

"I hear my bro dumped you for an Alpha." Hal couldn't help giving him a smirk.

"Phoenix is a grown man. He can make his own foolish decisions and live to regret them," Zion leaned back, watching the girls skate with keen interest that was practiced from months of observing every detail in a scene.

"I'm not so sure he's the foolish one in this matter, from what I hear." She took a long drink from her bottle of water, wincing at the icy temperature. It bit its way down her throat, enlivening her senses and sharpening her mind. That was one of the things she loved about teaching figure skating. Having grown up in the heat of the tropics, it was nice to feel the cooler atmosphere that was so far removed from everything before—

Before her young sister was taken from them by a heartless killer.

Pushing her beanie on closer over her frizzy black hair, she cleared her throat and shoved the memories from her mind.

"Then you've probably only heard half the story."

"Oh, come on, man. You're like a brother to me, so give it to me straight," she turned in her seat to watch every nuance of Zion's reaction. "Is Savannah really as stupid as every other Alpha you've met?"

"In more ways than one," he replied glibly.

She scoffed. "I don't believe that. And neither do you. Otherwise, you wouldn't be here."

He turned to her then, giving her his full attention and an expression that bordered on amusement. "Humor me, Halcyon. If your mate was a good little pack wolf before you met him, would you still have claimed him? A brainwashed follower that had the power and responsibility to hold a silver gun to your head?"

She shrugged, hiding the shudder his words caused to run through her. "We're not talking about me. What is it you want?" she turned the conversation back on him, not letting herself be drawn in by his deep philosophy. She didn't have time for that today. Phoenix had called her on his way to the Alpha's territory, filling her in on the events of the last few weeks, and describing this intriguing Alpha Savannah in such a way that no matter the hatred she had towards pack wolves, Halcyon found herself wishing to meet this one. The fact Zion had pushed Savannah away made her already regret doing whatever favour he'd come here to ask.

"I'm going to Vinlarhk for a few weeks and need you to look after Darya."

"You're not serious? I have work, and Matthew—"

"Matthew can take care of himself." Zion's eyes followed Halcyon's mate as he drove the Zamboni across the ice, the girls having left the rink to remove their skates and pack their bags. Since an accident that left him mentally disabled to a small degree, Matthew needed more care than a child. Yet even though he wasn't totally dependent, Halcyon liked to shower him with fuss and affection. It was in her nature to be a mother hen, a characteristic often exploited by her friends.

"Is it only Vinlarhk?" she questioned before giving in.

"Well," Zion shrugged, his attitude relaxed. "That, and a national Alpha conference at the end of this week."

"What? Are you insane?" Hal responded just as he predicted. "Do you need to visit Matty's neurologist for a head check up? What has gotten into you? One minute you reject your second chance mate—"

"I didn't reject her."

"—just for being an Alpha, and now you think you can just waltz into their secret club meeting?"

"Shh, keep your voice down. Don't want to upset the girls," he smiled smugly, making her want to wipe the expression off his face with a well-tossed snowball.

"How will this even work?" she continued, her raised voice turning to a quiet hiss. "Will you go in disguise? How will you get in? You can't just fake an invitation like we did for the governor's wedding."

"No, no, nothing like that," he shook his head as if her suggestions were absurd. "I have contacts." He tapped the side of his nose cryptically.

"Do I even want to know? If it's anything like that time you seduced Cleo—"

"Let it rest, Hal. It's not nearly as bad as you think. This particular contact is blonde and highly credentialed. I just had to make a little deal, and I've got my way in. Don't worry, everything will be fine."

"I'd ask why this is still so important to you, but I'm honestly afraid of hearing the same old answer," she huffed, crossing her arms and pouting against admitting defeat.

"If it was your father who had to live underground his entire life, exiled from his home country all for saving someone, you'd understand. I want justice for him just like you want justice for Raven. We all have our battles. This is mine."

"I still don't like it."

"I'm not asking you to. Just watch my baby girl for a couple weeks. And please don't feed her any candy or chicken nuggets. You know how Leila felt about sugary and fatty foods."

"I do. And don't worry. We'll be fine. Just make sure you're home in time for her birthday."

"It's still two months away, isn't it?" he leaned forward, eyes on his pup as she chatted noisily with her classmates.

"Exactly," Hal laid a hand on his shoulder before standing. With one last serious look at the man she greatly admired, yet admonished when he needed it, she walked away. "Darya. Time to go, Sweetpea."

"Coming, Auntie!" Darya hugged her friends then skipped over to take Halcyon's hand.

"Say goodbye to your daddy. You probably won't see him for a while."

Zion waved them off, and felt his heart constrict as he sped away from the rink in his silent car. More than anything he wanted Darya by his side always, but his life was far too dangerous for her to be anywhere near him. He told himself it was to protect her, to prevent the same fate her mother had suffered. All he needed to do was convince the council of Alphas that his father was innocent of the accusations against him, then maybe all this sneaking around and living a rogue lifestyle would come to an end.

Maybe one day, they could all actually hold their heads up proudly without fear of a silver bullet to the brain.

Maybe, when all this was over, Savannah would understand why he had to walk away from her.

Pacing back and forth across the carpet of her office did nothing to ease Savannah's nerves. In fact, Justin's rhythmic footsteps only served to wind the tension tighter.

"Okay, come on. Say something," she exasperated, laying her hands flat on the desk and leaning forward to drill him with a hard stare.

"Not bad. Question is," he looked up from the pages he'd been reading. "Is it the truth?"

"Every word of it." She'd been up all night writing the report on the Silver Rogue, needing to get it done before they left for the Alpha Conference the next day. And now as Justin proof-read it, she couldn't help biting her nails in anticipation of his scathing response.

"And how many other truthful words did you leave out? Lord Alistair is going to know this isn't the full story."

"He knows how deadly Zion is, and how hard it would be for a female Alpha to take him down. If Bastien couldn't do it, why would anyone expect me to? For once, I don't mind playing up my weaknesses if it saves our necks from the chopping block." She'd written all about the deal made on the border of her territory, exchanging herself for the safety of her pack. The sacrifice she'd made would make any Alpha sympathise. She just hoped the rest of the story, the parts she'd included of fighting with the Silver Rogue and coming out second best, would be enough to allay Alistair's suspicions.

"Let's just hope you're right. Otherwise, Lord Alistair might order a full inquiry into the matter, and that type of paperwork could take months to sort out," Justin raked an impatient hand through his curly hair. Everyone knew the Beta's strong point was not office work, and that he'd much rather be running border patrol than sifting through folders of legality.

"Yeah, ain't nobody got time for that," Savannah spun around in her chair, grimacing when her back was to Justin. She hadn't told a soul about the incriminating photos Alistair had of her wild night at the rogue party. It would be the death of her if anyone in her family saw just how far she'd strayed while chasing her rebellious mate.

"It'll have to do. That doesn't mean I like it, though," Justin slapped the papers on her desk, an agitated look in his brooding eyes.

"Please, spare me the lecture," Savannah rocked back in her chair, appearing far more calm than she felt. "Nobody dislikes it more than me. You think I asked for my mate to be the most dangerous rogue? You think I don't want him thrown in prison for his crimes against our packs?"

"Then why didn't you do it?" Justin turned on her, the question written in every hard line of his tall, muscular body. If he hadn't been so quickly incapacitated by the sophisticated toxin Zion had used on him when they first met, the Beta would have used all his strength to take down the deadly rogue, no questions asked.

That's precisely what Savannah was trying to prevent. "He's my mate, Justin. You know how much the bond means to me."

"It doesn't have to, does it? Just because you feel some sparks when you touch doesn't mean you have to tie down the rest of your life to this worthless rogue. He doesn't deserve you. He can rot in hell, for all I care."

"Hey, knock it off!" Savannah rose, a sudden urge to defend her mate bubbling up from the depths of her soul. "Zion didn't ask for this, either. He's had his share of pain and injustice at the hands of pack wolves like us. If you give him a chance, you'll see him the way I do. You'll see he has what it takes to be a worthy pack member."

"You want to make him part of the pack? After everything he's done?" Justin's tone was incredulous, the look in his eyes even harsher.

Immediately, Savannah felt ashamed for her words. Justin had worked harder than anybody to protect the pack, to be a strong Beta and fulfil his duties seriously and with all his strength. They'd had each others' backs since childhood, and now it sounded like she was just slapping him in the face by taking the side of their deadliest enemy.

Taking a deep breath, she prayed he could understand where she was coming from. Her entire future depended on it. "We're not all innocent, yet we don't get immediately disbarred from our pack. Zion wants the same thing we do, to protect those he cares about. He's just been driven to desperation by those who should help him, not hurt him."

Justin clenched his jaw, measuring his words carefully. It was still ingrained in him to respect his Alpha no matter how much he disagreed with her. "That doesn't give him a free pass to do whatever he wants."

"I didn't say that. I just mean, we should buy him some time to sort himself out before we hand over all the incriminating evidence to the council. He didn't kill you, or me, when he had the chance so that should count for something," Savannah crossed her arms vehemently.

"I can't believe you trust this guy." Justin shook his head, pursing his lips to bite back a ton more sharp words.

"What gave you the impression I do? He's the least trustworthy man on the planet, but I believe--"

"Do you even hear yourself, Savannah? It's like we're having the same conversation as the other day, where you go around in circles defending then slamming this man who abducted you and threatened the entire pack," Justin pounded a fist into his palm. "I don't have time for this. The conference starts at one tomorrow, so I suggest we leave early. I've sorted our registration and submitted our items for the agenda," he informed her, not meeting her eyes as she searched his face that had become passive.

"I want to drop by Malachi's first," she quickly said before he left the office.

"We'll see him there."

"I know, but there's something I need to discuss with Ariella." Her fingers absently went to the pendant on her neck, reassuring herself it was safe. "We can then carpool with Malachi and Hamilton, which will give us time to catch up before the conference."

"Fine. We'll leave at seven."

As soon as Justin stormed from the office, Savannah sank into her chair and released the long breath she'd been holding. What had changed between her and her Beta? They used to be so close, so in sync with no bad energy between them. No secrets, no lies, just complete trust as they worked to lead and protect their pack. Now, all it seemed they did was argue over how she'd handled the biggest threat to their territory.

Why couldn't Justin see that Zion meant so much more to her than just the Silver Rogue? Why couldn't he accept that she was mated to a rogue, and deal with the conflict instead of exacerbating it with his constant questioning of her authority?

When, along the way of finding her mate, had she lost her best friend?

Opening emails to force her mind to think of something else, she noticed a few important ones amidst the usual junk. One was a notification from her bank of recent deposits into the pack's account. She was pleased to see that Phoenix had made good on his word.

Another email was from Phoenix himself, with a file of police reports, witness accounts, and statements regarding the murder of his sister. Scanning them quickly, she could see there was nothing substantial to build a case for any one suspect. No wonder the rogue and his family were frustrated and felt let down by the system meant to protect them. The police had dropped the case when all leads ran cold, leaving a killer on the loose and a grieving family without justice.

"Hey, do you have a moment?" Phoenix interrupted her thoughts, tapping on her door frame as he stood at the threshold to her office.

"Sure, come in," she waved him over. "I just received your email. It doesn't look so good."

Phoenix sighed heavily, showing a fraction of the despondency she was beginning to feel over the grim case. "Yeah, I was afraid you'd say that. So I was thinking, I'd like to go over the crime scene myself, see if I can find any clues the stupid cops missed."

"Hey, they're not all bad," she admonished him for trash-talking those in authority. On many occasions, she'd worked with the council's division of investigators to help solve problems.

"These ones were pathetic. Just your regular human cops who preferred a fat wallet to remaining honest. I'd bet my life savings they accepted bribes from every killer in their town."

"That's not saying much, seeing as you don't have any life savings," Savannah couldn't help joking, even though it wasn't the right time to make light of his recent decisions to go straight.

He frowned at her, shaking his head before rolling his eyes. "Yeah, whatever. As I was saying, I'd like to comb the area myself, but I can't seem to figure out exactly where it is. I know my sister was hitch-hiking somewhere between these two territories," he pointed to a map, the locations corresponding with the statements from when the original missing person case was filed. "Do you know whose land this is?"

Savannah leaned closer and studied the topography. "Yeah, this stretch of highway currently runs through Siyah Magara territory. However, at the time of your sister's...disappearance," she avoided the awful word murder, "it belonged to DoubleEdge pack. Wait, let me just see something." She looked at the dates again and did the math in her head. "Yeah, DoubleEdge owned the land at this stage. It was originally Siyah Magara territory, though."

"What?" Phoenix scratched his head, puzzled with Savannah's confusing explanation.

"The border was moved a couple times due to a long feud between the two packs. Alpha Malachi's father was very good at making enemies. It cost many lives on both sides of the border, until Alpha Malachi and Luna Ariella formed an alliance with the rightful Alpha, Aleczander. They gave the land back, and have been good friends ever since."

"So... do you think they'll give me permission to check it out?" he pointed to the spot on the map.

"I'll have a chat with Alpha Zander about it. If he doesn't agree, I'm sure his Luna Devanshi will." Savannah smiled as she recalled the reluctant young woman who would have been happy remaining a border guard in honour of her fallen father, yet accepted her rogue mate and the position as Luna with more grace than a flock of swans. The Alpha and Luna had suffered their own losses, and would surely understand Phoenix's petition to scour their territory for answers.

"Great. What time are you leaving tomorrow? I'd like to come with and maybe--"

"Um, there might not be time for that," Savannah said slowly as she moved aside the map and went over her notes for the conference discussions. Picking up a pen, she added some comments as she recalled things to mention. Her dad had spoken to her earlier about needing permission to install network towers, and she wanted to get on top of that as soon as possible. Perhaps all the topics she had to discuss with the council would distract them from the messy report that was sure to pique Alistair's insatiable curiosity--

"But even if I could just meet Alpha Malachi? I'd like to ask him what he remembers of that time," Phoenix pushed, his voice dragging her from her internal musings in a way that irritated the already stressed Alpha.

"Look, there won't be time. He'll be travelling with us to the conference. You'll have to wait until we get back."

"Well, I can just tag along to his place then head back here after you go. I'd just like to get a head start on our investigation." Phoenix couldn't keep the hopefulness from his tone. A wild light entered his eyes as he clenched his hands. "I feel like I'm finally closer to finding my sister's killer, and I can't wait to grip the monster between my fists and watch as his life drains--"

"Okay, stop right there!" Savannah snapped. "Revenge isn't going to bring your sister back," she growled, annoyed with his persistence. Why couldn't he see she had important things she needed to finish tonight? Who even invited him into her office, anyway?

Phoenix stepped back as if physically punched. He frowned, watching her warily as his face crumpled. Then his features hardened again, causing Savannah to feel sick at how she'd just spoken to him so rudely. "I never expected it to. I just want justice. Is that too much to ask for?"

Before she could respond, he stalked from her office looking more dejected than she'd ever seen him.

Savannah slumped back into her chair, hanging her head in her hands and sighing heavily. There was no reason why she had to be so snappy with him. He'd done nothing wrong; she'd just taken out her frustrations on him. "You can come with, Phoenix," she eventually called out loudly. "We'll just leave earlier."

She received no response indicating he'd heard, instead the back door downstairs swung open and Hunter began bickering with Kiana. Their muffled voices drifted upstairs and reached Savannah. Soon, Kaiden stepped in and roused on them for fighting again.

Tuning out their loud argument, Savannah tried concentrating on work but it was just too much for this time of night. Trying to come up with ways to avoid all conversation of her run-in with the Silver Rogue and her subsequent trip to Hierapolis was more difficult than she imagined. It was going to be a very stressful conference, and she hated having so much to hide from everyone. Normally so open and honest, the Alpha groaned at the treacherous waters she now found herself in. One wrong step could spell disaster for her, her pack, and her mate who she still cared about despite all the trouble he'd put her through.

"Hey, Vannah. Are you going to bed soon?" her mum walked in her office and stood by her shoulder. "It's getting late, and you've got a big day tomorrow."

"I know, Mum, I've just got to get this finished," she picked up the papers in front of her, the words swimming on the page instead of making sense.

"Justin can help you with it in the morning," Chesca looked over the report before fixing a concerned gaze on her daughter.

Savannah grimaced. "There's so much he doesn't understand."

"He understands more than you realise. I get that it's difficult having Zion as your mate, but you need to remember the priorities."

"Pack first, right?" the Alpha chafed under the truth of the matter, wishing for a moment that she didn't have such big responsibilities, and could instead focus on herself and her mate. It was a selfish notion, one she quickly dismissed.

Chesca lifted a shoulder and dropped it lightly. "That's the essence of it. But in order to put the pack first, it needs good leaders. That includes an Alpha who has her right-hand man supporting her. If Zion truly is that man, the King will make it happen in His own time, no matter how impossible the situation seems now. Don't jeopardize the pack's safety and your own by chasing after Zion recklessly. I made some pretty bad decisions when I was younger. If I'd listened to my Beta, I could have avoided the terrible consequences. Justin is a smart man, and he cares about you and this pack. Don't forget that."

Savannah sighed. "Thanks, Mum. Not sure how that helps now, but I guess you're right. I should focus on the pack, and leave Zion to look after himself. He's done a pretty good job of it, so far."

With these thoughts coalescing in her mind, she printed off her final report, slipped all the documents into her work folder, and switched off her computer. Sleep didn't come easy, but she managed to get some rest before waking up early.