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The big announcement came just after eight, and though I was still heartbroken over losing Zach, I was able to muster up applause when he officially declared Sienna his mate. Roger, Sienna's father, was one of the very few guests who didn't look happy; he'd planned on mating Sienna to one of her brothers to "keep it in the family", and having an outsider come in had clearly been a bitter blow to him. But he looked the type of man who'd treat his son-in-law fairly, and I was glad to see Zach wouldn't have too hard a time as Sienna's mate.
Wanda stepped forward once the applause had died down. "I've also promised my dear granddaughter Joanna of the Golden Shores pack to Sebastian of the White Downs pack," she announced, and dead silence fell over the yard. I felt my heart become a lead weight in my chest, and Roger frowned. "Joanna is a lovely girl," Wanda continued, heedless of the havoc she'd just unleashed, "and I am sure her and Sebastian will get along famously. Her mother is already planning on getting ready to send her to Brighton, and--"
Roger cut her off. "I did not agree to this," he said coldly. "One outsider is bad enough; two is unthinkable. I only agreed to this alliance so you could expand your pack's holdings, but I will not be taken advantage of. Your granddaughter stays where she is."
Wanda smiled. It was not a pleasant smile. "I have already made the arrangements," she said. "Joanna is getting packed in preparation for her journey, and you cannot turn her aside when she arrives at your packhouse."
"If Joanna is taken from Reading, there'll be hell to pay!" I yelled. "Candy will never agree to it!"
"Candy will do as she's told, if she wishes to see her daughter alive," Wanda snapped, glaring at me. "I had it arranged in advance; right now, White Downs pack members are paying a visit to your packhouse, and if Candy has the sense given her a birth, she'll hand Joanna over, or risk never seeing her this side of the Wheel."
Roger shook his head. "No," he said. "I've already communicated with my pack; they're abandoning their mission. And in any case, I do not condone depriving a mother of her cub a second time. It was bad enough when you forced Zachariah on us; a second hostage will not be welcomed."
I swore. "Wanda, that's enough," I snapped. "Give up this idea of creating a perfect bloodline; it is never going to happen!"
"I will not see my bloodline eradicated!" Wanda fired back. "If I have to kidnap all your siblings, I'll do so, and be damned to the man or woman who stops me! And that reminds me. You are going to be mated tonight, even if I have to hold you down. You're my granddaughter, and it is past time you were joined in mateship with the male I have chosen for you."
She snapped her fingers, and I gasped in horror as my uncle Jonas stepped out into the backyard. The years hadn't been kind to him, and I shivered in revulsion. "No," I said. "I'll run away if I have to; you can't make me mate with him!"
Roger intervened. "Even you would not stoop so low as to make the girl sleep with her uncle," he said angrily.
"Candy was promised to me, but I lost her," Jonas stated, his little pig eyes never leaving me. "I'll take her stepdaughter instead. That way, it stays in the family, and I get to give my mother what she wants."
"Over my dead body," I snapped.
"That can be arranged," Wanda said. "You will mate with your uncle, or I'll have all your miserable pack killed!"
"Good luck," I said. "You've already riled them up with your attempt to kidnap Joanna - I'll wager Dad's calling in the cavalry to come and kick your ass from here to kingdom come."
Roger interposed. "You will stop," he warned. "If I have to, I'll send my pack to defend Saffron's. And we have connections you cannot begin to comprehend. Set aside your foolish ambitions, or I'll take Saffron with me to Brighton and mate her with one of my own to protect her from your grasping claws."
"Saffron is mine," Jonas warned, growling deep in his throat.
"I'm my own wolf," I said, glaring at him. "And I'd rather be mated to one of Roger's sons than stuck with you."165Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvOF6Uc7dGS
For a moment, I thought Wanda might attack me, but she saw sense and backed down. "Do as you will," she said. "I wash my hands of the entire affair. But be warned; the moment you're with cub, I will come and take him or her away from you! I will get my perfect bloodline, and be damned to anyone who tries and gets in my way."
"Like I said, over my dead body," I said angrily. "But here's some advice; if any harm comes to my pack, I'll make sure you and the rest of your pack suffer twice over."
Wanda stiffened, but turned her back and stalked into the house. That was the signal we all needed to know the party was over, and as people began leaving, Roger came over to me. "I will not force you to come with us," he said. "But neither will I suffer you to be a slave to your uncle."
"You'll take another outsider in?" I teased, and Roger gave me a wry smile.
"You're spirited," he said. "Yes, I will, and gladly. Zachariah is a credit to his bloodline, and Sienna is over the moon now that she has him."
"Then I accept," I said. "I just have to graduate first."
Roger nodded. "I will send you back to Reading with a strong escort," he said. "I won't put it past your uncel to try and pull some sort of vile trick to take you captive. The escort will stay with you until such time as you're ready to come to Brighton, and you'll be protected every step of the way."165Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEwJloZrZ5U
"Sounds like a plan," I said.
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