That night, my mother informed us of the marriage which was to take place between Faith and her new husband Stuart on the weekend. "You will stay out of sight until Faith and Stuart have consummated their marriage," she told me. "You will not destroy our second chance to expand our territory, and the Browntree pack have lands that are far more lucrative than the Winter Snows pack could offer us. If this second chance is ruined, you will pay in all the ways it is possible for you to pay."
"I've no interest in spoiling my sister's second chance at happiness," I snarked. "You can bet I'll stay well out of everyone's fur until she's good and properly fucked. You have my word."
My mother sniffed, but let it go. "Good," she said. "See that you stick to your word."
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Unfortunately, history repeated itself. This time, though, it was because Alpha Adam had found out about the marriage through the grapevine, and he was furious that my parents had got around his pronouncement in such an underhanded manner. The marriage was therefore scuttled before it'd even started, and the Browntree pack returned home, angry over how they'd been used in my parents' scheme to defy Alpha Adam's orders.
Word spread, and it wasn't long before my parents were outed as shameless liars who mouthed promises to your face and then went behind your back and shcemed their way into a deal they had no right to broker. I personally agreed with the reviling comment sent my parents' way, but of course, as usual, I was roundly blamed for this latest disaster. It didn't matter that Fred was now happily married to Julia of the Goldenrod pack, nor did it matter that he'd married her without any hint of the supposed lust I was meant to have somehow awakened in him during our brief conversation all those weeks ago. It was still my fault, and my mother made sure I knew all about it two nights after the failed wedding. "You are a disgrace to this pack!" she snapped, glaring at me with all the fire and fury she could muster. "You've wrecked your sister's chances of happiness for good! What do you have to say for yourself?"
What I wanted to say would get me in hot water, and have me lose the freedoms I'd managed to win. So I bit my tongue. "Look, I'm sorry this has happened," I said. "But none of this is my fault."
"Stop lying," my father said, disgusted. "You should never have spoken with Fred in the first place."
"So I was supposed to just ignore him?" I said angrily. "Jesus. The hell is wrong with you?"184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMkuUeYRqsc
"That's enough," my father warned, his eyes like twin pools of grey flame. "You will watch your mouth when you're speaking to me, or I shall find a way to get around that geas and beat you black and blue like you deserve."
I took a deep breath. But I wasn't backing down. "I wasn't going to just walk away when he approached me," I said in a more level tone. "That'd just be rude. And besides, Faith was fixated on a fling he'd had ages ago. She just used the excuse of my supposed bedevilment of her new husband to let fly her frustrations that he wasn't the man she'd hoped he'd be."
"Leave your sister out of this," my mother snapped.
"Oh for..." Again I had to rein myself in. "There's obviously nothing more to discuss. You both refuse to believe I'm innocent of any wrondoing, so I figure there's no point wasting my breath in explanations that make me feel like I'm repeatedly slamming my head against a brick wall."
"Just apologise," my father told me. "Then you'll regain your place in this pack, and you will be treated as you deserve. Otherwise your mother and I will be forced to send you away."
"I've nothing to apologise for," I said firmly. "So send me away. I figure I'll finally get some peace from your constant bitching about my many nonexistent faults."184Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx15BrQOA5w
"It will not be a place for peace," my mother warned me. "You'll be constantly asked to repent while you are there. Sooner or later, they will break you and force you to admit your deepest, darkest secrets."
I shivered in spite of myself. I knew the place my mother was referring to; it was a conversion camp for werewolves who didn't subscribe to the often cruel ways of their packs. The sisters there were merciless, and they used all kinds of unclean methods to force confessions from their victims. Most wolves lost their minds and were committed to the camp asylum for the rest of their lives, while others broke under the strain and admitted to a whole number of supposed crimes just to get away. There was no wolf strong enough to resist the sisters' allure, and I wondered uneasily if I'd prove the exception rather than the rule.
Still, it was bitter to have to knuckle under to my stupid sister, who'd lord my capitulation over me for the rest of her life, even if it meant no longer being an exile in my own home. I shuddered at the thought of having to kow-tow to her, but I reminded myself I'd only have to put up with it for only a little while longer before I could make my escape and kiss the whole miserable lot of them goodbye. "Fine," I said angrily. "I'll bloody apologise."
My father nodded, but my mother shook her head. "You say it only to get out of the punishment," she told me. "That is not good enough."
"Oh, I'm sincere," I told her. "Believe me, I have lots to apologise for."
My mother hesitated, before shaking her head again. "No," she said. "I do not accept this."
"Mary, leave it be," my father said. "Chance, we'll leave the matter. It's clear we're at an impasse, and I don't believe even the sisters would be able to break through to you. I'm lifting your exile, but be warned. You're on notice. If anything happens to further ruin our chances to expand our territory, you will go to the camp, and I'll personally sign off on the orders to keep you there until you either break or go insane. You're free to come and go as you will, but you're on probation until such time as you can prove yourself to us."
It wasn't an entire victory, but it was better than nothing. "Thank you," I said, and I meant it. I got the distinct impression my father had finally had enough of my mother's treatment of me, but I had the good sense to hide my relief as my parents dismissed me, and when my mother slammed the door shut almost on my heels, I had the further good sense to sprint. There was going to be a hell of an argument tonight, and I almost felt sorry for my father.
Still, I was glad he'd had the sense to realise he was fighting a losing fight. Faith wasn't going to like it, but I no longer cared. I'd more or less had my exile lifted, and while I knew my mother would be watching me like a hawk, I also knew she'd not dare cross my father, not when he used his alpha voice to make her get off my back for a change.
And a partial victory was better than none.
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