Jonas’ POV
“Damn it!”
I grabbed the paper map that lay in the middle of the table and ripped it to pieces.
Lady Vadala and Lord Rios looked at me in disgust, but I couldn’t care less.
“How the fuck do you two not have an updated map of Elvis Pine?!”
“And do you have a map?” Lady Vadala asked, looked at her fingernails.
“You know I don’t! My house got burned down!”
“Then I suggest that you stop yapping and act civil,” she said with a cold and stern warning in her voice. “Lord Rios and I are being dragged into your little revenge plot because you stirred up trouble for us all. We are doing the best that we can. Your pathetic ass should be grateful.”
As beautiful as Lady Vadala was, I hated her guts. I was fuming in anger but couldn’t do anything to her. I had to keep them at my side. We needed them to win this fight.
“Frankly, I only agreed to your mad plan because of your alliance with the Master. When do we get to meet him?”
Her eyes shone as she spoke of him. Nothing made her more glad than to be affiliated with power.
“Soon. He will reveal himself when he wants to.”
“This had better not be a joke, Jonas,” Lord Rios added sternly. He could only talk because Lady Vadala had her doubts.
Her brashness gave him strength. He was a coward who constantly sought her approval.
“It is no joke. The Master will reveal himself in due time.”
“Well, we should get this meeting underway. My time is valuable, Jonas. And with your state, I doubt you can pay for an extra second of it,” Lady Vadala said sassily.
I wanted to pounce on her and make her choke on her words.
“Easy, Jonas,” I thought to myself. “Once this war is over, you will have Andre’s head on a pike, and Olivia will be yours. These two fools won’t be able to stand in your way. Lady Vadala will fall first.”
I snapped my fingers, and the servant in the room disappeared and returned later with a new map, a recent map of Elvis Pine.
I laid it flat on the table, grabbed a marker, and made an X on a spot between Elvis Pine’s border and our closest neighboring pack.
“That is where they have taken refuge. It is still in our lands but close to Raiden.”
“And what does that mean for us?” Lady Vadala asked.
“One of two things. They have been able to foster an alliance with Raiden and get them on their side, thus increasing their numbers, or they failed to do that and would rather keep the fight within the boundaries of our pack.”
“I’d love for Raiden to get involved,” Lady Vadala hissed angrily.
I chuckled.
“Still bitter that their Luna beat you in a fight and took back their Royal scepter worth millions. Well, aren’t you a sore loser?”
She rolled her eyes.
“Risky talk coming from someone that barely has two hundred of his own men standing behind him.”
While I was sizzling with rage, Lady Vadala grabbed the marker from me and drew an incoming arrow from the East.
“Here. My armies will attack from this direction. We’ll use the tall trees as cover, and if Raiden Pack does get involved, we’ll be the first to encounter them. I’ll make their Luna regret getting in the same arena as me.”
The hate in Lady Vadala’s eyes burned in the room. She was at her loveliest when she was plotting revenge. I wouldn’t mind making her my mistress once the Heir of Solvan was under my control.
“I’ll take the West,” Lord Rios announced. “I’ll have my best wolves lead the charge.”
I gave a nod.
“That leaves the Northern flank for me.”
I stared at the big red X with such intensity that one would think that my golden eyes would set the paper alight.
“I wouldn’t mind facing that bastard head-on. I’ll make him pay for what he did to my family. If any of you find him, he’s mine to kill.”
Lady Vadala burst out laughing.
“You think that we are your pawns. We are all here simply to save our own skin. If I find him, I will kill him and bring his head to the Master. I can only imagine how proud he would be.”
I stood up and snarled at her. She snarled back, and the meeting was at a standstill.
“You should back down, Jonas. You don’t have a penny to your name. You are only here because you are the Master’s little boy, and you are the only one who has seen him. I have no respect for you.”
I smiled wickedly at her.
“I’ll make you eat your words, Lady Vadala.”
We both sat back down and Lady Vadala’s assistant wiped off the sweat from her master’s forehead and passed her a paper. She looked it over and finally passed it to me.
“Here. We are donating seven hundred of our soldiers to the war.”
I looked at the paper in disbelief. As I was still staring at Lady Vadala’s, Lord Rios submitted his.
“Here. I will be donating five hundred of my men for war.”
I looked at the documents in shock.
“Is that all? I expected a thousand soldiers from each of you!”
“Well, too bad. Seven hundred is all you’re getting from me, and five hundred is all you’re getting from Lord Rios.”
I was furious and tossed the paper in their faces.
“What am I going to do with a measly a thousand two hundred men? I need more!”
“And you will not get more,” Lady Vadala snapped back. “Unlike you, I need men in my pack for other duties. I cannot donate all my soldiers to fight. It is unreasonable.”
“Lady Vadala is right,” Lord Rios added. “Donating all our men is foolishness on our own part.”
“You should be grateful that we are donating any men at all, you ungrateful bastard.”
I glared at both of them. Their faces were insistent. I felt rage boil inside of me.
I grabbed the papers and stormed out of the room. I grumbled to myself as I stormed upstairs. I reached the top door and found two guards standing there, gazing around with anger in their eyes.
“I’m here to report to the Master.”
They gave me one look and finally opened the door.
I went inside and the room was dimly lit as usual. The chair was facing a glowing fireplace that warmed the room.
The table beside the chair has a bottle of whiskey and a shot glass next to it.
“Master, I am here to give a report of the meeting.”
“No need,” he replied, not standing up to face me or turning his chair around. “I heard most of what happened. You really don’t have a way with words, Jonas. You should really work on your delegation skills.”
I said nothing. I was already simmering with anger.
“I think I like Lady Vadala’s guts and ambition. I would very much like to meet her once all this is over.”
I said nothing and handed him the papers.
He looked through them quietly. I felt the urge to speak up.
“I think we need more men, but this is all that they will give us.”
He was still looking at the paper, and soon, he set it down on the table.
“I think we have more than enough.”
I looked at him in shock as he picked up his shot glass and swirled it.
“But Master, we need to outnumber…”
“War is more a game of strategy than a game of war. You need to remember that. Lady Vadala might teach it to you well…”
I snarled. Not Lady Vadala again.
“… but since you are so worried about the number, I’ll add some of my men. I wouldn’t mind having the number and strategy advantage…”