35

I slept most of the way home, arriving in time for a late dinner that Marge had prepared. I was feeling a little down for a couple of reasons; Remi was leaving for home in the morning, the events of today, and the decision to hold off on the wedding. It was a lot to take. I figured that since October, my life has been a constant fight to stay afloat.
I got an email just after nine PM from Alpha Charles Jennings of the Vermillion Pack; he and Alpha Nicholas Anders of the Battle Lake pack had been the Alphas brought in to officiate the challenge. His Beta had made a recording of the proceedings, so I went to the theater room to set things up while Marge made popcorn and drinks. Some might think this was morbid, dancing on his grave, but to the werewolf mentality it was celebratory. We were going to watch a cancer among our people being removed, and justice be done.
I forwarded the email to Uncle Doug while I was waiting, I knew he would want to see it and talk later. I gave him a quick phone call to let him know it was there for him. Aunt Remi had already talked to him at length about the adventure we had over lunch.
When everyone was comfortable in the theater seating, I dimmed the lights and started to play the file. The cellphone video showed the Pack gathered in the dining hall of their house, with their Alpha standing at the front. Alphas Jennings and Anders were in the middle, with Alpha Coleman on their other side. They had a projection screen behind them, and Alpha Jennings stepped forward with the microphone to start.
“A challenge has been made to Alpha Scott Tanner by Alpha Dennis Coleman of the Winnepeg Pack. Alpha Anders and I are here to officiate the challenge, per Pack law. For those of you who have not been involved in this before, the process is simple. Alpha Coleman will be given the opportunity to present evidence of violations of Pack law to this body, and Alpha Tanner will have a chance to present a defense. At the end of the testimony, questions may be taken from the Pack or we may ask them. When complete, the guilt of the accused will be determined by majority vote, with each of the independent Alphas having one vote and your Pack having the third by secret ballot, majority rule.”
He looked around and there were no questions, so he motioned to Alpha Coleman. “Alpha, you may begin.”
Dennis took the microphone and looked over the audience before starting. “I lay the following charges against Alpha Scott Tanner. Aiding in a forced mating of a female to a man not her mate, two counts. Failure to declare war prior to an attack on another Alpha, one count. Attempted murder of a human, one count, and murder of a female pack member, one count.” The reaction of the Pack to the charges proved they were not aware of what was happening; I saw shock, outrage and disbelief among them.
“Your plea, Alpha Tanner?” Alpha Anders looked over at the brooding North Shore Alpha.
“Not guilty.” I noticed he wouldn’t look at his Pack members, only at the other Alphas.
“Very well,” Anders said, “You may proceed with your evidence.”
“Thank you. I would like to start with the events that brought this mess to my attention.” He turned to the screen and started to play the video conference call I had made with the surrounding Alphas. I watched the Pack reaction to my story on the screen, my eyes filling with tears as I replayed the events again. All you heard was growls and shouts as the tape played on. When it was over, some Pack members were yelling at their Alpha while others had to leave the room to calm down. “Are there any questions?”
A man in the front row stood up. “Is Alpha Ella available to speak to this proceeding?”
“She’s human now,” said Alpha Anders, “and as such we cannot compel her to appear, nor was she willing to enter your land. I can contact her if needed.”
The man shook his head. “That will not be necessary, but please convey our sympathies. This shouldn’t happen to any female, much less an Alpha’s daughter.” He sat down to general agreement in his Pack.
An older woman stood next. “She said that Alpha Tanner did not claim the wolves that attacked their convoy as theirs, and did not claim the bodies.” She started to cry. “My son was one of those wolves that died. What happened to him?”
“First, I’m very sorry about your loss,” he said. “Since they were considered rogue, their pelts were removed and their bodies burned in a trash fire.” The woman screamed and collapsed in her chair, several others did the same. “Ella gave the pelts to me to return to their families.” With this, another Beta walked in carrying a stack of skins, laying them out on the table. The Pack was horrified, and the proceedings stopped for a few minutes while the families claimed all that was left of the two sons that died.
One of the women pulled a fur from the pile and shook it at Alpha Tanner in outrage. “HE WAS YOUR SON!” She walked over and threw the fur in his face. “Your own blood, and you left him to THIS?” She stormed back to her chair and sat again.
Finally, Alpha Coleman took charge and asked people to be seated so he could continue. “I verified personally with Alpha Doug Johnson that these nine were killed in the attack on Ella, Luna Remi and her daughter, an attack that killed Ella’s only remaining Beta. As to the remaining charges, I call Luna Kayla forward.”
“Kayla? She’s dead!” Alpha Tanner had let the Pack know she was killed meeting with Ella when he had felt the bond break, and his men had returned empty handed.
“Not dead, you bastard, but my wolf is.” The entire Pack turned around as Kayla stormed into the room, followed by Carol and her mate Al. Some of the Pack broke down crying, others touched her to see she was still real. They made a path for her to come to the front, and she grabbed the microphone and looked at her Pack again. “My mate took me forcibly all those years ago, just because he wanted me and I wasn’t fated to him. He swung a deal with the other Alphas to mate our son David with Ella so he could take over their Pack, and you saw what happened there. He also told our son Stephen how to forcibly mate Alpha Coleman’s daughter.”
“SHUT UP, KAYLA!” Several of the visiting Betas had to restrain Alpha Tanner as he tried to get to her.
“Your Alpha command doesn’t work when the wolf is gone, Scott. You may have commanded her, but you can’t command what I am left with.” She turned to face the Pack. “I asked to be injected with a lethal dose of Wolfsbane so I could end this madness. You were told Kim committed suicide after her mate died. The truth is, she was ready to leave this Pack and go home. Your Alpha knew his command would break as soon as she left, so he killed her and made it look like suicide.”
She handed the microphone back to Alpha Coleman before returning to sit by her daughter in the Pack chairs. “Alphas, I have nothing further.”
Alpha Anders looked at Alpha Tanner. “Alpha, you may present your defense.”
He took the microphone angrily. “I did what was best for the Pack. Kayla got to be a Luna to a strong Pack. Ella would have had a strong Alpha mate for her Pack, and Kim was next in line to be Luna. It was best for them too.” He looked at his Pack. “As for the rest, I did what I did and I regret nothing.” He tossed the microphone back to Alpha Anders.
The recording took a time step, and the vote was unanimous. “Alpha Tanner has been found guilty of all charges presented by Alpha Coleman. As such, he has opened himself up to challenges for his position. Alpha Coleman will be first, as he brought the formal challenge. Any Pack Beta or above may challenge next, if he survives. We shall move now to the challenge field.”