Intransigent

Intransigent | 28

Chapter 28

David

    I was surprised that it was only a week and a half after Emma left that I got a call from Ashton.  I hadn't expected to hear from them for a few weeks.  I knew my daughter and she would want to make sure she had gotten to know her pack before she engaged with Max. 

    But, maybe I shouldn't have been surprised.  Emma had always had a connection with the people in our pack.  She related well to them, something I always knew came from her true desire to care for their needs and make sure they were all as happy as they could be.  Pack members could pick up on that dedication, and I'd never seen someone with more of it than Emma.

    She was probably fitting in with the Black Water Pack like she'd lived with them for her entire life.  I knew she wouldn't have any problems getting to know them; she was a natural Luna.

    What did surprise me was how quickly she got to know them and was ready to move against Max.  Maybe that shouldn't have surprised me either, though.  He'd kidnapped and tortured her for two years.  I'd be ready to take care of him if I were her too. 

    Thinking about it brought my wolf immediately to the surface.  Emma hadn't looked healthy when we stopped by and from what Ashton and Dane had said, she'd been much worse before we'd gotten there.  My skin itched as my wolf struggled to break free, but I didn't let him.  He howled and raged inside my head, but I kept him there. 

    There was no excuse for me to lose control now.  I needed to be in control and have a clear head if we were going to effectively take out Max and do it with as few casualties as possible. We had enough allies that we could take him down without a problem, but I didn't want anyone getting killed either.  An unrealistic wish, but it was always my goal.

    Now, Emma and Ashton were ready to start planning.  The phone call was simple.  Emma was settled and ready to put the past behind her.  She wanted a clean slate to start her life with Ashton and she was ready. 

    She would be calling Rick to let him know, giving him the option to come back or stay with his family.  From what I'd seen, he wouldn't hesitate.  He'd be right back at her side, just as ready to finish this. 

    Ashton said that Emma would be calling up Alphas that she'd worked recent treaties with to talk over strategy and discuss numbers, while Ashton worked on the other half of the packs he had treaties with. 

    Thanks to Emma, Ashton had all of my allies as his as well, so I took a few from his list to call up and talk to.  Emma, naturally, had a few that she wanted to call as she'd developed good relationships with them. 

    With the twelve packs we were getting into contact with though, Max wasn't going to stand a chance.  Our plans weren't going to revolve around the question of "can we do it?" but around "which plan will result in the least number casualties?".  We had the numbers, and hopefully we could just scare the pack into giving up its alpha.

    In a normal pack, that would be an unrealistic goal.  Even pack members that don't particularly agree with their alphas will still defend them to their last breath.  And any decent alpha would stand beside them as they did so.  Max, on the other hand, wasn't running a normal pack.  His was almost militaristic and he wasn't kind to his pack members.  With enough pressure they might cave.

    I jotted a note to discuss that with Emma and Ashton the next time we talked and stuck the sticky note next to the phone on my desk.  I could smell dinner cooking and I was ready to eat.

    I tucked everything away in my desk where it belonged, patted the note to make sure it stuck and headed out of my office and towards the kitchen.