Where The Ice Gives Way Chapter 156

**Blake**

I stand outside the building with my hands shoved into my jacket pockets, watching Charlotte through the window. She sits on the edge of the bed beside Emily, both of them holding mugs with both hands. I get an overwhelming feeling when I watch her in there. She doesn’t stand above people and hand them kindness as a gift, expecting them to thank her for it. She sits beside them, gets cold with them, lets their hands shake near hers. That right there is my future Luna.

I look up to where Theo stands farther back near the trees. He hasn’t moved closer since she came outside, but he hasn’t left either. I hate it for him, but I respect the hell out of him for it. “She has a way with them,” Dad says quietly, drawing my eyes back to the window.

“With everyone,” I answer, and his mouth moves faintly. 

Then Dad’s phone rings, he sighs and glances at the screen, before he pulls on his Alpha face. “Gareth Atlas.”

Lex lifts inside me, and I turn my head listening to the older male voice on the other end of the call.

“Alpha Gareth, this is Alpha Thomas Simmons from the Munroe pack.”

“What can I do for you, Alpha Thomas?” Dad asks.

I step closer, boots sinking into the thin crust of snow over the mud.

“I’ll get straight to the point,” Thomas says. “I’ve heard about the rogue movement near your territory.”

Dad hums. “A lot of Alphas have.”

“I’ve also heard you have a white wolf. News travels quickly when half the region is hunting rogues,” Thomas says smoothly. “Especially when those rogues all appear to be moving toward one particular pack.”

“What are you asking?” Dad says.

There is a small pause on the other end before Thomas says, “We have been managing our own rogue problem for some time. Munroe has a large prison to hold them.”

Dad looks toward the holding cells beneath our yard with his eyebrows raised. “You’ve been keeping rogues alive?” he asks.

“When possible. We’ve captured a significant number over the past few weeks,” Thomas continues. “More than expected and more than is reasonable to transport across such a distance without unnecessary risk,” Dad says nothing, and Thomas fills the silence. “I’m hoping you might consider bringing the white wolf to us.”

Hell no. My hands curl in my pockets. Fuck no. Dad’s gaze snaps to mine, and I know he can feel the fury in me.

“We can offer protection for her and anyone you choose to bring. Housing as well. Our territory is well secured, and our facilities are already prepared. It may be safer for all involved than attempting to move a large number of unstable rogues.”

Dad’s voice stays calm, but he looks at me, conveying all his suspicions. “My pack member is not a travelling solution to every Alpha’s rogue issue.”

There’s another pause before Thomas quickly says, “Of course. That was not my meaning.”

But it was. I know it. I can feel it, and Dad’s eyes darken, telling me he knows it too. Thomas continues, polishing every word. “What I mean is, we may have an opportunity here. Your pack has something rare. Mine has resources, infrastructure, and space. Establishing a connection between Wellington and Munroe could benefit both of us, and perhaps the wider region.”

Dad turns slightly away from the window, voice lowering further. “My pack as someone, rare.” He corrects, and I hear Thomas exhale quietly on the other end. “I meant no disrespect.”

“Then be careful not to offer any.” Dad all but growls out, but Thomas doesn’t sound the least bit affected by it. “Of course. Her safety would be paramount. You have my word.”

“How many rogues are you holding?” Dad asks,

“Twenty-six at present.”

“Alive?”

“Yes.”

“All of them?”

“As of this morning.”

As of this morning. I don’t like the way he says that. I look at the window again. Emily is sitting on the bed with her hands wrapped around her mug, shoulders hunched inside the blanket Charlotte tucked around her. How long had she been lost before we found her? How many packs might have seen her and decided she was too far gone? How many people like her are sitting inside Munroe’s prison right now, locked away beneath whatever standards Thomas thinks are good enough? 

Dad glances toward the cabin, and I know he is thinking the same thing I am. Charlotte would hear ‘twenty-six’ and feel all of them. She would care before she even knew who they were. She would look at that number and see faces, people who need her.

Thomas continues. “Transporting that many unstable rogues over such a distance would put your people, my people, and civilians between territories at risk. Keeping them here and bringing a protected escort with your white wolf may be the safest option.”

*No,* I say through the link.

Dad looks at me. *I hear you.*

*Then say no.*

*Blake.*

*Dad.*

He narrows his eyes at me, but I don’t back down. I won’t when it comes to Charlotte.

Dad turns slightly away from me as he continues. “We will not be making a decision tonight, Alpha Thomas. If you want Wellington to even consider this request, you will send everything through in writing.”

“I can have that email sent through within the hour. I appreciate your willingness to consider this.” Thomas says, already thinking that I’m just going to hand over my luna. Not a chance.

“I have not agreed to consider anything,” Dad says. “I have agreed to receive information,”

Thomas speaks once more before Dad can hang up. “For what it’s worth, Alpha Gareth, if she can help them, those rogues deserve a chance.”

My teeth grind together. Don’t use them against her.

“I know what they deserve,” Dad says. “That doesn’t mean I will sacrifice one of my own to give it to them.” Then, finally, Dad ends the call.

I look at him, needing to be sure we’re on the same page. “I don’t get a good feeling from that man.”

Dad slips his phone into his pocket. “Neither do I.”

“Or that idea.”

“No,” he says. “I don’t like that either.”

“Then why even ask for the email?”

Dad breathes out through his nose, and his breath fogs in front of him. “Because hanging up doesn’t make the problem go away. At the end of the day,” he says quietly, “three things can happen.”

I don’t want to hear them, but he tells me anyway.

“Thomas stops collecting rogues, and they keep moving toward her.”

My stomach knots. Fuck that idea.

“Or he decides they are too much work, and kills rogues who might have been saved.”

Yeah, that one isn’t great either. Emily’s face flashes through my mind. They don’t all deserve that.

“And the third?” I ask, though I already know.

“Charlotte brings them back.”

I shake my head, running a hand through my hair. “She can’t save everyone.”

“No,” Dad says. “She can’t.” He puts a hand on my shoulder. “But she does get to decide who she can save.”