torture me. The Master of Beasts said he'd punish him. Gregory still refused. He said that Zane had told him that Anita was their new alpha. That all bargains made through Elizabeth weren't binding. That he needed to deal with you for them."
Sylvie withdrew her hand from Gwen's and stared up at me. Her brown eyes were furious, but it wasn't me she was angry with. "You can't be their leader and our lupa. You can't be both. He was lying."
I sighed. "Afraid not."
"But, how... "
"Look, it's late, and we're all tired. Let's just do the short version. I killed Gabriel, technically that makes me the wereleopards' leader. Zane acknowledged me after I put a couple of non-silver bullets in him."
"Why didn't you kill him?" Sylvie asked.
"It's sort of my fault. I didn't understand what leaving them without a leader would mean. Someone should have told me that they were meat for anybody with out a leader."
"I wanted them to suffer," Sylvie said.
"I was told you wanted them all dead, that if you had your way, the pack would have hunted them down and killed them all."
"Yes," she said, "yes. I want them all dead."
"I know they helped punish you and other pack members."
She shook her head, hands in front of her eyes. It took me a second to realize she was crying. "You don't understand. There's a film of me out there. A film of the leopards raping me." She brought her hands down and stared at me with tear-filled eyes. The rage and pain in her face was raw. "I was outspoken against Raina and Marcus. It was my punishment. Raina wanted to make an example of me for the others. It worked, too. Everyone was scared after that."
I opened my mouth; closed it, then said, "I didn't realize."
"Now do you see why I want them dead?"
"Yes," I said.
"Gregory had raped me once. Why wouldn't he do it again? Why did he refuse to hurt me tonight?"
"If he really believes that I'm his leader, then he knows what I'd do to him."
"Did you mean it in the room? Did you mean it about us killing them all?"
"Oh, yeah," I said, "I meant it."
"Then Gregory was right."
I frowned at her. "What do you mean?"
"He said you were their leoparde lionne,their rampant leopard."
"I don't know the term," I said.
Gwen answered. "Leoparde lionneis a term from French heraldry. It's a leopard, or even a lion, rampant in action on a crest. It symbolizes brave and generous warriors having done some brave deed. In this case it means a protector, even an avenger. Gabriel was a lion passant,a sleeping lion. He led but did not protect. In effect, Gregory did not merely refuse to harm Sylvie, he also told the Master of Beasts that if he was harmed, you would save him."
"How can I be their leopardewhat-you-call-it if I'm not a leopard?"
"Leoparde lionne," Sylvie said. "How can you be lupa and neither be wolf nor our Ulfric's lover?"
She had me there.
Fresh tears streamed down Sylvie's face. "Padma tried to get Vivian, his personal pet while he's here, to do things to me. Said I liked women, and maybe that would loosen my tongue. She refused, and she gave the same reason that Gregory did."
I remembered Vivian staring at me, her frightened eyes pleading for me to help her. "Shit, you mean she really expected me to rescue her tonight."
Sylvie just nodded. Gwen said, "Yes."
"Shit."
"I honestly didn't think of it until after we were in the Jeep. I swear I didn't think of it sooner," Sylvie said. "But I didn't say anything, because I wanted them to suffer. I can't stop hating them just like that. Do you understand?"
I did. "Sylvie, you and I have one thing in common. We are both vindictive as hell. So, yeah, I understand, but we can't leave them there like that, not if they were expecting to be saved."
She wiped at the tears. "You can't go up against them tonight. We can't do anymore tonight."
"I'm not planning to fight anymore tonight, Sylvie."
"But you're planning something." She sounded worried.
I smiled. "Yeah."
Gwen stood. "Don't be foolish, Anita."
I shook my head. "Foolish. I'm way past foolish." I stopped in the doorway and turned back. "By the way, Sylvie, don't challenge Richard, ever."
Her eyes widened. "How did you know?"
I shrugged. "Doesn't matter. What does matter is that I'll kill you if you kill him."
"It would be a fair fight."
"I don't care."
"You haven't seen him, Anita. He's on the edge. You can