it there.
Chapter Nine
Cole surveyed the pack, looking for any hint of mutiny. He'd called the meeting to tell them Jane's status. Nobody seemed too worked up, but maybe they were in shock. He hadn't been their leader for months, and now he was coming back with this story. It was possible anything he told them would result in a smile-and-nod response. But just to make sure...
"Are we going to have any problems over this? Do I need to throw my weight around?"
They all shook their heads quickly. Various voices murmured things like "no sir," "we're cool," "whatever you say, we're just glad you're back with us." That last one was Blake.
Cole arched a brow at the beta. "You didn't enjoy playing substitute alpha?"
"Hell, no. It's too much work. I prefer being second-in-command where I can just stand around and look pretty."
Cole chuckled. "Good to hear." In between drunken stupors, he'd worried Blake would get a taste of power and he'd have to fight the beta to get his pack back. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt his friend, but Cole didn't sing backup for anybody.
"There's one other thing I think everyone should know. The pup is alive."
A murmur went up from the gathered wolves.
"How do you know?" one of the pack members in the back asked.
"Shut up!" another pack member said to the first one, jabbing him in the ribs.
"Guys, it's okay. I'm not going to bite anybody's head off for asking a question. Jane saw him while she was in heaven. She knows the pup's location, and the last she saw he was safe and being cared for. We're going to go get him as soon as she gets back."
"Where is she?" the same wolf asked. He was about nineteen. The potential alpha-ness rolled off him. Cole was going to have to keep an eye on him or encourage him to seek leadership opportunities elsewhere.
"She's with Cain learning alternate ways to feed when she isn't with me. I expect everybody to treat her like they always have. This is a good thing. Our alliance with Cain is secure now. We have a stable ally if we ever have to go against Anthony and the other vampires. Cain takes an interest in the well-being of the demons in his care. This involves him in issues he's previously had no interest in getting involved in, which could be good for us."
"How do we know Cain won't turn on us?" Ed asked. Ed. Always the cynic.
"Trust me. I know. Cain has a strong sense of responsibility toward his kind, and our alliance was solid before this happened."
The wolf seemed satisfied by the answer. Murmurs bounced around the cave as wolves discussed the new situation amongst themselves.
It had taken Cole a while after getting back to the hive to realize all the benefits of Jane's new condition. Once he'd pushed past his insecurities with regards to her strength - or mostly pushed past them - he'd seen that as a pack they could only be stronger now with Cain's interest in Jane. This new development would ensure they always remained free of Anthony's encroaching police state. The effects of the vampire's takeover weren't affecting the Cary Town pack, yet. But they would. Sooner or later they'd be found. At some point, there may be no place safe to be outside Cain's dimension.
"Hey, guys. Did you miss me?"
If he hadn't been preoccupied, Cole would have smelled her and felt her before he heard her, but he'd been too lost in thought. He looked up to see Jane standing in the cave entrance, a sassy grin on her face. The wolves inclined their heads toward her, offering their throat in a symbolic gesture. Good. They could accept her. No one had hesitated for a second when she'd stepped into the cave.
But then why would they? They'd come to love her when she'd had the enemy's blood in her veins and was human to boot. What difference would a change in species make now? Anything short of a vampire, they'd accept.
Against all odds they'd welcomed her when she'd been the weakest pack member, being only human. Their allegiance hadn't shifted in the slightest since she'd become a demon. There didn't seem to be a Goldilocks happy medium with her.
With the pack's support, it might be easier for Cole to accept the change. He didn't think she'd try to usurp him; he just wasn't sure if she'd start overstepping bounds, knowing she could get