Autumn Feast - Charlie Richards Page 0,56
walk away, giving them a chance, when he and Rory first met. It needed to be someone like him, someone capable of seeing the deer as strong and courageous and worthy.
He headed into his office on the first floor of the house and pulled out his phone and placed a call to the vulture to check-in. “Status?” he asked when the line picked up.
“Target located. I’m formulating a plan. I can implement in six hours. Do I have a go-ahead?”
Donner didn’t want any of the other details. He trusted the vulture as much as anyone could trust a vulture. “Go ahead. Text me a sunshine emoji when it’s done.”
The line went dead.
Donner turned around to see Rory glaring at him from the doorway. “Who were you talking to? What are they doing?”
“You don’t want to know.” He tucked his phone in his pocket.
“Donner. Come on. We share everything. If you leave me in the dark, how can I have your back?”
“You don’t need to have my back. You need to be safe.”
Rory looked down and scratched the doorframe with the toe of his sneaker. “That’s not how it works. We talked about this.” He spoke softly, making his determination clear.
Donner had agreed that they needed to be on the same team when they had rescued Emma. Rory had to be a part of the planning and execution. He had to be included, or they wouldn’t be effective.
Finally Donner gave in. “Fine. An associate of mine. No one you should know. He’s going to help us take care of this wolf problem.”
“He’s helping us how?” Rory grabbed Donner’s arms, squeezing them a little.
“He’s going to take out Prichard.”
Rory let go of his arms. “That makes us better than them, how?”
“It’s not about being better. They threatened my family. I’m ending it in any way I can.”
Rory shook his head. He looked disappointed, but Donner wouldn’t give in on this one.
Two days later, the council arrived. Rory was still angry at him, but he was coming around. If the new wolf was promising, maybe it would help with the war and with Rory’s anger.
Rocco had healed enough to be able to move around. He insisted on taking up a guard position with Eryk outside the house. They shifted to deer form, allowing them to move around with a bit more stealth, and if something was amiss, their bellows would be clearly heard.
Emma and Isla took the children upstairs to the large playroom they’d created in the center of the upper floor. The main fireplace centered the room, but on the third floor, it didn’t need to be used often, only on the coldest of days. It made it a perfect place for the kids to play and hang out.
Ferdinand, Donner’s pet mouse, stayed up in that room most of the time. He loved the children. Between playing with Ferdinand and the recently added video game consuls, the kids would be completely occupied.
That allowed Rory to play host with him and gave Donner another opportunity to be proud of the mate he’d chosen. Rory put their disagreement behind him and welcomed the shifters into their home. They sat everyone around the large table in the big formal dining room. It sat a dozen people, but there were more than that on the council, so they’d brought in extra chairs.
Rory made sure the predators didn’t take up all the spots along the table, making way for others. Donner brought out refreshments, adding them to the table and the sideboard. Everyone chatted peacefully while they waited for Martin to show up, escorting his new wolf.
Donner was at once happy and nervous. To see everyone, predator and prey alike, getting along was amazing. But tension slowly started building as the minutes ticked by, causing him to worry.
Soon the doorbell chimed, and Rory went to answer it. Moments later, he walked Martin into the dining room, followed by a stout young man who appeared to be in his human-thirties, which could make him nearly a hundred years old or more. Not as old as Donner and Martin, but older than some of the others.
Martin cleared his throat. “Some of you may know Brayton. Others maybe not. He’s a high-ranking wolf from the coast. He’s interested in promoting business interests, economics. That sort of thing.”
Brayton stepped forward and nodded to those in the room. “Doesn’t matter to me what kind you are. We’re all shifters. We all have to live in this world. I’d rather we made it