Out of the Shadow at Last novel · Chapter 11 of 24

Chapter 11: Terms

Anders and I stood on either side of Father's desk and did not touch each other.

"You've known for seven years," I said.

"I knew he paid them," Anders said.

He rubbed his broken nose with the back of his hand.

"I told myself it was a pack debt. I didn't ask what he paid with."

"You held my door."

"I did."

"Say why."

"Because he told me to," Anders said, and his voice broke on it.

"That's the only reason I ever had for anything," he said. "Father said it, so I did it."

I did not forgive him.

I did not have it in me to forgive anyone yet.

"Will you say it in front of the council?" I asked.

He looked at the ledger on the desk.

"He'll disown me."

"He disowned me in front of four hundred people," I said. "It takes about a minute."

Anders gave a quiet, breathless laugh.

"All right," he said. "I'll say it. Every word."

The door crashed open.

Ivar stood in it with Bram at his shoulder.

Ivar's eyes went to Anders, to the ledger, to the Seal around my neck.

His hand was on his knife.

"Don't," I said.

"I heard a man's voice and then nothing."

"This is my brother," I said. "He's on our side."

"Is he?"

"He is now," Anders said, and lifted both hands.

"Alpha Halvorsen, I held the door the night your parents died," he said.

"I'll tell the council that, with my sword on the table."

Ivar did not move.

For a long moment I thought he was going to hit him.

Then he looked at me, and at the red cord of the ledger, and something in his face came down.

"Bram," he said, very quietly. "Take Rooke's heir to the east wing and get him something to eat."

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