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their entire existence was hidden from humans because of their
tendency to hunt anything they feared.
That entire incident was our fault. We should have been more
honest about our relationship with our former pack, Vencel
interjected.
We never expected them to come here to find us, Gaspar
continued. When they took Mai&
Embraced by Fur 75
Gordon held up his hand, stopping Gaspar. Vencel, Gaspar, you
are part of our pack and part of the family we are creating here. There
is no need for apologies or explanations. I don t lose a moment s
sleep because of the decisions I made on that day. If I had to do it all
over, I would choose the same path. The Hungarians came in here and
attacked part of our pack. They kidnapped a Mate and threatened her
life. That is something I will never tolerate.
I concur with Alec, Kaden added. If we had more properly
trained Guardians, then we might not have lost any wolves in the
attempt to save a human.
No sooner were the words out of his mouth than both the Solfalvi
brothers were snarling at him. Vencel looked about to tear his throat
out. That s our Mate&
& you re talking about, Gaspar finished.
Ann looked at Kaden and shook her head sadly before looking
away. He felt her disappointment as acutely as if she d said the words.
Seeing Jack die that day was like an open wound in his chest. Every
time the subject came up, he tended to lash out like a wolf with a
wounded paw.
Gordon spoke up first. Kaden, I know you still hurt from losing
your friend, but that is no reason for me to turn this town into a
military outpost. My concern with increasing the number of
Guardians is I don t want to bring about a territorial war. Algonquin is
a massive amount of land, and I don t need to control it all. I want to
keep my family and our pack safe. If we look like we are shoring up
our defenses, we will only put others on the defensive. Ecstasy Lake
has always been a safe haven for those who don t have anywhere else
to go. I want to keep it that way.
Alec smacked the table with an open hand. By looking weak, we
leave ourselves open to attack. The Hungarians walked in here and
caused all sorts of trouble because they weren t afraid of
consequences.
76 Corinne Davies
Kaden clenched his teeth and fought the urge to snap at the old
man. If Alec was Alpha, he would have wanted to grasp every square
inch of Algonquin as his own and kill anyone who set foot on it.
Gordon appointed him as the leader for the pack Guardians five years
ago, and that pissed Alec off. The old man wanted the position but
proved time and time again that he was more interested in creating
trouble rather than preventing it.
And yet they didn t succeed in their plan to kill Mai or blackmail
Vencel and Gaspar. Gordon stepped in and took care of what he
needed to. We showed compassion to the wolves acting under
Timur s command, and the only ones who died were the ones who
refused to back down and go home.
Alec acknowledged Kaden s point with a very small tilt of his
head. While Kaden didn t want to see the area ruled with an iron fist,
he didn t believe any of them should die protecting the humans.
Kaden, if we were to promote anyone else to Guardian, then who
would it be? Gordon asked.
Kaden thought about it for a moment. This was his chance to build
up their forces, but he didn t want to shove anyone into the position
before they were ready either. I have no plans to promote anyone
else at this time. Daniel, Adam, and Lucas are fine men with a
promising future. They ve all served in the military and received
specialized training. They have requested to stay on the reserve forces
for the time being. That way they can serve our country if they need
to but are also available for the pack.
The three men weren t that much younger than Kaden himself.
There are a couple more that might work out in a few years, but I
don t want to put that kind of stress on them at this time, he added.
Gordon nodded. Fair enough, keep an eye on them and we will
revisit this subject in six months. Now unless anyone has anything
else to talk about, I would like to spend some time with my girls. As
if she was waiting for her cue, Lulu flew into the room and launched
herself at Gordon. Daddy, I found a praying mantis today. She held
Embraced by Fur 77
a handful of wild flowers and tucked one behind each of her father s
ears. I wanted to keep him in my room, but he wanted to live in our
garden.
Kaden couldn t help but grin at the little girl s antics. She turned
her innocent smile up at him and waved a flower in his direction.
Here, Kaden. I have one for you, too. You have to wear it in your ear
like daddy. It will make you pretty.
Thank you, Miss Lulu. I ll keep it there all day. He took the
large Queen Anne s lace flower and tucked it behind his right ear.
Daddy promised to play pretty princess with me. Do you want to
play, too?
Kaden glanced up at his Alpha, expecting the older man to be
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