Chapter Eight
My dad and other members of the clan were already at the cabin when I arrived. I could hear the distant roaring of the bears, they were riled up and ready to go to war already. I knew I was walking into an argument before I even stepped foot on the property. When the clan had their blood up, it was almost impossible to get them to throttle it back down.
But that was what I had to do to prevent an all-out war.
I didn't even bother going inside, the action was outside, in the woods behind the cabin. I walked down the trail leading to our meeting grounds and found my father perched high on the throne that had been carved from a fallen Redwood tree and had been a symbol of the Chief's power for only God knows how long. He had his hands raised and was trying to calm down the others, but was having no luck. The shouts of anger drowned out his voice.
Several of our men had already shifted into bear form, their roars echoing around the forest, ready to fight. I surveyed the scene and knew it was not good. Not good at all.
“Listen, we expected retaliation after what happened to Clay Rockford,” my father said.
“What about retaliation for what happened to Luke?” one of the men in the crowd growled. “What happened to an eye-for-an-eye? Are we really going to let this slide by?”
“We are still looking into Luke's murder,” I said, stepping up beside my father. I took my seat on the smaller throne that had been built for the Chief's heir. “We have reason to believe the N'gasso aren't actually behind what happened.”
“Of course, you'd say that. You're screwing Clay's daughter, you're whipped already and aren't seeing straight, boy,” the man called.
My fists were balled up at my side. “Are you questioning my loyalty, Shane?” I asked him, narrowing my gaze. “I'm marrying Mariana for this clan – not because I love her. Because it's the best thing for us. Let's not get this twisted. I'd never put my clan in danger for a woman. Never. So, if you are questioning my allegiance, we can get into the pit and settle this.”
Shane settled down, but only a bit. I knew he wasn't up for a challenge. I was stronger than him, I'd easily tear his throat out if it came to that. He knew that, I knew that – hell, everybody gathered there knew that. And unless he wanted to challenge me, he'd need to calm the hell down. I didn't want to fight Shane – had no desire to hurt anybody in my clan. But I was not going to sit there and have my loyalty questioned.
Shane's wife, Ramona, put a hand on his shoulder and whispered something in his ear – likely reminding him of their two children. Two children who would grow up without a father if he dared challenge me to battle.
“I'm sorry, Asher,” Shane said, gritting his teeth. “I didn't mean to question your loyalty. I'm just not sure why you're giving the N'gasso the benefit of the doubt – a benefit they don't deserve.”
“Because they'd be stupid to murder one of our own – my very own cousin at that – and not even try to cover it up. To murder him on their land, when we have an active peace agreement in place, would be dumb. The N'gasso are many things, but their Chief is not a stupid man,” I replied. “And besides, I don't believe they'd sabotage our peace accord. Not like that. Nothing about this makes any sense.”
“You're right. None of it makes sense,” Shane growled. Others joined in with him, “Why are we uniting with them anyway? What do we have to gain from it.”
“We've been through this,” my father argued. “Because it makes us both stronger. The fighting amongst us will stop, fewer people will die, and it'll lead to more prosperity for all of us. We have a lot to gain from this agreement. Perhaps, more than the N'gasso.”
I nodded. “Exactly,” I said. “Believe me, I wouldn't be marrying into that family if I didn't think it wasn't going to benefit the Q'lapa.”
Slowly, the shouting stopped and I could feel the dark, angry energy that had infused the crowd begin to dissipate. I waited for a few long moments, looking at my father, who looked back at me with a grateful look in his eyes. He looked weak. Fragile. And it broke my heart. After the crowd calmed down, I decided to ask the question that had been racing around through the back of my mind.
“Had anyone talked to Cameron prior to the incident with Clay Rockford?” I asked them all. “If anybody knows anything, now is the time.”
A low buzzing mumble hovered over the crowd as they spoke to one another, some were shaking their heads and though there was a lot of conversation, I wasn't getting the feeling that anybody actually knew anything.
A woman – Annie, I thought her name was – shouted from near the back. “I spoke to him last night. He didn't mention anything, didn't seem upset,” she called. “We talked about Luke, but I didn't get the feeling that he was upset enough to go do something as crazy as that. He said that you and your father would handle it.”
“My thoughts too,” I said.
“Do you think someone set him up?” Shane asked.
“I'm thinking it's a possibility,” I replied. “Something we need to consider, at any rate.”
More silence. I turned to my father. “What else has happened this morning?”
“Several of our members were attacked by the N'gasso. Reprisals for the attack on Clay,” he said. “Thankfully, no one was seriously hurt, but a fight broke out in town. No one was arrested, but they promised revenge.”
“Has anyone talked to Clay today?” I asked.
“He's not taking my calls,” my father said. “But he was also in with his doctors most of the morning, so I'm not jumping to any conclusions. Have you spoke to Mariana?”
“I have. I told her we knew nothing about this and that we'd handle it. She's going to do her best to calm down the N'gasso so we can solve this together. Peacefully.”
“Good,” my father said. “We can and will figure this out. Together.”
I was glad everyone was calming down, at least for the moment. Tensions were going to be running high for awhile, until we figured out what was happening and who was behind it all. It was on me to keep everyone from going to war, which wasn't going to be easy. Luke was my cousin, third in line for the throne. It was obvious someone was coming after the leaders of our clan, and that wasn't something we'd take lying down.
But we also had to make sure we went after the right people, or else, it could get very ugly for everyone involved. The N'gasso, us, and potentially the people of Black Salmon Falls.