It had taken just about all Clark had not to demand Carmen’s address from Rachel so he could go up there himself to give her useless parents a piece of his mind. He paced furiously back and forth in his room, imagining just what he would say to them.
As a parent, he took this kind of thing even more personally. He had given up everything to take care of Rachel after her mother had died. Everything. But there were still people out there who wouldn’t do shit for their kids. Even let them visit home when they wanted to. What the hell was wrong with humans?
But it wasn’t just humans, Clark had to remind himself. There were plenty of shifters who resented their pups so much they’d as soon let them starve as feed them. Nature was cruel, and sometimes, precious things were gifted to those who would never be able to fully appreciate them. It was a harsh fact of life.
Still, it was wrong. Plain and simple. Anyone who could put that pain on the face of such a pure, innocent person deserved whatever misery came to them.
“Clark?”
“Missy? What the hell are you doing here?” Clark asked, shocked by the sudden appearance of the woman he usually hoped to forget.
“Sorry, your daughter’s friend let me in. She is a cute little thing, don’t you think?”
Missy’s eyes flashed knowingly at him and Clark’s heart hammered in his chest. Missy had always been a sharp one, especially when it came to the women Clark was interested in. It was almost like she could smell the girls on him, or him on them.
“Poor thing’s having a hard time with her parents,” Clark said quickly. “It’s hard to see a young thing suffer like that.”
The rage filled Clark’s chest again and Missy raised her eyebrows.
“I see,” she said.
“Why are you here?” Clark asked, a little bit more gruffly than he had meant to. Still, it was strange to have her here, in his bedroom, in the place where he and Carmen had…especially when Missy was looking at him with such disapproval.
“Well, David and I were talking and he felt you might need to speak with someone who has a little more…sway.”
“Oh really?”
Missy smiled tightly. “I guess neither of us knew that person would have to be a little girl that your daughter brought home from school.”
“Know your place in my home,” Clark growled, his eyes flashing. “And get to the point before I escort you out of here.”
“That’s the thing now, isn’t it?” Missy asked, her eyes roaming Clark. “You don’t have a place here anymore. Just like everybody else. We’re getting kicked out of our own territory, Clark. It’s happening more and more every day. When are you going to stand up to these outsiders and do something about it?”
“What can I do about it? Lobos told me to stand down! And if I don’t, who knows what will happen? Don’t you remember the last time I meddled in higher affairs? How many people died?”
Missy grew somber. “Yes. I lost my parents in the craze. You lost your wife. But you do understand that there is a time and a place to step in, and just as you did then, that time is now.”
“I’m not going to risk any more lives. If you don’t like that, you should just leave me the hell alone about it. Do you understand?”
Missy sighed, and backed up toward the door.
“I thought you were different, Clark. I get that you were grieving, and I even get having a crush on that cute little girl out there. But I will never understand what will compel you to keep your head down.”
“Missy…”
“All right, I’m leaving. But David is organizing a meeting that he wanted me to invite you to at his place tonight. It’s very hush-hush, word of mouth, you know. If you don’t get involved, the pack is going to take matters into their own hands. And you know that’s going to be much more dangerous than if you took care of things yourself.”
Clark was startled by the news, but he supposed it made sense. He had been dishonored in front of them, after all. As far as they knew, he held little to no rank in the pack as he once had. Still, the news was infuriating, and Clark wasn’t very happy at the messenger, either.
“Good bye, Missy.”
Missy opened her mouth as if to say something else, but she seemed to think better of it.
“Good bye, Clark. Good luck with your temptress.”
Clark growled and Missy laughed bitterly as she closed the bedroom door behind herself.
He waited until he heard the engine of her car start and leave his property before he allowed himself to move again. So everybody was trying to do their own thing and get involved. The outsiders had made that much of an impact already?
It wasn’t that he was surprised by the news, exactly, but more surprised that the others had jumped the gun without Clark’s go-ahead. Usually, they consulted him during these types of matters, and sure, they had been asking him to get involved over the past few months. But organizing a meeting without his permission? One he was invited to rather than conducting? That was kind of a hit to his pride.
He would just have to go to the meeting and find out exactly what was on their minds. It was for their own good. Hopefully, his sway over them hadn’t lessened because of his change in rank and he would be able to talk some sense into them before things got really ugly.
***
“Clark! You made it!” David exclaimed. “Have some punch!”
“Punch…?”
Clark suddenly had a drink in his hand and he was being led through a huge crowd of people. They swarmed around him as they began to realize who he was, and he was met with shouts of, “Clark!” and “He’s here! He’s here!”
Clark sighed deeply. It wasn’t as if he knew what to do. He just wanted to make sure that this little resistance meeting didn’t result in something more than his pack could handle.
“I’m glad to see you,” David said, making his way to the little platform he had set up in his living room. He stood on it and looked out at the crowd.
“Ladies, gentlemen, and pups, please give a warm welcome to Clark Thomas!”
The crowd cheered uproariously and Clark grimaced.
“Although the powers that be may claim that mutt Thames as our leader, let Clark know just what we think of that!”
The crowd booed and jeered passionately, and a few even cursed Thames’ name. It was actually kind of refreshing to feel the amount of unadulterated support that his pack had for him, and Clark smiled out at them broadly, catching Missy’s eye in the crowd. She gave him a tight smile of approval and applauded as well.
“Clark, why don’t you come up here and give everyone a few words before we get started tonight. I promised this as a way for everybody to voice their concerns, and I think, maybe more than anybody, you have some concerns we all need to hear.”
Clark was surprised by David’s words, and in truth, he hadn’t thought of anything to say yet.
“I couldn’t…” he said, but he was already being led helplessly onto the little platform and before long, he was looking out over the familiar faces of his pack, his heart constricting in his chest. He couldn’t let any danger befall these people. They were his world.
“I know most of you remember what happened so many years ago. It’s been almost two decades, now. Corruption had leaked into our ranks, just as it’s doing now, and I made some rash, foolish choices that led to a lot of bloodshed.”
The crowd was silent, and Clark forced himself to continue.
“I’ve regretted every day, every moment since then, the way I acted before I thought. It cost the lives of some very valuable people, my own wife included.”
“But we won!” someone in the crowd shouted, and everybody began to cheer again. Clark frowned deeply. It had never felt like much of a victory to him.
“Still, there were casualties where there could have been none. I didn’t think things through. So I’m here to implore you, no matter how difficult the obstacles ahead may seem, not to do anything rash and unreasonable. Do not put your lives on the line unless there is absolutely no other choice. Do not take positions you are not meant to have, or lead when you are meant to follow. Listen to me, and listen to David, and we will give you a careful plan of attack. Don’t do anything reckless. I guess…just don’t be like me.”
Clark left the stage abruptly, and the crowd was silent. He left the room as the meeting continued, but he could feel all eyes on him as he retreated to the doorway. It had been hard to tell them how he felt, why he hadn’t gotten involved before now, but hopefully, the pack would understand and do whatever they could to stay out of harm’s way. If only he knew what to do.