I dropped my head, fighting images of Bryn wrapped in writhing black bands of shadow. Adne swayed on her feet. Connor slipped his arm around her waist, steadying her.

“Did they ask you anything?” Monroe asked. “What did they want from you?”

“They wanted to know where Calla was,” Ansel said. “And they kept asking about the Scion. I didn’t know what they meant.”

“They meant Shay,” I said. “Shay is the Scion.”

Ansel’s smile was grim. “I know that now. I know they want him dead. Some things fell into place as they kept asking us questions.”

“What about Renier?” Monroe asked. His hands rested on the table, balled in tight fists.

“They brought us out of the cells into a large room. Everything was new, bright like a hospital. Except this room. It was dark, and old. I felt like we went from a prison into a castle’s dungeon. And everyone was there.”

“Everyone?” I asked.

“All the Guardians. Over a hundred of us and all the Keepers with their wraiths. They were all looking at a pile of raised stones. Like a stage, or an altar.”

An altar.

No, no. Not Ren. Please, not Ren.

“Was Renier on the altar?” Monroe’s voice shook. I looked at him, surprised that his fear was the same as mine.

“No. He was beside the altar with Emile and my father,” Ansel said, and then turned his gaze on me. “My mother was on the altar.”

I was on my feet, though my quaking muscles barely held me up. “What?!”

The flat smile returned to Ansel’s face. “Surprised?”

“How can you ask me that?” I shrieked. “Mom had nothing to do with this.”

“But she’s the alpha female,” Ansel said. The calm of his voice terrified me almost as much as his words. “She was supposed to teach you your place.”

My place. Everything I’d hated about my destiny. The other reason I’d run. It was almost as bad as the threat of losing Shay.

“And she failed,” Ansel whispered. “That’s what Lumine said. She failed to perform her duty.”

I sank down onto the bench, not flinching when Shay drew me into his arms. “What did they do to her?”

“They let Emile kill her while Dad stood there.”

My limbs turned to jelly. I would have fallen off the bench without Shay holding me up.

Monroe glanced at Adne, who went very pale. “They murdered your mother?” she whispered.

Connor pulled her closer, murmuring into her ear. Tears dripped onto her cheeks, but she didn’t make any sound.

“They said it was both of their punishments as alphas. She died because you ran away. Dad lost his mate.”

I choked out a sob, my eyes were burning, and my tears blurred Ansel’s face.

My mother. They killed my mother because of me. What kind of monster am I?

“But they let the Nightshade alpha live?” Silas asked. He was taking notes and I wanted to gnaw his fingers off. Slowly.

“There isn’t a Nightshade alpha anymore,” Ansel said.

“What do you mean?” Shay pulled me tight against him. I felt numb, unable to move.

“The rest of the punishment,” Ansel said. “The Keepers disbanded the Nightshade pack. Emile is the only alpha now. He’s been given both packs. Efron and Lumine told us that would be the new order. The Banes had proved more loyal and they would reign over the Nightshades until the Nightshades demonstrated their loyalty.”

“But how could they do that?” Ethan asked.

“They’re supposed to bring him back.” Ansel pointed at Shay. “That’s the new directive. The Guardians have been ordered to find him and return him to the Keepers. Whoever succeeds will gain their favor. If it’s a Nightshade, that wolf will become the new alpha and lead a pack of their own.”

“But that’s impossible,” I said. “Alphas can’t be promoted, they’re born. As long as our father is alive, he’s the Nightshade alpha whether the Keepers acknowledge him or not.”

“Tell that to the Keepers.” Ansel glared at me.

“That could work in our favor,” Ethan murmured. He caught Connor’s eye and Connor nodded.

“How?” I asked. “How could that help us? We’re going to be hunted down.”

“It could—” Connor began, but Monroe interrupted.

“Wait,” he said. “Ansel, what of Renier Laroche?”

Ansel sighed, low and long. “They called him a traitor, like Calla. They made him kneel before the altar.”

Somehow I found my voice, a hoarse whisper. “Did they kill him?”

Ansel shook his head and something inside me that I thought was dying came to life again.

“What happened?” Monroe asked, his clenched fists relaxing slightly.

“They said that his betrayal was Calla’s fault. That women can’t be trusted. That females were born to seduce and deceive. That Calla tricked Ren. That he was only trying to save the mate he believed loved him.”

The mate he believed loved him. I’d fallen in love with someone else, but Ren was still a part of me. We shared something I couldn’t name. Was that love too? Guilt pierced me like a thousand needles in my skin. I forced myself to straighten, wiggling away from Shay’s arms.

Silas nodded. “Mmmm, yes. The burden of Eve. That’s a nice touch.”

“Silas, I swear I will break your jaw if you say anything else,” Connor said, tightening his grip on Adne’s shoulders.