Chapter Thirteen
Amelia
When I saw Nathan after the big meeting, I thought something had gone badly wrong. But everyone was okay, so no obvious fights had broken out.
“What’s with the grumpy face?”
“Don’t start.” He shook his head, staring into space. I sat on the swing next to him, shivering as the night air raised goose bumps on my skin.
“So what happened?”
He pushed back with his feet, let go, and swung. Higher and higher he went, until he took a flying jump and landed on his feet. “They killed our parents, Amelia.”
I hopped off my swing and stilled his, but I stayed quiet, knowing he needed to talk it out for himself.
“Ryan said he heard what happened to them. This Vin wolf decided Mum would make good breeding material and sent his pack after her. Dad fought for her and wouldn’t stop fighting. Dad wasn’t into violence at all, but he fought a whole gang of wolves for her. The pack held him down and made him watch them hurt her… and she died. So he went mental and killed three of them before they took him down.”
I swore, following him as he wandered along the grass, going nowhere in particular. “I’m so sorry.”
He stared at me as though I had gone crazy. “Why are you saying sorry? They were your parents, too.”
“Yeah, I know, but…” I bit my lip. “I don’t really remember them anymore. And I’m sorry for that, too.”
“Doesn’t matter. You were a kid. How could you?”
He sat on the grass, rubbing his face and looking absolutely miserable. “I have to fight the werewolves who killed our parents. I have to face them. And I have to let them live.”
“Why?” I asked, suddenly fierce.
“Because Mum and Dad would never want me to be like them. Perdita would never look at me the same again. But Jeremy and Opa want me to do whatever it takes. They want me to channel the pain and use it to hurt our enemies. And those werewolves would deserve to suffer, Amelia, for what they did. But I can’t… I can’t kill someone.”
“It’s a war,” I said resolutely. “They would be casualties of war. But I don’t think you would be happy if you did commit murder. Revenge isn’t the answer.”
“Isn’t it?”
“Look at Opa. All he wants is revenge. Do you think it will make him any happier to get it? Do you really think he’ll celebrate when he finally gets his way? He won’t. He’ll be even more miserable because all he’ll have left are memories and the fact Mémère’s gone for good. That’s the real reason he’s changed. He’ll do absolutely anything to avoid thinking about her.”
“Dad fought for Mum, though. Killed for her.”
“You fought for Perdita. She fought for you. You’ll fight to protect the family. That’s good enough, Nathan.”
I knew he would put how he was feeling in a box until everything had gotten back to normal. That wasn’t good for him, but that was how he dealt with things. I hoped he kept his focus in the heat of battle.