Un.Requited (Claimed Series) (35 page)

“Red has been air-lifted to the hospital. His condition is critical.” The pad of his thumb moved in gentle circles at her elbow, an action he knew would soothe her. Unbeknownst to him, he was only causing her more distress. “You name is cleared. Things will settle down now that Falco is caught.”

She had nothing to respond to that. Shane must have been devastated. He’d be even more so if he found out Hayden had
known
beforehand that Falco was a danger to the rest of the town. It was because of her own selfishness that Red Donovan
had been attacked
.

“Where are we meeting at?” Blake ventured as he walked at Cole’s right.

“Falco’s property.”

Leaves were raining steadily down from their branches as Hayden crossed into Falco’s territory. If it had been any other time, the vibrant
yellows
and the flaming reds of the mature trees would have awed her. Instead, Falco and his undamaged pride was what Hayden found herself focusing on. 

The disgraced Alpha was sitting calmly in the middle of his pack members, with the rest of the Alphas and their betas closing the gap around the circle. Falco didn’t let their intimidating immediacy get to him, as his chin was lifted defiantly and he detained an air of indifference as the stares grew penetrating. 

Cole made room for them around the circle and Hayden cast a wary gaze around at the spectators. She’d never seen so many werewolves gathered in one place before.

Across the circle, Joseph stood in front of his pack. His face was weary and he seemed to draw strength from the white-haired female next to him. Judging by their interlocked fingers, Hayden assumed the woman was Sasha, Joseph’s declared mate and Devan’s direct replacement.

There were only a couple of other females around the group. Their expressions ranged from pained betrayal to palpable disbelief. Not only were the females affected by Falco’s treachery, the males were also struggling to appear strong before the others. Their expansive shoulders were tense, on edge and ready in case they
were forced
to pounce and defend their pack members.

Further
down the way, Hayden spotted Asher. She quickly looked away, her shame too great for her to meet his eyes properly.

Last night, he tried to convince her that they should go to the Alphas about Falco. She should have listened. She should have put the potential victims before her own fears. Now Red Donovan, the grandfather of a good friend, was in critical condition because of her selfishness.

Joseph released his hold on Sasha’s hand and stepped into the center of the gathered werewolves. “I think we all know why we’re here. Falco has violated our traditions.” He was being exceptionally formal with his father. Considering his noticeable disappointment and shame, the
last thing he wanted to do was address his father endearingly in front of the other werewolves. “In the end, the evidence from all the murders leads to you.”

A heavy stillness spread across the observers as Falco continued to remain silent. Even the wind died down, as if nature had already foreseen the events about to happen. Hayden didn’t know what to expect. The man didn’t seem to be fighting against the accusations and his face didn’t give anything away. There wasn’t a shred of guilt or innocence.

“After the attack on Red Donovan, members from the pack were ordered to search your rooms. They found this.” Joseph held up a syringe and a small glass jar of clear liquid. As the sun caught the long needle, it reflected brightly, exaggerating its size. 

“What is it?” someone asked from Falco’s pack. Everyone seemed to follow the man’s curiosity by squinting at the serum in confusion.

“It seems to be a rogue creation.” Joseph pulled the attached label off the vial and read it aloud. “To mask scent, inject two milliliters. Dosage is effective up to an hour.” The beta crumbled the small label and tossed it down to Falco. Shaking his head, the son looked down at his father, his emotions in turmoil. “I don’t understand how you could do this to me, to your family, to your pack.”

Hayden watched the balled-up instructions roll across the ground, abandoned. The drug explained how Falco was able to get around without plastering his scent on the victims and the crime scenes. Rather clever and remarkable, but in the same way, it was disquieting. Blake and Joseph had been right in assuming Nicolas and his rogues were experimenting with chemicals. It begged the question as to what else they could possibly come up with next. 

Adolf took a step forward, drawing the attention of everyone present. “We didn’t want to suspect you, Falco, even if the deceased human, Robert Warden,
was
directly connected to you.”

Adolf was all about the spectacle as he paused for the dramatic effect. He seemed to preen under the unwavering attention. “But after we witnessed your attack on Red Donovan this morning, we were forced to reexamine your dependability. No one here likes humans, retired Hunters especially, but werewolves are supposed to be the superior creatures.”

“An Alpha should have complete control over their wolf,” Joseph continued from where Adolf left off. “They’re allowed a few slipups, but never in such a case where they all but demolish a defenseless human. I had
to literally restrain
you from Red before you snapped out of it. The wounds across his body were suspiciously similar to the wounds across
Robert’s
and Ian’s corpses. Someone who lacks control did this.”

Hayden heaved a heavy sigh, relieved she hadn’t been present when Falco attacked Red. All she could think about was Shane and his devastation. The human always admired his grandfather; it would have been hard on him to see his hero broken and bleeding on the streets.

Shane hadn’t needed to go through that, especially when he had placed his innocent conviction in the werewolves around him.

Glancing up at Cole, Hayden noticed the Alpha was frowning thoughtfully. Sensing her scrutiny, he wrapped a secure arm around her waist, keeping his sharp gaze on the scene in front of him.

Adolf’s long, silver hair obscured his face as he looked down his nose at Falco. “Why so silent?” the Alpha pressed. “What do you have to say for yourself?” Adolf glanced around at the observers. “Will you not give us an answer as to why you committed the acts that you have? Why, after so many years, have you decide to lose control now? Or maybe you can humor us and explain why you murdered your own omega.”

Muffled whispers and cries of outrage spread across the group as Falco remained tightlipped. The wind picked up once again and played with Hayden’s hair, pushing it into her eyes as she paid special attention to Joseph.

She didn’t like him at
all
for what he’d done to Devan, but she did feel a spasm of pity when the strong resolve across his face faltered. His shoulders were stiff, seemingly unaffected, but Hayden could see the emotional agony in his eyes as he looked down at his father.

Falco lifted his chin higher, causing the property to quiet in anticipation. “I did
nothing
,” he said fiercely and simply. His blue eyes turned hooded as he looked up at his son. “I did nothing,” he repeated once more.

Hayden frowned at Falco’s confession, her confusion mounting. If he didn’t do it, then why did he attack Red? Why were the wounds similar on Red as they were on the other victims? What was the conversation about last night in town? She had seen Falco lose control herself. He had been seconds away from attacking Red last night if it hadn’t been for Joseph intervening.

Cole seemed to share her doubt, for his fingers dug into her side, the only sign of his restlessness. His face
was crafted
into a sturdy and unreadable mask, veiling what he truly thought of the issue. If he believed Falco was telling the truth, he wasn’t speaking out to defend him. Then again, as much as Cole liked to be in charge of everything, he could also be feeling just as clueless as Hayden was. 

“You did nothing?” Adolf laughed breathlessly. “Both my pack and your pack
witnessed
the entire attack. We all saw your wolf control your actions as you tore Red Donovan to shreds. Even if you somehow are innocent in Robert Warden’s death and the death of your omega, you still sunk so low and attempted to kill a defenseless human in cold blood.”

The silver haired Alpha spat at Falco’s feet. “If your son hadn’t pulled you back, you would have succeeded. You are an ancient Alpha, this shouldn’t happen.”

Leaning marginally against Cole, Hayden watched the proceedings with a heavy heart. She should be rejoicing that the murderer
was caught
and Red Donovan would get justice.
But
for some reason, she was far from relieved.

And
Falco remained sitting mutely, staring straight ahead of him.

“If Falco has nothing else to add as means of explanation or defense, we can begin our voting now,” Adolf announced as he looked between Eric and Cole. “Three of the four remaining Alphas will vote on Falco’s fate. Will it be death? Or will he be forced to become a Lone wolf?”

A woman with smooth, chocolate skin gave a desperate sob, clutching a small boy to her bosom. She had dark eyes, but the child she was clutching had the same sky-blue eyes that both Joseph and Falco possessed. It must have been Falco’s mate and child.

Trying not to outright stare, Hayden studied the woman’s agonized expression, the raw grief tearing right through her. She blinked back her tears, turning away from the mother and child to gather herself.

It appeared as if the werewolves took the law into their own hands when it came to justice.
But
sentencing Falco to death seemed so morally wrong to her. While there were spectators who saw Falco lose control on Red, there still wasn’t enough evidence on the other two murders. Was it truly fair to sentence Falco to death in front of his family for an attempted murder?

Hoping to find a similar voice among the crowd, Hayden searched the faces, noticing there were no outraged expressions. With sinking realization, Hayden comprehended that this was
normal
among werewolves. This hierarchy, this type of justice was normal.

“I decide upon death,” Adolf declared as he volunteered his vote first. “For as ancient as you are, and as experienced as you should be, Falco, these slips of control seem suspicious. I refuse to be to be at blame when you go running to join Nicolas and the rest of the rogues.” Adolf then turned to Eric.

The blond Alpha surveyed Falco before his gaze jumped to Adolf. “Let him become Lone,” Eric muttered softly. He kept his poise solid in the eyes of Adolf’s disbelief. “It is unforgiving to have an Alpha disrupt our town like an uncontrolled newborn, but we don’t have enough evidence to sentence him to death. I say we get rid of the threat in a diplomatic way.”

All eyes riveted toward Cole, the last word and the deciding factor.

Cole and Hayden looked at each other simultaneously. It was difficult keeping her eyes from straying over to Falco’s mate and child. Cole would be able to read Hayden’s frame of mind; he was always able to see everything. Surely, he wouldn’t sentence Falco to death in front of his loved ones.

“
No,
you cannot let her decide for you.” Adolf stormed over to Cole, his eyes furious. Canines poked his bottom lip, a sign of his frustration. “Remember how he framed your bitch? How he smeared blood of an innocent over her? He deserves death, Cole.”

“My name, Adolf, is Hayden. You should be able to remember it by now,” she corrected him with a growl. She hardly paid Cole much attention as he hushed her patiently. The hand that curled around the nape of her neck, however, was enough to draw her glower away from Adolf and back onto Cole.

“What do you think?” her Alpha suddenly inquired. A tiny grin lifted the side of his mouth at Hayden’s surprise. “We’re joint Alphas after all, aren’t we, Hayden?”

Somehow, the murmurs of disbelief from the surrounding werewolves fueled Hayden’s astonishment. Something warm tickled her chest and she was quick to identify it as gratitude. Not only did Cole have to endure Hayden’s insistence that female Alphas should be equally as authoritative as male Alphas, but he had unexpectedly supported her beliefs in public. No matter how upset she got at Cole, his gesture
was greatly appreciated
.

“You already know what I would choose,” Hayden responded quietly.   

His deep, emerald eyes scrutinized her
briefly
before he looked at Adolf. “Lone,” Cole decided throatily. “Release him from his duty as Alpha.” In response to Adolf’s oncoming outburst, Cole held up a hand. “Becoming a Lone wolf is a humiliation, Adolf, especially if you’re an Alpha. It will be a suitable punishment.”

Whispers swept through the circle again, most rejoicing while only a few protested Falco’s fate. All that seemed to matter to Hayden was that Falco’s mate had quieted down and hugged her child closer. The boy in her embrace was young, not ready to understand the implications just yet. Unfortunately, he would eventually realize his father
was never allowed
to come home again. 

“Your decision tells me you don’t take her safety seriously.” Adolf scowled pointedly at Cole before turning his back, a belittling gesture in itself.