Charlie shot Stefan and killed Mandla. Liam killed Hashim. I killed Travis.

“How do you explain Charlie’s gunshot wound?”

“Bob? Cory? Rocco?” I named off the three Taxiarho, the Shifters in the Alpha Pack stationed just below the Stratego who also oversaw my care.

“No, it was you. You managed to get out of your handcuffs and attacked the guards. Because of the life debt, Charlie was forced to protect you in the battle, although he tried very hard not to actually inflict any true damage to any member of the Alpha Pack. Once they were all dead by your hand, you shot Charlie, knowing he would bring you back to face your rightful punishment. He had, after all, shown the strictest of adherence to Shifter rules and traditions.”

“What are you talking about? That isn’t what happened at all.”

Liam walked over the sink and began to gather up strands of hair. “Makes more sense than Charlie turning on the Alpha Pack, who considered him a friend, and then shooting himself.”

My butt slammed down onto the corner of the mattress when my knees finally gave out. “I… What…?” I shook my head, hoping to clear some of the confusion but only jumbled my thoughts further. “I don’t understand.”

“Charlie worked for two weeks to gain the confidence of the Alpha Pack. He claimed the life debt, which gave him an excuse to be near you, but it also gave him the appearance of someone who followed the old traditions. The Alpha Pack likes the old traditions. It’s what gives them absolute rule.” Liam’s hair scavenging duties took him to the bed where I slept. “By the time your trial rolled around, he was highly regarded by Stefan. I even heard the Alpha Male offer him a position in the Alpha Pack as they walked to your execution sight.”

I nodded. I had heard that too.

“When the Taxiarho finally made it to the clearing after hearing the first shots fired, they found three dead Stratego, a mortally wounded Alpha Male, and Charlie with what was supposed to be an almost life-threatening gunshot wound.” He rubbed the back of his head. “I told him to watch the artery. Dammit. I should have Changed back and done it myself.”

With nothing else to do for two weeks, I had plenty of time to think about what happened that night. It was obvious Charlie and Talley had been working with Liam. I mean, they both knew where the truck would be, and Talley had shown me through our more-special-than-most Seer-Shifter link where to go. Since the clothes found in the trunk of the get-away car were made for Liam’s hulking body as opposed to Charlie’s much shorter and more lithe frame, I knew Liam had been a part of the plan from the beginning, not just a guardian wolf who happened to show up at the right time. But hearing the plan aloud, realizing that it was more complicated than just asking Liam to take me away and hide me, seeing it was Liam’s plan all along… There was an actual threat that I might go catatonic from information overload. My brain was in serious danger of completely shorting out on me.

“Do you think…” God, I couldn’t even complete sentences. “Will he live?”

Liam ducked his head even lower. Even though we didn’t spend a whole lot of time having face-to-face conversations, I knew this was purposeful avoidance. “The news said he was expected to make a full recovery.”

“That’s the exact same moron who said it was surprising an actress the size of a broom handle and has more nervous twitches than a squirrel on caffeine has a drug problem. I’m not putting my faith in her opinion.”

Liam looked up and met my eyes. “But you’ll put it in me?”

“You saw him. You know where he shot himself. This was your plan.” I gave him a second to correct me on that point, and when he didn’t, I continued on. “So, tell me, Liam. Is Charlie going to be okay?”

I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if he wasn’t. I knew that with absolute certainty. Charlie would never be the love I dreamed of for so many years, but he was still mine in every way that mattered. We parted as friends, but friend didn’t seem the right word to encompass what Charlie was to me. He was a part of me, the good part. If he died, he would take that part with him. I would still exist, I would still live, but I wouldn’t be me.

Liam grabbed what appeared to be a container of Clorox wipes out of his bag and started scrubbing down all the surfaces in the room. “I would say the injuries from the fight are probably causing more problems than the gunshot wound.” He disappeared into the bathroom, but kept talking. “I’m surprised the doctors haven’t said anything about how they’re not consistent with a car wreck. He had scratches from human fingernails down his face for God’s sake.” Liam trailed off, talking to himself more than me. “Of course, Sarvarna could've called in the Alpha Pack’s doctor, probably pulled some strings to make it appear he was called in by the Senator’s office. Or maybe she did get the Senator’s office to call him in. Who knows what kind of connections she’s got her claws into.”

When I questioned that statement, Liam explained how far the power of the Alpha Pack reached. There aren’t exactly a ton of Shifters in the world, but there are enough in positions of power throughout the world to make the Alphas major players in world politics. According to Liam, the Den - the Alpha Pack headquarters located in Romania - operated like a small but powerful country. In addition to the strongest fighters and most gifted Seers, it was home to the smartest and most skilled of us from all over the world. I hadn’t touched a computer or cell phone since our escape on Liam’s insistence that the Alpha Pack could trace a call, text, or Facebook message in seconds. Like Liam, I didn’t doubt her ability to make sure a well-respected Washington politician called in the doctor she wanted to attend to a person hurt while trying to save his granddaughter. What I doubted was my grandfather’s desire to call in anyone, Alpha Pack doctor or not. Sure, he would play up the whole granddaughter kidnapping story for press coverage and polling points, but to actually care enough to do something about it? We didn’t have that kind of relationship.

“Why the car crash/terrorist story?” I asked as Liam got down on his hands and knees and started combing the carpet I didn’t even want to have my feet on. “And what on earth are you doing?”

He plucked a long silvery strand of hair off the floor. “Being cautious. The police most likely won’t come back here, but if they do, I don’t want them to find your DNA conveniently lying around.” Not for the first time, I questioned his sanity. “And the news story was a way to flush you out using the best resources available. You and I might have been able to slip around the country unnoticed for years before, but now that the whole world knows the granddaughter of Senator Harper is missing? Every person who sees you will be calling 9-1-1.”