Page 22 of Eclipse Pack
Valor. His human is Ethan. They are highly respected among the Shadow Warriors. They are honorable and have had difficulty not going to your father and telling him what they are.
‘You know them well?’
Well enough to suggest that they could be of great use to you as advisors.
‘Okay. I will speak with Ethan and then make my decision. That still leaves me with one more seat to fill.’
I would have suggested Ember, but I think her bat would sway the other members' decision-making processes.
‘You’re joking, right? Ember on my inner council?’
Yes, I’m joking. If you were to have Drake from Wolfsfoot perform an assessment on Adaline to be your next Chief Warrior, and she passed his assessment. She would be good on your council. She is like Eve in that she can be creative and think outside the box.
‘You are being very helpful with your suggestions, Titan. Am I missing something?’
You promised me a run chasing rabbits if I suggested a member. I have now suggested two and both for good reason.
‘Ah, yes, I did.’ I can almost see him smiling as I recall the conversation. ‘I suppose I owe you two runs, then. Is that how you see it?’
It would seem fair to say that, yes.
Seeing him lay down, I accept defeat, pick up the phone and place a call to Wolfsfoot. Tati picks up, and as soon as I speak, she launches into me. Commentslike, I thought better of you, what were you thinking? Taria will be furious.
When I can finally get a word in, I manage to stop her and ask what she is talking about.
“Leading a female on, thinking that she is going to be your Luna and then dumping her for another. I never saw that in you, Bronze.”
“Oh, now I understand. Savannah! Tati, I am not like that, and she was never going to be anything. Far from leading her on, I have spent years fending her off. You should speak to Luna Sage about Savannah.”
“Well, she certainly has a lot of detail with her story,” Tati sounds a little less certain now.
“Tati. I have never had any interest in Savannah. It’s all in her head. The next time you speak to her, you’ll be able to recognize when she’s telling lies.”
“Oh? How so?”
“Her lips move! She can’t tell the truth if her life depends on it. If she tells you it’s raining, look outside. She’s that bad,” Laughing, I’m amazed that she got one over on Tati.
“Her life will be a misery from this moment on. I don’t appreciate being made a fool of. I’m sorry, Bronze, she was so believable,” Tati sounds both upset and angry at the same time.
“Don’t worry, Tati. I forgive you. I didn’t call about her though, I’m asking for a favor.”
“Well, I can’t very well refuse now, can I? Having doubted your gentlemanly conduct, I’ll have to do something to make it up to you,” Tati made it sound worse than it was.
“I want to promote someone to my Chief Warrior position, but they haven’t been a warrior, as such. They are an excellent trainer, and I don’t doubt that if she was sent to a border skirmish, she would acquit herself favorably.”
“You want to send me another female problem? Is that it?” I hear Tati sigh, which makes me smirk before I respond.
“No, not at all. I was going to ask if I could borrow Drake so he could come here and assess her skills for me. Now that you mention it, though. Sending her to you might be a better way to accomplish it. No one would know about thetrial by combat, and if Drake doesn’t think she’s ready, the pack won’t need to know about it. He can also suggest where she would need to improve. That would be a great way to get her promoted. What do you say, Tati? Is it a goer?” I’m very excited about this now and think I’m definitely onto something.
“Agoer? Where did you get that from? You’ve been spending too much time with the pups, I’m sure. You realize that Drake is a hard taskmaster? I know from personal, firsthand experience, he’ll want her for more than just an assessment. To give her the best chance, which I think that’s what you want, you’d best send her here for a week. I’ll discuss it with him and put a plan in place. Send her in two weeks and we’ll smooth any rough edges and make sure she does you proud.” Tati has certainly picked up on my wanting Adaline to succeed.
“Thank you, Tati. You’re an angel. I remember you saying how hard Drake worked you to make you the best he could.”
“One last thing before I hang up…”
“Okay, what’s that?” I ask, intrigued by her tone of voice.
“Make sure she can climb trees…and damn fast!”
