Blacktail Deer Plateau My shadow falls against the wall

Dante asked me to stay. Scathing words cut across her brain when Osprey told her this. It was no secret at all that Dante was friends with Osprey, but surely the Alpha male wasn't such a pacifist that he would allow someone to stomp on his authority? Saena knew he wasn't. If he was, then her sister would still be here, too. She could never forget that, the last time Dante had felt undermined, he'd sentenced Junior to life in the lowest ranks for an uncertain length of time. It was hard for her to imagine that that same man would ask another wolf who undermined him to stay. She felt the crime was far worse, and yet here Osprey stood, seemingly unscathed but for the pregnancy. Seemingly unpunished.

For all these thoughts and conflicts going on in her head, for all her desire to lash out at her irresponsible relative and doom her to a life of misery for her poor choices, Saena was speechless, because the problem wasn't really Osprey. The woman had made an impulsive, stupid decision, but how was anyone to learn when the pack was so accommodating of every mistake, no matter how large? When finally she was able to say something, it was quiet and gentle, like the calm before a storm, although really there was no storm coming, at least not directed at Osprey: "you're lucky they're pushovers."