The Sunspire you squandered your chances

The stranger doesn't take the bait, and Zephyr finds himself so startled by the question and the tone of it that he forgets his hostility for a moment. I — I deserve it, he almost says, tasting blood and hearing Maman's scream as if from a distance. His eyes fill with tears again, and he hates that. Weak, he thinks. His head drops a little, gaze falling to the ground. Shame overwhelms him, displaced by anger so quickly it immediately leaves him breathless again. Maybe I want to die. He snaps at the ground, heart pounding so hard it hurts, though not nearly as much as his shoulder. Realizing immediately that he hadn't truly answered the question, he glances back up with defiant eyes and adds, Your packmates would have killed me. That's reason enough, isn't it? He can't imagine any wolf not standing with a packmate.