After crying for a long time, Fiona finally found the strength to stand. She shook her head and waved Galen away when he offered to help her up. She told him that she wanted to be alone for a while.

But before she sent him away, she told him one more thing.

Fiona did not lift her gaze to Galen as she spoke.

“I will support your decision,” she said in a tired voice, “I will take your side and nominate you, Galen, as Alpha of Summer.”

She paused with a heavy sigh as Galen turned back to look at her.

“But,” she continued, “if you hope to take control of Summer without violence, you will also need Ashleigh’s support.”

Galen took a deep breath.

“She may have left Summer behind,” Fiona said, “but many of them cling to her with the same desperate hope I have for the past three years.”

“I know,” Galen replied softly.

“Good,” Fiona nodded.

As he shut the door behind him, Galen closed his eyes and lowered his head. He let out a shaky breath as the weight of the conversation settled over him.

“Hi, Puppy,” Bell’s soft voice called to him from a few feet away.

Galen lifted his head, surprised to see her.

“Bell?” he asked. “What are you doing here?”

Galen straightened up and moved to her. Bell immediately wrapped her arms around him and held him tight.

“I wasn’t sure how the conversation would go,” she said, leaning against his chest. “But I knew you would need this either way.”

Galen took a deep breath and smiled. He hugged her closely and rested his head on hers. Relishing the comfort and warmth of her scent and touch.

“I always need this,” he whispered.

Bell smiled.

“How did it go?” she asked, still holding him.

Galen kissed the top of her head and pulled away gently. He looked at her and smiled sadly.

“Not here,” he said. “Let’s go home.”

Bell nodded, taking his hand and leading the way.

When Galen finished telling Bell all that had happened with Fiona, she could only hug him again.

“You did what you had to do,” she whispered.

Galen sniffled and nodded.

“I know,” he said softly. “Doesn’t make me feel any better about it though.”

Bell kissed his forehead.

“I know,” she whispered.

After letting the pain ease, Galen took a deep breath and focused on what needed to be done.

“I need to find a way to get Ashleigh to return,” he said.

“Maybe we should tell her the truth,” Bell suggested. “Not just about you becoming Alpha… about why Fiona can’t, and about the research that Myka and Alice are doing.”

Galen closed his eyes and swallowed.

Ashleigh had avoided coming home as much as she could. If he told her the reason he needed her now, she would come. But she would come with anger and accusations.

It didn’t matter how well he explained it. Even if she understood his reasoning and agreed, her heart would never allow her to simply accept it.

Galen understood that.

But he couldn’t have her arriving with that dark cloud looming over her. If she entered the gates of Summer angry and ready to argue over replacing Caleb, the fuse of the powder keg of anxiety and fear that had been building between the wolves would be lit.

On top of that, telling her about Myka and Alice’s search was not an option.

“Axel and I talked for a long time about whether to tell her about it,” he said. “But I still don’t think it’s a good idea. I need to be the one to tell her about my decision, but I can’t tell her about searching for Caleb.”

“Why not?” Bell asked. “Maybe she’s ready now. Maybe she can handle it.”

“Bell,” Galen sighed, “Ashleigh and Fiona are very different in many ways, but they are also very similar.”

He leaned back on the couch, letting his tired body relax against it.

“For them, hope is a double-edged sword. It can fuel them, giving them that last bit of strength to get out of a desperate situation and back to safety,” he said. “But if they hold too tight, for too long, it’ll consume them. Wrapping so tightly around them, they can’t see or feel anything else, even as they fall apart.”

Bell swallowed and took a slow breath.

“Ashleigh hasn’t given up on Caleb. She never will,” he continued. “But she’s trying to work through it… keeping herself moving, fighting, and away from the daily reminders. But Fiona was stuck in it. Day after day, she has been here trying to keep Caleb alive every moment.”

Galen paused, looking down at his hands bawled tightly into fists.

“I just had to destroy that hope in Fiona to help her survive…” he said softly. “I know that Ashleigh feels alone in her search for Caleb. I know she thinks we’ve all forgotten him. Telling her would probably make her feel better. She might even come home more often…”

Galen leaned his head back.

“But…” he continued softly. “The biggest difference between Ashleigh and Fiona… is that Fiona has always known there was a chance Caleb was gone. To keep her hope alive, she needed me to believe with her. But Ashleigh…”

“Doesn’t need anyone else to believe,” Bell sighed.

Galen nodded.

“So, you think that if she knew anyone else was looking, she would lose herself again like she did at the beginning?” Bell asked.

Galen turned and looked Bell in the eye.

“I think that if we give her even a string of hope outside her own, she’ll hang herself with it,” he said.

Bell took a deep breath, turned away, and nodded.

“You’re probably right,” she said quietly. “I guess I’d rather see her once or twice a year and have her hate me a little than risk losing her all together.”

“I’m sorry,” Galen whispered, taking Bell’s hand. “Maybe I shouldn’t have told you about Myka and Alice. It’s not fair to ask you to keep that from your best friend.”

Bell looked back at him with a smile.

“Hey,” she said, “I’ve kept a lot of secrets in my life, some I shouldn’t have, and some I wish I had held longer. But this one I can handle.”

“Thank you,” he said, kissing her hand.

“Of course,” she smiled. “But that still leaves the question, how will you get Ash to come home?”

After thinking about it for a long time, Galen decided it would be best to be as honest as he could. Once she was in Summer and they could talk face to face, he might be able to explain the need for him to become Alpha. She might even understand.

So, he sent her a simple message that he knew she wouldn’t be able to ignore.

[We need to talk in person, come home… it concerns Caleb.]

A few hours later, he received a message back.

[Need to wrap up an assignment. I will be there in four days.]

***

Galen waited patiently for the four days to pass. He did his best to make the preparations without drawing too much attention to himself. He had no intention of making any announcements until after he spoke with Ashleigh.

But just because he wasn’t talking didn’t mean the wolves of Summer weren’t.

Unfortunately, the rumors and suspicions that were being passed around were getting crazier by the day.

Rumors that Galen and Fiona no longer saw eye to eye. That she avoided him in order to make secret dealings of her own.

There were talks of plans for Broken Crag to absorb Summer into their pack and stories of Fiona having made a deal with Landon to be his Luna in name to gain his wolves for a fight against Galen.

Rumors spread that Galen was pushing Fiona out, trying to force her into a marriage with Landon so he could take over Summer without a fight.

Still, other stories talked about how Ashleigh had wanted to lead Summer, but Fiona wouldn’t let her. Galen had sent Ashleigh out of the territories to keep her from fully becoming Luna as she would have done had she been allowed to stay.

While Galen waited for those four days to pass, the wolves noticed his change in demeanor. His restless movements and hushed actions. They also saw the way Fiona had changed. She was quiet, withdrawn, barely leaving her room. Each of these changes only served as evidence that the stories they heard were true.

On the fourth day, as Galen expected to hear word of Ashleigh’s arrival, a surprise visit from a familiar face sent ripples of nervous energy through the pack.