The whole pack was out to see Ryana punished. They surrounded the circle of stones. Ryana was walked by two guards to the center of the circle. She screamed that the wolves didn't deserve their wealth. Joel and I approached her and stopped about fifty feet from her. We listened to her ranting for little and then Joel called out her crimes to the pack.

Watching Ryana struggle I thought about her. We had been friendly at the clinic. She had been someone I had depended on when I first got there. She knew most of the patients and helped me deal with some of the more eccentric ones. The...