LUCIAN

I refused to let myself be bothered by the way the pack meeting was unfolding.

I had come here expecting a straightforward process: the elders would ask if anyone wanted to challenge my right to lead - there would be silence, and then they would move on to the next phase of the meeting.

Instead, things had taken an unexpected turn. Not that it mattered.

People had a right to voice their opinions; I had the right to decide they were irrelevant. At the end of the day, I was still in charge. Nothing anyone said or did could change that.

It was simple, really. I was next in...