#Chapter 72: Central Point

Ruby As the five of us shuffled to fill in the seats between the bears and the head of the table, I whispered urgently to Caleb, “You should be at the head of the table. You are the heir to the lycan throne.” “You are the one who found Rachel and introduced her to Vic,” he whispered back. “You are the one who orchestrated the allegiance between me and Vic. You are the one they trust—use that.” I settled in, altogether flustered, at the head of the table as requested. Daniel and Caleb flanked me, while Rachel and Vic took spots across from each other next to Frederik and Gaul respectively. Meaning I was the farthest from Eir and Cassius, the two I was meant to win over. No pressure. “You claimed upon your arrival,” Cassius said, diving right in without even asking us our names, “that you were here to negotiate an alliance with us. We were already allied with Lucas, though Vic tells us he manipulated us and we should no longer trust him. What makes you different?” It was a