Chapter 6 Ashes and Accusations

LISA'S POV

The heat scorched my face even from twenty feet away. I stared at the inferno that swallowed the pack house, my father was somewhere inside those flames. Ryan's hand gripped my arm, pulling me back as another section of the roof collapsed inward with a shower of sparks that lit the night sky like dying stars.

"We have to get him out!" I screamed, fighting against Ryan's hold. His arms wrapped around me from behind, restraining me with gentle strength that felt like iron bars. I could feel his heart hammering against my back, and I could smell the fear rolling off him in waves that matched my own. But he didn't let go, even when I clawed at his arms.

Daniel emerged from the smoke like a ghost, his face covered in soot, coughing violently. Blood ran from a cut above his eye where falling debris had caught him. He had tried to go in after our father, tried to be the hero he had never gotten to be as a child. The look on his face told me everything. He had failed.

The pack descended into chaos around us. Warriors formed bucket lines from the nearby stream, throwing water that turned to steam before it touched the flames. Mothers grabbed their children, running toward the forest edge. Someone was screaming about the medical supplies stored in the basement, about pack records going up in smoke. The world burned, and I could only watch.

Elder Catherine's voice cut through the panic, sharp and commanding. "Evacuate the surrounding buildings! Move the children to the safe houses!" She stood tall despite her age, directing traffic with the precision of someone who'd survived worse. Maybe she had. Maybe this was just another tragedy in a long line of pack disasters.

Through the smoke and chaos, I saw her. Sophia stood at the edge of the crowd, perfectly still in a cream-colored dress that didn't have a single smudge of ash on it. She watched the destruction with calm eyes, and when those eyes found mine, she pressed her hand to her heart in a gesture of sympathy that made my skin crawl.

She walked toward us, each step measured and graceful. "Lisa, I'm so sorry." Her voice dripped with concern that sounded rehearsed. "Your father was a great man. The pack will mourn this loss deeply." Present tense. As if she already knew he was dead.

Nathan appeared at my side, his face streaked with tears and ash. He didn't say anything, just pulled me into his arms while Ryan finally released me. I buried my face in Nathan's shoulder and let myself break. Just for a moment. Just long enough to remember how to breathe.

Ryan barked orders at the warriors, his Beta training overriding everything else. He organized teams to search for survivors, teams to contain the fire, and teams to protect the vulnerable buildings. He moved with purpose and authority, and I hated how much I needed that strength right now. I hated how my wolf reached for his, seeking comfort in our broken bond.

The firefighters worked until their hands bled, until the flames finally surrendered to water and will. Dawn crept over the mountains, painting the destruction in shades of gray and black. The pack house stood as a skeleton, its bones exposed and charred. Smoke still rose from the rubble in lazy spirals.

They found the wheelchair where my father had stood on the roof. The metal had melted, twisted into an abstract sculpture of tragedy. But they found no body. No bones. No trace that Alpha Marcus had ever been there at all.

Elder James examined the wreckage with two other elders, their faces grim. "The heat was intense enough," he said, his voice carrying across the silent crowd. "A body could have been completely vaporized. There's precedent for this in major fires."

Daniel moved close enough that only I could hear him. His breath was hot against my ear, his voice rough from smoke inhalation. "Nobody means no death, little sister. Dad's survived worse than fire. The question is, did he jump or was he pushed?"

The words settled in my stomach like stones. My wolf stirred with something between hope and dread, unable to decide which was worse. A father who died or a father who abandoned us again, leaving us to think he was dead.

The sun fully rose, revealing the true extent of the damage. Not just the pack house but three surrounding buildings had burned. Miraculously, no other deaths were reported. Just injuries. Just the complete destruction of our seat of power.

Elder Catherine called an emergency council meeting in the old training hall, the only building large enough to hold the pack leadership. Soot-stained faces filled the benches. The smell of smoke clung to everyone and everything. I sat in the front row between Daniel and Nathan, Ryan standing behind me like a silent guard.

"We face an unprecedented situation," Elder Catherine began. She looked like she had aged ten years overnight. "Our Alpha is gone. Our pack house is destroyed. We're vulnerable in ways we haven't been in generations." She turned to look at me, and I saw something in her eyes I couldn't name. "Lisa Marcus, as the named heir, you have a decision to make."

I stood on shaking legs. Every eye in the hall fixed on me. "What decision?"

"Claim the Alpha position now, or wait for confirmation of your father's death." Elder Catherine's voice was steady, but her hands trembled slightly. "If you claim it now, you rule under a cloud of uncertainty. If you wait, the pack remains leaderless during this crisis."

Before I could open my mouth, before I could even process the impossible choice, Sophia rose gracefully from her seat. She looked perfect despite the early hour, despite the tragedy. Her voice rang clear and strong across the hall.

"I propose a temporary solution." She smiled, gentle and reassuring. "Until Lisa feels ready to assume her father's mantle, until we have confirmation of Alpha Marcus's fate, let me lead the pack. My family has connections, resources, and experience in crisis management. I can stabilize things until proper succession is determined."

The hall erupted in voices, some agreeing, some objecting. But I watched in horror as Elder James nodded. Then Elder Marcus. Then Elder Catherine herself, though she looked conflicted.

"All in favor?" Elder Catherine called.

Three hands rose. Three out of five elders. A majority.

Ryan moved forward, his face dark with fury. "This is irregular. Lisa is the named heir…"

"And she can take her position whenever she's ready," Sophia interrupted smoothly. She turned to me with false sympathy. "No one wants to rush you through your grief, Lisa. Take all the time you need."

It was a trap. A beautiful, perfectly executed trap. If I objected, I looked like a power-hungry daughter who cared more about ruling than mourning. If I accepted, I handed control to the woman who might have murdered my father.

Daniel's hand found mine under the table. He squeezed once, a message in that pressure. Fight.

"I object," I said, my voice stronger than I felt. "My father named me his successor. That doesn't require a waiting period or emotional readiness. It requires…"

The doors burst open with a bang that silenced everyone. A rogue stood there, bloody and barely standing. He wore Daniel's mark tattooed on his arm.

"Attack," he gasped. "Silver Creek warriors. They're coming. Hundreds of them."

Sophia smiled.