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“What do you mean, ‘petition for him?’ ”

“You have to prove yourself worthy. There’ll be some kind of test.”

“Like multiple choice, essay, what?”

“I don’t know yet. We’re . . . voting on it.”

“Fuck, Richard, there’s a reason why we have a representative democracy in this country, not a pure one. Pure one person, one vote, just doesn’t work well. You can’t decide anything that way.”

“They’re deciding, Anita. You’re just not liking the way it’s going.”

“How could you take Gregory? How could you do that?”

“As soon as I realized what had happened, I knew that the pack would vote you out. Most of them weren’t happy with you even before. You weren’t pack, and they didn’t like that. The fact that you’ve avoided them—all of them—for six months didn’t help.”

“I had to get my shit together before I could come back, Richard.”

“And while you were getting your shit together, mine was falling apart.”

“I’m sorry, Richard, I am. But I didn’t know.”

“Tomorrow night at the lupanar, about an hour after dark. You can bring all your wereleopards and any other shapeshifters that are your allies. If it were me, as Ulfric, I’d bring the wererats.”

“I’m not lupa anymore, so they aren’t my allies, are they?”

“No,” he said, and the anger was gone again. Richard never could hold a grudge for long.

“What happens if I don’t win Gregory back?”

He didn’t answer me, just the sound of his breathing on the phone. “Richard, what happens to Gregory?”

“He’ll be judged by the pack.”

“And?”

“If he’s convicted of killing our lupa, it’s a death sentence.”

“But I’m right here, Richard. I’m not dead. You can’t kill Gregory for killing me, when he didn’t do it.”

“I delayed the judgment until you were well enough to attend. It was the best I could do.”

“You know, Richard, sometimes it’s good to be king. A king gets to pardon whomever he wants, a king gets to fuck whomever he wants.”

“I know that.”

“Then be king, Richard, really be king. Be their Ulfric, not their president.”

“I’m doing what I think best for them all.”

“Richard, you can’t do this.”

“It’s already done.”

“Richard, if I fail your little test, I will not let you execute Gregory. Do you understand me?”

“You won’t be allowed to bring guns into the lupanar, just knives.” His voice had gone very careful.

“I remember the rule. But Richard, are you listening to me? Are you understanding me?”

“If we try to execute Gregory tomorrow night, you’ll fight us, I understand. But understand this, Anita, your leopards are no match for us, not even with Micah and his pard. We outnumber you five to one, maybe more.”

“It doesn’t matter, Richard. I can’t stand by and watch Gregory die, not for something stupid like this.”

“Will you try to save one of your cats and risk losing them all? Do you really want to see what would happen if they tried to fight their way out of the lupanar, through the pack? I wouldn’t want to see it.”

“This is . . . damn it, Richard, don’t put me in a corner, you won’t like it.”

“Is that a threat?”

“Richard . . .” I had to stop in mid-sentence and count slowly under my breath. But counting to ten wasn’t going to do it, maybe a bijillion. “Richard,” my voice came out calmer, “I will save Gregory, whatever it takes. I will not let the wolves slaughter my leopards, whatever that takes. You lost your temper and took one of my leopards. You made your pack a freaking democracy, where you don’t even have presidential veto. Are you really going to compound the mistakes by starting a war between your pack and my pard?”

“I still think that everyone having a voice is a good idea.”

“It’s a great idea, but it’s not working, is it?” He was quiet again. “Richard, don’t do this.”

“It’s out of my hands. I’m sorry, Anita, you don’t know how sorry.”

“Richard, you won’t really let them execute Gregory. I mean, not really.”

Silence again.

“Richard, talk to me.”

“I’ll do what I can, but I’ve lost the vote on it. I can’t change that.”

“Can you really stand by and watch him die for something he didn’t do?”

“How do you know