146 Why not just tear off his arms and legs?!

"Lana, Bri, do you know how Sybil and I got into the Winterborn pack?" - Ryan asked, not giving the rest of the party to come to their senses. Brother and sister looked at each other. A confusion reflected on both faces. Lana diligently tried to remember, but only some incoherent passages of memories came to mind. She was still quite a baby back then, and no one really talked about it afterward. Brian frowned and answered first.

"I remember only that the father brought you, but no one explained anything to me. And then when I touched on this topic, you always made such a face that I decided that it was better not to ask. Who cares how you came. The main thing is that you have become part of the family. "

Hearing this, Ryan's face grew a little warmer, and a sad smile appeared on his lips. The hand itself stretched up and dug into the long purple curls, slowly letting them pass through his fingers. Surprisingly, Maddy didn't react to this. All her attention was fixed on the guy's eyes; for some reason, it seemed to her that he was now in pain and this feeling turned everything inside her upside down. Uncertainly, she extended her hand, even not knowing what she wanted to do. But stopped midway and put it back on her knees, clinging to this stupid pink blanket.

Ryan pretended not to notice her movements and continued in a more firm voice.

"As you must have noticed, I am not a common shifter. At one time there were quite a few reptile shifters. Only in this country, there were three large clans. Snakes, lizards, and alligators. But about fifty years ago a group of people, an entire underground organization, appeared. Some of them knew about us, and for some reason, they were sure that we were not just reptiles, but real dragons or their descendants." - Ryan faltered, his eyes flashed with fury for a second. But as soon as he turned his gaze to the alarmed face of the girl on his lap, the anger instantly died, and his eyes became the same bright green color.

"This group started hunting us. And they did it so vigorously, that in ten years almost destroyed all three clans." - He finally continued a little quieter, proceeding to pat Maddy on the head, as if it gave him strength. The girl did not resist, on the contrary, even slightly inclined her head to him, exposing her purple curls to his fingers. Ryan smiled gratefully, noticing this and continued.

"I met Sibyl in the lab of these bastards. I got there with my parents, my father was Alpha of the Hockeng clan. Because his Mate became a she-wolf our clan was restless, and the hunters seized this moment, catching or murdering almost everyone. Sybil was part of the Oxy clan, which by then no longer existed. She is the last representative of it as far as I know. My father in the form of Alpha was very similar precisely to what these freaks were looking for. Therefore, he was literally torn to pieces by them. They ripped his skin while he was still alive because they believed that it had unique properties. Mother was on the verge of madness when my dad was finally lucky enough to die. They were a true Mates, and she felt everything father had to go through. She died in a suicidal attempt to help me escape. Therefore, I was left alone. And Sybil was there, supporting and not allowing us to surrender until we were released by the Night Watchers, led by Ian and Veronika. They actually became Watchers only when mom and we went missing. Because of us, they got into it. Veronika was able to leave. But Ian apparently wasn't ..."

Ryan went silent, and the room became unbearably quiet. No one knew what to say.

"But this is not your fault that this Ian has become like this." - Maddy spoke, unable to withstand the oppressive atmosphere, looking the guy in the eyes.

"You don't understand, Maddelin. These experiences, which described in the documents." - Ryan answered, sadly smiling. - "They are almost the same as the hunters used back then. I know for sure. I went through some of them."

"But how so !?" - Cried Brian, looking disbelievingly at his cousin. - "How could father do that? After what you have experienced? How could Sybil participate in this?"

"The human brain is a complicated thing. I do not know how Sibyl was before, but apparently, some of the ideas of these hunters touched something in her. They were looking for an opportunity to make super shifters, dragons for their own needs. They believed that in certain conditions the shifters could become something more. Perhaps even immortal. And Sybil believed it too. She thought we can turn into almost gods. No one wants to experience their own powerlessness. Clan Oxy was the strongest of the three clans but was utterly destroyed in front of a young girl's eyes. Frankly, I can't blame her for wanting to make this world blaze in hellfire." - quietly stated Ryan, looking somewhere off to the side.

As if a sudden gust of wind made those present shiver at these words.

"But these experiments are unacceptable. The council will undoubtedly condemn it. Who would agree for our own kinsmen to become genuine pigs?" - Lana blurred full of indignation. Ryan shrugged indifferently.

"If you look through the papers more attentively, you will understand that the experiments are done on crazy loners. It was also proved by hunters that, under certain conditions, the form of Alpha can be achieved not only by the head of the pack but also by the so-called Berserkers. Violent, insane killers, brought to the brink of madness. I think you can even find one of your friends among the test subjects."

Ryan looked over several sheets and handed one to Lana. The girl paused, in the end, accepting the document. But as soon as her eyes fell on the photograph in the corner, her face turned pale, and the hands shook as she released the paper. The girl swayed, but Greg was right there, hugging Lana around the waist to himself. She leaned her back on his broad chest for support but was still unable to take her eyes off the name in the upper left corner of the document. The inscription "Ralph Bennet" blurred in front of her eyes, causing a strange roar in her head.

"Ian is actually very smart, and many may regard what he is doing rather as a favor to our society. As most of his test subjects were already sentenced to extermination for their crimes. I do not think that everyone in the Council will be so against it. Although such news will still become a certain obstacle if it becomes known before the selection of a new Head of Council." - meanwhile continued Ryan.

"Then what do we do now?" - Asked Risa, anxiously looking at Brian. - "Was it all in vain ?! And what, we now just have to wait until the Watchers come to us or hide until the end of life?"

"What if I challenge him?" - Suggested by Brian, stepping forward. Ryan snorted and shook his head.

"You are of course cool and all, buddy. But you have particularly no combat experience, while your father has been training and participating in operations of the Watchers since you barely started learning to walk. Plus I do not see much point in this. Yes, you can take a pack from him. But Watchers will still be on his side."

"Then maybe you can offer something since you are so smart?" - roared Brian, enraged by the smug face of a friend.

"In fact, I can." - Ryan responded calmly as if waiting for this question. - "We just need to take away the Watchers from him. That's all."

Everyone looked at the guy as at the demented. Even Maddy pulled back to check if he was joking. But his expression seemed quite serious.

"Ryan, buddy, I understand that you're upset now. But let's think logical." - Brian drawled as if persuading the child. - "We can't just go and take the Night Watchers from him. This is not a toy. This is a goddamn huge secret organization full of crazy killer shifters!"

On the last words, little hysterical notes began to appear in his voice, so Rice even had to stroke the big guy on the back to calm him down.

"I do not understand why you are getting so excited." - Ryan shrugged not even looking at his cousin. All his attention was now absorbed by Maddy's locks, which he wound slowly on his index finger, and then as gently unwound, admiring how the curls shimmer in the light.

Brian's eye started twitching, and his face became pale from anger. Maddy at this moment was musing over what she enjoyed more now, how quickly Ryan could infuriate his cousin into this state or what he was doing with her hair. Something was really wrong with her ...

" Are you sure, you have no raccoons relatives?" - she whispered in his ear, making the guy burst out laughing.

" I'll tell you his story another time." - he whispered back and turned to Brian that was almost on the brink of a violent strike.

"It is very simple." - He continued, ignoring snarling coming from his cousin's side. - "Ian is not the official head of the Watchers. He controls them because the official leader, Brandon Bork is his devoted minion. Ian does not even take part in the competition. And this means that one of us only has to take the place of the official Head of the Watchers. Besides, the competition will take place tonight. How lucky!"

"And who do you think is capable of this? Your girlfriend, of course, is very majestic while swinging the crutch, but I need to remind you that only the Watchers take part in the contest." - Related Brian sarcastically.

"My girlfriend does a lot of things majestically!" - Ryan purred and immediately got hit by Maddy on the back of his head.

"I'm not your girlfriend!" - She snapped, causing a fit of wild laughter from Brian.

"What are you laughing at ?!" - Maddy snarled turning to the merry guy.

" For now..." - Ryan spoke under his breath and interrupting the new outrage from the girl quickly fished out some card from his pocket, showing it to those around him.

"Where did you get that?" -Brian asked, pulling the card from his cousin's hands.

"Well, you know everyone has their own way to deal with stress. While you locked in yourself in a manor, sorting out your socks by colors, I went a little wild." - Ryan replied, again stretching his hand to Maddy's hair, but this time the girl slapped it off and threateningly narrowed her eyes, making it clear that the games were over. The guy grinned wider and tried to get to her with his other hand, which she immediately threw aside.

In the meantime, the others exchanged glances between themselves, and then the eyes of everyone fixed again on a guy who was so passionately teasing a girl like a little kitten, that even his tail started to participate in a play.

"Can you really do this?" - Brian finally asked uncertainly, voicing everyone's doubt.

"Piece of cake." - Ryan replied carelessly, never taking his eyes off the frustrated and disheveled girl who was practically smoking with anger. - "You capture Winter Corp., Veronika - the pack, and I'll take over Watchers. If we cannot defeat the enemy directly, why not just tear off his arms and legs?!"

"What about us?" - Greg asked, stepping closer with a determined expression.

" And you will do what you proved to do best." - Ryan answered, smirking. "You'll be a bait, distracting Ian's attention, of course!"