"Does no one take it seriously?"
"They know you don't have it in you," Rhyn said. "You can't be respected without kicking some ass. I learned that lesson when Sasha tossed me in a pit with full-blooded demons and were-things."
"Respect isn't enough for someone in your position," Sasha agreed. "They need to fear you, Kris, and thus far, none of them do."
"Except Katie. Treat them as you did her, and you'll find they fall into line."
Kris looked up at Rhyn's low voice, his gaze lingering. "I don't condone the kind of brute violence you and Sasha do, Rhyn," he said. "I won't use force against my brothers. They'll eventually remember their duty to the Code. Or they'll soon realize the threat affects us all and be back."
Rhyn pushed himself away from the wall. Kris was crushed, and Rhyn wasn't sure how his eldest surviving brother hadn't expected the rest of them to walk away. That Kris could attack his brother's mate but refuse to strong-arm his brothers into fighting demons made his anger boil.
"Keep telling yourself that. The demons are planning something, Kris, and hopingsomeone comes to your rescue is stupid," he returned.
"You're one to talk, Rhyn. I wonder if Katie hopes you'll rescue her every time something happens. You aren't capable of caring for someone else or keeping her safe. But, if you do as Sasha says and break the bond, I will keep her safe, I swear it," Kris said. "She'll be-- "
Rhyn walked out of the room, furious at his brother. It was all he heard anymore, that Katie would be safe and happy only if he wasn't around. He forced himself to focus on something else.
The Council meeting was a bust, and there was more tension in the air than he could understand. For the first time in his life, he felt something akin to pity for Kris. The world needed a man focused on maintaining the balance between good and evil, and none of the brothers had the foresight or vision that Kris did. He was a dick, but Rhyn never wanted to be put in the position Kris was in.
Agitated, he jogged up the stairs to the level where Katie was. He'd paced in front of her chamber at some point every day for three weeks, wanting to tell her something, anything, to make her want to stay. The words never came, and he'd left frustrated each time. Hell toughened him up, yet this was one challenge he couldn't figure out. Despite telling her he wouldn't, he dropped into her thoughts to feel a little closer to her and was surprised to find she was packing to leave.