Abandoned Treasure
Tough Decisions

Alpha Rori Nygaard’s POV

Arrowhead Pack Hearing Room, Two Harbors, Minnesota

Tuesday, July 28th, 2020

As soon as Sawyer said it was Arrowhead Pack business, every eye in the room turned to me. The pointing and shouting began as sides confronted each other. Luna Rebecca was furious, and it took her guards and Frank Grimes to get her seated again. It took a few moments for Councilman Nemmers to restore order and continue.

“Your Honor, this is preposterous,” Mr. McGroin said. “The warrant was a Council warrant. This is a Council trial. It must be a Council jury deciding the punishment, which means the Alphas have to be here to make that decision!”

“Alpha Nygaard?”

“Technically, this trial was not required at all. My client already confessed his guilt to the Alpha of the Arrowhead Pack. We only went along with this sham because it was easier than fighting the arrest warrant.” There were grumbles from the crowd at that. “Pack Law is clear on this matter. The offense was committed on Arrowhead Pack land against an Arrowhead Pack member. The guilty party is sitting right here, having voluntarily returned to Arrowhead Pack to make his confession. He is a MEMBER of the Arrowhead Pack.”

“Only since last night! The fucking bastard is trying to charm his way out of death!” Pat McGroin couldn’t hold Alpha Martin silent once more.

The judge had Enforcers remove the Adirondack Alpha from the room. “Alpha Nygaard?”

“Thank you, sir. As I was saying, this was an offense on Pack land, against a Pack member by a current Pack member. Jurisdiction for such a trial and punishment lies solely with the Pack Alpha, Rori Nygaard.”

“Objection, Your Honor,” Pat stood. “At the time of the offense, Nathan Storm was a member of the Bitterroot Pack, not the Arrowhead Pack. Since the offense was committed between Packs, it falls under Council jurisdiction. The Council held the trials and the Alphas determined the punishments for everyone else in that raiding party. Why should Nathan be any different?”

“Counselor?”

“He is leaving out the key aspect of the Bitterroot Pack trials. The Council was trying the Alpha AND all of the men he commanded in the raid. You cannot try an Alpha without the Council, because one cannot judge their own guilt. In this case, there is only one man and one judge. Alpha Rori has jurisdiction.”

Councilor Nemmers didn’t seem convinced. “Wouldn’t the guilty verdicts of the Bitterroot Packs necessarily include Warrior Storm? I’m sure he was listed as participating.”

“That is true, Your Honor, but not relevant,” Sawyer responded. “At the time, Nathan Storm was officially deceased. He was never included in the original charges and was not listed as a fugitive. You cannot retroactively add him to that list because you’ve discovered he still lives. There was no arrest warrant for my client, thus the Prosecution sought a new one.”

Mr. McGroin thought fast and raised another objection. “The warrant Mr. Storm is held under was issued prior to his acceptance into the Arrowhead Pack. Since he was a rogue at the time, the Council has jurisdiction.”

“He was a Pack member at the time of arrest and arraignment,” Sawyer countered. “He is confined by Alpha order, not by the Council. Your own actions recognized his loyalties, and you can’t go back on that now for convenience. He must face the punishment determined by his Pack Alpha.”

“How? Alpha Rori didn’t even know Arrowhead existed when the Council trial occurred!”

“She was a birthright Alpha, so it doesn’t matter. The Arrowhead Pack was never dissolved; its properties remained in trust, and the Council looked for survivors. The victim in question was her mother. Of COURSE she must determine the punishment! No other person, including Alpha Martin, has a greater cause of action. She is the closest blood relative to the victim.”

Pat was getting more agitated with each exchange. “The offender was Bitterroot! The Council took over that Pack, so it keeps jurisdiction!”

“And then Bitterroot was dissolved by the same Council, so any claim to jurisdiction is moot. Even if you were to try and resurrect the Pack, Arrowhead has more former Bitterroot members than any other Pack by far. Alpha Rori would still have the strongest claim to their rights in this case.”

The judge looked between the two lawyers. I knew how he felt; there were multiple legal principles here, and it was as clear as the Mississippi what to do. “Can you summarize your argument, Alpha Nygaard?”

Sawyer nodded. “Say one of my warriors visited Adirondack Pack and attacked one of your Pack members, Counselor. You hold him in your cells. Who would have jurisdiction over the trial and punishment?”

“Alpha Martin, of course. Our Pack, our laws.” He’d just cut his own throat legally, and he didn’t know it yet.

“What if he returned to my Pack and I refused to turn him over for trial?”

“Then I would file a charge with the Council, have him arrested, and brought back to Adirondack for trial.”

Sawyer looked like a cat ready to pounce. “Wait, he’s not your Pack member. Would it not be a Council trial?”

“Only for an Alpha, but…”

Yeah. He’d painted himself into a corner.

Given an uncertain situation, Councilman Nemmers chose the logical path and delayed his decision. “Counsel are to provide a short briefing of their positions by the end of the day. And I mean short! One to two pages, written so it can be understood without giving me a headache! I will take this under advisement and render a judgment on Wednesday. Understood?”

“Yes, Your Honor,” both lawyers responded.

“Good. The hearing is over.” He banged the gavel and ended his feed for the videoconference.

“I think you were enjoying this a little too much,” I sent to Sawyer as he put his notes away.

“I’d never be in the courtroom if not for your habit of getting in trouble.”

Luna Rebecca glared at me and stormed out, her Betas careful to stay between us. “I doubt if they’ll be sending us a Christmas card this year,” I whispered to Chase.

“That depends on how you handle this, Rori,” Colletta replied. We remained seated until the room was nearly empty. “I don’t envy the position you’ve put yourself in. No sentence you hand down will satisfy everyone, and your motives will be examined closely. And it’s more than the Packs; the government and the Shifter Board have their own interests in your means of justice.”

“Any advice?”

“Be open and honest with the information you use to inform your decision, then explain it as clearly as possible.”

It was good advice. “And if they are still mad?”

“Go ride your motorcycle and forget about it for a while. Like I said, not everyone will be happy, just like not everyone in your Pack agrees with you taking Nathan in. If Nathan isn’t executed, you’ll have to replace a way to get them all to accept him.”

Made sense. If nothing else, I’d get time on my Harley. “Thanks, Mom.”

“I’m just glad I recused myself from this fun. Nemmers is going to be stuck in legalese hell for a while. I’m glad we’re fishing with the grandkids tonight. You should bring your older kids along.”

Did Mom not know what she’d already committed to? “You’re already full up on the pontoon boat from what I hear. Six in your group, three with Maria, four with Isra. It can only hold fifteen.”

“So? Bring your boat and we can fish together!”

I chuckled. “Your Enforcer guards already asked to use my boat plus two jetskis. Having the Council Chair and all those kids out on the lake is a big security risk. I’ll stay on the beach tonight while you are stuck baiting hooks and removing sunfish from lines.”

“Fine, but before we leave? I want to get in some bass fishing with you.”

“Deal. We should go get lunch, Mom. The afternoon filled up fast.”

No kidding. We tried to get the meeting with the Feds here, but they have a VIP flying in. Instead of going all the way to their Duluth office, we are meeting a plane at the Two Harbors airfield at 12:40. Commander Lindstrom was tight-lipped about who it was, but likely some Washington bigwig.

We returned home and changed into beach clothes, traveling with the nannies and the family down the lake for lunch. The grills at the beach pavilion were full of steaks and chicken, with big pans of peppers and onions on the griddles. Chase was like a kid at Christmas as we walked in. “Philly Cheesesteak day!”

Our cooks were working hard to keep up with demand, as the beach was more crowded than last week. The Steel Brotherhood arrived in force after the Cartel attack on Thursday. Most planned to stay all week before heading to the Sturgis rally August 7th. The official post-rally party at Arrowhead was after Sturgis ended on the 16th. Some members of the Council had lingering doubts about their presence from their practice of separation from humans, but the Nygaard-run Packs loved them. In our minds, the Brotherhood had done more for Arrowhead than the other Packs had.

We ate quickly, as you couldn’t walk around with a Philly like you had a hot dog. The sun was hot, the water was still cool, and our children were having fun under the umbrella. We had to say goodbye too soon, showering and changing before heading out.

Nothing was simple for us after the attack. We left Frank and Chase behind, but still needed a three-SUV convoy for the short trip to the airport. We were directed to a hangar, where FBI Commander Lindstrom was waiting with two agents. I could see four more around the perimeter. The security reinforced how important the VIP inside must be. “Only you two, and no weapons. If you shift, her guards will assume you are a threat,” Irene said as our detail opened the door.

“I can’t shift while pregnant,” I said as handed my driver my silver knives and a pistol.

Mom left her knife. “Guard the vehicles,” she ordered. A female agent patted us down, then Irene escorted us onto the plane inside. My guess was correct. “Madam Attorney General, Miss Turner,” I said after recognizing the women sitting at the conference table.

“Alpha Rori, Chairwoman Grimes. Please, have a seat,” Marisol Guittierez invited. “This meeting never happened, and I was never here.”

That was an interesting start. “You’re concerned about the Tijuana cartel,” I deduced.

“Our concern is if the Tijuana Cartel gains control of Spider Monkey’s talents. Those represent more of a danger to our security and financial system than a drug cartel.” I didn’t say anything, waiting for the explanation. “You have no idea of the shockwaves that went through the international banking system after her hack of Banco Mexico. If a criminal entity were known to have the power to redirect funds? The consequences are severe for the banks AND the economy.”

Mom was angry. “Then take them out like you did the Sinaloa cartel! Crush them now, before they attack us again!”

“It’s not that simple anymore!” Marisol shook her head. “When we took down Sinaloa, we had a unique set of circumstances. Their proxy in the States was starting a bloody war with a biker club, and had compromised dozens of senior Administration officials. We were able to get some cooperation from the Mexican government, but not enough.”

“And now you have none,” Mom finished.

“Yes. Sending a military force into their country without permission was necessary at the time, but it ended any cooperation with the DEA and CIA. We’ve had to withdraw assets, leaving behind a country rife with corruption. The Tijuana Cartel essentially controls the police forces, and the President is unwilling to use military force. It’s the Wild West down there now. If we attack them, the government will fall. We’d have a failed narco-state on our southern border.”

I figured out why she was here. “And that’s where we come in.”

“Yes.” She turned to Paige and nodded.Miss Turner handed Colletta a briefcase that had been at her feet. “This is all the information we have on the Tijuana Cartel. People, assets, locations in Mexico, smuggling routes, everything. We will focus our attention on shutting down their smuggling routes to limit their revenue. We need the Packs to take direct action.”

“You want us to hunt them down in Mexico, and we can’t be a sanctioned Government operation,” Mom answered.

“Exactly. You have the motivation to take them out, and we both know you have the resources to take them down. You will not face any prosecution for any acts undertaken in the United States or Mexico as part of this operation.”

“And we have that in writing?”

Marisol just smiled. “President Kettering wants no written record of anything we discuss. We must have complete deniability.”

I’m sure. “The Packs don’t have assets in Mexico. We’ll need safe houses, vehicles, weapons, and knowledgeable local contacts.”

She handed me a card with a phone number. “Pass along any needs to this number.”

“CIA?”

“An independent contractor in Tijuana we’ve used before. They can arrange anything you need.”

The arrangement sounded great for them, but it sucked for us. We’d take all the risks. “What if we say no?”

Paige answered that. “The Cartel wants Spider Monkey’s talents. They’ve already shown their capacity for violence, and they will keep directing it at your kind until they can force you to turn her over. You must understand how serious we consider this threat to be. We cannot allow her to destroy the banking system. We’d have to take extraordinary measures to limit the damage, and we can’t promise she would survive.”

That wasn’t even a veiled threat. “Anything else for us?”

“Watch over the children,” Paige answered. The thought sent a shiver through me. Our children were our future, and we’d do anything to save them.

We’d even sacrifice ourselves.

The meeting was over. “Thank you for the information,” I said as I stood.

“Remember, this conversation didn’t happen.”

Irene escorted us back to the hangar door, shutting it behind us. Our guards were waiting, and seconds later we were on our way back home.

We had a lot to talk about.