"You have balls for coming back here, Alexander. After what you did, if you think we would accept you into the community with open arms and pat your back like the father of a prodigal son, then you are mistaken. This community has no room for the likes of you who would stab their neighbor on the back when they are not looking."
The words of Grandmother Deborah echoed, spreading through the stone room until they dwindled away to nothing. Alex was not looking at her. He couldn't. Not after what he had done. Deborah was not only feared for the authority she possesses in the council but also the way she makes threats. They were rarely never empty threats. It was best to keep quiet whenever she was speaking. Trying to argue with her was like disturbing a sleeping lion and hoping not to wake it. She was a heating machine, and it would be faulty to calm her by becoming hot as well.
