The sound of sterling on china was the music that played for the first twenty minutes after we’d all dried our eyes and stopped holding our sides. Conversation was light and not marred by the upcoming events. The ones that my father knew of, thought he knew of, and didn’t have a clue on.
“Joffrey is in town. He’s come by looking for you a couple of times,” my father said.
Joffrey was my old running mate. We’d been pups together, both born werewolves. His parents were old and dear friends of my mother’s. He was wilder than me, but my father liked his family so he’d turned his head on some of the stuff I found myself in the middle of thanks to my best friend. I trained for military life, Joffrey had opted for school. He may have been mischievous and wild, but he was smart as the dickens.
“I’ll call him when the women go shopping,” I said, already excited about seeing him again. “I can’t wait for you to meet Joffrey,” I said turning to Josette.
“I suppose it’s time to get down to business and catch up on the Ulrich’s plan,” Jean Rene said wiping his mouth with the linen napkin before laying it on his plate. Everyone looked at the Lycaon, he looked at Josette.
She squared her shoulders and turned to look my father. Her voice was strong and sure. She didn’t speak in commands but forceful respect. I was proud.
“I’ve challenged Thomas Ronin. He’s accepted the challenge for the day after tomorrow. He’s also invited us to a hunt on the grounds of the estate, giving his oath that all wolves will be given safe harbor....the hunt is tomorrow.”
After two failed phone calls that ended with everyone mad, I waited for the shit to hit the fan. My father took a sip of his coffee, sat the thin china down, crossed his legs and laid his hands in his lap. “Josette we already spoke about this. I think it best that we wait. We risk exposing our people if we continue to draw attention to ourselves with more fighting, especially if that fighting results in death—unexplained death. I know you want to avenge your parents and take being a werewolf very seriously, but you’re young and a new werewolf. Let me worry about Thomas Ronin. I assure you he will get exactly what’s coming to him.”
Eloquently put.
Excellent delivery.
Sooooo not what Josette wanted to hear, what any of us wanted to hear.
“Mr. Dupre I’m not asking permission, looking for an opinion, or an alternate plan. I am telling you what I plan to do. I’ve not asked for your aid or that of your men. We thought that as the father of the Ulric you would like to accompany us when we take back what is rightfully ours.”
I knew she was strong. My wolf recognized it early, the human part of it saw it after Pops’ attack. My father called her young, and she was, but she was made of sturdy stuff, my wife. Somehow the life she’d lived, in her self-imposed exile from the kids her own age and being raised in a house by an older generation, made her older. Everyone called her on her age, but she proved her maturity every time she opened her mouth, with every action to conflict and chaos. She’d been a queen in the making.
“The very fact that you ignore good council is testament of your youth, inexperience and inability to rule. I know my son, and one day he will make a good king, but at nineteen he is hardly prepared to teach you the way of the wolf and take over the responsibilities of ruling a pack of three thousand wolves.”
“And when will he be ready,” Josette asked.
The question flustered my dad. I didn’t know how he didn’t see that one coming.
“Well, I don’t know, he’d have to learn all the laws. He wasn’t groomed to be king, but a foot soldier in the king’s army...I guess...maybe...”
“Twenty…twenty five? Josette asked.
I could feel her power building the angrier she became. I put my hand over the back of her chair and ran my hand up and down her back. I didn’t need her busting out of her clothes at the dining room table, or worse, me busting out of mine.
“How long do you think it will take before you allow me to sit on my throne?”
“You mustn’t think of it that way Josette. You and Maxwell will be part of every decision made in regards to the pack. You will learn to lead by example.”
“And who has this great honor to teach us, to show us how to lead my wolves.”
“Well, me for one. I was your father’s most trusted and loyal friend. I think he would agree and approve of what I’m saying here today.”
“My father is dead and I didn’t know him that long, I cannot say, with all certainty, if he would or would not agree with you. What I am certain of is that my father loved my mother very much. So much he was willing to upset an entire kingdom and a start war between the packs because he stood by his convictions. He did not bend to the will of those more powerful than him. His strong will and unwavering faith in what he believed to be right and true is the reason why I am inclined to disagree with you. I am my own person, rightful heir and true queen to the Black Warrior Clan pack of wolves. They are mine to rule, mine to protect and I will do so without the permission of advisors. No matter how old, wise or well groomed.”
I wished I had a camera. The look on my father’s face was priceless. I saw his anger build with every opening and closing of his mouth. I saw him rein it in because proper people don’t air family business in front of strangers. I sat back in my chair and crossed my legs at the knee. This was fun.
“Now you listen here young lady—”
That was as far as he got.
Josette pushed away from the table. Her chair sliding easy along the hardwood thanks to those little sticky felt pads on the bottom of each leg. She slammed her hands down on the table with enough force that we all were making grabs for falling glassware and stilling clattering china.
“I am Nonakris of the Black Warrior Clan.”
My father stood up, towered over Josette, but if he thought he was about to one-up her, he was sorely mistaken.
“Sit down Mr. Dupre,” Josette growled.
“I—”
“Sit down!”
I heard Wallace say, “Awwww shit,” followed by, “Oww.” I didn’t look to see who hit him. I was too busy watching Josette and my dad.
Josette’s hair bled from dark brown to pure white. I watched as her shirt became tight across her back and the arms stretched until the seams almost burst as the muscles in her arms grew large. She became taller, her torso growing longer, until the hem of her shirt came out of the blue jean shorts she was wearing. I saw the seam of those shorts stretch tighter and tighter until it gave up and ripped, exposing a long length of glorious thigh that I had to fight from touching. I averted my eyes to a less distracting place. Her hands. Each finger grew longer and thicker, and her nails grew into claws. Josette didn’t have three forms. She and endless forms.
My dad more fell down than sat down in his chair.
“I thought you were a reasonable and sensible man. You claimed to have been my father’s trusted and loyal friend but instead of helping me, you try to steal my throne by tying my hands. Enough Mr. Dupre! If you refuse to join in taking back my throne and becoming the advisor and member of the council Max and I plan on making, then you can serve me as a loyal subject or leave the pack.”
“You can’t do that,” my father said. He’d gotten some of his composure back.
Josette may have stunned him a moment with her change, but it was hard to teach an old dog new tricks. Women were not alpha’s, no matter how strong they are. Or at least that had always been my father’s experience with female wolves.
“I can do anything I want Mr. Dupre.” Josette said.
“You will not come in my house and disrespect me. I don’t care who or what you think you are,” he said before turning his attention to me. “Maxwell, you bring these people in my house. I give them food and shelter and they insult me. This is who you marry, a girl who does not know her place?”
Ouch—how old world of him. I didn’t know whether he expected me to club Josette over the head and drag her out of
the room by her hair or lay hands on her and do a little “home correcting,” as the old folks called the more modern spousal abuse.
The temperature around Josette rose about ten good degrees, enough to make the air conditioner kick on. A bead of sweat ran down my temple and my skin started to get that tingly feeling it did when it got ready to change. I looked at Josette and thought about touching her to help calm her down, then thought better of it. I was still stiff from yesterday. My dad was a big boy, he could handle it...I mean her. I guess. Right?
Instead of getting in between my dad and Josette, I focused on holding off the changes Josette’s power was calling. I willed my form to keep its shape. I’d never tried it before. I didn’t know if I could pull it off, but it was worth a shot.
“Is she doing that?” I heard someone say and looked up at Josette, but got an eyeful of my dad. He was changing forms.
Holy shit!
My dad was wide-eyed as he looked down at his clawed hands. His shirt ripped up his arms and the buttons popped off all at once as his chest broadened. He stood up and touched his face. His hair was growing in, covering his cheeks and chin, his eyebrows grew thicker, his nose flattened and his lips became thin and finally his teeth grew until four long sharp canines made it impossible to close his mouth.
I yelled out, “Josette!” at the same moment he took a swing at her. She didn’t move one muscle. He clawed her across her upper chest and my half-form ripped me right out of my clothes. Did not stop, did not collect two hundred dollars. I was out of my chair, a seven and a half foot demon straight from the gates of hell. Totally and completely ready to kill my father for laying hands on my wife, my mate. Josette didn’t look around, just held out her hand to stop me from clawing my own father’s throat out. He took another swipe at her but she blocked it with the hand that wasn’t blocking me and then clawed my father across the face with enough force that he fell to the floor.
“You have attacked your queen, an offense punishable by death, a sentence that I will stay only because you are my Ulric’s father. You are, now and forevermore, banned from my pack and exiled from our lands. You have until the end of challenge to leave this house.” Josette glared at my dad. If he was going to say something it was lost in the scream as she pushed him over that final ledge and turned him into his full wolf form.
Every one jumped up from the table. A cacophony of sounds exploded in the room. Thomas threw his wife behind him, held out his arms wide. Diana was in her half form, her hair the same color as Josette’s, her hands claws. Jean Rene’s fine suit hung off his body in tattered ribbons. The gun that Victoria wore beneath her clothes was pulled and aimed at my father. Constantine had a long thin sword. Where the hell had that come from? Wallace was in the wrestling man’s pose, it looked a lot like the knife wielding one: legs spread apart, knees bent, arms out and bent at the elbow. He looked ready to catch my father if he lunged.
And Rob?
Well, Rob was Rob. He’d stood up with the rest of us, but he was standing there with his arms at his sides, looking as if we all had stood because a lady had. Looks can’t kill, but they can scare the bejesus out of you. It wasn’t threatening, it was quite the opposite, almost pleasant, which made it that more disturbing.
It didn’t matter, Josette had it covered. She walked over to my father, me hot on her heels. She stood before him in all her six foot glory.
“I am the mother of all wolves. You are my wolf to command, you will obey me in all things,” she said and pointed to the floor. My dad didn’t fight it. He didn’t growl or snarl, or lunge for her. He laid his ass down.
What Josette had done was so unbelievable that there were no words, so we didn’t talk about it. I walked her to my room and asked her if she was okay. When she nodded I kissed her and then made love to her because angry, commanding, wolf queen Josette was hot. My dad was taken to the basement and put in a moon room and locked in tight until he changed back. Marilyn was inconsolable. Lillian tried calming her down and in the end, gave her a valium. She was asleep in her room. The women were going shopping as planned. The men were going with them. I was going to Joffrey’s. He hadn’t brought his car back with him and both his parents were out running errands, leaving him with no wheels. I was bringing him back to the house to meet everyone and was going to ask him to join me and Josette as the captain of our guard. After being around the Lycaon and Nonakris I wanted what they had.
Family.
A group of people that always had your back, who didn’t mind getting dirty when the shit hit the fan; who followed you with blind loyalty because they trusted you implicitly to make the right decision, but who also made you laugh when you wanted to cry. Brightened your day even when your night was filled with death, who loved you because the blood you shared wasn’t flowing in your veins but shed in battle. That’s what I saw when I looked at the European group and I wanted me some of that. When I told Josette she cried. Said it was one of the most beautiful things she’d heard. She’d kissed me long and hard and deep enough for me to growl and then she slapped my hands away when they tried to get into her pants. I waved goodbye to her as she pulled off with the others and whistled while I walked to my dad’s car. Wallace had claimed temporary ownership of the Hummer.
I slid behind the wheel of my dad’s fully loaded Mercedes G-Class and the gravel crunching beneath the wheels didn’t sound like impending doom. I honked the horn when I caught sight of a few of the five wolves left behind on the property. The white and grey wolves were with Diana and Jean Rene. They were dressed as service dogs; little yellow and black vest and all. I laughed just thinking about it.
Lupa (Second Edition) Page 31
