Xander's Mate

by Abigail Raines

  “Listen, Mason,” I say, sighing. “I’m not gonna make you take it on if it’s something you really don’t want to do.”

  “It’s not that,” Mason says quickly. “I’m up for the challenge, I think it might be...interesting. Just surprised you’re asking me,” he says, chuckling. “But if you need me, I’m there.”

  “I definitely need you.”

  “Then I’m there,” he says, shrugging as if it’s no big deal taking over a multi-billion dollar aerospace company. I have complete faith in him though. He’s been there since the beginning. He’s also well liked by the shareholders which is a huge factor. I think he’s going to help even things out after this chaotic period.

  “Then we’ll announce it tomorrow at the board meeting,” I say, plopping down in the chair behind my father’s desk. I point to Aaron and Micah. “Next, I need you two to make the rounds and find out who’s really on our side. We need foot soldiers and we need them now. A defence of the estate all around the woods and in front. And they need to get here in the next three days, the sooner the better.”

  Aaron exchanged a look with Micah and says, “We’ll leave tonight.”

  “Going to need someone to clean up in the woods,” I say, rubbing my eyes. “There are too many places for enemies to hide out there…”

  “We can work on that,” Luna says. She looks to Michelle, Alice, and Olivia who’s standing uncertainly off to the side. “Write a list. We’ll handle securing the estate. I have to think our resident witch here has some tricks up her sleeve.” She smiles warmly at Olivia and I feel so grateful I have to stifle the sappy smile creeping up on my face.

  “I absolutely do,” Olivia says, giving her a wink.

  “I’ll do what I always do,” my mother says. She’s leaning against a bookcase with Trevor in her arms, swaying side to side. “Feed your army.”

  “Thanks, mom,” I say. As if hearing her, my stomach grumbles but I don’t think anyone heard it. The one thing I’ve forgotten to do today is eat. Can’t forget those simple things. Besides which, I’m a nightmare when my blood sugar is low.

  “What about battle strategies?” Aaron says. “I mean I can help you when I get back with Micah and Mason when he’s not at work but you should have something set in stone sooner rather than later.”

  I smile at my dad and say, “That’s what the old man here is for.”

  Everyone looks sort of surprised by that, as little as my dad has been involved. But I’d be a fool not to take advantage of his knowledge. He’s fought in plenty of battles himself even if they were a long time ago.

  “So first things will be Mason taking over,” I say, sighing. “Get that in line… But also…”

  I glance over at Olivia. She tilts her head, looking at me in question. Her riot of red hair is tied back now and her face is so open as she blinks at me, waiting patiently for whatever’s next. My lovely mate.

  “Olivia is my mate,” I say simply, my eyes still on her. Everyone titters slightly but I don’t hear a shocked gasp. I guess everybody saw this coming. “I regret not confirming that the other day, but it’s true. I have no doubt in mind. And I know she’s human and that this flies in the face of…” I shake my head. “Centuries of this code of ours but… I know what the fates are telling me and she knows too…”

  “I do,” Olivia says softly, and it sounds so much like a wedding vow, I shiver.

  “I need to know if any of you are going to have a problem with that,” I say carefully.

  “No, son,” my father says, sighing. “We’ve talked about it. A lot. But I think we all know, from what we’ve seen and heard, Olivia is the woman for you.” My father actually smiles at Olivia and that does make me gasp just a little. “The mate for you. It’s surprising, yes. But given all the surprises this family has met with when my sons found their mates…” He grins at everyone and everyone kind of chuckles and looks pleased if put on the spot. “This does feel...like fate. And fate is a funny thing. But we won’t stand in your way, son.” He nods to Olivia and says, “Welcome to the Tremblays.”

  I feel so relieved at those words, I’m dizzy with it and Olivia’s eyes are watery when I look at her. But I only nod firmly before I go on.

  “Things are changing,” I say sternly, looking around at my brothers and their mates. “You all knew that before I did. Michelle, Luna, Alice… You’ve all been catalysts for a new age of what it means to be a shifter and be in a pack and have a mate. This war, this battle...it’s about who gets to decide how we change and how we grow. What the future will look like. I know what the vision of Didion and Hardwidge looks like. It’s ugly, brutal, prejudice. I want your vision,” I say, looking at the women who have changed my family’s lives. “I want your vision to become our vision. That’s our fight.”

  “That’s wonderful to hear from you, Xander, “Alice says, beaming up at me. Of any of us, I believe she’s the one most driven to inspire changes for shifters and I think they’re positive changes. Some of the alphas and elders have been resistant but that only means I need to support her cause in writing new rules for how mates and pups are treated within packs. The old fashioned types think that’s some kind of infringement on their freedom. But people like Alice know, it’s an expansion of their freedom.

  “This isn’t going to be easy,” I say, laughing. “Because none of this ends with this war. It’s going to go on and sometimes it’s going to be messy but it’s the future we’re securing for not just this family but all the other pack’s families. And...I’m grateful that I have you all beside me to help me fight for it.”

  By the time I’m done with my little speech, everyone’s near tears and my mother insists on a round of hugs that don’t seem very war-like but which we probably all need.

  There’s no time to waste really. We need to swing into action. Micah and Aaron need to go start making their rounds to people and Mason and I need to call a meeting of the board.

  “Nobody’s going anywhere,” my mother says, smirking, when I imply that everything needs to begin right exactly now. “Not until you all get some food in your stomachs. Don’t think I missed that stomach grumble, Xander Tremblay.”

  I turn red at that and I hear Olivia chuckle behind me before my mother floats over to her and takes her arm. “And you, my dear, what’s your favorite thing for dinner? We’re always taking requests. Also, you haven’t seen the rose garden!”

  “Mom!” I say, throwing up my hands. “We don’t have time for the rose garden. We’re at war!”

  Chapter Fifteen: Olivia

  I’ve made magical wards before. They’re sort of like magical, invisible force fields. They can’t completely repel anybody but they can repulse. They’re mainly for a medium level of protection of a house and if your enemy has a decent warlock or witch they’ll sniff it out quickly even if it takes them a while to break it. The advantage is in the other side having to break it. That can take anywhere from twenty minutes to six hours depending on the strength of the ward and the strength of enemy. And that precious time can be spent plotting the defence or offense.

  I’m surprised and pleased to discover there’s not much awkwardness in getting to know Michelle and Luna and Alice. They’re all so welcoming.

  “I’ve been exactly where you’ve been,” Michelle says, laughing as she takes my arm. “We all have. This place can be so intimidating.” Alice and Luna glance at each other and start laughing because, I suppose, they’re all in agreement.

  “I mean, we’re both shifters,” Luna says, motioning to her and Alice as we climb down the stairs. “And it was still terrifying to walk through the doors of the Tremblay estate. Considering where we come from.”

  “They’ve only been welcoming to us,” Luna says. “Despite our pasts, where we come from. None of that matters.”

  We’re all heading down to the cellar because though none of the Tremblays are witches or warlocks, they’ve apparently got a nice stock of spell supplies down there for projects they’ve hired witc
hes to do for them. Mrs. Tremblay tells me that wards have definitely been cast before, just not for a few years. I’m hoping that means they’ll already have all the supplies I’ll need though if not, I’ll just make a run to the magic shop in town.

  I get to know the mates while we’re gathering the supplies together. Nothing is organized in the cellar of the Tremblay estate. There’s a lot of dusty old furniture and a lot of boxes and a ton of wine. The wine is organized, but not the magic supplies which are scattered around a few different shelves in a dark corner. The place is so stately and grand, I can’t help but be a little surprised by how...normal the cellar is. It’s almost like anyone else’s fancy cellar except for how big and old the furniture is and how much expensive wine is sitting around on shelves.

  I reference all the ingredients I’ll need for my ward brews. I’ve got everything on an iPad and I scroll down the list as Michelle and Luna and Alice blow the dust off boxes and unpack jars and vials.

  Suddenly Michelle gasps and we all come running over in the dim light of the low ceilinged basement. “What’s the matter?” I say.

  “Pictures,” Michelle says softly. She’s opened a shoe box and we all crowd to see a messy pile of photographs of the boys as kids. In some of them, a couple of the boys are shifted while the other ones are human.

  “Oh my God, Xander…” Michelle holds up a picture of Xander hugging a small gray wolf as little Aaron and Micah are sprawled on the grass, wrestling and laughing. “And the wolf must be Mason?”

  “Yeah,” Alice says fondly. “That’s his coloring.”

  We let ourselves waste just a few minutes looking at the old pictures and then we hunker down and get back to work. But I see Alice smiling to herself as she carefully sets the shoebox aside so we can easily find it later. We dig out all the ingredients and then we get to brewing. None of the other women are witches or anything but they don’t need to be. The brew just needs my magic to work and their chanting will amplify the power of the wards if they help me out.

  Mrs. Tremblay seems fascinated by it as all as I make up the brew in the kitchen. It’s got a seemingly endless list of ingredients, some of which need to be prepared themselves first. Then there’s the brew and then we have to circle the entire estate, spilling the brew here and there as we chant. Then there’s a separate brew for the interior and a different one for the forest. The forest we’re doing last after we patrol it and clean it up a bit so that interlopers can’t so easily find places to hide. Mrs. Tremblay puts the entire estate staff on the job. That’s after she gives them the score; the Tremblays are at war. She asks them if they want to fight, it’s not a demand. She assures them they can all go home until it’s over and no one would think less of them. But of course, in the end, they all stay. I think it attests to the loyalty the Tremblays tend to inspire.

  Everyone’s moved into the estate now. That was Xander’s mandate though I think everyone feels safer here together. The luxury of the place is overwhelming. I haven’t had much chance to enjoy it with everything going on but it’s hardly what I’m used to. My father’s place was nice but most of the time I was in a little bedroom built off his lab. I sometimes went into the main house but not as often as a regular kid would. And after that, I was a scrappy little urchin, trying to get by before the coven took me. I’ve never even seen a place like the Tremblay estate. I certainly never imagined I’d be hooked up with the place’s heir and helping strategize its defence in a war.

  Life is...weird.

  Everything feels very rushed for a couple of days. We don’t know when Didion and his people will strike and we still don’t know where they are though Xander has put out feelers. That’s before he goes to the board meeting with Mason and announces that he’s handing over the reigns as CEO to his brother. I had a queasy feeling about that but then I’ve been at the company for such a short time. From all the research I initially did on the company, I knew Mason had good relationships there. But I’m still a little surprised at the response. People take it very well. Xander tells them he’s “exploring new opportunities” and taking a break from such heavy executive responsibilities. Everyone seems pretty understanding though I suppose they’re looking at it as the calm after a storm. But his stock price evened out and the shareholders seem much less panicked so that’s good.

  Mason gives a nice speech and when asked if anything has changed on the suspension of the Godrun drone, he very diplomatically says that he will respect the last decision that his brother made for the company. Then he starts talking about the conversation between the company and Chile and the cleaning up of the mines. Then everybody toasts. I can’t believe how relieved Xander seems afterwards. I’m glad for him. That means it was the right decision. If it wasn’t, I know he’d be even more on edge.

  The evening after the board meeting, when we return to the estate, is not so happy.

  There’s a message waiting for us at the front gates of the estate.

  It’s a wolf’s head nailed to the stone pillar on one side of the iron gates in front of the mansion. I don’t see it at first. I’m texting Alice on my phone as we all drive back in Mason’s car and then I hear Xander hiss and mutter curses under his breath. He practically leaps from the car, almost before Mason comes to a stop.

  “Shit,” is all Mason says.

  We all get out and that’s when I see it; a big brown wolf’s head all gory and bloody and hanging by a rope nailed right into the stone, making an angry hole. The wolf’s head hangs open, its tongue lolling out.

  Mason says, “That’s...that’s...blasphemous.”

  “But they’re wolves too,” I say, feeling confused as to the message of the whole thing.

  “Exactly,” Xander says darkly. “You never kill your own kind of species as a shifter. To do so sends the strongest kind of message. It’s supposed to be blasphemous.” He grimaces as he reaches up to unhook the rope and I see the disturbed expression on his face as he carries the wolf’s head through the now open gates through which I see an ocean of unfamiliar cars parked. “Looks like we got our soldiers!” Xander says over his shoulder. “Park the car, Mason. It’s time to bunker down.”

  There’s a balcony on the east side of the Tremblay mansion. There are actually five balconies but this one faces east. Xander and his father says when they come, they’ll come from the east and from the woods. The estate is crowded now. And there are shifters everywhere outside, mainly out front and out in the woods here and there beyond it. It’s a good thing the estate is pretty far from any neighbors because the place is lousy with wolves.

  Inside, things feel pretty tense. Took us another day to get completely ready and after that it was just waiting but there has been a feeling all day as if they are coming. They meaning, my father for one. I’m hoping I don’t actually see him.

  When Xander insisted I go with Mrs. Tremblay, Michelle and Trevor to a hidden room underneath the wine cellar where we would be safest, I didn’t want to agree to it. Just because I couldn’t shift, didn’t mean I couldn’t fight. I was actually a little bit offended. I’m a witch after all. I was thinking I could brew up some hexes to have at the ready if anyone came at me if nothing else. But then I see the look in Xander’s eyes when he pleads with me. It’s a shifter thing and it might be an alpha thing. Alice and Luna can shift. Xander’s mom, Michelle, and I cannot. That doesn’t mean it’s our war, but it does mean that Xander and Aaron and Xander’s father would drive themselves nearly mad with worry if we were out there. There was already a little scuffle between Alice and Luna and their boys. Micah and Mason tried to stop them from joining the fight. But they didn’t have a single wolf leg to stand on on that front. Not with two women raised in the Hardwidge pack. From what I’ve heard so far, they can be pretty brutal when they want to be.

  “You feel helpless,” Mrs. Tremblay says to Michelle and I. Michelle’s got Trevor in her arms and he’s fast asleep. They’ve made the hidden room in the cellar comfy for us with a couch and plenty of supplies. The
re’s even cable TV. Not that we’re watching. There is, blessedly, cell reception and Wi-Fi. “I know how you feel. I know it well. But you’re not.”

  “Sure feels like it,” I say under my breath, but I smile at Mrs. Tremblay to let her know I’m not angry. I’m just not used to ever being side-lined from a fight. I’m a witch and I’m an activist. I jump in and act whenever I feel like a fight needs to be had. It was only the assurance that Xander would be distracted if he thought I was in danger that’s keeping me down here.

  “Now how are you two helpless?” Mrs. Tremblay says, laughing. She’s sitting in an easy chair behind the sofa. She turns the TV on but leaves it on mute, absently flipping around. “You too did the bulk of securing this place. I fed everyone. They’d be lost without us.”

  That makes me smile to myself. I do think Xander would be a little lost without me. Or anyway, he might still be at home with his panic and a bottle of whiskey if I hadn’t given him a pep talk and bolstered him. I love how well we understand each other.

  I tilt my head and squint at Mrs. Tremblay who seems absurdly calm as she rocks forward and back a little in her chair. “Do you...really not mind that I’m human, Mrs. Tremblay? And you don’t think Mr. Tremblay minds?”

  “Oh…” She waves a hand, dismissing the very subject “That was always going to happen someday. Michelle and I are humans too. You can say we have a shifter gene but your father was a shifter, wasn’t he? Hell, you’re more shifter than we are. And those rules needed to be changed a long time ago. You and Xander are right. Times are changing. Just...have to fight this war first.”

  “Yeah.” I swallow and fold my hands in my lap. All we can do now is wait. But I have a feeling, I just have a feeling, that the fight is on its way. “All we can do is wait.”

  Chapter Sixteen: Xander