Nine Souls

by Shayne Silvers

  Paradise stepped up closer, holding out an elbow for Ashley to acknowledge, rather than grabbing the wolf queen unasked. Smart. Ashley stared at the offer for a moment before linking her arm and letting Paradise lead her away to a side room. “I hope you don’t mind showing off a little skin…” she said, eyes mischievous.

  “This might be the most fun I’ve ever had at a wedding,” Lost chimed in sweetly, stepping up to Ashley’s other side. “I’ve heard of trashing the dress afterwards, but that was hardcore. Mind if I copy your idea? Some day?”

  Ashley turned a bewildered look from one to the other. Then she slowly bared her teeth. Lost grinned, so apparently Ashley’s gesture wasn’t a warning. It was hard to tell, being a human observer. The smallest thing could rile a wolf, and then what I would consider an obvious threat or challenge would elicit nothing more than a laugh. Or it was just their mysterious womanly ways. I shrugged. Greater minds than mine had cracked their teeth on that chestnut.

  Roland followed behind the three wolves, speaking softly with Callie. They shot me one last look and I nodded at them, a silent command to guard Ashley with their lives.

  Because maybe Zeus had lied about attending the wedding alone.

  I turned to find Gunnar staring out the glass window behind the altar. The labyrinth stretched outside in the distance, the sun bathing it in an orange glow. Gunnar remained in his wolf form.

  “Congratulations,” I said, stepping up beside him.

  His shoulders tensed at my voice. He was breathing heavily, eye distant.

  “No one died,” I noted.

  He grunted. “Pity…”

  I sighed, nodding my agreement. “How do you want to play it? Not that you need help, but if I can do anything…” I said this carefully. Because he was still in wolf form, and not as rational.

  Understatement. He was a breath away from murder.

  I didn’t want him thinking I was telling him he needed my help. He didn’t. I hoped. I was sure any help I offered would only make things worse. He would lose face with his wolves. Or some other political shit would happen. I didn’t know much about werewolf politics, and Gunnar had never been a political schemer, so perhaps he didn’t know either. Hence, the silence right now.

  “No.”

  Expected, but the stubborn, stupid part of me wanted to press him. I didn’t, but I wanted to. “Okay. What about my first question. How do you want to play this?”

  The room was silent for a good minute. “We were supposed to go on our honeymoon tomorrow…” he said, voice shaking. Not with fear, but trying to hold back the river of fury now coursing through his veins. Zeus’ challenge had tarnished his single moment of joy – the most important day of his life.

  “Probably intentional,” I offered in a soft tone.

  He snarled at the window, claws flashing out. “I will rip the hide from his bones.”

  I waited for him to take a figurative step back from the ledge he was perched on. “Solid plan. What about his pack, though? What happens after?”

  Gunnar was silent for a few moments. Then he turned to face me, and the pain I saw in his eye almost made me change my mind about killing Zeus myself. Gunnar was barely holding himself together.

  This one day – his wedding day – had been taken from him.

  And he wanted the world to hear his thoughts on the matter. To share his feelings about that.

  His pack had been threatened.

  He had been threatened.

  The very first words Ashley had heard as his new wife had been a threat from another wolf.

  His wedding ceremony had been stained.

  And Gunnar seemed intent to repaint that memory with a healthy coat of fresh blood.

  “You’ll take care of it.” I waited a few seconds. “Mind explaining these rules to me?” I pressed casually, showing no doubt in his capacity and capability to slaughter the other Alpha.

  Gunnar nodded slowly. “I’ve learned bits and pieces from some of my pack – those who’ve lived under other Alphas in other cities. When a lone wolf wants to challenge an Alpha – like I did to win St. Louis – he can do so as long as there are other witnesses to the fact. To make sure it’s fair. But when two Alphas have a pack – and mates – things must be handled differently. More… officially. That’s why he waited until the ceremony was over.”

  My eyes widened briefly. Wow. That… was unbelievable. The prick had waited until Gunnar was married for a reason other than just being a dick? He really had been playing politics.

  “What’s different?”

  “Spoils of war,” Gunnar responded in a dry tone. “Terms. The pack merging together after. The fact that the packs need to hear the terms and then choose a side before the challenge.”

  I blinked. “You mean…”

  Gunnar nodded. “Yes. My pack could choose to merge with his to prevent the fight, essentially neutering me. I could still fight, but what would be the point? My pack would have declared their preference – not me – so even if I won I would likely have to kill them. All.”

  I shook my head. “They would never do that.” Gunnar didn’t look as convinced. My mind raced. “This means you have the chance to win his wolves to your side…”

  Gunnar shrugged. “Doubtful, or he wouldn’t have waited. And I’ve got more important things to do tonight. I won’t spend my wedding night politicking!” he snarled. He continued in a more reasonable tone. “Zeus has something up his sleeve. He waited for a reason. But what could he have that would convince my wolves to change sides?” I began to shake my head, but Gunnar interrupted. “Think about it, Nate. My pack loves Ashley and me. Wulfra and Wulfric. But… my ties with you have brought them directly into your fights. Every. Single. Time. My tenure as Alpha has been wrought with fighting everything other than werewolves. And all related to you.” My shoulders slumped. I opened my mouth, but couldn’t find the words. Gunnar reached out a clawed paw to grasp my shoulder reassuringly, but I stepped back in shame.

  He sighed. “I wouldn’t change a thing, Nate. And I doubt many of them would either. Look at what they got in exchange. Two Fae-touched werewolf leaders. No one else has that. No one.”

  I nodded sickly. “That doesn’t directly benefit them, though.”

  Gunnar lowered his paw. “That’s my fear. That Zeus will offer them something that directly benefits them. Empowering the pack, not the leaders. Bribing them.”

  I let out a breath, running a hand through my hair in frustration. “Okay, so what happens? You meet up tomorrow morning with both packs present, hold a vote of some kind, and then, what, duke it out?”

  Gunnar shrugged. “As far as I know, yes.”

  “Okay, we need to—”

  “Nate,” Gunnar interrupted. My mouth snapped shut as I looked up at him. “Your work here is done. Right now, I’m going to go kiss my wife,” he smiled distantly, as if only just realizing he hadn’t yet had a chance to do that. Then he smiled wider. “Then I’m going to dance with her. Maybe shove some cake in her face if she’ll let me. And then…” his eye grew dark and lustful. He didn’t finish his sentence as he strode off the stage.

  Rather than head to the reception, he approached the changing room where we had gotten ready. He had a change of clothes in there just in case – because he always carried a back-up. Even on his wedding day, apparently.

  Before he reached the door, I called out in a sing song voice, mimicking the jingle from that Hot Pocket commercial.

  “Red rocket…” I sang, smirking at him.

  He whirled in disbelief. Then he burst out laughing. “I’ll do my duty,” he said, grinning. “But I probably won’t call it that. I’d rather Ashley not die of laughter on our wedding night.” Then, with a final shake of his head, still chuckling, he left me alone at the altar.

  Realizing how that sounded, I let out a resigned sigh.

  Time to crash this reception.

  Chapter 6

  I sat at the table Dean had set up for the wedding party,
drinking my third glass of wine. Gunnar and Ashley danced across the floor to Ed Sheeran singing from the loudspeakers. They looked so happy together, like nothing had happened at the altar. Gunnar wore slacks and a white shirt and Ashley wore a red cocktail dress that complimented her hair. And prominently flaunted her cleavage. Gunnar might as well have been drooling when he first saw it. Paradise hadn’t been lying. I smiled faintly, but inside my mind was racing. No matter what plans, schemes, and traps I had devised in my head, I knew they were all fruitless. Gunnar needed to handle this himself. This was a test as an Alpha. For him to prove both his power and his leadership skills.

  It was an election in its most primal form.

  A fight to the death.

  I grumbled angrily, not familiar with feeling impotent when my friends were threatened.

  I had reserved a private plane to take him to a remote, massive hunting lodge in the Rocky Mountains. The fridge was stocked with a week’s worth of exquisite meals, and the grills were equipped to handle as much meat as they wanted to hunt and cook if they preferred that instead. The nearest house was five miles away, leaving them in the dangerous wilderness all alone.

  So they could get their wolf on and hunt to their heart’s content.

  The place was packed with movies, music, blankets, and anything else they might need for their trip – even their luggage.

  They literally had to hop on the plane – with nothing in hand – and they would arrive in their own personal paradise. The benefit to the lodge was that it was notorious for large hunting parties. Wild game abounded in the nearby mountains, and natural hot springs were only a few miles away if they wanted to check that out. Not some commercialized hot spring, but literal springs hidden within the mountains that you had to go and find for yourself.

  I had placed wards on the property so that no magic could come within five miles. Hell, even I couldn’t Shadow Walk there to pester them. They had a week of sheer bliss ahead of them.

  Until Fuck-stick McWolf decided to make a play for power.

  And I had been told to stay out of it. In fact, my close friendship with Gunnar might have even led to this confrontation. I needed to remain far away from it all. As did my friends.

  Which made me want to go pick a fight with someone.

  I scanned the room angrily, but none of the faces immediately pissed me off enough to kill. With a start, I realized that Raego had never shown up. He had told me he couldn’t make the wedding due to travel, but that he would be back in time for the reception.

  But… I scanned the room again. He wasn’t here.

  I unlocked my phone with a swipe of my thumb, typed in the code, and dialed the scaly bastard. I turned away from the crowd, swept up my drink, and walked away for privacy. He answered on the second ring.

  “Yes, Nate?”

  “Where are you?” I asked in a neutral tone.

  “I won’t be able to make it,” he said, mirroring my tone exactly.

  I frowned. “And why not? Gunnar is your friend. He got married earlier. Kind of a big deal.”

  Raego was silent for a moment. “Something came up.”

  I blinked. “Excuse me?” My voice was a low rasp.

  “Something. Came. Up.” He enunciated each word clearly as if I hadn’t heard him clearly, rather than explaining his answer like he knew I had meant.

  Now, Raego could be an upper-class prick. In fact, he usually was, but he often had a very good reason in hindsight. He’d gone to bat for me several times, but lately he had been very… distant. Almost reclusive. Something in our relationship had changed. Sure, he had been available if absolutely necessary, but it had been a struggle to get him to commit his aid. Ever since I had ridiculed his grandmother at the Dueling Grounds, I had seen very little of him on a day-to-day basis.

  “What’s going on, Raego? I feel like we need to have a chat. Catch up,” I said through gritted teeth, trying to disguise my anger as concern.

  “That won’t be possible. Like I said, something came up.”

  I took a deep breath. “Maybe I wasn’t clear. I’ll see you later tonight. Better if you make an appearance at the reception like you promise—”

  He hung up.

  I yanked the phone from my ear in disbelief. As I stared, speechless, I realized that blue tattoos were pulsing brightly under my shirt. My Fae power responding to Raego’s disrespect.

  “Hey, hey. Easy, Little Brother,” Alucard said from the shadows. I didn’t even flinch in surprise, so focused on my phone. “Tell Papa Fang what’s on your mind.”

  I let out a long breath. “The stinking reptile hung up on me.” I finally looked up at him.

  Alucard studied me thoughtfully, frowning. “Oh?”

  “Said he can’t make it tonight. Something came up.”

  Alucard nodded after a few moments. “Maybe we should go have a nightcap with him…”

  A slow grin split my cheeks. “Like minds…” I said, clenching my fists.

  Alucard’s eyes flashed with anticipation, but he jerked his chin at my arms. “Might want to tone down the Smurf juice. This is a wedding, Little Brother,” he reminded me in a neutral tone. After a deep breath, I gave him a stiff nod. He let his fangs show as he smiled. “We can always see how well blue and gold holds up against black. But not now. Later,” he said, his eyes flashing gold for a heartbeat. I smiled back at him, appreciating his reference. His gold and my blue would meet Raego and his black dragon power tonight.

  “That sounds fun. Maybe it would be wise to bring Tory. Just in case.”

  He took a sip of his drink to mask his frown. “I’ll mention it to her.” I saw his eyes dart over to where the Reds stood talking to Yahn. His frown grew harsher. “You should bring your purse. The one with the black dragon scales.” Then he slipped away in the direction of the teens. He probably wasn’t going to tell Tory. Someone had to keep an eye out on the Reds.

  I chuckled at his back, responding to the air. “Yeah, that will definitely piss him off. And his piece of shit grandmother—”

  “Generally, fighting grandmothers should be left to other grandmothers,” a familiar voice said from behind me.

  I grinned, turning to face Callie. Her silver dress clung to her waist like a second skin, and two silver chopsticks – doubling as weapons, no doubt – held her hair up in a crest behind her head. She wore silver bracelets that I was sure also doubled as some horrifying weapon, but she didn’t need them. She was a weapon without blades. And I wasn’t even talking about her magic.

  She was a cute little killer. Not openly like the Huntress, but subtly, like a knife in the dark.

  But her true weapon was her ability to read people. She was cunning, ruthless, and calculating – a chess player. I had reason to believe she didn’t have as much confidence in this trait as she should – not that she denied it, but that she gave herself less credit than she deserved. She said it was just simple logic – like any savant would say when reciting pi to the thousandth digit.

  “This grandmother is cruising for a bruising,” I promised. “I already beat her up once, but the lesson didn’t stick.”

  “I… see,” she said in a dry tone, sipping from her martini glass. Like quicksilver, she slipped up beside me and wrapped her arm through mine, holding me close, possessively, and I had to fight not to lean in and nibble her neck. Even if she would kill me for it, I might have still considered it a fair trade. A dying wish.

  But… I didn’t. I had too much respect for her to treat her so casually. She was to be treasured.

  “Walk with me,” she said. She didn’t wait for me to take the lead, but instead began walking me into the crowd, smiling politely at the various guests. After a time, she looked up at me. “The Angel didn’t come,” she finally said.

  I nodded, not meeting her gaze. “I didn’t invite him. Angels get kind of particular about premarital sex. Not to mention that the woman he protects is an Old Testament kind of gal. She probably wears Fire and Brimstone underpants,” I
added. “Not good party guests for us sinners.”

  She stumbled a step as if tripped. I steadied her with a frown, but she blushed, waving off my concern. “The two of you in the same room must have been a sight to see.”

  I sighed nostalgically. Maybe her shoes didn’t fit properly. “Yeah. I actually do like the old bird. As infuriating as she can be…” I wondered what she had been up to lately. “But I didn’t invite Eae. Didn’t want to surprise you, and didn’t want to risk ruining Gunnar’s wedding with any drama.” I let out a sigh. “Drama must have gotten an invite anyway.”

  “Gunnar is a big boy. He’ll take care of Zeus.” She didn’t add that the drama likely stemmed from me. Zeus had made that pretty obvious – that he thought I was the power behind Gunnar. It meant a lot to me that Callie didn’t say it. She knew I knew it, and didn’t find it necessary to remind me. It was nice to know she respected me enough to not feed me comforting lies. All that mattered to Callie was that I was aware of it, and had accepted responsibility.

  “What are you going to do about it?” she asked in a light tone, careful for none around us to overhear. Because the tension in the air was barely veiled. The guests here were as tight as any family. Tighter. A gang. To see Gunnar and Ashley openly challenged on their most sacred day didn’t sit well with them. They wanted blood, even knowing that Gunnar didn’t want their help.

  And Callie was subtly asking how I could unleash a little pain without getting my hands dirty.

  “You’re pretty cool. For a broad,” I said.

  My foot was immediately swept out from beneath me and Callie was guiding me to the floor – appearing to all those nearby as if cushioning my fall. My drink crashed to the ground beside me.

  But no one noticed the blade in her palm which was gently pressed against my throat as her eyes stared at me in false alarm for the guests’ benefit.

  The blade to my throat let me know what she thought of my snide comment.