Angus went silent on the other side of the line; a faint sob all that Eva could hear, before the line crackled again as he spoke.
“Todd wanted me to tell you not to give up, and to let you know he hasn’t forgotten you,” he spoke softly, as though afraid someone might hear him.
“Tha-that’s great and all, Dad, but I hardly think this is the time to bring my ex-boyfriend up,” Eva replied, confused.
“Just know he’s not giving up, okay?”
Eva sighed, and decided to placate her father by saying, “Sure, Dad.”
She decided to change the subject, instead taking an interest in safer topics, like the crop rotation that was planned for the coming season, and the ever-growing cold of winter.
They spoke for what felt like hours, but eventually Eva’s breath turned to mist in front of her face, and her nose felt so cold it could fall off. They said their good-byes, and Eva promised she would phone again. Angus seemed content with that, but Eva’s fear that something else was wrong niggled at the back of her mind.
Without turning, Eva said, softly, “I know you’re there, Quinn. You can come out.”
She’d felt Quinn’s presence for the last hour of the conversation, and she knew he was only there to watch over her – rather than to eavesdrop.
Warm arms wrapped themselves around her from behind, and his familiar musk tickled her nose, as he kissed her on top of her head.
“Are you okay?”
Eva smiled, and leaned into Quinn’s warmth, wishing she could melt into him.
“Absolutely perfect,” she murmured.
“I’m glad you finally called. I’d never realized how hard this would be on you – never mind on Angus,” Quinn’s lips brushed against her ear.
“I didn’t even think of him, I was so centered on my own selfish pain, that I forgot completely about him. What kind of a daughter does that make me?”
“The kind that forgives, instead of hating him.”
“How do you do that?” Eva asked.
“What?”
“See the best in me, even when I’m showing you the very worst parts of myself?”
Quinn hugged her to his chest even tighter, and said simply, “One day you’ll see yourself the way I see you.”
“And how is that?” Eva leaned her head back against Quinn’s shoulder, that feeling of warmth and comfort enveloping her completely.
Quinn chuckled, “As the most loving, kind, and dangerous she-wolf that you are.”
“Dangerous? What nonsense, Quinn,” Eva huffed.
“Only to those who would harm those you care for.”
“Isn’t that the same for everyone?”
“No, my love. You are one of a kind.”
The alarm went up again that night, as another border skirmish took place, this time on the Eastern border of the village. Quinn had rushed out as soon as they’d let him know, and only returned just before dawn. Eva had waited for him, through the coldest hours of the morning, pacing the length of the kitchen until she felt she could see her reflection in the tiles.
Quinn slumped into a chair, exhaustion clear on his face. He seemed uninjured, and Eva said a silent thanks to the universe that he had returned in one piece.
“What happened?”
“My old tribe,” Quinn sighed.
“They’re still causing grief?” Eva couldn’t believe that nearly seven years later, Quinn’s tribe was still holding such a grudge against him.
“They want their young back – they don’t have the strength to keep fighting us, their numbers are dwindling with old age, and they cannot procreate fast enough anymore to bolster their numbers. Like I said, most of their breeding strength chose to join me.”
“I understand.”
“My father was amongst them tonight,” Quinn said heavily. “He doesn’t usually join them, fear of being called on his crap keeping him home most of the time, I guess.” He shrugged.
“So why now?”
“Desperation? A sick tactic to try to scare me?”
“Why would his presence do that to you?”
Quinn’s shoulders slumped, as he weighed up telling Eva the truth of his life, living with his father.
“My mother left my father when I was thirteen, I don’t know if you remember it? It caused such scandal in our tribe – that a she-wolf could break the bond between her and her mate, and even more so, defy the alpha and leave. But they don’t know what went on in that house.” Quinn shook his head, as though to clear away the pain that was so clearly written on his face.
“What do you mean?” Eva asked softly, as she sat down next to him.
“My father never left bruises, he was too good for that. He chose, instead, to hurt with words. One day, he pushed too far and my mother left him. Us. She left me. I spent the next five years being his sole focus, the only thing he could hurt. And I couldn’t do anything about it until I grew into my alpha powers.”
“That was why you left.” It was a statement, rather than a question.
“Yes. When I found out that the alpha of the tribe, Conrad, was well-aware of my father’s tendencies, I confronted him. I asked him why he’d never done anything to stop it. And he said, he had no place meddling in his beta’s affairs. It was my father’s right to treat his family as he wanted. So, I told him to go push daisies, and left the next day.”
“Oh, God. I had no idea, Quinn,” Eva’s heart was breaking for the man she loved. Knowing the pain he had gone through, now, made sense of so much. It explained why he treated her like something precious, rather than as merely a passing interest. It showed her, very clearly, why he was so good to her. It had grown from a place where he had never had the same shown to him.
“I never told anyone to follow me; Thomas was always my best friend, and a natural beta. It made sense that he joined when I left. The rest of the people that followed from my old tribe had found out why I left, and decided they couldn’t continue being treated like fools. That’s the beauty of my people, they are here because they choose me, not because I force them to be here,” Quinn sighed.
“They trust you, and they should,” Eva said vehemently.
Quinn nodded absently. “That’s why Conrad sent my useless excuse for a father tonight. They’re running out of options, and he’s hoping that the very sight of my father will turn my knees to Jell-O and my insides to water. He couldn’t be more wrong. It only proves my point further – that the old ways have no standing in this world. What one does, affects the many. If he could let my father verbally abuse his family, what else did he let slip because he refused to get involved?”
“There’s no excuse for what Conrad did, Quinn. You know that.”
“I do. It doesn’t change my mind about what we’re doing here – if anything, it proves that what we’re building is a better future. Not only for us, but for our people.”
“What do you plan on doing about Conrad?”
“Nothing,” Quinn shook his head. “Doing as he does will only make me worse than he is. I will not stoop to his level, I will not fall as low as he has. We wait. That’s all there is. Their strength in numbers is low; each time they try to attack they lose more of their numbers, and often, some of them join us, instead.”
“That’s a good thing, isn’t it?”
“Provided they are true about their intentions for joining us, yes. Not everyone in life is as honest as you are, my love,” Quinn smiled faintly.
“Yes, well. Not everyone is as pig-headed as you are.”
“A truer word was never spoken,” Quinn smiled fully as he took Eva’s hand in his, kissing her palm gently.
Eva laughed, and kissed Quinn lightly.
“You’ll be the death of me, Quinn Maywell,” she whispered, her forehead leaning against his.
“As you will be my life, Evangeline.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
“How are the expansion plans coming along?” Quinn was pacing again, Thomas noticed. He knew he could never imagine h
ow hard it had been on Quinn to see his father again, so he grudgingly decided not to pass comment on the wear and tear on the carpet in Quinn’s office.
“The land to the West is your second-best option, still,” he replied.
“East isn’t an option, Thomas. I can’t be held responsible for the complete wiping out of a tribe for their land.”
“Have you thought about negotiating with them?”
“With what? Gold? They don’t want gold, Thomas, they want blood. My blood.”
“I didn’t say gold, did I?”
Quinn raised his eyebrow, and seeing Thomas’s smirk, sighed and rolled his eyes.
“So, what are you saying, Thomas?”
Thomas sighed, and inspected his nails as though the answer were obvious.
“Amalgamation,” he said simply.
“Are you seriously suggesting we join forces with them?” Quinn spluttered, his shock getting the better of him.
“Something like that. We absorb those who are left, and take their land under our protection. I think we’ve been looking at this all wrong.”
“You think they need protection, don’t you?”
“Yes, Quinn. They know they’re a failing tribe, and I get the impression that most them want nothing more than to live out what’s left of their days in peace.”
“Where did you get this so-called impression?”
“You’re not going to like it.”
“Thomas, I swear, if you say my father –”
“Quinn, the man is a shell of what he used to be. And I think he’s telling the truth. Conrad has whipped his men into nothing. They are exhausted, petrified of going against him, and quite frankly, old and weary.”
“The only use I have for them then is their knowledge. They will never form part of a fighting crew here,” Quinn shook his head.
“Exactly. But their knowledge is invaluable. They know the land better than most – they can teach our young, improve our methods. Some can still work the land and hunt, those that have trades can pass it on. They know time is against them now, and they know that it’s a new era. They accept that.”
“What do they want in return for their knowledge?”
“Amnesty. A tribe that will value them, rather than berate them for their age. They will bring their lands under your protection, with the understanding that it passes to their children in the tribe upon their deaths. And no Conrad.”
“How many are we talking about?”
“All but a few, including Conrad, have asked to see you. To discuss this with you. Conrad’s powers as alpha are dwindling – there’s no other reason his tribe would finally be able to break free completely. And once his powers fade, there is nothing to protect them. You were the only other alpha in the tribe – they will choose you, if you let them.”
“They didn’t want to fight last night, did they? That’s why it was such a half-hearted attempt. I’ve never seen such a poor excuse for a fighting force,” Quinn noted.
“No, they didn’t. But they cannot directly defy Conrad’s orders unless they have somewhere to go – they need a new alpha. That’s you.”
“All right. Call a meeting with them, but if I sniff something I don’t like –”
“We’ll set your she-wolf on them, got it,” Thomas laughed as he walked out of Quinn’s office.
Eva only echoed Thomas’s sentiments, when Quinn discussed it with her later that day. She knew that it would be hard on him to have to face his father – to confront not only him, but his own demons, too. She also knew that Quinn was strong enough for it.
Quinn, for his part, couldn’t believe what he was about to do – he had thought he had written off his old tribe completely, only now to be considering allowing them to join his own tribe. He knew, deep in his soul, though, that it was the right thing to do.
The meeting was held the next evening. Only a select few of the tribe took their place in the hall, the rest of the fighting force taking up stations around the outside. While Thomas didn’t expect any trouble from the members of their old tribe, Quinn had insisted that there be precautions taken, nevertheless. Eva sat beside Quinn, at his left-hand side, as Thomas took his seat on his right.
She had at first refused the invitation to join – saying that it wasn’t her place. But after Quinn had explained that he needed her to read the people, and the situation for him, she had almost agreed. It was only when he pointed out that she was his bodyguard that Eva had laughed and finally agreed to join the proceedings.
Eva felt Quinn stiffen beside her as his father stood up to speak first.
He explained at length how they had lost faith in the failing alpha, and how their own age counted against them. He repeated what Thomas had said – that they wanted only to live out their days in peace, and to offer what little they could to Quinn’s tribe in return. They knew their land would fall into undeserving hands on their deaths, if they did not belong to his tribe. Quinn’s people – their children – would lose their birth right and for no other reason than sheer idiocy on the parts of their parents.
Quinn’s father went on to explain that there were mothers in their tribe who only wanted to be near their children and grandchildren, who couldn’t bear to be apart from them any longer for something like their alpha’s laws.
Quinn nodded throughout the speech, his stony glare focused only on his father. Eva, for her part, scanned the men and women before her, watching for any sign of dissention or trouble amongst them. For the most part, it seemed the people gathered before them agreed with what Trevor, Quinn’s father, said.
Some of the mothers spoke of the longing they had for their families, and about how difficult it was to be separated from them, not even being able to visit them or see them, for fear of Conrad’s, and in all honesty, Quinn’s, wrath.
When each person who needed to say something had their moment to say it, Quinn asked that he and the members of his tribe be excused so that they could discuss the matter privately. They stepped into the office at the back of the hall, and Quinn immediately turned to Eva.
“Anything?”
“One man at the back, black cap, gray jacket,” she replied.
Quinn nodded to Thomas, and said, “Take care of it, please.”
Thomas nodded in return, and left the room.
“Now that that’s taken care of, let’s discuss this.”
It seemed that those who represented Quinn’s tribe were rather relieved to hear that their old tribe wanted to join them. They had missed their families, and the constant skirmishes with the tribe were not only exhausting, but emotional for them as well.
Some spoke to the danger of going against another alpha, and worried that it was only a trick being played on them by Conrad.
When a conclusion had been reached, and Thomas re-joined them, they made their way back into the main room of the hall.
“I won’t waste your time,” Quinn cleared his throat as he stood up to address those who sat before him. “There was one amongst your numbers who was not here to join us.”
A general murmuring among the members of the old tribe went up, and their anger flared up as they looked around them and saw who was missing.
“We swear, we didn’t know,” a mother towards the back stood up and said.
“I know,” Quinn placated them, “We have questioned him already. It seems he was promised a reward in exchange for turning traitor. Conrad’s doing, I believe.”
“You see then what we have to deal with – why we can’t do this anymore?” an older, grizzled man on the left asked.
“I do. And that’s why we will agree to the amalgamation,” Quinn smiled in Thomas’s direction.
A general murmuring of thanks and relief went up amongst the older crowd, some of the women even shedding a tear at the realization that they would finally be reunited with their families.
As one, they shimmered into their wolf forms, and bowed in acquiescence to their new alpha. As their bond with Conrad broke, they
howled as a single unit, united at last under the strength of Quinn’s power as an alpha.
Quinn’s tribe joined in, howling their acceptance from all corners of the village, and the ground shook with the power of their faith and trust in him. Quinn shifted last, and as alpha, howled his promise to those he would now protect. There was a note of warning in that howl – to those who would harm his tribe, there would be no mercy.
“It seems we’ve solved the expansion problems,” Thomas noted as he sat down opposite Quinn in his study later that evening. Quinn had poured them both a strong measure of whiskey, and was looking more relaxed than he had in days.
“It seems that way,” Quinn clinked his glass against Thomas’s in acceptance of the toast.
“That she-wolf of yours is particularly helpful when she wants to be,” Thomas remarked slyly.
“She is, isn’t she?” Quinn’s pride in Eva seemed to grow daily.
“I only wish she could whip you into shape,” Thomas laughed at the expression on Quinn’s face.
“She likes my nonsense, believe it or not,” Quinn laughed, deciding it was better to join Thomas than to argue with him, for once.
“That I can’t believe. How she puts up with you,” Thomas shook his head.
“It must be my sense of humor.”
“That and a general lack of taste.”
Quinn shrugged, his smile of contentment speaking volumes. Thomas wondered at his friend – he had never seen him so happy or relaxed as he was when he was with Eva. Just the mere mention of her name seemed to be a calming balm to Quinn’s nerves, and that was something that Thomas would forever be thankful for.
He had hated to see his friend’s loneliness and general misery throughout the years they’d been friends. It seemed that, at long last, Quinn had found a home for his heart.
“What’s next to tackle, Thomas? I feel like I could do anything at this point,” Quinn grinned.
Thomas smiled back in response, “Absolutely nothing. Take a break, man. I think you deserve it.”
Bought By Their Alpha Page 8
