by Dawn Steele
But why is Lucien looking so miserable? Against her better judgment, Shannon’s heart leaps with the possibility that he might be pining for her.
Kirk looks to where she is gazing, and he sees Lucien. At the same time, Lucien turns and sees them.
His complexion goes pale.
“Shannon,” Kirk says in a low voice. “Are you OK with this? We can always leave if you want to.”
The air crackles with electricity, and Shannon isn’t completely sure that is a figure of speech because of the magic involved with these people. Lucien’s expression is unreadable, other than his deathly pallor. But something changes in his eyes. A resolve, she thinks. A determination to change his path.
He stands up.
Uh oh, Shannon thinks. He’s not going to come over here to confront Kirk, is he? It would be tit for tat, a reversal of what Kirk had done all those months back when she and Lucien were still going out.
The Walkers and the Janssens stop their conversation. They are now aware of what is going on, especially Margarete. Diners from the other tables turn their heads.
No, no, no, no, Shannon prays.
“Lucien,” Margarete begins, but he ignores her as he pushes back his chair.
“Lucien, who are those people?” Flora says.
He ignores her as well.
Lucien strides over to Shannon. It is as if he is in a trance. He does not acknowledge Kirk as he says in a low voice to Shannon, “I have to talk to you.”
“Excuse me,” Kirk says, “but the lady is with me.”
“This is between me and her, Fitzpatrick, so butt out.”
Kirk bridles and he stands up too. Shannon feels like sliding under the table.
Margarete has come over. She seizes Lucien’s arm.
“Lucien, what are you doing?” She glares at Shannon as though this is all her fault.
“Lucien?”
Now Flora is coming over too. Lucien’s father is already standing up, as are the Janssens. The eyes of every person in the restaurant are riveted on them.
“Shannon, let’s go,” Kirk says, giving her his hand.
“Shannon, I have to talk to you.” Lucien’s eyes are pleading.
What a mess.
“We have nothing to talk about,” she says.
‘You heard her. She has nothing to say to you,” Kirk says.
“Lucien, what are you doing?” His father comes up. “Is this the girl you were going out with? It’s over, and the sooner you forget her, the better.”
“She’s nothing to you, Luc,” Margarete insists. “Come back to our table. The Janssens are wondering what the hell is going on.”
Her tone carries a warning.
Something in Lucien’s face changes. Perhaps only Shannon catches it. His jaw clenches and he whirls on Margarete and his father.
He says calmly, “I’m not going through with the wedding.”
“What?” Flora screeches.
“You heard me. I’m not going through with this sham of a wedding. I’m sorry you had to come all the way here, Flora, but I don’t love you. I never did.”
“Love has nothing to do with it,” Lucien’s father thunders. “Are you out of your mind? Come back to our table this instance and apologize to the Janssens.”
The Janssens appear to be very bewildered.
“I am not going to do anything you tell me to anymore,” Lucien goes on in that same calm voice. “I renounce my birthright and I renounce this family. You can cut me off and I couldn’t care less.”
He turns to Shannon again.
“We have to talk. Please.”
Her jaw drops. She can’t believe what is happening. Lucien is renouncing his family and his riches . . . for her?
Kirk cuts in, “Spare us the theatrics, Walker.”
Lucien does not take his eyes off her. “Shannon, I love you. I’ve loved you since the day we met, but I didn’t know what being in love was then. I kept thinking of you, and that is why I followed your car to the supermarket the week after. I still can’t stop thinking about you. Please . . . come with me. We don’t need these people. Together, we can go around the world and do whatever you like.”
He loves me.
The words should be music to her ears. A few weeks ago, she would have given anything to hear them. But now – in this current setting – they trigger a warning bell.
Nothing good will come out of this.
Kirk says harshly, “You have no longer any claim on her, Walker. She’s mine now.”
Shannon’s world is spinning.
She finds her voice. “Stop it, please, both of you. I don’t belong to anyone!”
But the two men face each other. The air between them is dangerously charged.
“She’s yours?” Lucien challenges, his blue eyes flashing. Shannon remembers the dark change that had come over them and suddenly, she is very afraid.
“Yes,” Kirk says. She can see his nostrils flaring in that way Jared always does when he anticipates a metamorphosis.
Don’t tell me he intends to change here right now!
“Not here,” she cries urgently.
“This has gone on for too long, Fitzpatrick.” Lucien is a taller man and he towers over everyone now. He takes one step towards Kirk, and the other man bristles. “I challenge you to a duel. No holds barred. Just the two of us.”
Shannon is beyond shock.
“No,” she cries.
“I accept,” Kirk says, just as calmly. “Name the place and time.”
Shannon knows that this is once again him going against his nature. To preserve his alpha spot, he has no choice but to accept. Or does he actually crave to finish Lucien once and for all? Because Kirk now has another reason to detest Lucien.
Her.
Oh my God, she thinks, they are fighting over me!
Her knees go weak with terror.
For the first time since this started, Lucien becomes aware that they are the center of attention.
“Very well,” he says. “I will not name the time and place here in front of everyone for obvious reasons, but you can expect an email from me to your personal account at the clinic.”
“Good. It’s settled then.”
“It is not settled!” Shannon says. Tears spring to her eyes. She turns to Lucien. “Lucien, please don’t do this. If you say you love me, then don’t do this.”
“So you love him?” Lucien says harshly.
Her tongue is frozen.
Who do I love?
The question has never really occurred to her until now, because she was never given an option.
Until now.
Lucien turns to Kirk, whose face is flushed.
“I guess you have your answer. She doesn’t know if she loves you. Or me. But when we are finished with each other, she won’t have a choice. Because there will be only one of us left standing.”
With that, he walks out of the restaurant, leaving everyone to stare – stunned into speechlessness – after him.
PREPARATION
They are back in Kirk’s bungalow, where he is seeing to a few things and his affairs.
“Kirk, don’t do this,” Shannon pleads.
“I have to. I want to.” His mouth is set in a determined line. “He can’t just demand to be back in your life this way and expect me not to have a say in it.”
“You’re fighting over me? I’m not worth it!”
She tries to put her hands on him but he wards her off.
“On the contrary,” he says, his steadfast green eyes taking her in, “I think you are worth every bit of it. But this is not just about you. He insulted me in front of a room full of people. He tried to make a play for my woman.”
“I am not your woman, Kirk. I have a mind of my own, feelings of my own!”
“Then are you his woman? He seems to think so. He is asking you to make a choice to be with him.”
Tears sting her eyes.
She drops her voice to a whisper. “Then if I choo
se one of you . . . now . . . will you both drop this stupid duel to the death?”
He smiles sadly at her. “I think it’s gone beyond that. Like I said, this is not just about you. You are part of it, yes, but this is about everything that has gone between the Fitzpatricks and the Walkers. This is the fight my cousin Bob wants me to have. I have to live up to my family’s expectations. It’s just one slap in the face too many.”
He turns from her.
“Now, if you don’t mind, Shannon. I have to prepare.”
“But he’s a powerful witch! You said it yourself. He will kill you!”
“If I was an ordinary werewolf, yes. But I have a few tricks up my own sleeves. Kirk isn’t the only one in this duel who knows witchcraft. How did you think I was able to keep ahead of all my cousins who are champing at the bit?”
His eyes are as sad as his smile.
“I love you, Shannon. I’m sorry you had to hear it this way . . . under such circumstances. If you must know, I have left instructions to my lawyer to leave you something in my will so that you’d be taken care of. If I should die, I want you and your brother to pack up and leave this place, because my cousin, Bob, will not be so magnanimous.
“And to Lucien’s credit, he has left everything for you. I know the Walkers. Once he makes such a public stand, they would not forgive him for insulting them so readily in front the Janssens. So I know it will not be easy for you, Shannon, to make a choice. But you might not have to. By tomorrow, only one of us will be left, and you can help him pick up the pieces and build a new life.”
“Where and when are you going?” she says, the fear bolting to her throat.
He purses his lips.
“I can’t tell you that. I don’t want you to see us. I don’t want anyone to see us, because they might be hurt in the crossfire. I have already called your brother, Jared, to come pick you up in ten minutes. Be safe, Shannon. And remember always that I love you.”
With that, he grabs her arms and pulls her to him fiercely. He plants a savage kiss on her mouth. It is a kiss which is full of regrets and misgivings and hopeful promises. She has never seen him so charged up before. Prior to this, he has always been a watchful and careful alpha – more content to keep the uneasy peace than to act with force and aggression.
But now . . . it is as if a spirited and furious entity has taken over his body. His passion astounds her.
The sound of a car engine rolls to a stop outside.
Jared.
Kirk leaves off his kiss.
“Now go,” he says urgently. And he turns from her.
*
Once she is in Jared’s car, her brother says, “What the hell happened?”
She tells him.
“Damn.” He grins. “That is a fight I wouldn’t mind seeing.”
“It’s not funny, Jared. They are going to kill each other.”
“Over you?” He tsk-tks. “Whoever would have thought you’d be such a prize?”
“I must go see Lucien to stop this!”
“Why do you think you can even stop this? You heard Kirk. This is not just about you. If either of them backs down, they would lose status in front of their respective communities. And for both of them, it’s personal.”
Trust a shapeshifter to take their side, she thinks angrily.
“Are you going to help me or not?”
“All right. I’ll help you. I’ve always helped you, don’t you forget that.”
“And I you.” She bridles. “How many times have I healed you when no one else could?”
He holds his hands up from the wheel. “All right, all right. We’re even. So what do you want me to do?”
THE DUEL
The drive to the Chatterly is fraught with argument and indecision.
“So what have you decided to do, dear sister?”
“I’ll simply confront him,” she decides. “I’ll beg him to stop this.”
“You failed with Kirk. What makes you think you’ll succeed with Lucien? I don’t particularly like him, but I do respect his values and ideals, from what you tell me about him. And it takes guts to stand up to his family like that. What makes you think he will listen to you?”
“Because he loves me.”
Jared chortles.
“And that is exactly why he won’t listen to you. He has to destroy his rival in more ways than one. It’s a legitimate duel, Shannon. He threw the gauntlet in front of a room full of witnesses, so that the one left standing will face little persecution in this town where everyone seems content to cover up for one another. How do you think those ‘murders’ went unsolved by the police? This town has been bought by the witch and shapeshifter clans, and any unfortunate souls who get in their way will be brushed aside and forgotten.”
He eyes her meaningfully.
“You don’t want to be a statistic, Shannon.”
“I am not a statistic. I am involved. Look, Jared, if you don’t want to get involved, I’ll understand. Just leave me at the Chatterly’s and lend me your car.”
“My car? No way!”
Her glare cuts short his protest.
“I’m only kidding, sis. There’s no way I’m not behind you in all this. But I think you should just let the boys deck it out and sit down and wait for the last one standing.”
She says softly, “How can I be with someone who killed someone else I loved?”
Jared’s expression is one of amused understanding.
“You’re taking bets now on the victor?”
“No. I love both of them. I don’t know who I love more. I have come to understand the two of them in ways that no one else possibly can.”
“Of course.” He barks a short laugh. “You’ve slept with both of them.”
“No. It’s more than physical. I understand their minds intimately and why they choose to do the things they do. In many ways, both of them are victims of their birthrights. Neither of them particularly relishes the roles they have been thrust in, and yet they do what they must to keep the equilibrium. Both of them are good men in their own right, and I can’t help but love both of them equally.”
“You can’t love people equally, sis. Just as parents don’t really love their children equally, you can’t do the same. You think you do, but you really don’t. There’s going to be one of them you marginally prefer over the other. One you will be subconsciously rooting for to win.”
He raises his eyebrows.
“Do you even know who that is right now?”
His question takes her aback.
Who does she love more? Does she even know it herself?
Is it the passionate and volatile Lucien, who is giving up everything for her – his family, his fortune, the world he has known and lived in for so long?
Or is it the measured and matured do-gooder Kirk, who rebels against his shapeshifter nature but does what he does admirably to keep the peace, and who loves her just as fiercely in his own right?
They draw up to the parking lot of the Chatterly – just in time to see Lucien’s Mustang exit and go down the other direction.
“Oh, no. It’s started,” she says. She looks at Jared mutely.
“OK, OK, I’ll follow him. He doesn’t know this car. But I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
Please, she prays,
Jared is a good tracker. It comes with being a shapeshifter. On the hunt, he has to tread carefully after small animals, many which are swift of foot and sensitive in hearing. So if he wants a kill, he has to be even quieter than they are. He keeps the Ford a distance away, sandwiched behind two or three cars, but never losing sight of his quarry.
Besides, Lucien seems to be in too much of a hurry to notice anyone behind him. Or maybe he is not expecting anyone. Or so Shannon hopes.
Lucien finally veers off the main road into a lane leading to the forest. Jared hangs back, not wanting his tracking to be too obvious to Lucien.
“There’s only one road in anyway,” he confirms. “This path leads
to a dead end. It’s a wood trail from then on for hikers.”
“How do you know?”
He glances at her deadpan. “Do you have to ask? I know every forest trail here.”
Of course. It is the only thing that could be expected of a shifter.
Just as Jared said, the lane terminates in a dead end. Lucien’s Mustang is parked there, and the tall blond man is nowhere to be seen.
Jared gets out. He starts to unbutton his shirt.
“You sure about this?” he asks Shannon.
“Yes.”
She is surer of this than anything in her life.
*
Once Jared has transformed into the huge black panther, it is easy enough for him to track Lucien, who is on foot. They keep to the shadows of the trees, staying out of sight while keeping Lucien on their radar. They have to go on quite a bit in this stealthy manner.
Sometimes, Shannon gets a glimpse of Lucien through the trees, though not often because Jared is staying back. His superior sense of smell allows him to follow Lucien on scent alone. Lucien’s golden head catches the sunspots dappling on the forest floor now and again, and his hair gleams like a bright jewel. She thinks he has some sort of long weapon hitched to his back, but she can’t be sure.
Her stomach cringes at the thought of the weapon that he means to kill Kirk with. What is it? Some sort of magical wand? Or is it a sword? She doesn’t know what modern witches use or whether all the tropes of ancient witchcraft are true.
That is how much I know about Lucien.
They soon come to a clearing near the mountain range. Here, the wind is cold as it sweeps down from the range, rustling the tops of trees. Shannon’s cheeks burn with the chill. As agreed upon with Jared, they keep back within the forest fringe. Lucien may not be able to sense them, but Kirk in his werewolf form certainly will if they don’t keep out of his scent radius.
You want to watch? Then stay behind the battle lines, Jared had said, or I’m out of here.
She had promised not to intervene, whatever the outcome.
