by Cara Adams
Steve was very tempted to sit there and laugh at them all, but the delightful woman needed his help, so he stood up and offered to translate for them.
The man speaking Spanish glared at him and said, in Spanish, “I already said I’d translate for them.”
“But they’re speaking Russian and Finnish as well as Japanese,” he replied in Spanish.
“I suppose you speak both those languages,” sneered the Spanish-speaker.
“Actually, yes I do.” Steve turned to the beautiful woman and told her what the shop owner had said, then he translated it into Finnish and Russian.
The Spanish-speaker about had a hissy fit, but the woman sternly told him to go away, which he did. The European men jumped on him as if he was their savior, both of them speaking at once, as fast as they could. Steve had managed to get the gist of what troubled them, explain it to the woman, translate her replies into Japanese, and ended up not having to pay for his own meal. But far more important to him was getting to know the woman. Josie.
With the hope of seeing her again, he’d handed her his business card, offering to translate for her, free, at any time, and she smiled and taken it. Barely a week later, she’d asked him to come in for a job interview.
Steve had walked up to the lobby area on the third floor, and been surprised to see Josie sitting at the reception desk. She’d directed him to a meeting on the fourth floor and he’d been interviewed in so many languages it reminded him of the one year he’d spent at an international school. There’d been a hundred kids at that school, and between them they’d spoken almost every language on earth. He couldn’t recall what he’d learned in the classroom over that year, but he’d had a wonderful time getting to know the children and the languages they spoke.
During the interview with the Alpha, there’d been half a dozen other people in the room, all firing questions at him at once in various languages, but they were well-known languages such as Spanish, French, German, so they were very easy to answer. Then a video conferencing television had been switched on and he found himself answering other people, mostly older men, asking questions in the European languages of his childhood. Again, they were easy enough to answer. Asian languages came next, at which he was less good, but could get by. He understood a lot more than he could say although he was aware his presentation and grammar weren’t necessarily so good there. Finally they spoke to him in some of the African languages, and he knew that at last he was out of his depth. “Hi there,” “How much is it?” and “You’re welcome,” was about the limit of his Swahili, and his Dinka and Fulani were no better. However, he switched to African Arabic, which most of the Africans understood, and he was able to answer the questions.
“We’ve become rather spoiled. Most Africans and Asians speak English these days, so we’ve been very lazy about learning other languages. And Europeans have always tended to be multilingual. Everyone there already speaks two or three languages. Being monolingual has never appeared to be a problem, but it’s occurred to me that having a person able to speak several languages would greatly benefit this company. How many languages do you speak, Steve?” asked the man in charge. Steve now knew him as the Alpha of the pack. Back then he didn’t even know he was in the werewolf shape-shifter headquarters. He assumed this was just a business like any other company. Which in many ways, it was.
“I don’t know. I grew up all over Europe, so I speak most European languages. At University, I studied linguistics, which helps me see the underlying building blocks of a language and work out how to use it. But honestly, I have no idea. However, as with the Dinka and Fulani speakers on the video conference, there’s usually a way I can communicate with people. Most Africans speak at least some English. Mostly they also speak African Arabic. Between English and Arabic I can usually understand what they want.”
At first Steve had been contracted on a job by job basis, being invited to attend meetings and translate, or to accompany various people to events to help translate for their guests. But soon the work became so frequent he found he was neglecting his paid job. His preference would be to work where Josie was, but he needed money to pay the rent and food just like everyone else, so reluctantly handed in his resignation to the Alpha.
“Why are you leaving?” The man’s piercing black gaze seemed to reach right down into Steve’s soul.
“I’m also working part-time for a travel company, translating for their tours. I’ve had to turn down two or three whole-day jobs to work for a few hours for you and it’s not financially viable. I need to keep myself available to work whole days, or find a full-time job.”
“So you want to sit on your ass in an office from nine to five?”
“No, sir. I fully understand translation isn’t a nine-to-five job at all. I want to work for enough hours to not have to try to figure out whether I can eat sushi instead of Ramen noodles this week and still pay my rent. At this stage, paid vacation time and health benefits are way out of my reach.” Steve almost shivered while he answered the man back. The man exuded power. The boss was tall and extremely solid with just a few flecks of gray in his black hair. But it was the aura of power that surrounded him which was intimidating. Steve hadn’t contradicted him lightly. But he did want to clarify his aims. He was not looking to be a lazy fat cat somewhere. He was more than willing to do his fair share of work. But he had to make choices for a livable life. Besides, it’d been hard enough to hand in his resignation knowing he’d likely never see Josie again. He certainly couldn’t afford a girlfriend yet when he couldn’t afford to feed himself properly half the time, let alone take her out to dinner anywhere nice.
Yet here he was two years later, sitting on his ass in an office from nine to five and still no closer to kissing Josie, far less taking her to bed. Steve lifted his ass up off the chair a fraction to give his cock and balls a bit more space. He only had to think of her to have the hard-on from hell. He wanted her so much, and usually he could walk down the stairs and past the reception desk to see her. He never interrupted her when she was busy, but if there was no one needing her, he’d at least be able to smile and say hi. Sometimes he gave her a flower from the flower store downstairs, or perhaps a treat from the chocolatier, but mostly he just feasted his mind and heart on her beauty. She was so capable, so smart, dealing with a dozen things at once and never losing her composure.
Steve put his hands behind his head and wiggled his ass back down in his chair. Back then, when he’d thought he was about to resign from the company, the Alpha had asked him to go up to the meeting room and help out on one last project. When he’d arrived the room was empty, which was unusual. A couple of minutes later Josie had escorted a young man in and gestured for him to sit with Steve. The young man had begun talking really fast about seeing a man turn into a wolf. Steve had wondered why he was there. It sounded to him like the man needed a counselor or a psychiatrist, not a translator, but as the man became more agitated, he began speaking German.
Steve and the man had talked for a long time, and Steve knew the man believed every word he said about this wolf-man. Steve had an open mind on everything. Some of the things he’d seen overseas would never be understood in America and he knew all myths and legends had their basis in fact at least at some level. He listened to the man, asked questions, and let the man say everything he needed to. Steve was by no means convinced a wolf-man existed, but that didn’t change the fact that this person definitely believed he’d seen one.
By the time Josie returned to collect the man, they were talking as friends, he’d calmed down and they were back to speaking English. As Josie and the German-speaker left, one of the Alpha’s men Steve had met several times before entered the meeting room.
“So what do you think about shape-shifters?” he asked.
“I think that man truly believes he’s seen one.”
“And do you think that means he’s insane?”
“Of course not. He believes he’s seen a wolf-man. There wouldn’t be so many
myths and legends about such things unless there was some basis for it. I’ve never seen a wolf-man or a vampire either, but in the Middle East I saw some things that were mighty strange and the next best thing to such stories. You just have to look at animals and plants. There are plants that eat animals. Now who would believe that?”
“What if I told you that shape-shifters, wolf-men as you call them, truly exist?”
Steve had instantly known this was some kind of test. He had no idea why they’d be questioning him now, when he’d quit the job, but it was suddenly very important to him to pass the test. “As I just said, I saw some unusual things in the Middle East. If there are shape-shifters, if I ever see one, I can promise you I won’t scream or faint. I’d be more likely to try to work out what language he spoke.”
“English.”
“Huh?”
The meeting room door opened a few inches and in walked a dog. A very big black dog. And it wasn’t a breed Steve could identify, either. It came right up to his knee and looked into his eyes. Steve could see the dog’s black eyes shining with intelligence and understanding. He looked more closely at the dog’s muzzle, his feet, and his ears and tail. Yeah, it was a wolf, not a dog.
“Are you Exhibit A? The wolf-man our German friend saw? You don’t scare me, because I can tell you’re a very intelligent animal. Or person. Whatever. I’m told you speak English. Where do you come from?”
There was shimmering in the air, very briefly, then a naked man stood where the wolf had been. “You weren’t scared because you’d been prepared. The other man saw a wolf change and thought he was out of his head, and as soon as he got upset he lost all his English which was why we couldn’t help him very much. Herr Schmidt is with him now so he’ll be fine.”
The first man walked to the door and collected a pile of clothing which he brought in and gave the wolf-man, no, the shape-shifter.
“What do you want to know about me?”
“I suppose I’d like to know all the things we see in movies. Do you howl at the moon when it’s full? Were you bitten by a werewolf? Can you always control your changes? Do you bite people?”
“If I want to howl, I howl, much as if you want to scream you scream. If I don’t want to, or it’s inappropriate, I don’t. Werewolves come from a gene. A child inherits it, like a long second toe, or doesn’t. And I only bite in fun. Biting people won’t make them wolves any more than sleeping in a garage will make you a car.”
Steve laughed.
The first man’s cell phone beeped. He looked at it and said, “The Alpha wants to see you again.”
“The Alpha?”
“Mr. Vukic, the man you work for.”
And that’s when Steve learned he’d been working for a wolf, working for a pack of wolves. Since then, he’d even been granted an apartment right here in Wolf Central, one of the very, very few non-wolves permitted to live in the building. And the crazy thing was, he felt like he belonged. They were his people, his pack. He felt more relaxed and at home in the heart of a wolf pack than he’d felt in any of the twenty or more countries he’d lived in, including the human side of America.
His life was pretty good, all things considered, even though Josie was not yet his. There was just one tiny problem. Well, not quite so tiny. It was six foot three, all muscle, with black hair, black eyes, and the same aura of power as his father. Zedekiah Vukic, the Alpha’s son, who was also determined to marry Josie and who had no intention of sharing her with him.
And he couldn’t even hate the damn man. He was as honest and upright as his father, a brilliant strategic planner, and an all-round good man. Except that the wanted Josie. Damn him to hell.
Chapter Two
The DADISP was almost over, and apart from the intruders who were all still locked up in the local jail waiting for their court dates, Josie thought it had gone very well. Already they were thinking and planning for a repeat party the following year, and to that end, each woman was being interviewed for leads to other human or mixed-species women who might be interested in mating with a wolf.
The women were sitting around tables in the ballroom, each with an information sheet to fill out, while she, Bianca, the coordinator of the event, and three human women mated to wolves, Taige, Eve, and Ginnie, were interviewing each group of women. Each of them sat at one of the tables, almost like a hostess at a party. Mostly, she was letting the women at her table lead the conversation, just asking a question occasionally, or redirecting them when the conversation got too far off topic.
“It might sound a little weird, but I wondered about advertising on websites where they ask women to adopt pets. If that might work. Women who genuinely love animals might also know about shape-shifters. I mean, not all of them of course, but if you worded your advertisement carefully, you might be able to attract women who do know about shape-shifters,” said Angie.
“You’d need to be a bit careful though in case you got someone who hates shifters,” objected Ruth.
“But if someone really loathed shifters, I don’t think they’d be an animal lover in the first place,” Angie argued right back.
Josie nodded thoughtfully. “If we got the wording right, as you say, that idea has definite potential. I also agree that a person who really disliked shape-shifters would be unlikely to want to adopt animals either.”
She kept listening, fairly sure they’d be able to get enough women together to run another mating party next year. It was damn hard though, trying to keep the shape-shifter world hidden from most humans, yet with the lack of female shape-shifters the only hope for a mate for so many men was an interspecies marriage. As a wolf, she’d grown up in a pack of wolves, but she supposed for someone born human and living with humans, the idea of a shape-shifter was a challenge to get their head around. Plus there were so many bad movies where werewolves ran amuck killing people that some hesitation about getting to know one was natural. Really, interspecies marriages were not only the best hope for shifter survival, they were also the best hope for the two species living together at peace. Fear of the unknown was a big thing. Once humans got to see that werewolves were just men the same as other men—apart from the transforming into a wolf thing—their fear should be allayed and peaceful coexistence would become possible.
Josie looked around the ballroom. The sixty women who’d come to the DADISP were all shapes and sizes, from a wide variety of backgrounds, and very different in their likes and dislikes. But all had the one basic thing in common that they were ready to settle down with their Mr. Right, or in almost half the cases, Mr. Rights.
The screening process for the men had been very strict to try to ensure that every man at the party would love and care for his new mate and no woman had complained of being maltreated even in the most minor way. However, the question sheets the women were filling in now would be the ultimate test of that. They were anonymous and the women were asked very explicitly if anyone had been rude to them, had touched them inappropriately, had tried to force them to choose a particular person, and so on.
For a moment she thought of Zed. He’d done his very best to force her to choose him but it was with his amazing kisses. Oh, hell yes, that man could kiss. She’d almost melted into a puddle at his feet. Fortunately she’d managed to remember she wasn’t here to find a mate, but to work. She was also determined to remain firm that Zed would never have her without Steve. She wanted them both. They both called to her in such totally different ways, but she knew she’d never be happy with just one of them. She needed both sides of the coin. The harsh, physical power and ruthlessness of the wolf, plus the measured, calm, thinking, planning side of the human. She had both those elements in her personality. Both were an integral part of her and it seemed that only with both of these two men could she be truly fulfilled.
Josie was careful not to look at the forms as the women chattered while filling them out. They needed to feel quite free to say whatever they wanted to on them, not to think they had to be only affirming and
polite.
They’d already decided that the men who hadn’t found a mate this year would have priority to register for next year. But they didn’t want to allow in anyone whose attitude hadn’t been appropriate. She was reasonably certain everyone had been well behaved, but until she got back the completed forms the jury was out on that.
There were also three women who’d only partnered up today. Josie wanted to be sure those women were happy with their choices, not simply accepting a man so as not to feel they’d failed. This was to be their future. They had to be content with their man. She needed to talk to those three women one on one today, before it was too late for them to change their minds if necessary. If they were unsure at all, they, too, would be welcome to come back next year and try again.
* * * *
“Zed, next week I’ll be sending you as the leader of a small team to Europe. The European Supreme is getting old and has cancer so he no longer leaves his pack, but his mind is as sharp as ever, and he’s become convinced there are more wolf packs in the mountains. Packs that have never been linked into the association.”
“Are you sure he hasn’t gotten dementia as well as cancer?”
“These days with Skype and video conferencing, it’s a bit hard to hide that kind of thing. It’s not like he can ask someone for the answer to a question without anyone knowing when we’re all watching him.”
“I guess not. So where will I be traveling to?”
“You and your team will fly to Vienna first. You’ve been to the European Supreme’s headquarters before, and he hasn’t moved. From there it’ll likely be best to hire a car as that will give you more freedom in your travel arrangements. Depending on what information the Supreme has learned, you could be traveling to Ukraine, Romania, or even Moldova.”
“So you think the missing wolves will be in the Carpathian Mountains?”
