by Maggie Walsh
“Not that it’s any of your business or that I have to explain myself to the likes of you, but I have been a part of the Angel pack for over two hundred years. They are my true family. They are my true brothers. And Micah, my alpha, has been more of a father to me than William ever was. Oh and my mate is my true mate, not this sham of a mating you have. My mate is my true fated mate, and he is a strong, honorable warrior, second-in-command to the feline shifters,” Crew said with pride.
“Now I know you are lying about everything,” his mother sneered. “Why would you of all shifters be granted the blessing of finding your true mate? And a he? There is no such mating created by fate. You are a sick, disgusting creature, just as I always knew you were. The gods will punish you to the fiery depths of hell for fornicating with men. I say we call the council and have them come and take him. They can punish him for his deception. Claiming to be of the Angel pack should be a death offense. And living the life you chose, having sex with men, will damn your soul. The council needs to know about your false claims of being one of them and of your hedonistic life.”
“There have been no false claims here that I have heard. How about the rest of you?” Crew heard Micah’s voice. His parents and siblings all turned to look behind them. Crew saw his family standing behind his siblings. His real family, and they were all there. His heart filled at the sight of them, and a bright smile crossed his face.
“I actually did hear a few false claims, my mate,” Jesse said sweetly as his eyes bore into his mother’s eyes.
“And what would that be, my mate?” Micah asked mischievously.
“I heard this vile woman refer to one of our brothers as a puny little shit. I also heard words referring to our enforcer as useless and pathetic,” Jesse sneered. “What do you think, King Calebrese?”
“I must agree with the Heart. I heard these fleabags disrespecting my brother Crew,” Dante added with a menacing look on his face. “And I can swear I heard this…woman call Crew a liar for saying he had a man as his true mate. Seeing as I have two male fated mates, I know Crew to be telling the truth. How about the rest of you who stand here with your true fated mates?”
“As the Commander of The Legion Warriors of the Underworld and Lord Lucifer’s right hand, I feel I must inform you, madam, that hell is not full of homosexuals, but of people of your kind. Seeing as I was given my true fated mate by Fate herself, who by the way happens to be a very close family friend, I would say that our matings were blessed by the gods, not frowned upon. What do you think, my mate?” Phenex said and turned to Ryland.
“I think you are right, my love. Seeing as Aurora, Fate, gave you to me and helped us to have a child of our own blood, who happens to be the Heart, mated to the Alpha Prime, his true mate, I know for a fact that our mating, along with the creation of our son and his mating, is indeed blessed by the gods themselves. Wasn’t it our son and his fated mate, the Alpha Prime, who were involved in some kind of heavenly marriage ceremony given by the gods?”
“Hmm, I think you’re right, dearheart. So if same-sex matings are doomed to spend eternity in the fiery pits of hell, then why would the gods have fated all of us to our same sex mates, I wonder?”
Micah fought to keep the smile from his face and the laughter inside him that was threatening to bubble out at his fathers-in-law’s sarcastic banter. Damn, he loved his ever-growing family of misfits. But now came the part he really wanted to see. “Guardian, what do you think?” Micah asked with a smirk, and coughed to try to cover the laugh that wanted to escape.
“Me? Really?” Taylor’s eyes lit up like the Fourth of July.
“Total freedom.” Micah smiled.
Taylor’s eyes opened wide in excitement. “I think I just came in my pants. Whatever I want?”
“Go for it, brother. I think this group deserves the full Taylor treatment.”
Taylor squealed in delight and stepped away from Gabriel. He straightened his spine and squared his shoulders as he stepped toward Crew’s birth family. “Well, Alpha Prime, I think the lot of them are useless pimples on the ass of society.” Micah started to chuckle. “But this lady―and I use the word loosely―okay let’s just call it as we see it. This bitch here is the hemorrhoid on that ass. Woman, I bet your ass gets jealous over the amount of shit that comes out of your mouth.” Crew was choking as he tried to hold the laughs in. Damn, he was never more grateful to have Taylor on his side as he was right now.
Taylor stood in front of his mother. “Oh, darlin’, close your mouth before more shit spews out and ruin my Jimmy Choos.” Taylor turned and looked at one of Crew’s sisters. He laid a hand on her shoulder and gave a sympathetic look. “I’m so sorry for you, sweetheart, but you are the proof that evolution can go in reverse,” he said sweetly and walked away, turning to one of Crew’s brothers as everyone started chuckling louder. “Crew, I don’t understand how you are related to any of these people. You are one hot piece of yumminess and these are…Well, just look at this one right here. It looks like his face caught on fire and somebody tried to put it out with a meat tenderizer.”
He turned to another of Crew’s sisters. “Do you know what sexual position produces the ugliest children?” he asked her seriously. She looked at him in horror and confusion and then shook her head. “Let’s ask your parents what positions they used.” Taylor stepped away from the confused girl as everyone started to laugh harder. “And this big boy here”―Taylor walked over to Jeremy and poked him in his big stomach―”he looks big enough to be the ass that holds them all. I mean damn, look at you, son. How the hell can you call yourself an enforcer? You want to see what a real enforcer looks like? Look at my brother, Crew, and my other brothers here.”
Taylor turned and motioned toward the others. He turned back to face Jeremy. “These are enforcers. And a kill enforcer? What makes you think that you are a kill enforcer? Because Mommy and Daddy said you were? How many kills have you actually made for your pack? Or our kind? Hm? Cat got your tongue? Let me show you what real kill enforcers look like, okay? Raith, Lexi, Xander, step forward please and show these pathetic losers what you look like.”
Raith, Lexi, and Xander stepped up next to Taylor with hard, angry faces. Jeremy swallowed hard and took a step back.
“And you!” Taylor spun and walked up to Crew’s father. He put his angry face right into William’s face, their noses close enough to only slide a piece of paper through. “I wasn’t born with enough middle fingers to let you know how I feel about you. Your family tree must be a cactus, because everyone on it are pricks. Mister High-and-mighty-hear-me-roar. Whimper is more like it. You want an example of a true alpha, then let’s go with the only true alpha still in existence. This man is a true alpha. He leads by gaining people’s respect and loyalty, not by fear. Micah, how about you release just a smidge of you Alphary powers and let these pathetic creatures know what a real alpha feels like?”
Micah stepped forward and suddenly everyone but Jesse, Dante, Dare, Storm, Ryland, and Phenex knelt on the ground and raised their chins, exposing their throats to him. Micah pulled his power back and Taylor looked at Crew’s father as he knelt before Micah “And that was just a small amount of his power. If you were truly an alpha, you would still be standing.” Taylor stood up and moved back to Gabriel’s side as everyone got to their feet.
“Who do you think you are to talk to my daddy like that?” a whiny voice rang out.
Taylor looked at the woman with the stringy blond hair. “I am the Guardian. And I am the keeper of the truth, and what you all did to Crew when he was younger is disgusting. How did you like a little taste of karma? Didn’t taste so good, did it? None of you deserve to have the same blood flowing through your veins as this amazing man.”
“We don’t,” she said with a stuck-up attitude.
“What?” Crew’s eyes went wide.
“What do you mean by this?” Micah stepped forward and stood before the woman. “Crew, who is this?” Micah asked but never took his eyes from
the woman.
“That’s Joclyn.”
“What did you mean by that, Joclyn? Tell me, now,” he growled out the last word.
“Mama and Daddy aren’t true mates. Daddy slept with the alpha’s daughter. The alpha didn’t have any sons, but he liked Daddy and wanted him to have the pack when he stepped down, instead of him having to fight the candidates. But he told Daddy because of him being mated to Mama, it had to appear that they had given birth to the pup. He wanted Daddy to impregnate his daughter so that Daddy would have ties to the alpha. But he didn’t want anyone to know that his daughter was pregnant. They would have all looked at her in disgust if they knew she was pregnant without being mated and that she slept with another female’s mate. So Daddy did as the alpha wanted and Mama and Daddy raised Crew as their own. The alpha stepped down a year after Crew was born.
“That makes no sense,” Micah said in confusion and walked to William. Micah stood face-to-face with Crew’s father. “What is the truth?” Micah ordered.
“Everything Joclyn said is the truth. I was to impregnate the alpha’s daughter so that I could take over the pack. He wanted us to have blood ties to him.”
“There would be no blood ties to him. How did he explain to the pack about you taking over when he stepped down, instead of the customary challenge by the candidates?”
“Chad’s”―Crew’s mother spat the word out like it was poison on her tongue―”blood would smell like William and the alpha’s if anyone questioned him. He told the pack that he and William were related and seeing as he didn’t have any sons, then it was his right to choose his blood relative.”
“Wait a minute,” Phenex said and stepped forward. Crew’s siblings’ eyes widened in fear as Phenex walked past them. “If the alpha wanted blood ties, are you sure he meant you? The pup, or in this case Crew, would have been his blood tie. He would have been the rightful alpha, not you,” Phenex said angrily and stepped next to Micah.
“It was her idea,” Taylor said as he stared at Crew’s mother. The woman snapped her head in Taylor’s direction, a look of confusion and pure rage on her face. “Oh don’t look at me like that, bitch. Haven’t you got the memo yet? I can squash you like a bug without even moving out of my true mate’s arms.” Taylor cuddled back against Gabriel’s chest. “She went along with allowing her husband to cheat on her. She knew he was having an affair with the alpha’s daughter and she wanted something out of it as revenge against her husband and the daughter. They would raise Crew as their own at the alpha’s request, but when William stepped down, her son Simon would step in as alpha instead of Crew, the rightful heir. She resented having to raise what she believes is the bastard son of her mate. She took every opportunity to beat him down and break him without anyone being able to see the bruises. She did it with her tongue and turned all his siblings and the pack against him. She had everyone believing that Crew was a simpleton.”
“Not everyone,” a deep voice said. A large man with a huge chest, broad shoulders, and a shaved head stepped into the circle. He raised his chin in respect to Micah. Micah touched the back of his neck and released him. “Thank you, Alpha Prime,” the man said as he met Micah’s gaze. “I am Bolo. I have been a part of this pack since I was born and I have seen a lot of shit with this family. But the biggest shit I saw was when these alpha wannabes tried to be alpha. They destroyed this pack.”
“Bolo?” Crew gasped in shock. Bolo’s eyes shifted to Crew’s and he smiled.
“Hey, buddy. I never thought I would ever see you again.”
“Yeah well, I never thought I would come back here again, but it was a momentary slip-up.”
“Crew?” Micah looked at him with a raised brow.
“This is Bolo. He was the only friend I ever had growing up. He was the one thing I missed when I left here. If he’s still the same as he was when we were kids, then he’s a good guy, Micah.”
“He can’t even show his own alpha respect, so it’s a good thing he never took over this pack,” Crew’s mother argued.
“Madam, if you are referring to Crew calling me by my name, that’s because he is allowed. He has been a part of my inner pack, my enforcer, and my brother, for over two hundred years. Now stay quiet until I can figure out what the hell is going on in this pack and the council and I decide who should be in charge here.” Micah turned and gave William an angry glare when it looked like the man was going to protest. “You are not an alpha. Never have been, never should have been. And from what I can see, none of your children are either.” He turned his attention to Bolo. “Is there any information you can give me that will help me sort all of this out, Bolo?”
“Sure, Alpha Prime. None of these pack members should have ever been allowed to lead. None of them know how to take care of themselves much less a pack. Cha…Crew was the rightful heir, but they turned the whole pack against him. Not only that, I don’t think Crew would have wanted to be alpha anyway,” he said with compassion and looked to Crew for confirmation. Crew shook his head. “Once I hit the allowed age, I challenged the alpha every few years, but I was always denied. When Simon took over, I challenged him and was told I couldn’t then either. But what these self-important idiots don’t realize is that I have been leading this pack for over a hundred years. They are all so caught up in their own lives and thinking they’re royalty and above everyone else that they don’t even realize that the members of this pack have been coming to me and following me. If you and the council have another candidate in mind for alpha of this pack then I will gladly step back and follow him, but if you don’t, then I would love to throw my hat into the mix to take over officially.”
Micah looked at Jesse and Taylor. “What do you see?”
“He’s telling the truth, my love. And I can see that he is a good man. A good leader,” Jesse said.
“I agree. All I see is good in this one, Micah,” Taylor added.
“Bastian, what do you see?” Micah asked.
Bastian stepped forward and looked into the Bolo’s eyes. He stared at him intently for a few minutes and then looked to Micah. “He has been doing a great job with this pack, Micah. Even in private he has been leading them and helping them grow. Not as much as they should be because things have been kept quiet between the pack members, but he has done a great job.”
“Thank you. Crew? What do you say?” Micah turned to him.
“I think Bolo would be a great choice for alpha here, Micah,” Crew said and smiled at his old friend.
“Council members, what is your decision?”
“Agreed,” each one of them called out.
Micah smiled at Bolo and held out his hand. “Congratulations, Bolo, you are the new alpha of this pack.” Bolo smiled brightly as he grasped Micah’s hand and shook it. “What is your family name?”
“Kincaide.”
“You are the new Alpha to the Kincaide pack. We’ll take care of them. You go off to your pack and give them the good news. Give me a call tomorrow and we’ll discuss what you need to change this pack and make it yours. We’ll also discuss the new rules and laws of this council. I think you may like what you hear. Most of the ideas we came up with to make our world better came from Crew,” Micah said with pride.
“I look forward to speaking with you tomorrow, Alpha Prime, and hearing where you and this council are taking us.” Bolo dropped to one knee and bowed his head. “I and my pack pledge our allegiance to you Alpha Prime Micah Angel, the Heart, and this council.” Micah cupped the back of Bolo’s neck briefly and released him. Bolo stood and looked to Crew. “It was wonderful to see you again, old friend. Now that things are different here I hope you come back to visit us again. You and your mate when you find him.”
“Actually I have found one of my mates. He is a cat shifter, so I get two,” Crew said with a sad smile.
“No, you have found both, mate,” Haven said and stepped forward, pulling Laylen with him. Crew’s head snapped in Haven’s direction. “This is Laylen, our other mate. He is a
Legion Warrior. You didn’t stick around long enough to find out what was going on.” Crew looked at him in shock. Then looked at Laylen and his eyes filled with lust as they roamed over his body from head to toe.
“Well that’s a good sign,” Laylen said with a laugh. “Come on home, mate, and let us get to know each other and help our feline mate with his heat.” Laylen wiggled his eyebrows, causing Crew to laugh.
“I have a feeling I’m going to like you already.” Crew licked his lips and gave Laylen a heated look.
Laylen grabbed Crew around the waist and pulled him close. “Good, because I know I like you already and I can’t wait to get you home to show you how much.” Laylen claimed Crew’s lips in a heated kiss. Crew wrapped his arms around Laylen’s neck and returned the kiss.
“Okay, people, let’s move it along. Let’s give the hotties some privacy. Well except for me that is. I love to watch,” Taylor whispered the last part in one of Crew’s sister’s faces. She turned beet red and looked away.
“Why don’t the rest of you head back to what you were doing? The council and I will deal with the Fitzpatricks. Ryland, can you open a portal for everyone?” Micah asked.
Ryland began to chant and a portal opened up into the kitchen of the pack house. Everyone entered one by one. Haven grabbed Laylen by the shoulders and directed him toward the portal as he chuckled at his two mates. Crew was still attached to Laylen’s front as they still kissed passionately.
“I’ll take Raith, Rory, Aaron, and Adam back to New Orleans now. We were on our way to the hospital when you called,” Viktor said.
“Sounds good, Vik. Just let me know if you need any help,” Micah offered.
“Wait,” Crew called out. Everyone turned their attention to him. “Raith, I’m sorry, brother. I didn’t want you pulled away from finding your son, just for me.”
