Fragments

by Aya DeAniege

“Oh, you want me to tell them not to be dicks to the women,” he said. “That has nothing to do with Gerrid. I can do that.”

  “Okay, great. This wine is not going to be strong enough.”

  “Well, that’s just too bad,” he said.

  “Are you sure you want to have this meeting with them as one?” I asked. “Normally speaking, when you want to deliver bad news or an ultimatum, you want to separate to conquer. Otherwise one of them will start bickering and the rest will run with it.”

  “In normal people, that’s what you want to do. Separating Alphas just gives them an out. They’ll think everyone else had a different conversation, that they are being singled out and I don’t want any singled out.”

  “I suppose that makes sense.”

  “Except the one whose throat I’m going to slit. He’ll gag and die choking on his own blood because it was his plan.”

  “And there’s the crazy Alpha.”

  “Others mistake me for a pacifist because I work in the sciences. That is a mistake. I will correct that mistake.”

  “Why kill him, though?”

  “To make an example.”

  I winced and sipped my wine.

  “But, Blane, killing him means death.”

  “That’s kind of the point,” he said.

  “Yes, it is the point. If you kill him, he’s dead. Plain and simple. The other Alphas will think that is an example of your ruling. They may take it the wrong way.”

  “Why would they take it the wrong way? My point is, if you mess with me, I will kill you.”

  “If Rachel had killed Owen, what kind of message would that have sent?”

  “A quick one.”

  “But. With him alive, he remains as a breathing example of what happens when you cross her. You shouldn’t kill this Dom who crossed you, that’s a silly thing to do. It’s a waste of a good opportunity.”

  “You think I should cripple him.”

  “Like, make him wheelchair bound. Something you could easily fix with your little drug, but that he’ll never get because he crossed you. Maybe even something that causes lifelong pain.”

  “Like cutting off his legs with an axe,” Blane said with a nod.

  “I was thinking something a little less bloody. They expect bloody, bloody means rage filled and with no thought. An angry Alpha can be taken advantage of, like an angry man in a fight.”

  Blane let out a breath, his eyes becoming distant as he seemed to consider my words. He reached up and rubbed at his bottom lip with his middle and index finger.

  “The Doms need to present themselves to me, kneel and then I welcome them by taking their hand in mine old style, hand on the elbow almost, and I reach around and pat him on the back.”

  “So, he’s going to stab you with his free hand?”

  “I have weapon detection software they don’t quite know about, and Peter’s men. They won’t make it through the front doors with weapons, but I see your concern,” he said. “Because that’s basically my plan now. As I reach over, I also reach down. I’m supposed to thump them with a closed fist, a hard one, it’s supposed to be like testing their strength. Thump, welcome to my home. He stands and turns to walk away, then I stab him with a corkscrew between the vertebrae. Bam, he goes down.”

  “Is that allowed?” I asked. “Might be seen as the coward’s way, wouldn’t it? Need something more calculated.”

  “The other method would involve Peter leaving Abraham’s employ to become a part of my household. Normally Alphas would get their companions to do that sort of thing. Except Matt’s not that kind of companion.”

  “You and Peter would make a good bonded pair.”

  Blane flushed with embarrassment and looked away.

  “I’m being serious, Blane. You’d make a good pair. But you should ask Matt first, because as you said, he’s not that kind of companion.”

  “Peter knows the rules.”

  “But would Matt?” I asked. “I’d like to see you paired up, since you won’t take on a companion. And everyone already knows you can play nicely with an Alpha. Why didn’t you ever do it?”

  “Peter wanted to stay near his father. I had my hands full with Alex and raising three Alphas. It just never happened. We were never in a place where we could.”

  “Well, now you are. And what an announcement it would be. Your Doms think you are weaker because you used to be two and now you’re one. They think you aren’t capable of making those relationships, right? Because you don’t have companions or close allies. Just people you kind of trade with.”

  “I’ll have to talk to Matt.”

  I nodded. “Matt knows about you and Peter, right?”

  “He knows, yes.”

  “Then it’s not going to completely blindside him.”

  “No, not at all.”

  “Great. Have Peter stab the Dom you want to kill.”

  “Peter wouldn’t have to stab him to break his back.”

  “Even better, I don’t have much of a stomach for blood.”

  “You won’t be there.”

  “I will be there. I’m going.”

  “Oh, shit, right.”

  “You should go talk to Matt, then talk to Peter.”

  “I should, yes. You and her try not to get too drunk.”

  “You do remember that this is happening tomorrow night, right?”

  “I do. But I’m hoping you’ll be too drunk to ask questions if we’re attacked again, and you’ll just sort of sleep it off.”

  “You’re kind of an evil man.”

  “Sometimes, just a little bit.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  We drank two bottles of the wine.

  At some point, Morgan and Gerrid joined us. And then at some other point, Rachel and Morgan went back to her rooms and Gerrid and I ended up curled up on the couch in each others’ arms. It just didn’t seem right to sleep in the bed when the sheets hadn’t been changed.

  The bed smelled of Rachel and Matt, and a little of fear, Gerrid said. Since he didn’t want to sleep there, I was fine with sleeping on the couch. It was my second night out of my bed, but it didn’t bother me much because this time was a full sleep, and I woke up in Gerrid’s arms. He woke me with a kiss and two fingers trailing down my face.

  We made love on the couch.

  Yup, that is all I’m going to say on that.

  Then we showered and had sex in there. While he was cooking breakfast, I flicked him in the butt with a towel and… well, the eggs burned, and we had to start again. By the time we were supposed to head to the gym we smelled of sex and sweat, so we had to shower again.

  And you can guess how that went.

  To say we were late would be putting it mildly. The Alphas and Rachel were already halfway through their workout.

  Blane looked up over his paper and looked like he wanted to say something, but closed his mouth instead. He flicked the paper and raised it, to cover his face and block out the rest of the gym.

  As I walked past Morgan, he turned and watched me go, earning himself a smack to his arm from Rachel. He apologized to her and we went about our workout. After our workout, Rachel pulled me into a random room and jabbed a finger at me.

  “What?” I asked.

  “I am not a prude!” she shouted.

  “I didn’t say you were.”

  “Really? Because all the others are acting like I am.”

  “If Morgan knew you were a virgin, he’d be taking his time, I’m sure,” I said. “I’m not—I know what I like, and I know how to tell them what I like. So, I’m having what I like and taking advantage of the hot males throwing themselves at me.”

  “And this morning?”

  “We had sex several times,” I said.

  Rachel looked annoyed.

  “What?” I asked.

  “He’s been back almost a day and we still haven’t had sex.”

  “So, go tell him to put his manhood in you.”

  “I don’t talk like that!”


  “Fine, I’ll do it.”

  “No!” Rachel shouted.

  I sighed and rolled my eyes.

  “You want sex, but you don’t want me telling anyone you want sex. You really need to figure your stuff out before you start talking. Look, sex with Alphas is easy. Normally you just need to bat your eyes at them. What you’ve got is an Alpha who demands consent, possibly to the point that he’s over thinking things. You just need to tell him what you want.”

  “Yeah, but I’m not confident like you are, except we’re not doing a switch.”

  “Then don’t be confident. If Morgan wanted some confident slut, he would have found himself one. Did he? No, he’s attracted to you. Go out there, find him, and stumble your way through it.”

  She gave me an annoyed look as the door snapped open and Matt and Peter walked in. I stiffened at their presence, then looked pleadingly at Rachel. Who glanced over her shoulder at them and shook her head.

  “Oh no, I’m not getting in the middle of that annoyance,” she said.

  And she slipped out behind them, leaving me alone with a companion and a strange Alpha, neither of who I had any control over. I tried to remain calm as Peter folded his arms and glared at me. A moment later, Matt did the same thing.

  “You told him to ask permission?” Peter snapped at me.

  “To ask Peter just to throw away his entire life,” Matt said. “How could you do that?”

  “Blane is lonely, and both of you can shut up about it,” I said. “He wants this. I told him to go for what he wanted. It’s your fault you led him to believe it might be welcomed.”

  “No, I’m not mad he wants me to abandon my job,” Peter said sternly. “I’m insulted that he thought he had to ask instead of just coming out and saying it. Or saying that he wanted me in his life.”

  “I thought we were mad at her,” Matt said.

  “We are mad at her,” Peter snapped. “We’re mad because she’s a moron.”

  They were already bickering like they were good friends, or old lovers. I didn’t know why they were resisting, but I had a nagging feeling that it had to do with pride.

  “Oh, I’m a bad person for giving him a nudge?” I asked. “How long have you wanted to move in with Blane, Peter?”

  “That’s besides the point.”

  “How long?” I asked again. “Hey? Since your father was granted reprieve? Or before that? Since the war? Since before that? Since before Alex?”

  Peter shifted uncomfortably, and I knew I had finally found the mark.

  “Your father lived apart from Ezra for decades. You don’t think they both regretted that?”

  “You can’t just manipulate the household into doing whatever you want,” Matt protested.

  I turned on him. “You’re not quite a companion, so you have no excuse. You knew what you were signing up for. Did you think it’d just be you and him from now on? If he was satisfied with one partner, he wouldn’t have ever accepted you. Two seems to be his limit and his breeder is an Alpha female who isn’t going to stick around. Both of you need to shut up about it.”

  “How do you know about how long I had wanted this?” Peter asked.

  “A lucky guess. Alphas probably bond early, before the lines of work are figured out so that no one interferes with the other one,” I said with a shrug. “Look, do either of you have a problem with this arrangement? Honestly, now.”

  Matt made an annoyed face.

  “An actual problem with it, and not just because Peter had his panties in a bunch and came to see you,” I said.

  “They’re going to announce this by breaking the law,” Matt said.

  “Why can’t Abraham know?” I asked.

  “Well, because he’d be upset,” Peter said. “What with losing me and all.”

  I shrugged and walked around them. By the time I was halfway down the hallway, they figured out what I was doing and were chasing after me. The pair of them tried to hiss at me to stop, but I ignored them and found the first servant I saw. That servant took me to Abraham’s rooms.

  Entering the room, I found Theo, Penelope, and Abraham in a heated, hissing discussion. As soon as they spotted me, all talk stopped.

  Theo looked uncomfortable. Penelope pulled out her cellphone and scrunched up her lips, raising her eyebrows slightly as she focused on her phone.

  I had seen that look before, the look of someone who thought she was better than whoever she had just spotted. I blew a silent raspberry at her before focusing on Abraham.

  “I need the room with Abraham,” I said. “The rest of you could please wait outside.”

  “Abraham, I protest,” Peter said.

  “Go,” Abraham said, relaxing in his seat. “You two, there, go and deal with that before I’m done talking to her.”

  “It might only take two seconds,” I said.

  “Then they’d best hurry, hadn’t they?” he asked.

  Theo and Penelope were suddenly scrambling for the door. They were out it as Peter followed a moment later. Matt stayed stubbornly behind me, refusing to budge. He folded his arms and glared at Abraham.

  “Matt, darling. I’m not allowed to have my way with you, but that doesn’t mean that I cannot pick you up and throw you out of my rooms. Leave.”

  He turned and marched out, closing the door behind him.

  I waited another moment, then moved to where Theo had been sitting, just by Abraham. I took the seat and tried not to sigh. I didn’t much want to have that conversation, but I knew I had to because they wouldn’t come forward and have it themselves.

  “Peter needs to leave you,” I said.

  “I know, but he’s not got the balls to do it,” Abraham said. “He’s a good man. I can’t fire him. Everything he does is superb. Do you know how stupid it would be to fire him? If I did, I’d have a revolt on my hands, led by Blane no less.”

  “I… did a thing.”

  “You did what faeries do, you mean,” Abraham said. “I’m no stranger to it. Rachel was not here long before you, but she was very good at that. Blane resisted breeding until Rachel basically commanded him and Penelope to just get on with it already. It’s not surprising to me that you also did a thing. Now, you get to tell me what you did.”

  “I told Blane not to kill the Dom he wants to kill and instead cripple him, to make an example of him. The only way to do that, he thinks, is to have Peter do it but that would break a law or something and would be bad. Which means Peter doesn’t want to, because he’s afraid of angering you and Matt isn’t supporting it because Peter has his panties in a bunch.”

  “I’m sorry, cripple instead of kill?”

  “In full sight of everyone else.”

  Abraham huffed out a little, desperate breath. “Cripple a traitor instead of killing him. Makes us seem soft.”

  “But if you kill him, that makes it seem like you’ll just kill those who upset you and once you’re dead, you can’t be hurt anymore.”

  “You’re trying to avoid bloodshed.”

  “Well, yes, of course I am. Blane wanted to chop off his legs with an axe before he settled on breaking his back.”

  Abraham sighed out.

  “Abraham, it needs to be done.”

  “You’re taking a well-trained man and giving him to a psychotic.”

  “I’ve heard Blane called a lot of things, but never a psychotic.”

  “He’s a bloodrage, he’s still on edge. Both of them are. Put them together and they’re bound to start a bloodbath,” Abraham protested. “It’s what I’d do. It’s what I considered doing. Attacking women. What are we, the government of old? It’s absolutely disgusting.”

  “It would undermine his power for you to do that,” I said.

  “You’re only saying that because that’s what Blane has been saying to you.”

  “But it’s true, isn’t it?”

  “They might think I gave Peter to him.”

  “Which is why it would be illegal, I’m guessing.”

 
Abraham considered me for a moment, then pulled out his phone. He sent something off on it, then slipped it away. A moment later, Peter entered the room.

  “Wait,” Abraham said.

  I was puzzled as to why he had called Peter into the room, what his plan was exactly. He could have at least shared that plan with me, so that I’d know and be prepared for whatever he was going to throw at me.

  Peter stood at the door like a military man. Feet spread, hands behind his back and a distant look on his face. I turned back to Abraham, who watched Peter for a moment longer before he turned to me.

  “We’ll settle this problem here and now, I suppose.”

  There was a knock on the door. After some bit of silence, it opened and Blane walked in, closing the door behind him. He saw Peter, and I thought I saw a flash of sadness over his face, like he thought that was Peter’s answer.

  “Blane, come here.”

  Abraham stood, so I did as well. I turned to Blane. His sole focus was Abraham, and he had taken on a stance that was very much like Peter’s.

  “Is there something you’d like to ask me?” Abraham asked.

  “Absolutely not.”

  “No? Not even for control of my man?” Abraham asked.

  “I’m sorry?”

  “You’re trying to buy Peter away from me.”

  “Absolutely not.”

  “Oh, for the love of God itself,” I snapped. “All of you sit down. Sit, I said, Abraham. Peter, get over here and sit down.”

  Peter marched from the door and then sat. Abraham glared at me. I jabbed my finger and motioned to the seat he had just abandoned. He sat, but his glare continued. I turned to Blane, then motioned to beside Peter. Blane sat, but slowly. Seated, the three men looked at each other, then up at me.

  “You three practically grew up together. You fought in a war together. You’ve built a country together. Stop acting like everything is about everyone trying to murder you. Abraham, I am talking to you, you look at me when I talk to you.”

  Abraham turned his scathing look back to me.

  “Now. Blane and Peter are a bonded pair, and if you have a problem with that, I’ll put a blade between your ribs. It’s happening, it is done, it has happened, now everyone get over yourselves.”

  “How exactly do we do this without his losing face?” Blane asked.