Stacy welcomed the young She-panther to the table and handed her a cup, “I don’t know why after all the years that have passed, humans can’t get it into their heads that we don’t want to hurt them,”
“It’s the anti Preter groups, the ones that say we are abominations to God’s plan,” Amber added taking a sip of tea,
“Ha, if only they knew about the ladies upstairs,” Grace offered pointing up, “Those girls would make most Christians shit the bed,”
All four laughed at the thought of a devout Christian being confronted by a Valkyrie,
“I would pay good money to see that,” Amber remarked,
“Money? Hell, I would go an entire year without feeding to see that shit,” Grace offered as her smile and natural beauty came back to her face, she wasn’t drop dead gorgeous, she was the girl next door, very pretty in her own way, and when she was wearing her glasses she did have that naughty secretary look down to a tee,
Again the four laughed amongst themselves, the sound of which travelled throughout the compound, becoming infectious and putting everyone in a slightly better mood.
Mal took the opportunity while the girls were busy, to talk to the person who knew Stacy best of all,
“Hey Tyrone, you got a sec?” The Demon asked as he entered Tyrone’s medical room, he had been diagnosed with lymphoma, the one ailment that affects Wolf-shifters,
“Sure thing Doc’, I ain’t going anywhere,” Tyrone was a proud man and a prouder Wolf, he rarely let his illness show but it could be heard in his voice, he was weak, his flesh was pale and his eyes were grey and cold,
“I’ll try not to take up too much time, I know you need to rest after your treatment, Stacy’s birthday is coming up, she’s going to be nineteen…”
“Let me stop you there Doc’,” Tyrone interrupted, “She hates birthdays and surprises,”
“I want to ask her to marry me,”
Tyrone sat upright in his bed, his eyes narrowed and flashed wolf for a moment, Mal had a passing thought that he was about to get chewed up and spit out, “Well, it’s about damn time, I swear you Demons run on slower time than the rest of us,”
Mal breathed a sigh of relief, “So you approve?”
Tyrone smiled weakly, “Just do me a favour Doc’, get married before I kick the bucket, I’ve known that kid since she was a pup,”
“Tyrone, I was going to ask if you would give her away,”
Tears formed in the Wolf’s eyes, he replied with a catch in his throat, “I would be honoured, now let me rest so I can live long enough to see it,”
Mal smiled as he nodded to Tyrone, “Rest well, I’ll come check on you later,”
Mal left the medical floor and sought out the next person who’s approval he needed, Dominic.
“OK, so if we put the new living quarters here, we can then extend the medical wing into the current living area and have a new lab,” Dominic explained to his mate as they looked over the land schematics, Mal heard just enough to reply,
“You could do that, or you could make the entire original facility the living quarters and the extension would become the new med wing, labs and armoury,”
“I wondered when the great builder might grace us with his presence,” Valaria said giving the Demon a friendly smile, at first Valaria was slightly untrusting of Mal, but after he saved Dominic’s life he had her trust and respect,
“Sorry it took so long, I have had a lot on my mind, and Tyrone’s treatments are needing more attention than originally planned,” the Demon explained as he rounded the large mahogany desk to get a better view of the land, “See here?” Mal pointed to an old barn that was placed alongside the river on the new patch of land, “That is where I would put the hydro power turbines, the river flows with the most force through this point, and you can use the existing structure as shelter saving on building materials and labour,”
Dominic couldn’t help but smile when he first met Mal he was still a builder, an architect really, he only became a doctor to find a cure for the ailments of Preternatural, “OK Mal, you can run the build, that is, if you want the job,”
“I’ll do it, but I have a question to ask,”
Valaria took a step forward invading Mal’s personal space and flooding his nostrils with her mated scent, “Yes,”
Mal stood there looking a little confused until Valaria explained her response to the unasked question, “Of course you can marry Stacy, you two are made for each other, now go ask her or I will,”
Mal didn’t hesitate, he left Dominic’s office and made his way to the kitchen where he last saw the girls talking, he had never taken much notice of the structure that he called home, it was a disused military complex that had five levels below the surface and a parking garage above, set on around fifty acres of woodland with a river dividing this plot from the one that had just been purchased, some of the old military insignia still remained in certain sections of the building, junction numbers and coded door locks from the early 2000s, but Dominic had made vast improvements, using Predtech’s technology to upgrade security and the wealth created by his company to furnish the structure leaving it comfortable, Mal knew the second complex would have to be above ground, Wolves like to see and smell the outside world and suddenly he realized the plan he had for the new building wouldn’t work, the new complex would have to be the living quarters as Dominic suggested, giving the occupants what they need to live comfortably is more important than building labs and armouries, he stopped outside the kitchen for a moment as he tried to gather the words he needed, but like always his thoughts were cut short as a voice came over the intercom system,
“Dominic, Stacy and Mal, you are needed at the main gate, we have an Angelic visitor,” said the crackled voice which just made Mal want to upgrade the intercom for better clarity,
Stacy stepped out of the kitchen and smiled at Mal, that sweet smile that made his black heart melt a little every time he saw it, “C’mon you, we are needed,” She said rather matter of factly, the pair made their way to the elevator where Dominic was already waiting,
“Angelic visitor?” Stacy asked as they approached Dominic,
“Don’t look at me Stace, your boyfriend is the one with a connection upstairs,” the Alpha replied as he embarked on the elevator and punched in his code,
Mal grimaced, “Not a connection, apart from the talks for coming out I haven’t seen a Valkyrie in thousands of years, they don’t exactly play nice with us Demons,”
The elevator doors opened on the surface and the trio walked up the driveway where they were met by Charlie and a woman dressed from head to toe in cream leather, long flowing blonde hair and pale skin, she was almost ghostly, but beautiful at the same time, her eyes glowed a pale blue as she spoke to Mal directly,
“Hello father,” the tone was condescending and snarky but swimming in truth, this was indeed the offspring of Mal and a Valkyrie,
“Hi, I’m Stacy, and you are?” the young Wolf made sure to place herself between the Valkyrie and her lover,
“I’m Ellie, and no, I’m not here to cause trouble, but your entire pack is in danger, so either let me in so we can talk or let me walk away, but if I leave, your entire race will be extinct within a year,”
Mal swallowed hard, Valkyries didn’t lie, they had no reason to, and for the people upstairs to send his daughter, that was a message in itself.
Chapter 12
Logic dictates that any warning delivered by a Valkyrie should be heeded, but delivered by the child of the man you love? A child who you didn’t know even existed and that you have still not received an explanation for? That is a whole other story, the exact thoughts that were racing through Stacy’s mind as she escorted Ellie to the living quarters, Dominic said that they would talk in the morning, which meant putting Ellie up for the night, Stacy made sure to put her in the room farthest from where her and Mal slept, just to be safe.
It wasn’t that Stacy didn’t trust Mal, or Ellie for that matter, but to
find out that Mal had spawned an offspring even if it was thousands of years ago hurt, it hurt to the core of Stacy’s soul, her Wolf was beside itself with heartache, Stacy hadn’t really noticed until now but it seemed that her Wolf had imprinted on Mal, imprinting is not the same as bonding, imprinting only goes one way, whilst Stacy was most definitely in love with Mal, her Wolf was infatuated, she created an emotional bond similar to that of mates but more on the I need you in my life side of things, a connection of love, trust and need to protect, even if those feelings are not reciprocated, and like all imprinted Wolves she had become protective and at that moment she was beginning to realize just how much.
The next morning after a sleepless night of tossing in bed unable to clear the thought of Ellie from her mind Stacy walked into the conference room where Mal, Ellie, Valaria and Drake were waiting, funnily enough Drake was a Dragon-shifter, he joined the Pack about a month ago after hearing of Dominic and Valaria’s mating, he was the son of the Ice Queen and a very devout follower of her teachings, but like most Dragons, he has a curious and rebellious nature, Drake’s particular rebellion of choice was to join The All Kinds Pack and become their advisor to all things Preternatural, beside Mal, Drake was the oldest being in the Pack, he had seen more Preternatural events than the entire Pack combined and he had quite a remarkable gift, he was a reader.
“Stacy, thank you for joining us,” Drake said as he gestured for everyone to take a seat at the large Oak table, he was such a dominant force, not his tone, that was actually quite polite and courteous, it was the vibes that came off of him, they breathed Royalty, there wasn’t an ounce of submission in him which made him perfect at getting answers, it didn’t hurt that his accent was European and he had the build of something extremely muscular, he tried to hide it under a very dark, almost charcoal suit but clearly the tailor didn’t get the message and made it fit his form in a way that screamed Masculinity,
Stacy took her seat next to Mal who kissed the back of her hand reassuring not only Stacy but her Wolf too, “So, what is this important message?” Stacy asked glaring at the Valkyrie,
Drake glanced at Stacy and then bore his eyes into the Valkyrie’s very soul as she answered,
“You have an enemy in Westingdale, an enemy who will stop at nothing to see each and every one of you dead,” Ellie replied flatly, she made sure to look Stacy in the eyes as she spoke to convey the truth, even though she knew the Dragon-shifter was reading her,
Stacy looked to Drake who nodded letting the Wolf know that so far Ellie was speaking truth, “How do you know?”
Ellie scoffed and flicked a curled lock of bright blonde hair out of her face, “Because dear, he has already killed two of you,” she paused to let that sink in before continuing, “Nicolas and Diane, killed at the site of their personal plane, no forensic evidence and no cause of death, despite the Succubus’s best efforts,”
Valaria and Stacy’s looks mirrored one another, they hadn’t told anyone outside of the enforcers and Mal, “What makes you think this killer is still here in Westingdale?” Valaria asked, her own dominant vibes flooded the room letting Ellie know who was in charge,
“Well, sweet Panther, I know because it is my job to know,”
The gathered members shared a look of confusion all that is except Drake,
“She is a Watcher,” Drake added to the conversation, not really adding an explanation to how he knew or what a Watcher actually is,
“And what pray tell is a watcher?” Valaria questioned the Dragon-shifter sitting beside her,
Drake raised an eyebrow, “The council never told you? A royal without the basic knowledge of the thirteen is like a chef without knowledge of seasoning,”
Valaria growled outwardly at Drake but it was Stacy who spoke, “Thirteen?”
“Yes, thirteen,” Drake added, but looking at the confused faces decided to elaborate, “Thirteen Preternatural species,”
Stacy's eyes widened as if she had just been told there was an extra season of firefly, “There are eleven species,”
Drake laughed, not in amusement but in bewilderment, “Demons, Valkyrie, Succubi, Incubi, Wolves, Bears, Eagles, Dragons, Panthers, Wolves, Vampires,” Drake paused for effect, “Hippogriff and Merfolk, thirteen in all, well thirteen original, we all know there are other subspecies out there.”
The Wolf, Demon and Panther shared the look of awe while Ellie sighed, “The last two haven't been heard from in hundreds of years but they are very much alive, how is it that Mal doesn't remember them I wonder?”
“He has travelled between the realms in the last century, you know what affect that has on memory,” Drake answered, “I think we should catch them up, but I want Dominic here, there is much history to cover,”
Ellie nodded as she pulled out a leather bound book that looked fresh off the press but had a strange air about it, “This should help,”
Drake’s eyes lit up when he saw the book, the blazing orange was hard to look at but was mesmerizing all the same, “The path of the one and the end of the thirteen, I never thought I would get to see it,”
“You can be the one to translate, I never was good with enochian,” Ellie said with a smile as she slid the book to the entrancing Dragon-shifter,
“So, you're really going to give us a history lesson, right now?” questioned Valaria as her amethyst eyes darted between Drake and Ellie,
“Sure, you guys need to know the truth about where we all came from, honestly the whole Pack needs to know, but for now, this trusted circle will do,” explained Drake as he opened the old tome, his eyes glowed as the read the first few enochian symbols, “In the beginning there were the gods, sixteen all powerful beings that created, nurtured and preserved life,”
“Wait, so now we are learning about gods?” Stacy remarked as she sent a text message to Amber and Dominic telling them to come as soon as possible,
“Just listen young Wolf, you will learn a lot,” Ellie replied before gesturing for Drake to continue,
“The sixteen created mankind, they decided after viewing their creation to walk amongst them, sadly they could not cross the realms and keep their powers, they created vessels to transfer their consciousness to, the first Preternatural were born,” Drake flicked the page with such care, fearful that moving too quickly would damage the book, “After living with mankind for one thousand years the gods returned to their realm, all but one,”
It seemed that the tale had somewhat entranced the listeners as none of them noticed that Amber, Dominic and Grace had entered the room, until Amber spoke up,
“Let me guess, the father of us all?” Amber offered in a rather snarky tone which was unusual for her, the gathered gave her a look that said be quiet and sit down, which she did as Drake continued,
“The god who made himself a Demon stayed, within two short years he ruled over mankind with an iron fist, the other gods banished him to a second realm and named him forever more Lucifer Morningstar,”
“Lucifer? As in the Devil? That dude is real?” Valaria asked, she was enjoying the tale until that point,
“He is, the remaining gods decided that temptation to rule was too great for them to continue to exist, each of them split their essence into a million pieces and sent it to earth, binding each piece with a human soul they would never again be able to resume control, the Demons were sent to Hell to guard Lucifer, the Angels were sent up to guard the history,”
Stacy couldn't help but interrupt once more, “So, what are the other Preternatural? The ones you didn't mention? There are two more right?”
Ellie sighed as she answered, “We don't know, the trouble with moving between realms is memories are often lost, and the power you have on earth isn't the same as in another realm, you can't take it with you, it is anchored to a Soulmate, the gods designed it so not a single one of them could ever have full power again,”
Dominic shook his head as though clearing his thoughts, “What does this have to do with Nick and Diane?”
&
nbsp; “There is a prophecy,” Ellie explained, “There will come a time when the mating of a Wolf to a Panther will imbue the Panther with the strength and power of both species, renewing the Panther and uniting the races, Lucifer will rise to take retribution upon his former siblings, starting with the false leaders and the crowned prince,”
Valaria spoke first “Wait false leaders? Nick and Diane were acting as alphas, that means that…”
“That means, I'm next,” Mal added dropping his head,
“How do we stop it?” Dominic asked, his vibes sent shivers down the spine of the Valkyrie,
“It's a prophecy, there is no stopping it, but the prophecy only goes that far, the rest is unwritten,” Ellie fought against Dominic's vibes and uttered the words,
Stacy broke down into tears, the thought of losing the man she loved because fate dictated it infuriated her and her Wolf, “No! I will not let him take you,” she sobbed as she pulled the Demon close to her,
“There is a caveat,” Drake interjected looking at the young Wolf, “If you two were to bond, Mal's powers would be grounded to you, his spirit wouldn't die when Lucifer takes him,”
“There is no guarantee that would work,” Ellie stressed,
“Then we do everything we can to protect Mal, and the rest of the pack, God or not Lucifer Fucking Morningstar has nothing on a pissed off, over powered She-panther,” Valaria's voice echoed in the room as though amplified by invisible speakers,
Stacy jumped up and stormed out of the conference room, Dominic could feel her through the Pack link but he wasn't sensing pain, she was angry, violently so, she was about to do something that would change her life forever.
Chapter 13
Tyrone had taken to vaping, not because he used to smoke, it was because it was the best way for him to take CBD, Amber mixed it with a vanilla custard liquid that was quite pleasant but a little sweeter than Tyrone would like, his treatments for Lymphoma caused heavy nausea and his anxiety has been through the roof since he hasn’t been able to burn off the excess adrenaline that his Preternatural body produced, it was the same for most preternatural, Shifters especially, the adrenal gland was hard wired into overdrive, for most this just meant having a shift and a run once or twice a week, but city dwellers and like Tyrone ill creatures, it created anxiety and crippling panic attacks, the CBD help to keep his anxiety at bay, it didn’t hurt that it took the edge off the pain too, enough that he could get up and walk around the compound, even if it was at a fraction of his former speed, he was on one of these walks outside when he spotted Stacy sat with her legs crossed under a large oak tree, as Tyrone slowly grew closer he could see that she was holding a hatchet, such an ornate thing, it was given to her by Mal when they first met, she was only sixteen at the time Mal gave her the hatchet as a sign of compliance with Dominic’s rules of no weapons, when Mal left the compound he told Stacy to keep it just in case,
The All Kinds Pack: The All Kinds Saga Book 1 Page 8
