Marriage Claws

by Paige Cuccaro

  I wanted to refuse, but I could seriously use the liquid courage. I sipped, hoping that my empty stomach wouldn’t make the alcohol go to my head.

  “You sure you don’t want me to get you something?” Marcus asked. “If you’re waiting on Jack to bring a plate for you it, um . . . it may be a while.”

  He tipped his chin in the direction I’d last seen Jack and I turned just in time to see him slip into the woods with the red-dress siren.

  “I can’t say I’m okay with it, but . . . it happens,” He said. “Like most she-wolves, my beautiful Alexia is drawn to power . . . and Jack. Always has been.” He chuckled. “And Jack clearly enjoys the perks of being the alpha’s son.”

  I shifted back around, my stomach twisting. I didn’t care—at least, I didn’t want to. I mean, it’s not like we were a couple. Not really. But somehow, knowing that didn’t help the knot growing in my throat, or the weight settling over my chest. I exhaled, trying to calm my stupid irrational emotions.

  “I’m sorry,” Marcus said. “I didn’t realize that you . . . I mean, I’m used to it, being engaged to Alexia. I just assumed . . .”

  I shook my head, feeling my scowl tighten. “Assumed what?”

  “Jack didn’t tell you?” he asked. “You’re not his first fiancée. He and Alexia were engaged. She broke it off because he wouldn’t put her first. He’s a lot like his father in that way—pack first, last and always. It’ll probably make him a good alpha, but the other women . . . Well, so far that inherited trait has only gotten in his way.”

  “Jack cheated on her?” I tried to wrap my head around that. It was the one thing he’d mentioned about his father, the one thing that had driven a wedge between them. Jack couldn’t stand that his father had cheated on his mother. How could he turn around and do the same thing to his fiancée? I couldn’t believe it.

  Marcus shook his head. “Him or her . . . one of them betrayed the other. Doesn’t matter. I’m sure it was just a flaw in their relationship. Clearly, they weren’t meant for each other, because he’s with you now. And thanks to that stroke of luck, Alexia finally agreed to marry me when she heard Jack had moved on. So I guess I should thank you.”

  Except apparently Jack hadn’t moved on. We weren’t really a couple. Was Jack still hung up on his ex-girlfriend? Was all of this, our business agreement, just a way to avoid committing to the woman he really loved? I’d agreed to let Jack use me to get the alpha spot, but not to run away from a woman he clearly had trouble resisting. I glanced back to the woods where he and Alexia had disappeared. It was growing darker but there was no sign of them.

  I looked back to Marcus, suspicion niggling. “And you’re okay with this? With your fiancé sneaking off with her ex?”

  He sat straighter. “No. Hell, no. But like I said, Jack’s the son of the alpha. He does what he wants. Always has.”

  I nodded, still not totally swallowing the hook. “Right. So why don’t you say something to Alexia?”

  He shrugged. “I have. But she can’t help herself. None of them can.” Marcus scanned the sprawling grounds, people strolling in and out among the tents. “It’s instinct for our females to be drawn to power. They all want to be chosen as the alpha’s mate. Of course, now that he’s found his true life mate in you, the other females should sense it and his appeal should fade.”

  But Jack hadn’t found his life mate—he’d hired one. I’m no werewolf, but I was pretty sure whatever instincts drove their animal halves couldn’t be bought.

  “Is that why you want to be alpha?” I asked. “To make it easier to get women?”

  “Yes.”

  I blinked at that. I’d been expecting a denial, or at least a more noble excuse for wanting to hold all the power.

  He shrugged, a half smile hiking one side of his mouth. “Actually, just the one woman. Alexia. What can I say? I love her. If she wants to be mated with an alpha, then that’s what I want to be—for her. Is that dumb?”

  Yes. But who hasn’t been a moron for love? I shook my head. “No. Not dumb. You’re just in love. But you’re in line to be beta. From what I hear it’s kind of an important role.”

  He nodded. “You’re right. It is. And I’m proud of my family lineage. I’m proud of my pop. I’ve always wanted to be just like him since I was a kid. And then I met Alexia.”

  “She’s that special?” I asked.

  “She is,” he said. “Just ask Jack.”

  I clamped my mouth shut and looked away, taking another sip of champagne. “This is crazy. I mean, it’s insane that any of this, any of you, even exists. How did it all start? I mean, who decided your family would be betas and Jack’s would be alphas? Is it all written in stone somewhere?”

  “It is. Inside,” he said. “Would you like to see?”

  “Seriously?” I’d been kind of joking.

  Marcus pushed to his feet, setting his plate on the arm of the chair and offered me his hand. I stared at it for a half second. Marcus had every right to be here. This was his pack, his family, as much as Jack’s. The fact he was Jack’s rival didn’t matter. But had Jack been totally honest about why they were rivals? Marcus wanted to be alpha, but maybe if Jack had chosen a real mate, instead of hiring one, his ex-girlfriend wouldn’t still be sniffing around making Marcus feel like second banana.

  I put my hand in his and followed him into the house. We went downstairs, into the finished basement. The big room was huge, spanning the length and width of the house above. The ceilings were at least ten feet high, with plenty of room for a full bar and pool table. There was a theater room, complete with stadium seating and a decked out dance floor with a DJ booth and mirrored ball overhead.

  Marcus led us deeper into the darkened basement.

  “Do I hear water running?”

  He glanced back at me. “Good hearing for a human.”

  The pitter-pat grew louder and up ahead the far end of the basement glowed with natural light. A few steps closer and I could see the bright rectangle of light shining down from the high ceiling, the floor dropping another five or six feet, a semicircle of stone steps leading down. At the bottom the light bathed a large stone pool, alive with brilliant colored coy fish and vibrant green lily pads.

  The wall behind the pool was made of natural stone, worn smooth from the spring that trickled over it and spilled crystal clear water into the pool. The wall glistened in the dimming shaft of sunlight, streaming in from outside through a tunnel of reflective tubes. Moss grew rich and green over the stone wall, the sunlight just enough to give life to the indoor fountain.

  “There,” Marcus said, pointing to the wall behind the flow of spring water.

  I stepped closer and noticed the words etched into the stone. “Are those names?”

  I scanned the wall, my eyes adjusting to the low light. There were hundreds—thousands—of names spanning the entire width of the wall, under the water and to the ends on either side. Imprecise lines connected one name to another like the branches of a tree.

  That’s what this is. “A family tree,” I said.

  “Exactly.”

  The names at the top were etched so shallow they were difficult to read, but as they crawled down the massive tree the names and their birth relation grew darker.

  “Does that say, sire? And his wife says Dame?” I asked.

  “It does,” Marcus said. “But can you read the two at the very top?”

  I stepped closer, squinting into the darkness at the top of the wall.

  “Here. This should help.” Marcus flipped a switch turning on recessed lights that spotted all along the top of the wall.

  I blinked. “Romulus and Remus,” I read aloud.

  “Raised by a she-wolf nearly three thousand years ago,” Marcus said. “Her love imbued the boys with her power. The power to be both man and beast, the best of both. They say the power still exists within us to turn a human with our passion alone, our love.”

  “Are you talking about the myth of the founders of Rome?”


  Marcus shook his head. “Not a myth. They were our fathers, and she, Lupa, was our mother. We are each descended from them, the line of Romulus bearing alphas, the line of Remus bearing betas.”

  I turned to Marcus, studying him. “So you’re descended from Remus?”

  Marcus held my gaze for a half beat then shrugged with a snort. “Who knows? According to the wall, I am. I’m over there somewhere.” He pointed to the far corner.

  “So Jack is . . . ?”

  “Yeah.” He pointed to the opposite end. “That way.”

  I shifted, ready to check when the sound of footsteps stopped me.

  “Kate,” Jack said, stepping into the soft shadows of the recessed lights. “What are you doing?”

  “What he means is, what are you doing with me,” Marcus said. “Hello, Jack. Just getting to know our future alpha female. She’s lovely. Where have you been hiding her?”

  His tone was taunting and cold, so different than the way he’d seemed just a moment ago. I stepped away from him, moving closer to Jack. “He was showing me the wall. I had no idea you were descended from Romulus and—”

  “They’re about to start your brother’s induction,” Jack said and I could hear the edge of anger in his voice. “If Marcus is finished with his history lesson, you might want to come upstairs to bear witness.”

  I nodded, feeling guilty, though I really hadn’t done anything wrong. It’s not like I snuck off to the woods with my ex-lover or anything. I bit my lip and kept that little snark to myself.

  It was full-on dark when I got upstairs. The entire backyard was empty—the lawn chairs, the tennis court, the buffet tents.

  “Where is everyone?”

  “The clearing,” he said. “Stay close. Stay calm.”

  We headed for the same dark path into the woods I’d seen him and Alexia take earlier. The thick foliage blocked almost all the ambient light and I stumbled to keep up with Jack’s long confident strides.

  “Mind if we take it a little slower?” I asked. “I can hardly see my hand in front of my face.”

  “Then don’t put your hand in front of your face,” he said.

  “I’m not actually doing—never mind.” After nearly face-planting—twice—the soft glow of firelight edged away the darkness up ahead. Seconds later, we emerged into the clearing. The large area was already crowded with pack members.

  I’d gone three steps into the opening before I realized everyone—everyone—was naked. Several of them actually turned to glare at me as though I was the odd one. I pulled Jack’s hand, slowing him for three steps. “Do I have to get naked?”

  His gaze skimmed down my body and back again. He shook his head. “No.” He turned and pulled me into the crowd. “Thank God.”

  “What was that?”

  He didn’t hear me. At least he didn’t answer. He was too busy elbowing though the press of naked bodies, fighting our way to the center. The upside was that most of the naked bodies were incredibly fit and exceptionally good-looking.

  Still. Naked. Naked strangers everywhere.

  Awkward.

  Torches flickered around the edges of the clearing, but I could tell another fire burned at the center. My suspicions were confirmed when we broke through the innermost line of people. A small fire burned, flames licking four or five feet into the night air.

  Jack’s parents, Frank and Meredith stood near the fire, my brother, George between them . . . naked. It’s a strange thing, seeing your future in-laws in their birthday suits. But I tried—really hard—not to think about it.

  Across from them sat an oversized husky, his tongue lolled out, panting under the heat of the fire. His blue eyes, too human to belong to an animal, shifted to me, and I could’ve sworn it smiled. Lenny.

  It took several more seconds to put names to the naked people—I mean, faces behind Lenny. I’d met them all the day before and seen them off and on today. Little-known fact:, everyone looks different with their clothes off.

  Ralph Passat’s sheepish glances my way helped kick-start my brain. The ginger-haired man looked to be in his mid-twenties, like me, and was—by all appearances—a natural redhead. Way more than I needed to know.

  Ralph was the pack’s new sentinel, and that knowledge helped me remember the men around him. Marcus’ father, Benito Russo, the pack beta, stood next to Don Augusto, pack omega. On the other side of him were the pack elders, Shepard Piercy, Osmond Levins, Galvan Passat, and Mortimer Ranford. I realized quickly that werewolves show their age low on their bodies. From the looks of it, Galvan and Mort were getting up there.

  “Here she is.” Frank sighed, smiling at me. “Now that Kate’s here to represent George’s old pack, we can begin his induction into ours.”

  I waved, and then instantly wished I hadn’t.

  Frank’s smile wilted and he turned to my brother, hand on his shoulder. “This is a solemn occasion,” he said, gaze flicking to me, narrowing, then back to George. “From this night forward you will no longer be a part of the human race. You will be pack, mannaro, transformed by the love of your mate, as our fathers were transformed by the love of our mother.”

  Lenny stood, his long tongue darting out to sweep the side of his muzzle then disappear. He lowered his head and moved closer to my brother.

  “Your mate will offer the transforming bite, bringing you into our world,” Frank said. “This will forever mark you as girato lupo mannaro, turned werewolf—honored among us for your sacrifice.”

  I pushed up on my toes, to whisper in Jack’s ear. “I thought he said Lenny’s love would transform George.”

  Jack leaned toward me. “That’s just ceremonial. It’s a long story. Part of our origin myth. I’ll explain it later.”

  “When the gift is passed, we will mark you as pack,” Frank said. “Your ties to humanity will be severed and the fight for your new life will begin. You will come to us in your new form or join the great mother on the eternal plains.”

  Eternal plains? I was up on my toes again. “Is he saying George could die?”

  “Yes. Shhh . . .” Jack said, quieting me.

  Surprise actually made me speak louder. “No one said anything about dying and eternal plains. George, no. Don’t. You can’t risk your life for this.”

  Jack grabbed my hand, jerked me close as a hundred-plus sets of eyes snapped my way—glaring. “Kate, stop it. You’re being disruptive.”

  “You think I care? They’re about to kill my brother—”

  “They’re turning him,” Jack said in a low angry whisper. “You had to know this. We told you his DNA would be altered. He’s going to become a different species. It’s his decision. His sacrifice . . . for love. Now respect it, and hold your tongue.”

  Jack straightened, done chastising me. His full attention shifted back to George and Lenny.

  The big animal stalked closer to my brother, and George lowered himself to his knees, Frank’s heavy hand on his shoulder. George lowered his head and Lenny stalked around him moving alongside, sniffing his head, his shoulders, his back.

  Without warning he lunged forward, massive teeth bared, and sank his fangs into the back of George’s neck.

  George cried out in pain and everything inside me screamed for me to go to him—to protect him. “George, no!”

  Jack grabbed my wrist, then looped an arm around my waist when I struggled. “Kate, stay here. It’s not safe. He’ll be okay.”

  I fought against Jack’s hold, pushing against his shoulder, pounding my fists against his arm. But his hold was like iron. I couldn’t break free.

  Lenny flinched at George’s cry of pain, crouching, ears back, eyes glistening with fear. Then he turned and ran, leaving my brother, buckled over in pain, his hand holding the wound on the back of his neck.

  “He’s bleeding,” I said, pleading for Jack to let me go.

  “Kate,” he said, brows tight, the same worry mirrored in his eyes. “It’s not over.”

  All around us people knelt, as
a strange thick energy filled the air. It crackled against my skin raising hairs, snapping between Jack and me. I looked back to Frank and Meredith, and the elders and leaders standing with them.

  They’d already begun shifting forms, bodies contorting, skin stretching and shrinking as hair cascaded like liquid over their bodies. It sounded like tree limbs breaking, bones cracking and snapping all around us as the entire pack, more than a hundred werewolves, shifted forms.

  The sound crawled over my consciousness, itching against my skin like a million ants marching under my flesh. My attention went back to the pack leaders, already fully transformed into wolves.

  My brother hadn’t moved, his head still down, hand still protecting his wound.

  Frank was the first to attack, then his wife, and then the rest of the elders. They advanced on him, like hunters to the prey, flashing their dagger sharp teeth before they sunk into my brother’s flesh.

  George screamed, with each bite he jumped and jerked, trying to flee, but there was nowhere to go. He was surrounded.

  “Ohmygod . . . George! George! Leave him alone!” I fought against Jack’s hold, driving an elbow into his side, stomping hard on his foot, digging nails into his hands. He wouldn’t let go.

  “You can’t help him now,” Jack said. “It’s too late. They’ll kill you.”

  I didn’t care. I couldn’t rationalize what Jack was saying. It didn’t matter. They were killing him, biting him, each one taking a turn and drawing blood. I had to protect my baby brother. Oh my god, how did I let this happen? I had to save him. It was my job, my responsibility to keep him safe.

  Jack pulled me back then started dragging me toward the dark path to the house.

  “No. I’m not leaving him,” I said, digging in my heels.

  “It’s not safe,” Jack said. “I thought you could handle it, but . . . C’mon, Kate. Let’s go.”

  “Screw you. You never said it would be like this. They’re killing him,” I screamed.

  “They’re not. Look. Do you see? It’s just one bite,” he said. “One bite each and that’s all. It will tie him to the pack.”