by Dannika Dark
“And when should this all begin?” Romeo asked as he stood up and circled behind the sofa. “If the scouts are here, they’ll notice we’re preparing. Let us not make haste in our decisions.”
He had a point. It wasn’t advantageous to let the enemy know your plans.
Austin replied without hesitation. “We’ll start with voluntary donations from the larger packs; no one’s watching that closely. If we have time, we can move people over slowly—even put up fake For Sale signs. If anyone here has any better ideas, then I’m all ears,” he said, emotions rising at the thought of his family in danger. “Let’s include the Packmasters so they can contribute their ideas and put something in force. We can’t organize this alone. That’s the advantage we have over the rogues. Our packs are strong, and when unified, we’re even stronger. They’re a bunch of men following a single leader, and that’ll fall apart eventually. I don’t think the larger packs up north are a part of this; they have too much to lose.”
“He has a point,” Turner said to Romeo. “It won’t take long before they disband again, especially without Packmasters to keep order. I’m willing to give up a couple of my men, but not my strongest fighters. That is the best I can offer.”
Romeo rested his hands on the back of the leather sofa. “And what of the rogues who already live in our community? Some are good men, and we might sway them to side with us before it’s too late.”
“Well, we need to know if they’re with us or against us,” Turner said. “The sooner the better.”
***
A growl vibrated against my stomach, and I rolled over, wrinkling my nose. It felt good to sleep in, even though I’d woken up a couple of times from the kids racing down the hall or Denver imitating Tarzan’s yell.
I cracked my eyelids open, rubbing the sleep away. Something heavy pressed against my body and I glanced down. Trevor’s wolf stretched his front leg across my hip. As I scooted up on my elbows, my eyes widened at William lying at the foot of the bed, using my feet as a pillow.
“Get out of here!” I yelled, glaring down at my packmates. “This is not an orgy. I go away on a short vacation and you act like I’ve been on a milk carton for the past twenty years.”
Trevor’s multicolored wolf sneezed and then rolled onto his back.
William sat up, his short brown curls in a mess. He rubbed his liquid-brown eyes and yawned. “When Trevor’s wolf came in this morning, he picked up your scent on Austin, so he went looking for you.”
“How many times have I said no wolves in the house?”
“Indeed,” he replied with a look of mischief. “One can hardly implement that rule in a Shifter house. You should go downstairs and eat breakfast. Mustn’t spend all day sleeping.”
I stroked Trevor’s hind paw, and he wiggled. “Where’s Austin?”
“He left. Your in-laws are waiting downstairs.”
Oh, God. The in-laws. I’d completely forgotten. I really liked Austin’s parents, but his mom and I had a tendency to butt heads. I’m sure it was natural for a mother to want to tell her boys what to do, but this wasn’t her house, and I was the Packmaster’s mate. The men were often conflicted between listening to their mother or obeying their alpha female. The last time I asked them to clean the table, she’d told them to go relax. Everyone has responsibilities in the house, so I had a big problem with that. She wasn’t exactly the homemaker type, but she firmly believed that men should be off somewhere hunting boars or fashioning weapons out of sticks, not doing dishes or cleaning the toilet.
I got up and put on a pair of grey sweats. “Why are you in here?”
“Thought I’d keep an eye on Trevor—make sure he didn’t piss on your floor.”
A likely story.
William didn’t exactly snuggle up in bed with people, so the whole situation was awkward.
“Trevor, get down,” I snapped.
His wolf obediently hopped off the bed and trotted into the hall. William stretched across the covers, his shirt rising up and exposing the thin trail of hair below his navel.
Yeah, nothing weird about this at all.
I dug in the closet and retrieved a pair of pink bunny slippers with giant ears. Not my first choice while saying hello to the folks, but it was all I could find to warm my cold feet. And honestly, I was too groggy to get dressed up. Maybe Austin was right about taking the day off from work.
I headed downstairs to be social.
“Katharine, what a wonderful surprise.” I greeted her warmly, crossing the kitchen to give her a quick hug. “We weren’t expecting you.”
“Evidently,” she replied, stealing a glimpse of my bunny slippers.
Katharine looked to be in her late forties, even though she had a few hundred years on her. She was taller than her husband, George. Her blue eyes stood out amid her thick brows and dark hair she wore clipped back and parted down the middle. Katharine was an attractive woman, just not in the way of makeup and nail polish. She preferred long skirts or old-fashioned trousers of a solid color, and I presumed it had to do with the era she grew up in. She had Jericho’s smile, Denver’s eyes, and a little bit of everyone in her.
Katharine stepped back and smoothed down my messy hair, which hadn’t seen a brush in over twenty-four hours. “When Austin returns, we’ll talk about why we’re here. Come sit, and I’ll fix you a plate of leftovers.”
I neared the table. Melody had organized a myriad of beads and fabrics at the end of the table, studiously working on her next project. She had just turned fifteen and received all the artsy-craftsy things for her birthday that she’d asked for.
Wheeler’s rectangular glasses slid down his nose while he read the newspaper. The visual made me laugh because there was more ink on his body than on the paper.
I sat across from him. “Any sales?”
His brown eyes flashed up to mine, and I immediately regretted opening that can of worms. “As a matter of fact, there are. Why don’t you check out the section on beds,” he suggested, flicking a glance at his mother.
“Are you and Naya sleeping on the trundle?” I asked, wondering who got the top and who got the bottom.
“Naya is. I’m downstairs on the sofa. I don’t trundle.”
“Why didn’t you take the heat house?”
He gave me one of those “keep your voice down or hell might unleash” looks. Then he leaned forward and whispered, “I don’t want to give them the wrong idea. They know what that room is for.”
“What are you, sixteen?”
Katharine set a plate in front of me. Hand to God, I almost threw up.
Wheeler sat back and laughed quietly, lifting the paper in front of his face and giving it a light shake.
“Creamed possum,” she said. “Killed it this morning.”
“Looks… fresh.” I swallowed thickly, trying to come up with a reason for Cheerios.
I heard Wheeler’s breath as he laughed silently, the paper trembling.
Katharine returned to the kitchen. “It’s too bad you couldn’t join us this morning while it was still hot.”
And wiggling, I thought.
“Yeah,” Melody said flatly. “You missed the squirrel.”
Wheeler set down the paper. “Meat is meat. Kids today are spoiled and don’t know how to live like a true Shifter. What do you think your wolf is going to be chewing on when you grow up?”
“My wolf can have all the squirrels she wants so long as I can have my pizza.”
Katharine opened the fridge and poured a glass of juice. I gently pushed the plate toward Wheeler.
When she set the glass down, I quickly grabbed it.
“Mmm, this is just what I wanted.” I slowly drank the pulpy orange juice, my eyes fixed on Wheeler’s index finger pushing my plate back in front of me.
Bastard.
Denver strutted in and stepped over the bench to my right. “You gonna eat that?” he whispered.
Faster than a heartbeat, I moved the plate his way.
“Is
everyone here?” I asked, watching Reno walk past the windows with an axe in his hand. Thankfully, it didn’t have any blood on the blade. It also seemed off for Trevor and William to be home at this hour.
“Austin wants a family meeting,” Denver said around a mouthful of possum.
I shuddered and drank my juice. After five spoonfuls, he finished and slid the empty plate in front of me.
“Where’s George?”
“Pop’s outside with the twins,” Denver said, peering at Melody. “Whatcha working on, Mel?”
She held up a strip of decorated fabric. “Mom gave me her old purse, so it’s an experiment. I’m going to sew this on as a side pouch.”
“Sassy,” he said, his voice a falsetto as he waggled his brows.
She laughed and tucked her blue tresses behind her ears.
George opened the back door, and the twins rushed in before him, their cheeks ruddy and eyes glittering with excitement. They were ten and a handful, considering both boys were alphas.
When I saw them all carrying guns, I whirled around to Denver. “Playing outside?”
He shrugged. “Target practice is Pop’s version of fun. Hey, at least they didn’t get the bazooka out of Reno’s closet.”
I rolled my eyes and stood up. “Hi, George. We’re so glad to see you.”
George was more of a hugger than Katharine, so he gave me a tight squeeze and a friendly smile. “How’s my girl?”
I loved George; he was the father I’d always wanted. He resembled Reno, only more rotund and a smidge shorter.
“I’m great. Just a little sleepy.”
“Vacations will do that,” he said with a wink. The kind of wink that embarrassed the hell out of me because of what it implied.
He glanced down at my bunny slippers, and his chest rocked with a subdued laugh. Then he hummed melodically, something he always did at the end of a laugh.
Reno slammed the back door, sweat stains on his blue shirt—the kind of stretchy fabric that hugged every muscle. “The wood’s chopped.” He wiped his forehead with a rag and smirked. “Have a good night’s sleep, Lexi?”
I pressed my lips together and crossed the kitchen, ignoring the chuckles from the men. “Katharine, why don’t you sit down? You’re our guest.”
“If I sat down, nothing would get done. I brought my bow if you want to hunt with me later.”
Katharine was a skilled archer, and not for sport. She killed the food she put on her table.
“I need everyone in the kitchen,” Austin boomed from across the house.
The front door slammed, and Spartacus scrambled into the room, knocking into his food dish and scattering little brown pebbles across the floor. The pack trickled in and stood in front of the table. Trevor had shifted back to human form and obviously had on someone else’s jeans—they hung too low on his narrow waist and didn’t carry a designer label.
Austin stood next to me, our backs to the row of counters along the wall. “I’ve been busy this morning and haven’t had a chance to see everyone, so we’ll catch up later. Right now, I need to fill you in on something important. What I’m about to tell you stays in this house.” He quieted for a moment and made sure everyone heard his command. “While we were on vacation, Colorado was attacked.”
“And boom goes the dynamite,” Wheeler said, rising from his seat. He walked around to the front of the table, arms folded.
“Who?” Izzy gasped, wrapping her fingers around her left wrist and rubbing at old scars.
“Northerners.” Austin met everyone’s gaze. “The war… has begun.”
A thunderstruck silence fell across the room.
“I’m going to guess that has something to do with why you two showed up out of the blue,” Austin said to his parents, who were seated on a bench.
Katharine held George’s arm. “The rumors were rampant in South Dakota. Our pack is large, so we shared our concerns with the Packmaster. He agreed we should come here and fight alongside our sons.”
Jericho folded his arms, his long hair slipping in front of his eyes. “Why here? That’s a long journey to bypass all those other states.”
Katharine looked to Austin before answering. “We kept hearing Colorado and Texas mentioned. The rumors changed, but everyone seemed to think they were going for the power states.”
“Well, they didn’t succeed in Colorado,” Austin interjected. “We don’t have any information on when and how this is going down, but the Council thinks we have enough time to prepare.”
Wheeler sat on the table and propped his bare feet on the bench. “So what’s the plan, honcho?”
“The Council’s working something out for our territory, and if it goes well, they’re going to share it with other neighboring Councils. This is our turf, and we’re not running scared. I’ve got one request for Maddox and Naya: If you want to let your animals out, then you’ll need to shift off the property.”
Maddox crossed one boot in front of the other from his spot in the doorway. “And why’s that?”
“Because I don’t want to tip off any scouts that we have two cats in our pack. I prefer the element of surprise, and that’s what’s going to give us an edge. You can shift in the heat house if you want, but I doubt your animal will care for that.”
“No, and I won’t care for him chewing up the coffee table,” Lynn said.
Maddox chuckled and locked his arm around her waist. “I’ve got plenty of land at my old house. You can put your mind at ease; I won’t be nibbling on your fancy sofa pillows.”
Austin rubbed his face, and I wanted to send him to bed. It didn’t look like he’d gotten much sleep. “Anyhow, we may or may not be getting a couple of temporary packmates. We’ll see. You’re my eyes and ears, so if you notice anything suspicious, I want to know about it. Especially you, Denver. The bar might pull in a few rogues with loose lips. In the meantime, think about ways to set traps on the property and secure the house. Looks like the folks will be here for a while.”
Wheeler lowered his head to his hands, and I struggled not to laugh about his future sleeping situation.
Naya sat down on the bench beside his feet, crossing her lovely legs, which peeked out from the long slit in her black skirt. “You’ll be fine, Mr. Grumpy,” she said, patting his knee.
“Melody, I think it’s time your grandmother showed you how to use a bow,” Katharine said.
And she didn’t mean for hunting squirrel, either.
April reached for Reno’s hand and held it tight. The sense of family was overpowering, like a charge in the air before a storm.
Austin moved toward the hall and nodded. “Reno, I need to speak with you privately in my office.”
When they left the room, everyone let out a breath and looked between one another. My mom gave me a tight hug before heading to work.
Izzy blocked my view, concern brimming in her green eyes. She didn’t have a speck of makeup on, and her freckles seemed paler than they usually were in the summertime. “What are we supposed to do?”
“Live,” I said. “That’s all you can do when the inevitable is coming.”
Chapter 7
“Here you are, Mr. Rain.” I handed the customer a paper bag with the Sweet Treats logo on the side. “Two peanut butters, one coconut macaroon, and a slice of pumpkin cake. The usual.”
My regular flashed a charismatic smile, his black eyes glittering as I met his gaze. Not something most people commonly did with Vampires, but I didn’t believe in discrimination. What was he going to do, charm me for my fudge?
“I told you before to call me Atticus. Mr. Rain seems too formal for a debonair man such as myself.”
I didn’t know whether to take him seriously or not, so I just smiled and placed one of our new menus in his bag.
Atticus had a look about him I couldn’t describe, like an aristocrat. His short hair was a bright, unnatural shade of blond that suited him. He was every bit as regal as he was affable, so it led me to believe he was old.
> “Is there anything else I can help you with, Atticus?”
His fangs slightly descended, and he quickly closed his mouth. He studied the display of new menu items, pretending to consider trying something new. That was his usual routine, but Atticus never bought anything extra. Vampires didn’t need to eat, but many still enjoyed the taste of good cuisine. It was quite the compliment to have a Vampire as a regular customer.
“See you Friday,” he said.
I leaned on the counter and watched him move briskly around a display, his long black coat flapping as he went out the door.
“Vampires don’t have to eat,” Trevor remarked, moving around me and tossing paper into the trash. “He just comes in here to stare at you.”
“So? He still pays.”
“Yeah? Well it’s creeptastic.”
“Don’t be so prejudiced. He seems a little lonely, but he’s a nice guy.”
Trevor snorted and wiped down the counter. “A nice guy who wants to drain you like a bathtub.”
I pinched his side. “Don’t be so cynical. You underestimate the power of my macaroons.”
Izzy had taken the day off since she’d worked extra hard while I was away on vacation. It was difficult finding part-time work in a Breed shop. Most wanted long hours or a high-paying job. I couldn’t hire humans because most of our customers were anything but, and eventually even the most clueless person would catch on.
I loaded up a box with leftovers to take home. Not everything would keep until the next day, and I preferred to serve my customers fresh food. Once I’d gotten a handle on how much inventory moved on a given day and which items sold, I limited how many of the less popular treats I made. Customers who loved those goodies knew to swing by early if they wanted any. We baked bread throughout the day, but I mostly stuck to desserts. A significant chunk of our income came from local businesses who ordered my cookies in bulk to sell at their bar or restaurant. I also catered parties and other events, but I preferred working in the store and seeing customers’ eyes widen at the display, their nostrils flaring as they drew in a deep breath.
