Shane was tense next to her. He must have heard Carter when he was walking up.
A spike of annoyance followed by panic shot through the pack bond from Genevieve. “Excuse me,” Amber said to whoever might care she was leaving as she headed immediately toward her beta.
She couldn’t see her yet, but the bond drew her toward Genevieve like a magnet. Finally, she spotted her in the crowd. There didn’t seem to be an immediate threat. She was standing with Paul and a few others.
Genevieve looked over her shoulder and saw her approaching, then whispered something to Paul and broke away from the group.
“What’s wrong?” Amber asked quietly, trying to look unconcerned. It felt like everyone was watching her constantly.
Genevieve smoothed her hair down nervously. “Nothing.”
“Genevieve, that was not nothing.”
“It’s stupid, okay? Not safety related. Can we talk about it later?”
Amber took a long drink of her cranberry vodka. Screw Angel, this stuff was amazing. “Sure, as long as you’re actually okay.”
“I am.”
She drained her glass, then set it on an empty table next to another glass for one of the waiters to pick up. They had been appearing and disappearing like ninjas to keep the dirty dishes cleaned up. “I’m going to get another drink.”
Genevieve smirked at her. “Isn’t that Shane’s job?”
“Shut up.” She turned and headed toward the bar, a stupid smile tugging at her lips. It was nice to have a guy pursuing her. It was even nicer that he was responsible, unlike the last few guys she’d tried dating in college. That had been a disaster.
The crowd grew more dense near the bar. She stepped around a small group with a polite murmur.
“Watch out,” Angel hissed urgently as he flew at her, startling her into taking half a step back. That was the only thing that saved her from getting a glass of whisky in the face.
She couldn’t avoid the mess entirely. The amber liquid splattered against her chest, soaking into her dress and dripping down her cleavage.
The woman Carter had accidentally bumped into smirked at her before disappearing into the crowd.
“My mistake. How clumsy of me.” Carter said, extending a cloth napkin out toward her like he was going to try to pat her chest dry.
She grabbed his wrist before he could touch her. “Very clumsy of you.”
He tried to push his hand in for a moment, but he couldn’t overpower her without making it obvious. “Napkin?” he offered, as if he had just been trying to hand it to her the whole time.
“Thank you,” she said, calmly taking it before letting his wrist go.
Carter watched her dab away the whisky with a smug expression. She was pretty sure he was trying to bait her into losing her temper but she wasn’t sure why he looked like he’d accomplished something.
Sure, she was going to smell like alcohol the rest of the night, but half the room had seen his sad attempt at subtlety. People were whispering around them and what she could make out didn’t sound like it favored Carter. The word caveman was used several times.
“Behind you,” Angel said again.
She stepped to her left and Ivanov stumbled past her previous position. He’d been trying to shoulder check her from behind.
Fury rose up in her. They were working together, circling around her because they thought she was weak. If Angel hadn’t been helping, they would have caught her completely unaware.
“Seems your friends are clumsy too, Carter,” she said flatly, letting none of the anger leak into her voice.
“Two more coming up behind you,” Angel said urgently. “Wait, don’t move.”
She held still, lifting her gaze to Carter’s. Trusting Angel was the only option right now.
“Barry, I’ve been looking for you!” Genevieve said happily behind her. She’d been so mad she hadn’t noticed her beta’s approach, but it seemed Genevieve had cut them off.
Carter’s smug expression turned furious. “You think you belong here, but you don’t.”
“Why not?” she asked, taking one step toward him.
“You are weak,” he snarled, red pooling in his irises.
The same old, tired argument. She bit down on a sigh and tried to think of how Genevieve would handle this. Her beta was better at the political crap than she was, but she was the alpha, and she had to be the one to speak now.
“I passed the same Trials as every other alpha here. Why do you assume I’m weak?”
Carter snorted in derision. “Passing the basic threshold for being an alpha does not mean you aren’t lesser in every way. I was born into this, chosen by the wolf in my mother’s womb. You are an imposter.”
“So your plan for proving that is throwing alcohol on me and getting your friends to bump into me?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. Political or not, she preferred to be blunt.
“You’re going to need to do better if you want to force him into making a mistake,” Angel whispered and he drifted around Carter.
Carter’s upper lip curled in amusement. “Tell me, did you have to fuck that elf to get him to be your sponsor?”
Angel snorted. “Or not.”
She laughed aloud. “Are you a twelve year old bully, or are you a grown man? Accusing me of sleeping my way into the Trials is pathetic.”
A growl rumbled in his chest and he took two quick steps forward, raising his fist like he was going to back-hand her.
She braced herself for a fight, but the red suddenly fled from Carter’s eyes and he stopped mid-step.
Dominance had a physical weight to it. Carter’s dominance didn’t affect her at all. No one that she had met could so far…until now. She turned slowly, eyes going to a man in his mid-thirties with hair so black it almost looked blue in the dim lighting.
Alpha Dominus –– an old term that simply referred to the alpha who ruled over all other packs, keeping the peace –– Ito was from an old werewolf family that had immigrated to America two centuries ago. They’d organized werewolves in the western hemisphere and laid down rules that eventually became the laws they all followed today.
His pack boasted over three hundred adults, a veritable army by normal pack standards. Ito had an almost unthinkable amount of strength to draw on, but it was his personal strength and dominance that allowed him to do so.
He glided forward, not a wrinkle in his suit or a hair out of place and stood before the two of them. Just by walking up this guy had accomplished what Carter hadn’t. Amber felt like an imposter standing next to him
“Alpha Jason Carter, do you intend to challenge Alpha Hale?” Ito asked with a stony expression.
She’d never felt power like this before. His presence made her want to avert her eyes, tuck tail, and run away. She hated that feeling and forced herself to stand tall despite her shaking knees.
Carter looked away. “I will not stoop to challenging a bitten wolf.”
“Then your continued discourtesy reflects poorly on all of us, Alpha Carter. I find your underhanded attempts to goad another alpha into a loss of control during our most important gathering personally insulting. If you are going to attempt such a thing, it should at least be done well,” Ito said, his voice carrying through the hall. “You are dismissed for the evening. Tomorrow, you will either conduct yourself as is fitting an alpha of your stature, or you will be removed from The Gathering.”
Silence fell over the crowd. Carter’s face paled but he didn’t say a word. He simply turned around and walked away.
Ito glanced at her briefly, a glimpse of distaste crossing his face before he walked away as well.
Whispered conversations filled the banquet hall once again, rolling over her like a wave. He had helped her, but not because he supported bitten wolves. Based on the look on his face, she was pretty sure he hated them just as much as Carter, if not more.
“That was interesting,” Angel said, appearing right next to her.
“That was embarrassing.�
��
“It could have gone worse,” Genevieve replied as she appeared on her other side, not realizing she had been talking to the demon.
“I think drawing the attention of Ito is about as bad as it gets.” She dabbed at the wet spot on the front of her dress with a sigh. “And now I stink.”
Something tickled along the back of her neck, as though she were being watched. She turned around, eyes scanning the room but didn’t see anyone.
That was odd.
“What?” Genevieve asked.
“Nothing.” She shook her head. “I’m just paranoid. And definitely need that drink I was going for. Want anything?”
“I’ll come with you,” Genevieve said, glancing around the room suspiciously. “No one should be stupid enough to try something after that, but I’m not risking it.”
Angel followed them and Amber felt that same, frustrating sense of thankfulness. He’d saved her ass back there and he wasn’t even gloating. Yet, at least.
“Thank you,” she whispered, the words quiet enough even she could barely hear them.
He caught her eye and winked at her. “My pleasure.”
Shane caught up to them as they arrived at the bar, walking right through Angel unaware. “Hey, are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” she said with a smile, catching Angel’s scowl in her peripheral vision. “I had backup.”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t get involved––”
“Don’t worry about it, Shane. You can’t fight those battles for me. I know that.”
Shane nodded, but he still looked extremely uncomfortable.
“He’ll always have to put Jameson and his pack first,” Angel whispered.
“What would you like?” the bartender asked, looking a little harried.
“Scotch, neat.”
Angel grinned at her, the smile looking genuine for once. “Good choice.”
Chapter 16
Kadrithan (Angel)
Spending such long periods of time with Amber was beginning to take its toll.
Kadrithan downed an energy potion and waited for the sweep of magic to clear the exhaustion from his limbs. Nothing could remove the headache or slick of sweat that covered his body but a long, hot shower. However, he was not free to indulge in that yet.
There was one last person he needed to visit now that Amber was done dodging werewolves for the evening.
A brief knock on his door startled him. He wasn’t expecting a visitor this time of night.
He opened the door and found Zerestria waiting outside. “What are you doing here?” he asked without thinking, shocked to find her visiting him. Despite his royal heritage, Zerestria outranked him as long as the war continued. “I’m sorry, my surprise has made me rude. Come in.”
She raised an eyebrow but walked in without a snarky retort.
“No chastisement? It must be serious then,” he commented as he shut the door, briefly checking the hall to see if there were any eavesdroppers.
She walked slowly toward the window, looking out over the dark landscape that was illuminated only by a red moon. “You should have come to me as soon as you suspected Raziel’s involvement.”
He stiffened. “I can handle Raziel.”
Her pale green eyes bore into him. “This is not the time to let your pride get in the way of your decisions. I have not heard such foolish words from you in nearly two decades.”
“We’re not even sure it’s him.” He turned away, flexing his fingers uncomfortably as the energy potion made his skin prickle.
“Sure enough that you are preparing to handle him.”
“How did you even find out?” he asked sullenly, feeling like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. He was far too old for this, but Zerestria had a way of making him feel like an idiot.
“Venali complains loudly and often. Finding out wasn’t difficult,” Zerestria said, gaze turning back to the window. “Rafael Vida is a poor cover name, which is part of what worries me.”
“He’s moving more openly than he ever has,” he said, putting their shared concern into words.
She nodded. “What is your plan?”
“I want to know why now. Something must have triggered this. I don’t like that we’ve been blindsided by this.” It had been gnawing at him since the conversation with Venali. Taking out Raziel could change everything for them but it was risky to attempt.
“We are indeed missing something.” She shook her head, her shoulders hunching in farther. She looked tired…and old.
“This is an opportunity, and I’m going to find a way to take advantage of it.“
She turned back to him. “Make sure you do, and that you don’t get distracted.”
“Distracted? I work toward our goals without rest.”
“Your reports show a trend that you seem willfully blind to, and you have never given a gift to someone you have marked before. At the very least, it should have been in exchange for something.”
Anger –– at himself and at Zerestria –– pulsed in his gut. “I have never had a mark that could be so easily manipulated. Having Amber’s trust means I can ask her to do something without fulfilling the mark. That is valuable.”
She waved away his argument. “I’ve known you long enough to see through your bravado. We are in the midst of a war. Sentiment has no place in your decisions.”
A vision of Amber in that dress, red leaking into her eyes as she faced off against an alpha twice her size flashed through his mind. She appealed to him after so long dealing with the groveling, fearful scum that usually ended up with a demon mark. It was pointless though, and admiration for someone he needed to control was dangerous.
“I still have work to do tonight,” he said finally, unwilling to discuss that further right now.
Zerestria nodded and headed for the door, clearly satisfied that she had made her point. “I’ll be drawing on my sources to see what I can learn about Raziel’s movements as well. We will meet again tomorrow.”
He let her out, then shut and locked his door. His headache had grown worse and his mood had gone from tired, to angry and tired.
Plopping down on the chaise lounge, he took a deep breath, trying to center himself before his next visit. Red hair and hazel eyes flashed through his mind, pulling his focus from the task at hand.
“Damn you, Zerestria,” he muttered. This hadn’t been a problem before, but now that she’d put it in his mind, he was questioning everything. Amber had potential as a mark but he was not going to let anyone or anything distract him.
He shut his eyes and focused on the transition into the spirit realm. Evangeline still struggled with this, but he had done it so many times it was as easy as exhaling.
Passing through darkness, fire, and chilling cold, he found himself behind the mark he needed to speak to today. As always, he waited a moment to reveal himself. There was often more to be learned from silent observation than from actually speaking to the mark.
Laurel –– a human woman whose beauty rivaled that of the half angels thanks to their deal –– pinned her hair in place on top of her head, practicing her smile in the mirror. She did that when she thought no one was watching. It was an odd habit, but it did take practice to make a fake smile appear genuine.
Chapter 17
Tommy
Tommy stood next to Ceri in the crowd. Objectively, he knew the tribe was pretty big, but seeing them all together was mind blowing. Hundreds of trolls were gathered in the field. The energy in the air thudded against his chest.
This event was held out in the middle of nowhere in the woods. He’d almost been convinced they had the wrong address after ten minutes driving down a long dirt road, but then they’d seen the other cars.
He’d looked around for Deward for fifteen minutes after they arrived before he’d stumbled across Deward’s father, who assured him that Deward would come find him when he was ready. The man had seemed excited and proud and had slapped him on the shoulder hard enough to leave a
bruise, which wasn’t like him. Normally he was fairly calm and intellectual.
His tusks were also painted white, which was definitely not normal troll fashion. All of the adults had their tusks painted some color. Whatever was going to happen today was going to be different from the days spent training with the trolls.
He texted Amber real quick to see if the Trials had started yet. It would have been nice to be there to support Paul, but since it was at The Gathering the rest of the pack couldn’t attend. They limited pack members for safety apparently.
Amber replied quickly.
No. He’s going last, of course. It will be a couple of hours. Deward challenged you to a duel yet or whatever?
He snorted at his phone.
Nah, not yet. Don’t sound so excited by the prospect.
Amber simply replied with:
:P
“This is quite the gathering,” Ceri said, looking around curiously. She stood out among the trolls with her blonde hair and white, flowing dress. It was good to see her out of her robe, and even better to find she was freshly showered. She was starting to smell so strongly of sage it was hard to breath around her.
He put his phone away. “It definitely is. Everyone seems pretty hyped up for whatever is going to be happening.”
Derek’s scent drifted past Tommy and he looked back to find him jogging up. “Sorry I’m late. Did I miss anything?”
“Nope, hasn’t started yet,” Tommy said, watching Derek and Ceri do that weird smile-and-look-away thing. It was getting kind of hard to watch. “How was the shop today?”
“A little busy but I got everything done before I headed back to the house to shower. Income will cover rent on the building this month, which I didn’t expect to happen so soon,” Derek said with a proud smile.
“That’s amazing!” Ceri exclaimed, her face lighting up like Tommy hadn’t seen since before the sorcerer’s attack. “You have a knack for business apparently.”
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