Oath Sworn

by Kristen Banet

  I waited for Lani, hoping she would answer soon while I watched the sleeping little girl on my couch. Of course, the damn werewolf Alpha had known I was here. How could I be so stupid to think that just because I never caught surveillance that there was none? In the end, it didn’t really change my life too much.

  Except for the fact that it meant I was now the only thing between his daughter and a possibly horrifying death.

  Lani didn’t text. My phone, at full volume, started blaring the annoying country song I had put for her ringtone. I fumbled with it like a fool as I tried to hit the answer button before Carey woke up.

  “God damn it, Lani. I said text me!” I snapped, trying to keep my voice down. Carey was thankfully still asleep. If I guessed right, she had probably been running from the moment her brothers told her to, and that meant she was run ragged. The news of the takeover came out on Thursday. It was now Saturday morning. The poor girl had taken nearly three days to get to me.

  “You were called to Duty, Jacky? Explain.” The other werecat didn’t waste any time, that was certain.

  I quickly ran down exactly what I knew. Alpha’s human daughter showed up at my bar. I closed down. I didn’t tell her anything about accidentally exposing I wasn’t human. Not yet. Carey was the number one priority. The rest of the mess would have to wait. It had to.

  When I was done, I just listened to silence. Lani wasn’t even breathing.

  “Lani?” I sounded like a child myself in that moment. When I had run from my ‘father’ and claimed this private life in East Texas, Lani, a smaller-than-average female, had shown up at my doorstep. She had been confused at the presence of a new werecat in Texas. She didn’t know who I was or who my ‘father’ was. She just knew I was new and wanted to get to know me. Since then, she’s been my tentative ally, my only werecat to phone when I had questions or needed advice. Since I wasn’t keen on ever talking to Hasan, I called her more than him.

  “It’s been nearly a century since something this big has been invoked for Duty,” Lani answered carefully. “Do you understand that the Duty is going to put you in the middle of a werewolf turf war and you will potentially declare the winner?”

  I swallowed. “Yes.”

  “Good. You cannot give her to anyone until they settle this among themselves.”

  “I know. I was planning on keeping her until the dust settled. What happens if the winner means her harm?” It was an important question.

  “You keep her. Your Duty becomes a lifelong commitment. It hasn’t happened in centuries, but it’s happened. You need to tread carefully. Do you have a lawyer?”

  “Yes.” Well, not really. I had Hasan’s lawyer, who I begrudgingly used when things were desperate. Luckily, I almost never needed a lawyer. Sadly, this was desperate. “I’ll get him started on the paperwork needed for the human world once I’m off the phone with you.”

  “It doesn’t have to be real. Just something to keep human cops off your back. What else are you planning?”

  “To deal with the ‘she’s missing’ problem, I’m going to contact the werewolves’ council and have them make an announcement that she’s been found, to call off the search and continue managing things in the city. They won’t be stupid enough to think I can’t protect her.”

  “Don’t get overconfident. There’s a lot of wolves in DFW. A lot. Last count I heard was seventy-five. Now, this turmoil might break them up, but a werecat your age might be able to handle five, ten if you’re lucky. You can’t take twenty or thirty. Hell, I’ve been around for a few centuries and I couldn’t take the Dallas-Fort Worth pack.”

  “My Duty is to protect Carey Everson, daughter of the deposed Alpha of the Dallas-Fort Worth pack. I will do my Duty, Lani. It’s not overconfidence. It’s fact.” I tried my damnedest to put as much truth in those words as I could. I couldn’t fail. It wouldn’t just look poorly on me. It would look poorly on all werecats—and Hasan. I might dislike the man for several personal reasons, but I wasn’t going to fail in this. Not even for him or the werecats.

  There was a strong, scared little girl on my couch who outweighed all of them.

  There was silence. I could hear Lani breathing now, obviously trying to stay calm. “Be safe. Call if you need any more information. I’ll text a number I know for the wolves.”

  “Will do. Thank you.” I hung up first, not worried about Lani like I was with Hasan. My phone dinged only a minute later. I texted the family lawyer first, explaining I was called to Duty by a minor. I needed anything I could get my hands on to make it legal to the humans. He responded instantly, which wasn’t strange. He might have been human, but he worked for monsters. He had to be nocturnal because we were. Thanks to client privilege, he wouldn’t tell Hasan what was going on either. The last damn thing I needed was him showing up. He would start a damn war no one needed.

  Finally, I punched in the number Lani gave me. It rang twice before a quiet and tired woman answered.

  “Hello. This is the North American Werewolf Council’s office. May I get your name?”

  “Hello, I’m Jacky Leon and I need to speak with a wolf,” I said quickly. “Fang and claw to fang and claw. Secure line, someone important.”

  There was an immediate beep. I had no hope I would get someone important, but it was worth a shot.

  “George of the Atlanta Pack speaking.”

  “Are you important?” I asked immediately. “I need to speak with someone who has anything to do with the turmoil in Texas.”

  The wolf laughed at me. I gritted my teeth. “Like I’m going to give a stranger one of those lines. State your business and I’ll think about it.”

  “How about this? I’m a fucking werecat called to Duty and you’ll give me to someone in charge.” I knew it would be easier to just explain what that Duty was, where I lived and the like, but I didn’t give my information to random phone boys and that’s all George was. He was some guy sitting in an office doing his pack’s duty to support the council, and that was answering phones.

  “Look here, kitten. I don’t care if you’re the president of the fucking United States. You’re a werecat and you’re—”

  “I have the Duty of protecting the deposed Alpha’s eleven-year-old human daughter,” I whispered harshly. “You’ll give me to who I fucking want to talk to.”

  “Oh shit.”

  “Oh shit is right, you mangy mutt.”

  “One moment, Miss Leon.” I was put on hold after that harried correction.

  I nearly laughed. He wasn’t the first werewolf I’d ever spoken to, and it was always a bit hostile, even though we’ve been at peace for over eight hundred years. A fragile peace, though. One that relied on two things. First, the werewolves had to stop hunting the werecats. Second, the werecats upheld and did their Duty. That was all that kept the peace between us. Not even the fae or vampires wanted the war to restart. It would spill into their communities, the human world, and probably beyond. It wouldn’t end until one side was extinct.

  That was why this was an entirely bad situation. If I screwed up, there could be an angry werewolf out there waiting to put a bullet in me, and then the war would kick off. There would be no peace if I got killed because of the Duty. Even failing the Duty wouldn’t be grounds to kill me, though I had no intention of failing.

  “Jacky Leon?” The voice was rich and calm, but tired. I could read the exhaustion in it, just by those two words.

  “That’s right. I take it you’ve gotten my message.”

  “It was explained to me. Where are you? I can send—”

  I pulled the phone away for a second, giving it a confused look. “Excuse me? No? Why don’t you tell me your name? Let’s start easy here.”

  “I’m Harrison, Alpha of the Atlanta Pack. Forgive me, but you bring good news and we just wish to secure her—”

  “She’s secure now, and if you try to find and take her from me, I will consider it an act against her safety,” I said softly, dangerously, letting violence roll th
rough those words, knowing they would be clear. “Don’t try to take her from me before I’m ready, wolf.”

  A moment of silence, at least over the call between us. Not complete silence, though. I could hear people talking in the background. I knew the call would have people listening.

  “Then let me assist you. We will announce that she has been found and put into protective custody. What would be the terms by which you will accept that your Duty is over?” He was diplomatic and calm, but I didn’t trust it. Really, in that moment, there were very few people I would trust. A life was my responsibility. I had no idea what threat level I was facing, therefore everything was a threat.

  “There are a few factors,” I began, taking a deep breath. “First, peace needs to be established in Dallas-Fort Worth. I don’t care who’s in charge, honestly, but peace. That way no one is feeling unstable and thinks to strike out against her in the future. Second, I would like someone of her family available—or all of them proven dead. I don’t care how long that takes, but I need confirmation, because I won’t hand her off to a family friend when I could give her to her father or brother.” I considered if there was anything else. “Just so we’re clear, I do have immunity from any repercussions that would come from me protecting my charge. That comes from the Laws.”

  “I understand the Laws,” the wolf replied politely. “I will not have you get into any trouble for doing your sworn Duty, cat, unless you overstep them, like getting involved with the war itself. Don’t forget your immunity only goes so far.” He sounded severe, but sighed. “I agree with your terms, but they could take some time. Are you sure this is the course you wish to set yourself upon?”

  I glanced at the little girl on my couch. “I’m positive.”

  “Okay. Please stay in touch with me. I will let you know if we catch any hunting packs leaving Dallas-Fort Worth that may be of concern to any felines in the state. Your phone number isn’t even a Texas number. Did you know that?”

  I grinned. “Of course I did. Do you think I’m an idiot?” I got the cellphone in Georgia, actually. He could trace me, certainly, but he also knew that coming after me would lead to dead wolves and a war. Or at least I hoped he knew that. “Don’t track me.” I figured the warning was necessary.

  “We haven’t been. I don’t know if you keep up with the current Laws as they are applied to modern times, but once a feline on Duty declares they want privacy for their charge, using modern technology is considered just as criminal as using our noses.” He was tired now and obviously a little shocked I didn’t know that.

  “Consider me paranoid.” I had known, but it was always worth putting out the warning in my mind. No one could play the fool if the line was drawn early. “Goodbye.”

  I hung up before he said anything else. I didn’t owe them anything more than that courtesy call, and that was all they were going to get. I looked around my apartment and decided it would be a fine time to get some work done. Carey was still asleep, and I left her on the couch so I could see her. I ducked into my office to grab my books and laptop, using the rest of the night to make sure my personal life wouldn’t go to hell while I did this.

  4

  Chapter Four

  I don’t know exactly when I fell asleep, but I know when I woke up. Something touched my shoulder and made me jump clean out of my chair. I grabbed the broom near my dining room table, whirling around to find the threat, and stopped.

  Carey giggled wildly, covering her face. She still looked worn and tired, with dark rings under her eyes, and in desperate need of a shower or bath or whatever eleven-year-olds did.

  “Sorry. I’ve been awake for like an hour and I was getting hungry. And your phone was going off.” She pointed to it on the table near my books. I sighed, rubbing my face as she continued to watch me like I was the most fascinating thing she’d ever seen. “My dad says that werewolves are a lot like real wolves. Are werecats like that?”

  “I guess,” I said, shrugging, trying to play it off. She had made me jump like people often did to their house cats and posted on the internet. I leaned the broom back against the wall and grabbed my phone, trying to act naturally. I called to the magic and it answered, telling me there were no threats on my territory. Good. That meant she wasn’t followed, at least not yet. I had no doubt that a wolf or two would eventually show up, but as long as it wasn’t a hunting pack, I could handle it. “What do you know about me?”

  “He said you moved down here like five years ago. You own the bar below and you don’t go anywhere or talk to anyone. He thought you had secrets, but as a werecat, those aren’t my business or his.” She shrugged. “I was busy learning about my family. He said I would learn more about things like you and the vampires when I was older.”

  “He’s right. They aren’t. I’ll fill in some general things for you since we’re going to be spending some time together.” I considered what I should start with and went with the basics. “Werecats are very solitary by nature. We don’t play nicely with others. We don’t fit in with wolves because we don’t play dominance games. We think we’re the top predator and that makes us a challenge for werewolf Alphas. We can defeat them, but we don’t want to rule because we don’t want the community. It leads to chaos, and no one wants chaos.” I yawned now, checking my screen.

  There were a few texts and the most important were from my lawyer and Harrison, or so the text said. Each contained similar documents, and I sent the documents to my printer so that I could carry them. They were legal proof that Carey was in my care. I opened a browser and checked the news, letting out a long sigh of relief that the news was now reporting that Carey was in safe custody and removed from the danger in the cities.

  “What else can you tell me? I’ve never met anything other than werewolves… and one witch. Well, kind of.” She sat down and I eyed her for a moment. There was still a fear in her scent that wouldn’t go away, which meant she was very good at hiding it. I wondered if it was because she grew up around monsters, predators. While they might have seen her as a member of their pack, she was still human. Her father, this oh-so-intelligent Alpha, must have taught her to never show that fear and she’d learned well.

  “Um.” I didn’t really know what she wanted to hear. There was a lot I wasn’t allowed to say, and she could definitely take back werecat secrets to the werewolves. I wasn’t foolish. I didn’t think she was spying, but I wasn’t going to give her secrets to hold that weren’t hers. “Nothing really. There’s a lot of similarities between us and the wolves. Full moon makes shifting easier, and many can’t resist the Change that night. New moons make it harder and some can’t Change at all. You know, why don’t you go take a long shower and I’ll make us some lunch?” I checked the time. It was eleven in the morning. “Then we can figure out how this is going to work while you’re here.”

  “Here?” She frowned at me and I frowned back.

  “Yes. Here.”

  “You aren’t going to go and save my daddy?” The tears were back. “I thought you were supposed to…”

  “Protect you. Which means we stay right here. I take care of you. I stop others from taking you. Your father is on a difficult road. He’s an Alpha of a werewolf pack. I can’t go save him. It’s against the Law for my kind to interfere in that way.” I knew the reality for her was harsh, but she needed to have it. There was nothing I could do against a wolf that wasn’t a direct threat to her. If her father was fighting for his life, it was his fight. Not mine or his daughter’s.

  “That’s not fair…”

  “It’s been the Law for a long time and it keeps a lot of people safe,” I said gently, reaching for her.

  She jerked away and stomped towards my bathroom. When the door slammed and I heard the water running, I had a feeling this was going to be a lot more aggravating than it really had the right to be. If this was the attitude I had just signed my life to, I was in for a long ride.

  I sat back down and went back to my books, realizing that I had actual
ly finished the night before. That was at least something. I checked my bank accounts from my phone and waited, yawning again as I stretched my legs under the table. I needed to shower and change after her.

  When she came out, she was in the same dirty clothes. They weren’t terrible, but they weren’t good either.

  “No changes?” I asked as kindly as I could. “We can run out and grab you something fresher.”

  “I have money,” she said quickly, running for her bag near the couch. She pulled out the wallet and held it out to me. I took it and flipped it open, my eyebrows trying to crawl off the top of my forehead and leave. She had some serious cash and lines of business cards, all with important phone numbers all over the country.

  “Whose wallet is this?” I asked softly, holding it up. I really hope she didn’t steal it from another werewolf. There could be tracking in it.

  “Mine. Dad and my brothers kept a bag made for me in case anything ever happened…like this. They put that in it with the money and the other stuff so that I had some ways to get ahold of people and find help.” She took her phone out of the bag next and I snatched it, making sure it was off. I exhaled again when I realized it was. She grabbed it back, glaring at me. “What was that for?”

  “I wanted to make sure no one was going to be able to GPS it,” I answered, rubbing my face.

  “I’m eleven. I’m not an idiot,” she said with a prideful indignation that made me smile for the first time all morning.

  “Fine. Good job. I’m going to shower. If you try to leave, I will come out, naked, and drag you in there to watch me. Clear?”

  “Crystal,” she muttered, rolling her eyes. “Like I would leave. You’re all I’ve got.”

  “Yeah.” I sighed again, walking away from her and heading to my bedroom in the apartment first. I grabbed a clean set of clothes and two extra towels, knowing she must have used the ones I kept in the bathroom. As I walked into the bathroom, I caught a glimpse of her making herself some cereal and let that ease me. She wouldn’t run—hopefully. I didn’t know why I was suspicious of it. It would be the stupidest thing she could do, but she was eleven, so stupid to me probably didn’t seem so stupid to her. She was obviously angry that I wasn’t going to go out and save her father and brothers, and that was a concern. Her father should have also explained that point when it came to werecats and their Duty to the other supernatural species and the humans of the world. The Law tied my hands, and it was for good reason.