by Petra Landon
He untangled himself from the bed sheets to stride over to the long windows. The window provided a view of the Bay Bridge. The bridge was always lit up beautifully at night – the one time in the day that it sparkled brighter than its more famous cousin, the Golden Gate Bridge. He loved this city. In some ways, it had been his salvation. When he’d arrived here, he’d been rudderless and disillusioned. He’d fallen in love with the city - as much as someone like him could fall in love anyway. The city had a certain frenetic energy to it; at the same time, there was a sense of serenity that appealed to him. Here he was always surrounded by people; yet the city allowed him to live a life detached and aloof from it all - an island of isolation amidst a very busy sea as it were!
That first day in the city, he’d walked the Embarcadero to mingle with the tourists when it had hit him. Blindsided him, more like. He wanted to stay in San Francisco – after a long time, wanted something with a passion, a surety, and a certainty, that caught him by surprise. He’d known immediately that he couldn’t very well hide himself amongst the other tourists in the city for the rest of his life. The local Pack would discover the trespasser on their turf sooner or later. He was a Shifter, after all. And one without a Pack. He could’ve chosen to live his life as a wizard and then perhaps the Packs would have steered clear of him but he rather doubted it. As far as the Shifters were concerned, if you had a beast form and could shift, you followed Shifter laws and that meant being part of a Pack. This was a law Faoladh had laid down when he’d started organizing the first Packs and divvying up territory between them. The Shifters followed it religiously for it meant stability and longevity for them all. The point was moot anyway for by then, Raoul had already walked away from the other part of his heritage. He identified himself as a Shifter - pure and simple. A Shifter who suddenly and absolutely knew what he wanted - to call this city home. Decision made, he’d gone about it the way a Shifter would. Especially one very dominant for his age and experience.
He’d first had a chat with Duncan, who had immediately indicated that he would be content to make a life in this city. Duncan’s words had merely sealed his decision. Raoul had wasted no time in issuing a challenge to the Alpha Protector of the Northern California Pack. He was never going to be a wizard and it was time to come out of isolation into the real world. To a Shifter, that meant life in a Pack. Raoul had been sure of one thing – he was never again going to let anyone else dictate his destiny. Never again would he put himself in a position that left him at the mercy of another Chosen. He’d be the one in control and that meant ensuring no one more dominant than him in his Pack. So he’d challenged the Alpha Protector to take control of the Pack.
Those first few years had been challenging but he’d enjoyed them. He liked to think that he’d made his mark on both his Pack and the other Chosen in this city that he dealt with as the Alpha Protector. His name was now whispered amongst the Chosen as a formidable Shifter and someone not to be crossed. All this time, he’d been so sure that he had successfully managed to leave the past behind.
Then the witchling had come along, bringing all that he’d thought buried deep inside back to the fore. While he’d been grappling with her presence and the newly dug up memories of the past, Shifter mercenaries had gone on a rampage in Pack territory. In an attempt to get rid of the only witness to their amateurish mistake of taking on a member of the Pack in the Pack’s backyard, the rogues had attempted to compensate in a manner reminiscent of a bull in a china shop. That had eventually led Raoul to the Guardian last night. There, a mix of his own guilt and a sneaky suspicion that Duncan had been right about the witchling, ably abetted by the Guardian’s taunts and actions had lit a new fire in him. Raoul might have chosen to walk away from his wizard ancestry but he’d be damned if he allowed any Spell Caster to take that as a license to infringe on the life he had forged for himself here. So he had punished the Guardian but also made a vow to make an example of the Guardian and his friends so that no one in the Chosen world would ever make the mistake of challenging him again.
He knew that his actions last night had rattled the Pack – not that anyone would dare make a comment to his face. He had chosen to isolate himself from the other Chosen and to keep himself aloof from his own Pack for a reason. Now he would engage! Something had awoken in him that made him feel like it was time – time to let the Chosen know that Raoul Merceau was no longer content to merely run his Pack and territory with an iron hand on the reins.
He thought back to Duncan’s reaction last night when he’d arrived back at the Lair after handing over the Guardian and his henchmen into David Hamilton’s custody. As he’d expected, Duncan had been waiting up for him in the Pack Room.
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“How’s the witchling?” Raoul inquired, driven by worry and guilt at his actions and the awareness that he’d slipped up in the matter of her rescue. Stumbled in more ways than one when it came to her, to be honest.
“Miss Armstrong will be fine” Duncan assured him. “She’s merely lost a ton of blood. Doc says that she was put under heavy sedation before her blood was drained. A few days of rest and she’ll be good as new especially with her past record of quick recovery” Duncan added, hinting at Tasia’s healing powers that they now suspected rivalled that of a Shifter.
Raoul nodded, immensely relieved by the news that his colossal blunder would have no fatal consequences for the young wizard. He’d not been very fair to her and the matter weighed on him to an extent he was uncomfortable with.
“I’ve promised David Hamilton access to the rogues tomorrow” he told Duncan.
Duncan arched an inquiring eyebrow, surprised by the decision. Raoul had always been adamant that dealing with the mercenaries was Shifter business.
“Does this have anything to do with your decision to hand the Guardian into local wizard custody?” Duncan inquired presciently.
It was Raoul’s turn to flash an expression of mild surprise and amusement. It was just like Duncan to be up to date with everything that had gone down at the Registry tonight before Raoul had even made it back to the Lair.
“It’s the Pack” Duncan quipped, his amusement clear. “Gossip travels faster than light here.”
“And this is particularly juicy gossip” Raoul acknowledged ruefully.
“Absolutely! The Alpha didn’t merely rescue a member of his Pack from her fellow wizards, he also engaged a Guardian. Gave the Guardian a taste of his own medicine before handing him over to the local wizards, if my source is to be believed.”
“And threatened to make his life a living hell from now on” Raoul added quietly.
“Aah. I had heard that one too but wasn’t sure whether to believe it.”
Raoul met the steady gaze of his friend.
“Because of my pledge to never again engage with wizards, you mean?”
“No, my boy” Duncan responded calmly. “Because you have always been careful to draw the boundary lines that separate you clearly from the other Chosen. You’ve made it clear that you’re a Shifter who acknowledges no other heritage. In the process, you’ve cemented your reputation amongst the Chosen as one of a handful of very powerful Shifters. Any other Shifter Alpha Protector would’ve walked out of the Registry tonight with Miss Armstrong and been very satisfied with the outcome. He’d have punished the rogues and used that punishment to set an example to the other Chosen. A very few might’ve attempted to teach the Guardian a lesson though most would have balked at his powerful magic. Not a single one would have threatened him so direly or so publicly about his mistreatment of a wizard.”
“I didn’t threaten him publicly” Raoul commented mildly.
“His henchmen heard it, so it was public enough” Duncan responded. “You made it very clear that you didn’t like the cut of his jib.”
“Yeah” Raoul acknowledged. “He managed to piss me off royally.”
“That’s what surprised the Pack, Raoul. That you actually engaged with a Spell Caster to this extent has caug
ht them by surprise.”
“He’ll be out in a few days” Raoul said cynically. “David Hamilton has some influence in the highest wizard circles but no Guardian has ever been held accountable by any local wizard.”
“Precisely. And that is what makes the matter so gossip worthy for the Pack.”
Raoul couldn’t help but stare at his friend, a tad taken aback by Duncan’s words.
“For what it’s worth, my boy, I’m glad. It is time for you to stop sleepwalking through your life” Duncan added quietly.
Chapter 12
The Alpha starts to re-engage
The little old lady gazed at Duncan with shrewd eyes that belied her other-worldly appearance. Her braided white hair lay coiled tightly over her head in the usual style she favored.
“Could you spare me a few minutes, Duncan?” she inquired. “There’s a matter I’d like to discuss with you.”
“Of course, Maartje” he responded courteously, inviting the older lady to a small enclave of seats pushed together to one side of the vast room. Maartje waved at the young Shifter who waited by the door and he slipped out discreetly to close the door behind him.
Duncan waited patiently for her to seat herself. He wondered curiously what Maartje wanted to discuss with him. He had a healthy respect for the other Were-Alpha. Her ‘little old lady’ persona was deceptive, as he well knew. She was a powerful and dominant Shifter who ran her Were-Pack ruthlessly with a no-nonsense attitude. Fair and wise as long as you followed her rules but quick to punish and bring into line any of her flock that dared to stray. Atsá, the venerable Navajo elder, and Maartje were two of the oldest Were-Alphas in the Pack. Raoul had inherited them with the larger Pack when he’d won command as the new Alpha Protector. In the early days, they had been very circumspect around their new Alpha. But once satisfied by the young Alpha’s ability to control and command the fractious and large Pack, they’d been the first Were-Alphas from the older Pack ready to advise, warn and guide Raoul where necessary when it came to Pack matters and the new relationships he was attempting to forge with the other influential Chosen in the city. Watchful and ever ready to come to the aid of his protégé in his first stint at command over a Shifter Pack, Duncan had relaxed gradually once he’d realized that the Alpha was in good hands.
Raoul had a very good head on his shoulders and his circumstances had matured him beyond his years. And of course, his power and dominancy as a Shifter would always help him get out of any tight spots. Yet Duncan had kept a watchful eye on him in those early years. Most Alpha Protectors had experience of commanding a were-pack before assuming control over a larger Pack. Raoul had been the exception. He had walked in from the wilderness, both literally and figuratively, to fight and defeat an Alpha who controlled a large unruly Pack and vast swathes of prime territory in northern California. That very feat had brought Raoul to the attention of the other Chosen; his subsequent deft handling of Shifter politics and ruthless and absolute control over his Pack had merely helped cement his reputation.
“I’m concerned about Raoul” the female Were-Alpha opened with blunt candor.
Aah, Duncan mused with quiet amusement. Now he had an inkling of why she was here. So Raoul was beginning to cause waves within the Pack, was he? Good for him! There was more to life than making a name for yourself by leading your Pack with ferocity, ruthlessness and brutal strength. He should know. He didn’t want Raoul to have an epiphany after the best years of his life were over.
Duncan had stayed, through thick and thin, with the young boy he’d found in such horrendous circumstances, hoping against hope that one day the powerful young Shifter would look up from forging the narrowly and precisely scoped out life he seemed to be focused on building to reach out for something more. The reports from the Registry had made Duncan hope that the day had finally arrived. That perhaps the young man he’d been watching over all these years had awoken from his long sleep to gaze at the world around him with renewed interest and passion.
“The events at the Registry” Maartje prompted, hoping to prod the male Were-Alpha into a discussion. Every member of the Pack knew of Duncan’s utmost loyalty to the Alpha but the Were-Alphas, who’d had the opportunity to observe the two Shifters interact more than the rest, knew it was much more than that. The older Shifter watched over the younger Alpha like a mama bear with its cub, ever watchful of potential dangers around. Raoul was not the kind of Shifter to ever allow anyone else to fight his battles for him but it had not gone unnoticed that Duncan was the only person that the Alpha ever granted a rare privilege to – he allowed and was receptive to Duncan’s quiet warning or advice even when the Alpha was determined on a course of action.
Duncan merely arched his eyebrow in inquiry at Maartje’s words and waited patiently for the female Were-Alpha to continue.
“The Alpha showed his mettle last night when he walked into the Registry to surround it with his Shifters and rescue a wizard he’d promised Pack protection to. He made his Pack very proud when he taught the Guardian a lesson for using mercenaries to cause trouble in Pack territory and for daring to mess with one of ours. The Pack understands that this was a lesson that any other Shifter would have a hard time even attempting against a Guardian. I speak for the Pack when I say that we rejoice at the humiliation he handed out to the Guardian” she stated, her words respectful but cagey.
Duncan contemplated her silently for a moment before he relented. Shrewd as she was, she’d never directly say a word against Raoul to him for fear that it might be taken as a challenge to his authority by the Alpha. In the years that Duncan had known her, not once had she given her Alpha any biased advice in an attempt serve her own or her were-pack’s selfish interests. Raoul, of course, had chosen to ignore a lot of her wisdom in his quest to forge his own command over his newly won Pack. But Duncan had not forgotten that about Maartje. It was this memory that made him willing to cut her some slack now.
“What troubles you about last night, Maartje?” he inquired mildly. “You may speak freely to me” he added as Maartje heaved a sigh in response to his question.
“I’m concerned about this threat that he made to the Guardian to go after him.”
“You’re remarkably well informed” Duncan quipped. In truth, there had been plenty of Shifters in the room and a handful outside who’d heard every warning and threat delivered by their Alpha.
“The Pack, as you know, is a hotbed of gossip” the female Were-Alpha returned with a comfortable smile. She’d gotten what she was here to convey off her chest and Duncan had taken it remarkably well. She could afford to relax a little now.
“Why does that trouble you, Maartje?” Duncan inquired after a short pause.
“It’s so unlike him, Duncan. The Raoul I know would’ve walked away after he’d gotten what he came for. Making his point to the Guardian to steer clear of his business in the future would be enough for Raoul. Instead, he threatens the Guardian; one of a group of Chosen he dislikes heartily and never engages with except for Pack business. If this is a simple matter of vendetta, I can understand that. I’ll be the first Shifter to line up to assist my Alpha in taking down an arrogant wizard a peg or two. But his history with the wizards makes me uneasy that the past might be drawing him back again. You’re the person who knows him best, Duncan. If Raoul is being mired in the past again, I’d like you to make him see sense. That is why I came to you.”
“I see” Duncan remarked thoughtfully. Since she had been so frank with him, he spoke from his heart with equal candor. “What if I told you that there is another way to interpret his actions, Maartje. I’ve always felt that Raoul is meant for greater things than being the Alpha Protector of a Shifter Pack, no matter how powerful the position is. Raoul inherited abilities, magic and power from both sides of his family. It makes him unique amongst the Chosen. I’ve always wanted him to look beyond the Pack which you will agree he’s capable of controlling even with one hand tied behind his back. In that respect, I view his threats to
the Guardian as a positive sign – a sign that he is ready to engage with the wider world of Chosen. Something he had withdrawn himself from.”
Maartje, who’d been listening to him intently, searched his expression. Her faded blue eyes, bright with curiosity and a shrewdness that belied her appearance of a harmless grandmother, studied Duncan.
“Are you sure, Duncan?” she inquired softly. “I’d be willing to speak to him myself if you thought that it would help.”
“I’m sure, Maartje” Duncan reassured her. It spoke to the extent of Maartje’s concern that she was willing to take the risk of angering the Alpha by bringing up the subject. Although amenable to the Were-Alphas’ advice on topics where he thought their greater knowledge and experience came into play, Raoul had never encouraged or reacted well when it came to unsolicited advice on matters he considered the exclusive purview of the Alpha. And this he would consider interference in his personal matters. He’d take it as a challenge to his authority and it would likely not end well for Maartje. That was why she’d approached Duncan to broach the topic to the Alpha, probably hoping that he would do the initial work by making Raoul receptive enough to at least hear her out.
“I’m rather fond of the boy and do not want to see him come to any harm” she added, her eyes bright with intent.
Duncan knew that Maartje spoke the truth about this. She could be as ruthless as the next Shifter when it came to protecting her interests or that of her were-pack but underlying it ran a core of affection that she’d developed for the intensely controlled young Shifter who always attempted to run his Pack with conscientious fairness.
“Raoul knows what he’s doing” he assured her. Duncan was sure of it and he intended to keep an eye on his protégé to make sure that nothing from the past could rise up again to entangle Raoul just when he was ready to emerge from his chrysalis after his long spell of hibernation.