by Kimbra Swain
Sully picked up the ring and handed it to me. “This protects you from us as well. It protects you under our crest. Our name. Irreparable harm would befall our family if we did not keep our promises to you. Wear it. Please.”
I looked at the ring in my hand. My father protected no one, but himself, which is what had put me into this position in the first place. You couldn’t tell me that my mother cared about me, but it did seem that she wanted me alive.
“Just put the damn ring on,” Suzi said.
I smiled at her and slipped it down over my middle finger. I showed it to her proudly. “There. Are you happy?”
“Is that an invitation?” she asked.
“No. It isn’t,” Sully said. “We are late.”
Suzi gathered the phone and the watch from the bar and handed them to me. “You will have to show me how to work this. I’ve never had one.”
“You’ve never had a cell phone?” Suze asked.
“I didn’t ever have a need for one.”
“You did live back in the swamps, didn’t ya? Probably one of those inbred packs,” she teased.
I looked up as we walked out of the front door to see a black limo waiting for us. “Good grief.”
“If we are going to be late, we might as well arrive in style,” Sully said, dipping into the car. I waited for Suzi to climb in, and I looked at the trees just beyond the clearing in front of the house. It was my last chance to leave. Taking a deep breath, I chose to get in the car.
Twelve
The twins chatted about the small brewery and how they had started it with hopes of making their own money and not depending on their father. It seemed very upstanding and mature, but I wasn’t sure it was wolf-like. Perhaps my upbringing left me skeptical about a wholesome lifestyle. If there was such a thing, Sully and Suzi were living it.
“What do you think?” Sully asked.
“Sounds impressive. I’m eager to learn more about it,” I said.
“Whatever. We just bored you for like thirty minutes straight,” Suzi said.
“No. It’s just all very foreign to me.”
Sully slapped me on the back. “It won’t be for long. There will be a test later. I hope you were paying attention.”
“Just go ahead and fail me now,” I groaned playfully.
“See! I told you. We were boring him,” Suzi exclaimed as the car came to a stop.
Looking through the window, I saw the restored old building with a proudly displayed sign. Crescent Moon Brewery. The neon moon flickered illuminating the whole sign. From a distance, all you could see was the moon. I thought it was a nice touch. It didn’t escape me that the place was absolutely packed with people standing outside on the covered sidewalk waiting to be allowed inside.
“Must be at capacity,” Sully said.
“How big is this shindig?” I asked.
Sully grinned deviously. “It’s the biggest party we’ve thrown.”
“Fuck me,” I muttered.
“Maybe later,” Suzi said.
“Maybe not,” Sully followed.
“You ruin all my fun,” she pouted.
“That’s what brothers are supposed to do,” Sully assured her. “All right, Loner. Let’s see how you handle a crowd.”
The chauffeur opened the limo door, and Sully stepped out first. The crowd on the sidewalk immediately surrounded him. He shook hands and greeted everyone by name. I stepped out behind him, then held my hand out for Suzi. It felt like the right thing to do.
She stepped out, and I couldn’t help but notice exactly how high the split on her dress went. She wore lace topped stockings. Pantyhose. Whatever women called them. All I know was the wolf liked them.
The people gravitated toward Sully, but some greeted Suzi. She tucked her hand inside my arm, as she introduced me as their friend from up north. We moved through the crowd with ease. They parted for us as we made our way to the door.
Stepping inside the brewery, I stopped to take it all in. The inside of the building had been expertly restored. I’d worked on a couple of construction crews that did restoration of old buildings. Someone had done a fine job on this one. The exposed brick gave a rustic feel to the room, but it seemed perfect with the dark wood accents adding elegance.
Sully spoke to everyone he passed, and several people left their tables to speak to him. Once we reached the table reserved for us, I took a seat next to Suzi and Sully moved to the stage where a small band was setting up to play. He stepped up to the mic with a huge grin on his face.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I’m so pleased to see you all here tonight to celebrate Lammas. As was the tradition of our forefathers, we will be thankful for the harvest by consuming it!”
The crowd cheered. Someone walked up and handed him a glass of beer which was amber-colored like the ones we’d drank at Hoss’ bar. I wondered if this place would put that one out of business, but probably not. It seemed like a very different crowd. Sully took a sip of the beer. A young man wearing a black apron appeared and set glasses of beer down for Suzi and me. Then two others.
“Are we expecting someone?” I asked.
“He always makes a place for our parents, but they never come,” Suzi whispered.
“Why?”
“Too busy, and Mother doesn’t get out much,” she explained.
“I built Crescent Moon to be a gathering place for everyone across the lowlands of Louisiana. A place where our kind could sit together and celebrate life, love, friends, and family. A place to settle differences. A place to start new relationships. You, the people here tonight, have made that dream a success for me and my sister. We thank you so much for joining us tonight, and I hope that you enjoy yourselves to the full extent of our taps!”
The crowd cheered again for him. He was a natural and charismatic speaker. I didn’t have those skills. In fact, I didn’t know what my skills were.
“How do I fit into this?” I asked Suzi.
“I’m not sure what he has planned for you, but I approve of it. You are a good man, Dominick. He will give you a chance to prove it,” she said.
“Prove what?” Sully said as he took a seat.
“That Nick here is a good man,” Suzi said, rubbing her hand up and down my arm.
“Yeah, you keep pawing him like that and his wolf will eat you,” Sully warned.
“Would that be so bad?” she asked. Sully took a deep breath, and the smile faded. Suzi grumbled next to me. I suddenly felt like I was in the middle of a dispute, and I did not know how to defuse it. “I know, Sullivan. You don’t have to say it.”
He started to speak, but a commotion at the front door caught our attention. Sully stood slowly, buttoning his jacket. I felt Suzi stiffen beside me and move away.
“What?” I asked as two people walked into the room. The man stood over most of those around him. His graying hair and stern face made me flinch from across the room. The woman on his arm was a rare beauty. Her hair was nearly white, and her eyes sparkled like blue topaz. The smile on her face contrasted the man with her.
“It’s our parents,” Suzi whispered, as Sullivan rushed through the crowd to greet them.
“Do I need to leave?” I asked.
“No. I don’t think so,” Suzi replied as Sullivan led them our way. Suzi stood as they approached. She hugged them both, but only her mother embraced her. I stood out of politeness but kept my head toward the table in respect to the Alpha. His scent overwhelmed the room. An indicator of his power.
“Mother, you look wonderful tonight. I’m so glad you are here,” Suzi gushed.
Her mother patted her on the arm.
“Who is this?” his father asked, entirely too loud. He drew the attention of the room, but the murmuring continued.
“Father, I would like you to meet, Dominick Meyer, formerly of the Whiskey Chitto pack,” Sully said.
I stepped out from behind the table and extended my hand to him. He grasped it firmly and shook, nearly breaking my fingers. However, I did
n’t dare show any sign of pain.
“Dominick, it is a pleasure to meet you,” their mother said. “This is Hiram Talbot, our Alpha. I am Celinette, his wife.” She held her hand out to me, and I leaned over and placed a light kiss on it.
“The Whiskey Chitto pack doesn’t exist anymore,” Mr. Talbot said.
“No, it doesn’t, Father,” Sully said, trying to curb the discussion.
I didn’t dare speak to the man unless he directed a question toward me. We took our seats in pained silence. Mrs. Talbot started the conversation.
“Mr. Meyer, how long do you intend to stay in Houma?” she asked.
“I had no intention on staying this long. I move around a lot, but your son convinced me to stick around,” I said.
“I’m glad he did,” she said. I didn’t want to look at her eyes. I’d remember my own mother’s eyes. They were pools of emotion, and I didn’t feel like drowning tonight. This fairy woman reminded me of my mother.
“What is your occupation?” Mr. Talbot asked.
I wanted to beat the shit out of Sully, because I’d become the center of attention which I did not want. Suzi’s hand rested near my knee, and she squeezed when I didn’t answer.
“Um, I do a lot of construction jobs. I go wherever I need to go to find work,” I explained, hoping it didn’t make me sound as worthless as I felt at this table full of wealthy, accomplished people.
“It must be hard on you being on the road. Have you ever considered settling down?” Mrs. Talbot asked.
“Considered it, yes, but I’ve never found a place where I’d fit. A loner isn’t accepted into packs,” I said, knowing that she knew that already. I said it mostly to confirm to myself my status as I sat here in a fancy suit with fancy beer and fancy people.
“Perhaps you will find a home here. It is not my call, but I think you would be a nice addition to our group,” she said. She seemed so pleasant for a fairy woman, and way too nice to be married to Hiram who looked down his snout at me.
“Perhaps.”
“I will put him to work here in the brewery. I need another set of hands, and I think Nick is the man for the job,” Sully said.
Mr. Talbot bristled in his seat but did not speak.
“I think that’s wonderful,” his mother said.
Suzi sat next to me very quietly. I felt her manner change when her parents arrived. She had the same stern look as her father, except that her father didn’t have a hand on my inner thigh. I didn’t dare ask her to move it. Every wolf in the room would hear it. During the pauses between questions, the silence became more and more awkward. The beast inside of me felt more caged with every minute that passed.
Mrs. Talbot asked me about what cities I’d visited, where I had worked, what foods I liked, and if I had a significant other.
“No, ma’am. I move around too much to have anyone steady,” I explained.
“Oh, how lonely for you. I really do hope you decide to stay here in Houma,” she reiterated.
Overall, the night wasn’t too bad. Sully’s parents left after my interrogation, and we finished the night off with many drinks, games of pool, and dancing to the band. I only danced with Suzi, because as a loner visiting a pack, I didn’t want to put my hands on the wrong woman. As for that, I didn’t put my hands-on Suzi either. She put hers on me, but as the night lengthened, she put her hands on whoever would let her.
“I gotta get her out of here. You wanna help?” Sully asked, finishing off his glass.
“I’m not gonna piss off that woman,” I said.
“That’s what I thought. Come on, let’s get her.” He slapped his hand down on my shoulder, and we approached Suzi who was dancing with a man she’d introduced to me as Zane. She’d backed her ass up on his crotch and jiggled it against him. I coughed as we approached.
“I can’t do this,” I said over the music. Sully laughed at me, but he kept moving toward her. She saw us approaching and a wide smile spread across her face. A single dimple formed on her left cheek.
“You want some of this don’t you, Meyer,” she taunted, curling her finger at me. I shook my head.
“Time to go!” Sully said over the music.
“I’m not ready to go,” she shouted back.
“I don’t care!” he responded.
“Send the limo back after you two lame wolves get home,” she mocked.
Sullivan’s scent strengthened, and she groaned. She gravitated toward me, shaking and swaying in ways that I’d never imagined.
“Come on. Leave him alone,” Sully said.
“I’ve got it,” I said to him. I slipped my hand around her waist as she ground against me.
“Oh, whatcha got there, cowboy?” she said in a fake, drunk Texas accent.
“Nothing you will ever know,” I smarted back at her.
“Feels good. I can make it feel better.” It felt good, but I looked into her eyes. The hazy look showed she’d had more than she could handle.
“Suzi, you are drunk, and Sully says we need to leave. I’m not leaving you here in this state,” I said.
“Why? Because I’m drunk?” she blurted out.
“No, because you are giving me a chance to be a good man, so I’m taking it,” I replied.
She stopped dancing and tilted her head at me. “Well, I’ll be dammed.” She took my hand and led us outside where the limo waited. The fresh air filtered into my lungs, and I took deep breaths. I’d missed the open air. I’d spent the better part of seven years in it.
The ride back to the house was quiet except for Suzi humming a tune that the band had played. Sully watched us carefully, and when we arrived, we dropped her off at the big house. He helped her stumble to the door where he handed her off to a woman who clearly was a staff-member at the house.
When he got back into the limo, he immediately started talking.
“Thank you for not taking advantage of her,” he said.
“What? That’s like normal, right?”
“No. Not with her. So many of those men know exactly how much money she is worth. She only drinks like this occasionally, but I like to be there when she does.”
“Why does she do it?”
“My parents mostly. They have betrothed her to a man in another pack. A son of an Alpha. The guy is nice enough, but she hates knowing that she has to follow their rules.”
“I thought you were going to give her the Alpha role?” I’d missed a step somewhere.
“My parents are good people, but my father would not allow a female to lead the pack. So, we have to wait until he dies before I give it all to her. He could still live for quite a while.”
I sat back to process what he had told me. Through my travels, I’d heard of matriarchal packs where there was an Alpha, but the elder women of the pack actually ran things. It would be a big step for the Houma pack to move to that way of life. It wasn’t that I didn’t respect Sully for what he wanted to do, but it sounded like a dangerous proposition.
“May I be honest?”
“By all means.”
“Would it be safe for your sister and the members of the pack to put her in charge?”
“You have not seen her fight. She’s fierce and brutal. Much more than myself.”
“That isn’t what I mean. You have an established society with a male lead. I know that times are changing in the human world, and women are getting more respect daily. However, in our world, you are opening the door for detractors to destroy your pack. Anyone opposed to the change could break the pack up or destroy it.”
“That could happen with a male change of power. From one family to the next.”
“I’m just saying that she spent her night drinking away her unhappiness. She used her body to lure more than one man out there. She isn’t really presenting an outward appearance of a leader. I think she’s amazing, but I don’t know if I’d follow her. She doesn’t seem stable enough.”
Sully rose from the couch and stood by the window. The light of the moon ill
uminated his face. I saw his jaw flexing. “She needs to understand the Alpha purpose. And maybe I need to accept the fact that I might have to do this. But I will not allow her to marry that other Alpha. She doesn’t want it.”
“Then, she needs to find another man and marry him before that time arrives,” I said.
“I think that’s brilliant,” Sully turned to me with bright eyes. “And I know the man for the job.”
“Who?” I asked. Then I got what he was saying. “No, Sully. That’s not happening. You told me not to touch her. I’m not interested.”
“Isn’t she beautiful?”
“Of course, she is.”
“Does she turn you on?”
“Sully! She’s a woman. I’m a man. Pretty much a given.”
“Does she turn your wolf on?”
I stood up. “I mean it. It’s not happening. I’m a cursed wolf. Banished from my pack. If old members of Whiskey Chitto ever catch me, I’m a dead man. You do not want that on your sister. And if I did this without your parents’ permission, I might as well kill myself.”
“Yeah. Sorry. I don’t know what I was thinking.”
“You are trying to protect her. Pairing her with me is worse than marrying her to the other Alpha.”
“What if you went back to your home and took your pack back? I’d go with you. Houma would support you. I’ve never liked the Oberlin pack, anyway.”
He would keep pressing this. I didn’t understand why or how I’d formed a friendship where he cared this much about me and trusted me enough to marry his sister. He did not want Alpha, and he would do anything to stop it. It seemed so foreign to me. As a child, all I wanted was to take over for my father and do the right things for my pack. Sully, for whatever reason, didn’t want it.
“No. I can’t. Look, if this is the reason you brought me here, I’m very sorry that I can’t live up to what you expect of me. I’ll be gone in the morning.” I got up to walk to my room as he spoke.
“I don’t want you to go, and that isn’t the reason I brought you here. I felt like I could trust you. That you would accept us for who we are because of what you’ve been through,” he said.
I stopped and faced him just outside the door to the bedroom. The resistance and fire I felt from him I knew too well. I felt it inside myself. The desire to trust, but to be guarded and protective. Sully would make an excellent Alpha. The kind I would give my life for. “I have never felt more welcome into a home than I have here. I thank you for that. I don’t know why you don’t want to be Alpha. I think you would be a great one.”