by Helen Harper
‘This is your bloody shifters’ fault.’
She just couldn’t help herself. ‘They might have a lot to answer for,’ I growled, ‘but they’re not the ones who allowed her to disappear in front of their eyes.’ That was on me. And her. I cast a glance down the street. I could hang around here for hours on the off chance Wold might show up again. If Mack was going to stay with me to do the same it might be worth it.
‘Screw this,’ she said. ‘I’m going to get Alex and go home.’
I guessed not then.
‘Corr? Is everything okay?’
Harriet. I’d completely forgotten about her still waiting for me. I wasn’t oblivious to Mack’s reaction either. I felt ridiculous exultation at the way in which she stiffened. I wasn’t the only one who wasn’t immune to the green eyed monster then.
I smiled at the hedge witch. ‘Everything’s fine.’ Curious to see how far I could push Mack before she said something, I held out my arm. There was a brief flash of amused understanding in Harriet’s eyes as she took it, latching on with every impression of a clingy girlfriend. ‘Come on.’ I said. ‘Let’s go and get that late lunch that I promised you.’
I didn’t look back at Mack as the pair of us strolled off. If I was waiting for her to start screaming after us though, I was sorely disappointed. She just let me walk away. Damn it.
‘Well,’ Harriet murmured, once we were out of earshot, ‘she certainly looked annoyed.’
I sighed. Pissed off was Mack’s default position. Trying to make her jealous had been a stupid idea from the start, even if I was sure it had worked. Ever so slightly anyway.
‘I’m sorry. I’ve used you. And not in a good way.’
She laughed lightly. ‘You didn’t lie to me, my Lord.’
I ran a hand through my hair. ‘Don’t call me that. It’s really not necessary. Besides, I’m hardly acting very lordly at the moment.’
Harriet shrugged. ‘You can’t help how you feel. What should I call you anyway? I’m going to presume that you don’t want me to really use Corr.’
It was my turn to laugh. ‘No. Corrigan is fine.’ I stopped and looked at her. ‘Maybe we should begin again. I’m Corrigan.’ I smiled. ‘Would you do me the honour of having lunch with me?’
Harriet didn’t react as I expected. She took a step backwards and frowned. ‘Oh no. Just because she didn’t throw herself at you straight away doesn’t mean I’m now available as rebound girl. It’s obvious how much she wants you.’ She wagged her finger at me and I was immediately reminded of Mara. Perhaps all hedge witches had a touch of motherly disapproval about them. ‘And vice versa.’
‘She doesn’t want me enough though.’ I clenched my teeth. ‘I’m sorry. I don’t even know you and here I am spilling out everything. I’m not normally like this.’
Harriet gave me a sympathetic glance. ‘Sometimes it’s easier to talk to strangers than to people you really know.’ She patted my arm. ‘I imagine as Lord Alpha you find yourself pulled in a million directions. You have a lot of people you’re responsible for and a lot of rules you need to abide by.’
I let out a short laugh. ‘That’s certainly right.’
‘And I imagine that being a Draco Wyr is much of the same.’
Fear ripped through me. ‘How did you know that?’ I demanded. ‘Did Mara tell you? How did you know what Mack is?’ Her identity was supposed to be a secret. I knew someone people were aware of what she was but for someone like to Harriet to have heard… it put Mack’s life in unbelievable danger.
She remained calm. ‘Word gets around. It’s not easy keeping secrets, you know and I do tend to keep my ear to the ground. There was also a blog on the Othernet…’ Her voice faltered when she saw the growing rage in my eyes. ‘I don’t think Mara knows,’ Harriet added quickly in a vain attempt to be helpful. She shrugged. ‘We’ve not spoken about it. Mackenzie Smith is not the centre of our universe even if she’s the centre of yours.’ She met my eyes. ‘She loves you, you know. I can tell.’
Despite the flare of delight I felt at Harriet’s knowing words, I still shook my head. ‘I can’t believe you know about her.’ A blog? Revealing Mack’s identity? This was one worry I couldn’t quash. More and more people were going to find out and I would never be able to stop it. Mack would never get any peace. Neither would she ever be safe.
Chapter Six
‘I hear you had lunch with a particularly interesting young lady, my Lord,’ Staines said, when I finally located him in the library, surrounded by mountains of paper. ‘In fact, it’s all over the Othernet. Some gossipmonger has made considerable hay out of how quickly you’ve recovered from your dalliance with Ms. Smith.’
I murmured non-commitally. Harriet and I didn’t even make it to the table. Her information about the blog had given me no choice but to leave her on her own. I’d spent several hours trying to track down the author of the damn thing. It wasn’t quite as bad as I’d initially imagined but there had been numerous implied references to Mack’s true nature as a Draco Wyr. That kind of writing wasn’t just irresponsible – it was downright deadly. No matter how much I’d yelled and stomped around though, the blogger’s identity remained secret.
I was surprised that Staines had time to follow such ridiculous gossip. He had, after all, been away up north investigating a possible sighting of Endor. Frustratingly, it had come to naught so the delay in having this conversation had proved pointless. Wherever the necromancer was, he was keeping himself well hidden.
I glowered and folded my arms. ‘I suppose in that case you also heard what happened at Wold’s shop.’
‘Wold?’
‘The Batibat. But you already knew that.’
His mouth twisted and he gave up playing dumb. ‘Yes, I heard.’
‘What on earth were you thinking? Torture?’
Staines sighed. ‘It really wasn’t like that. I just told them to do whatever was necessary to make sure that we had every scrap of information we could possibly get.’
I rolled my eyes. ‘Please. It’s no coincidence that you sent those three.’
He pushed his chair back and stood up. Sometimes I forgot just how much strength was encased in Staines’s large werebear body. ‘With all due respect, my Lord, you put me in charge. There is a highly dangerous necromancer running around the country. He came close to exterminating an entire species. We don’t have time to be delicate.’
‘We’re not monsters, Staines,’ I said, repeating Mack’s own accusation. ‘I will not allow the Brethren to become as bad as he is in order to capture him. We need to be better than that.’
He was far from happy. ‘I suppose this is Ms. Smith talking.’
I let out a low growl. ‘She said something along those lines but I happen to agree with her. On this at least.’
‘The Batibat wasn’t cooperative. We already knew that. She’d been working for him, Corrigan. We couldn’t trust a damned thing that she said.’
‘She had been forced into working for him. There’s a difference.’
He gazed at me impassively. ‘Is there? Would you have allowed yourself to be put in that position?’
‘Not everyone is me.’
‘No,’ he replied flatly. ‘They’re not. You need to put Ms. Smith behind you and move on. Forget this foolish quest to step down as Lord Alpha too.’
I licked my lips. ‘I didn’t get the Voice the way other people get it. I didn’t even ever want to be bloody Lord Alpha.’
‘Do you want to quit just because of her?’ From the sneer in his tone, there was little doubt about who he was referring to.
I met his eyes. ‘Actually, no.’ I took a deep breath. ‘Churchill.’
‘What about him?’
‘He was the leader of this country during World War II. He brought us to victory. And when the war was over, the country dusted their hands of him, said thank you very much and sent him on his way.’
‘I know the history,’ Staines growled. ‘And it was a damn fool move a
nyway.’
I shook my head. ‘No, it wasn’t. He represented war. When it was over, the country needed change. They didn’t want to have the past in their face all the time. He served his country when he was needed and then when he wasn’t…’ I shrugged. ‘I think it’s similar with me.’
‘I fail to see how.’
‘I’ve changed the Brethren, Staines. I’ve changed the laws. I’ve changed the relationships we have with other tribers. I’ve changed the way our leaders act. If I remain in power, everyone will always be reminded of what used to be, instead of focusing on the future and what could be.’ I dropped my voice. ‘Imagine if we took Laura, Mark and Colin…’
‘Colin?’
‘He’s the werewolf. I know, I know, he doesn’t talk much but he doesn’t really need to. Imagine if we took the three of them and installed them here. A new leadership. We could place term limits on them. Two years, say.’
Staines’s face started to grow bright red. ‘Two years?’
‘Or four. Or six. Or whatever. Then once everyone is used to the idea of having three Alphas instead of one, there’s a democratic vote. We do things properly.’
‘And what if the democratic vote elects someone who doesn’t have the Voice? What then?’
‘Maybe they receive it naturally anyway. Laura didn’t have it before,’ I reminded him. ‘She does now. Maybe it’s evolution of a sorts.’
‘You don’t know that for sure.’
‘No. But are you really suggesting that some archaic form of communication should decide who’s solely in charge? That we don’t trust our own shifters to make up their own minds?’
‘We’re not human and we shouldn’t pretend to be. Besides, it’s the way things have always been done.’
‘That’s not a good enough argument and you know it.’ I leaned forward. ‘Think about it. Would you be happy working for the Arch-Mage?’
‘Don’t be an idiot,’ Staines snapped.
I pressed him. ‘Why not?’
‘The man’s a fool.’
‘He’s smarter than you think,’ I said. ‘But there have been Lord Alphas who have been fools. Idiocy is not exclusive to the Ministry. What about the Summer Queen? Would you want to be under her wing?’
Staines hissed. ‘She’s a dictator by any other name.’
I smiled. ‘Exactly.’
‘If you step down, won’t you still have the Voice? Won’t you still be able to compel anyone you want to? Honestly, my Lord, have you found anything to suggest it’s even possible for this kind of democratic process to occur?’
A muscle tightened in my jaw. ‘No. But…’
‘Well, then.’ He shrugged. ‘The point is moot.’
I sighed. I’d just have to keep searching for a way out. I couldn’t focus on my own woes, however. Not when Endor was still loose and my own shifters were running amok through the streets of London.
‘I shouldn’t have abdicated responsibility,’ I told him, changing the subject although unfortunately not to anything more palatable. ‘The necromancer is quite possibly the most dangerous threat we’ve ever faced. I should be involved.’
If I’d thought that Staines would be upset at having his authority taken away from him, I was sorely mistaken. The relief in his eyes was obvious. He bowed. ‘I think that’s a good idea, my Lord.’ He looked at his feet. ‘I do understand, you know. About how burdensome power can be. I didn’t just flippantly agree to torture. I spent days thinking about it. It wasn’t a decision I took lightly. I’d have come to you if…’
‘If I hadn’t been so wrapped up in other matters,’ I finished for him.
He nodded.
I sighed. This mess was all of my own creation, one way or another. ‘I shouldn’t have let her get to me to the point where I dropped out.’
Staines didn’t speak.
‘Have you ever been in love?’ I asked hollowly. He might be my right hand man and a pain in the proverbial to boot, but there was still a lot I didn’t know about him.
‘Yes,’ he said simply.
‘What happened?’ He’d been on his own for as long as I’d known him.
‘She decided she didn’t want to spend the rest of her life with someone who was a shapeshifter.’
I started. ‘She wasn’t…’
He shook his head. ‘No. She was a mage.’
I had to admit I was taken aback. ‘Do you still see her?’
He was silent for a long moment. ‘No,’ he finally said. ‘Not long after we … broke up, she was killed.’
I drew in a sharp breath. ‘I’m so sorry, Staines.’
‘It wasn’t an attack or anything like that. It wasn’t even magic. It was just a stupid accident. She stepped out into the road without looking and…’ his voice trailed off. ‘Rebecca always did have her head in the clouds.’
‘You never told me.’
He shrugged. ‘It never came up.’
I reached out and put my hand on his shoulder, squeezing it. ‘I really am sorry.’
He looked at me. ‘It was almost twenty years ago. I’m still here and I’ve still done some good.’ He smiled faintly. ‘I helped you, didn’t I? It turned out in the end that I didn’t need her at all. It just took me a while to realise it. I know you’re hurting now but you’ll feel the same about the dragon too, sooner or later.’
I held his gaze, wondering if he’d been a different person before his Rebecca. Less gruff and more accommodating. It was difficult to imagine what he could have been like. I loved the old werebear and thought of him as a father but I was aware of his faults. And mine. And Mack’s. No-one was ever perfect though. I smiled humourlessly. Life would be pretty dull if we never fucked up.
‘I still need you to help out,’ I told him. ‘To be the council liaison. I’m not going to stick my head in the sand any more though. We’ll find Endor together and bring him down. I promise you.’
Staines smiled. ‘I believe in you, my Lord. I’ve always believed in you.’ He gestured at all the papers. ‘And between you and me this research is driving me crazy.’
I laughed. ‘Welcome to my world.’
His eyes crinkled. ‘It’s good to hear that sound again, my Lord.’
‘Corrigan,’ I said quietly.
‘Corrigan.’ He paused. ‘Son.’
I waggled my finger at him. ‘Watch it.’
‘Oh, you might be the mean tough Lord Alpha,’ Staines said. ‘But I’ve still got a few moves.’
We grinned at each other.
‘Are you two quite finished?’ came an imperious voice from the far corner of the library. ‘I understand we’re in crisis mode but this is a place of quiet research.’
‘I don’t think the librarian thinks I’m mean and tough,’ I commented drily.
Staines just laughed.
Chapter Seven
I might have smoothed things over with Staines and managed to stop snapping at every shifter who made the unfortunate error of crossing my path but my worry about Mack didn’t cease. My thoughts kept flitting from her to Endor and back again.
I wasn’t used to feeling like this. Pre-Cornwall, things were very straightforward for me. There was a right path and a wrong path. I wasn’t going to pretend that I always went the right way – I had been a rather impetuous teenager – but I had pretty much always known which route was the correct one. Take what happened with Wold, for example. Beating answers out of her was wrong. I didn’t agree with it and when I’d apologised to her, I’d meant it. I still couldn’t help wondering, however, if there was more she could have told us. Was it worth hurting her a little bit to potentially save hundreds of lives?
I was gallingly aware of what expectations the Brethren and the Packs had. They expected me to be strong. To be Alpha. In essence, to make a decision and stick to it, regardless of whatever opposition came my way. Other than Staines and possibly Leah and Laura, there were no shapeshifters who would openly disagree with me. All Lord Alphas prior to me had carefully cultivated
reputations as people who knew their own minds, rightly or wrongly. I had thought I was like that but I was starting to think I’d been wrong.
I would have broached my doubt bout with Leah, but she was in a worse state than even I was these days. She also flat out refused to tell me why. Instead, I approached Laura. She laughed at me.
‘Look,’ she said, ‘Staines is a good guy. He’s old school though and set in his ways. I’m impressed you’ve managed to bring him along so far with all these changes you’ve been implementing. You just need to remember what your own morals and principles are and stick to them.’
‘Even if it gets people killed?’
‘Let’s say, for argument’s sake, I’m being tortured. I don’t have any information but you’re ripping out my claws one by one, demanding to know what I know. What do I do?’
I sighed. ‘You’d make anything up.’
‘Exactly. I’d tell you whatever shit I thought you wanted to hear just to make the pain stop. It’s not an effective interrogation technique. Not to mention that it’s wrong. You know it is.’
I realised that everything was straightforward for her. She wouldn’t just make a good Alpha. She’d make an excellent Alpha, even without Mark and Colin to back her up. The three of them together would be unstoppable. In the unlikely event that I could install them as the new Brethren Alpha triumvirate, and any of them suffered the same kind of issues that I was having right now, they’d have each other as back-up. It simply wouldn’t be a thing.
I was in the gym, in the process of destroying a heavyweight punch bag as I tried to decide between whether I should be making sure that Mack didn’t get hurt or leaving her alone, when there was a clatter of running feet from outside and obviously heading in my direction. Lucy, breathing hard, appeared in the doorway. ‘There’s a problem.’
Adrenaline burst through me. ‘Endor?’
‘No. Mack. She shifted into a dragon.’
Good. It was about time she got control of that part of herself. ‘So Tom has had some success in training her.’ I nodded. ‘Excellent.’