by Robin Roseau
“I’m afraid not,” Francesca said.
“Well, my family background is not Cajun, but our cooking habits have been heavily influenced, and one cannot live in New Orleans without an appreciation for gumbo.”
“That’s soup?” Francesca said.
I smiled. “It’s more of a spicy stew,” I replied. “Francesca, I would be quite pleased with whatever the wolves eat.”
Francesca frowned. “Before Halloween, Michaela was looking forward to the restaurants.”
Elisabeth put her hand on my arm, just for a moment, and I turned to her. “Francesca is going to fret.”
“There is no need.”
“What do you enjoy beside your meat delivered in every envisioned fashion?”
I smiled again. “Cajun food heavily relies on rice,” I said. “And whatever vegetables are readily available.”
“And spice?” Francesca asked.
“Yes, but I imagine the wolves aren’t as fond of that.”
“Do you like curry?”
“I love curry,” I said. “But you don’t need to fuss over me, Francesca. I am happy with whatever you make for the wolves.”
She nodded. “Do you know what the vampire will prefer?”
“She eats more befitting a human of her size. Do you do anything special for...” I searched for the name for just a moment. “Zoe?”
“Zoe is vegan,” Elisabeth said.
I turned to her. “Vegan? Are you serious?”
“She makes great food,” Cassie said from my other side. “She makes edamame for every pack event. And she makes popcorn with nooch. It’s really good.”
“I’ve had edamame,” I said. “But what is nooch?”
“She uses it instead of butter,” Cassie explained. “Butter isn’t vegan.”
“I imagine not,” I said. I turned back to Elisabeth.
“Don’t say it,” Elisabeth said. “Everyone is aware of the irony of a vegan human mated to one of our enforcers. Oddly, it works quite well.” She smiled. “Zoe is the driving force behind any curry you find at pack events. But it’s inspired by Indian cuisine, not Cajun.”
“Well, I like Indian food as well,” I said. I turned back to Francesca. “Do not fuss over me. I can be quite happy with whatever the wolves eat, and maybe a little from the other choices.”
Francesca nodded and excused herself. A moment later, most of the teenagers exchanged glances and said, “We should go help her.” I was left with Elisabeth and Monique. Elisabeth turned to the young enforcer and said, “You’re off duty until after lunch.”
“I’ll go help in the kitchen then,” she said.
“Well,” said Elisabeth to me. “I don’t know your status with Carissa.”
“Are you asking if we can invite ourselves to their conversation?” I gestured with my nose to where the vampire was seated, facing Lara and Michaela. “Where would you be if I weren’t here?”
“Probably with them,” she said.
“Then, shall we join them?”
I was actually somewhat surprised. Carissa had released Michaela back to her mate, and so the alpha pair was seated on a sofa, a comfortable easy chair pulled to face them. I collected a similar chair on our way, and soon I found myself beside Carissa, Elisabeth joining her alphas on their sofa. Michaela smiled warmly at me before reaching over to briefly clasp Elisabeth’s hand.
“Francesca rescued you,” Lara said with a smile of her own.
“It appears the pack youth is very diligent in their duties,” I replied. “They volunteered themselves.”
Michaela smiled again. “They’re good kids,” she declared.
“Did we interrupt a conversation?”
“We were making small talk,” Michaela said. “While dancing around some of the diplomacy.” She grinned and turned her attention to Elisabeth. “Carissa has given permission for her humans to receive roller coaster rides, if the kids want to offer.”
“They already asked,” Elisabeth replied. “I’ll let them know.”
Michaela turned to me. “They explained to you?” I nodded at that. I thought perhaps she had heard, but I wasn’t sure. “Anna, do you mind if I am curious?”
“You are a fox,” I replied with a smile. “I do not believe I could stop you.”
“No, but I would not invade your privacy.”
“Let us agree that if I am uncomfortable answering a question, I will tell you.”
“Well then. I wonder about your style, I suppose I might say.” She gestured to Lara and then Elisabeth. “Clearly these two are far faster than I am. We can all trot along for hours at a time, but my trot is barely a fast walk for them. What is a jaguar’s preference?”
“We are all weres,” I replied. That by itself implied many things everyone would understand. “But my hunting style is very different from a wolf’s.”
“As is mine,” Michaela said.
“Does yours mimic your natural cousin’s?”
“Yes,” she said. “And yours?”
“Yes.”
“So you are an ambush hunter.”
“Yes,” I agreed. “I am faster in a rush than even the fastest wolf, but that’s not something I can sustain for more than a mile or so, and when hunting, I have never rushed more than, oh, a hundred yards or so, and rarely is it that far.”
“And at a slower pace?”
“Such as that of one of these roller coaster rides?” She nodded. “They all returned quite winded, I noticed,” I said. “Was that due to the length of the run?”
“Partly,” Lara said. “But most of it is from the things they do to Zoe. From the screaming, I imagine they gave her quite a ride.”
“A nine,” Elisabeth said.
“Ah.” Lara shook her head. “They can take her for much longer rides when they do not seek to scare her, but scaring her without breaking her is work.”
I nodded. “And so, what did you really wish to know, Michaela?”
“I guess I wondered what you would do, if you were offering such a ride to a human.”
“Ah. Are we talking to scare her?”
“No. Just a run.”
I cocked my head. “I do not believe I would offer. I imagine the two wolves must run in unison, or they risk detaching human limbs from a frail body. I do not know if I could match my pace with that of any wolf here.”
“Perhaps another jaguar?”
I shook my head. “We do not work in unison like that. We are quite independent. We might be able to offer a slow ride, but perhaps no faster than a human could run. Oh, we could keep that up much longer, but I do not believe that is the point.”
“When they give Zoe long rides,” Michaela said, “they trade off. But you’re right. It is to give her an experience she can’t have alone.”
“I might instead choose another way,” I said. “I might pick her up myself.”
Michaela’s lips tightened for a moment, then smoothed. I wondered what was wrong with what I’d said, but I decided to engage diplomacy rather than curiosity. But she nodded. She turned back to Carissa. “You are uncanny.”
“In what regard?”
“No heartbeat.”
“Does that disturb you?”
“No,” Michaela replied. “In a way, it’s refreshing.”
“There is something else that is uncanny,” I said.
“Oh?” Michaela said. “What is that?”
“This pack.” I looked around. “You all seem so at peace with each other.” Lara and Elisabeth chuckled lightly, and the three of them offered smiles. “I haven’t seen anyone jostling for supremacy or position. That could be from putting on a good impression for Carissa. But I don’t see anyone acting as if he or she is accustomed to frequently defending her position, either.” At that, I looked directly at Elisabeth. “But no one seems afraid of any of you, either. The other packs I’ve seen where the alpha and head enforcer are so comfortable, their wolves always show signs of abuse.”
No one responded immediately,
but both Lara and Elisabeth looked at Michaela rather than me. In her turn, Michaela’s gaze was on Carissa, not me, and I could practically see her thinking. But then I realized her lips were moving, just slightly, like those of a poor reader, perhaps, but even more subtle than that.
Then, even more subtly, I saw Carissa take a small breath and release it.
The two of them were talking, and doing so too quietly for the rest of us to hear. Well, well.
But then Michaela nodded, also slightly, and turned back to me. “Anna, I do not wish to offer details, but in many ways, I have more experience dealing with wolves from outside this pack than anyone else in the pack. I have seen what you mean. I have seen the sort of wolves who rule through intimidation and fear.
“Iowa-“
“Not just Iowa,” she said. “Other places.” Something crossed her face for a moment, but it was subtle and disappeared quickly. “Part of the reason we are able to be so relaxed with each other is because the entire pack leadership stands not only behind Lara, but at times, beside her. There may be differences of opinion, but none of the enforcers and no one on the pack council wish any adjustments to the current organization.”
“Certainly there is controversy.”
“Of course there is,” she said. “There have been past struggles. They are in the past.”
“Michaela resolved them,” Elisabeth said.
“We resolved them,” Michaela said. “Elisabeth is able to relax because there isn’t an enforcer who wishes to replace her.”
“None of them want the responsibility,” Elisabeth said.
“None of them want to be the one to tell me ‘no’,” Michaela said with a grin. “Elisabeth, however, is a masochist and seems to enjoy my response.”
That confused me further. “You are alpha.”
“Lara is alpha,” Michaela said. “And on some issues, she has overruled me. And so on those issues, I answer not only to Lara, but also to Elisabeth and even Serena.”
“Clearly not all issues, from what I have seen.”
Michaela grinned. “They only respect my wisdom.”
“And your pointy little knives,” Elisabeth added. “Don’t forget the knives.”
“I don’t get my way because of my knives,” Michaela said.
“Knives?”
“I don’t fight in fur,” she explained. “In fur, I evade and I hide.”
“Wait,” I said, looking around to be sure we weren’t being overheard. “How plainly may I speak?”
Michaela cocked her head briefly then lowered her voice. “If I signal you, then grow silent.”
So I nodded. “You fought vampires in your skin?”
“Of course not,” she said with a grin. “I was dressed. And I had my knives. But it was the wolves who really fought them. I only helped. There’s no way I could stop a charging vampire.”
“As I said,” Elisabeth reminded me, “Michaela has an intriguing style. She is very... fluid.”
I shook my head. “Everyone knows about the two fights in Iowa,” I said. “And I also heard about two fights here.”
“Chicago?” Michaela asked, and I nodded. “Well, they were only wolves, and only one at a time besides.”
“Only wolves,” Carissa said, offering a snort.
“All this is off topic,” Michaela said. “You see us comfortable with ourselves because everyone agrees Lara runs the pack the way the pack should be run.”
“We run the pack the way it should be run,” Lara said pointedly. “We are doing much better now than before Michaela joined us. The pack as a whole is happier. Those living on the compound are significantly happier. I am happier, and not only in my family life. There are complications I would do without, but we make do.”
“By that Lara means she wishes I would finish my business degree and give up teaching,” Michaela said. “But that is yet another conversation.” But she turned to her mate. “I will finish my degree, and I will help you as much as I can, but I do not want to stop teaching, unless you really need me to.”
Lara leaned down and briefly kissed her mate. “I think you would be good at business, but I don’t believe it will ever be your passion. I won’t ever ask that of you. But I will value the help you are able to give me.”
The two stared into each other’s eyes for a moment, each of them smiling and holding hands, and I could feel the love wafting off them, it was so thick.
That may have been the first time I’d ever been jealous of another relationship. I’d been happy to keep my past relationships casual; I had never found someone intriguing enough to permanently hold my attention. But I looked at their obvious love, and I knew it was coupled with respect I didn’t yet fully appreciate, and I realized that I had hopes I’d one day have someone to look at me that way.
Oh, I suppose I could have had that, but I wanted us to both look that way, not just one of us.
I glanced at Elisabeth, watching her sister and sister-in-law. She turned to me. “They’ve been like this from nearly the beginning,” she said.
“It’s endearing,” I said.
Michaela and Lara nuzzled for only a moment, and then Michaela turned her attention back to me. “When you know the people around you are as capable as they are, and that they would do anything in their power to retain the current structure, it is easier to remain casual.”
“None of the enforcers wish a promotion?”
Lara and Michaela turned to Elisabeth. She gazed at both of them a moment then turned to me. “Most of the enforcers could give me a run for my money if they caught me unawares or in a weakened state. There are even a few other males in the pack who could, although I would have to be particularly weakened to actually lose to them.”
She paused a moment to let me consider that, then continued. “If Karen wished my position, she could take it from me.”
“At the risk of alienating both alphas,” Michaela pointed out. “But my mate tells me I must not interfere, if such a thing should occur, as long as the fight were fair.” She looked at her sister-in-law. “I’m not sure my mate could control me. I’m glad we’ll never find out.”
“And so, none wish a promotion?” I repeated my question.
At that, Elisabeth returned her gaze to Michaela, who shrugged. “Most wolf packs are led through strength. While we aren’t lacking in that regard, we lead, as best we can, through intelligence and wisdom. The strongest fighter isn’t necessarily the one who can make the pack prosper. Everyone in our pack knows that.”
“Not everyone,” Elisabeth clarified. “But everyone with the ability to truly challenge us.”
“And so,” said Michaela. “We are able to relax. We need the enforcers to deal with idiots, as every pack has those. And we are wary of outside threats. And so the enforcers must remain diligent, but that allows us to otherwise relax.”
I turned to Carissa. “Is this unique?”
“I wouldn’t not say unique,” Carissa said. “Rare. I have seen a few alpha pairs able to lead like Lara and Michaela do, but they have always been two very powerful wolves, one male, one female. The male alphas with a weak female mate, or no mate at all, are always under far more stress. And two female alphas? I’ve never seen that before.”
I nodded. And wondered.
Friendships
Lunch was, as we’d been warned, casual, although it was served in the dining room. It didn’t look like there would be enough room for everyone to sit at once, but after helping to serve us, the teenagers collected their own plates and disappeared elsewhere, leaving room for the two pups and the adults.
As this was a wolf pack, there was ample food. Given the nature of the pack, the variety of food was wider than I expected. We gathered, and then Francesca explained what was available.
“Today is finger food,” she said. “We have fixings for sandwiches and a few side dishes. But we have two types of hot soup. I’m sorry, Zoe, neither of them is vegan, but the bread is.”
“I’ll be fine,”
Zoe said. “Thank you for warning me.”
I found myself seated beside Lara with Karen beside me. As food was passed around, Karen leaned to me, “Normally today would be a picnic, but we didn’t think you would enjoy being outside.”
“A picnic? In late November?”
“That can’t seem that odd to you.”
“Well, not fifteen hundred miles further south,” I agreed. “But here? Really?”
“So the food is what we would have had outside,” Karen said. “But eaten here instead. Tonight will be a hot meal, and of course, tomorrow is Thanksgiving.”
“I don’t imagine I’m going to starve,” I said with a smile.
It didn’t take long before everyone was eating. Lara was focused on the conversation with Michaela, Carissa, and Elisabeth, so I turned back to Karen. “We barely met at Halloween.”
“I suppose that’s true,” she said. “On duty, I tend to be the strong, silent type.”
“Are you on duty now?”
“Not officially. We’re always vigilant, but I can relax enough for conversation. What do you think of Wisconsin?”
“I’ve never been,” I said. “And I think my expectations were colored by the entertainment industry.”
“A careful answer. You came at a poor time. We’re between seasons. We’re past the time most people might consider autumn, but until the snow arrives, it’s hard to consider it winter, either.”
We made small talk for a while. I decided that Karen was a fairly typical female enforcer. She seemed somewhat reserved with me, which I thought was understandable. But werewolf enforcers tend to fall into certain patterns.
I’d never met a small enforcer, and Karen certainly wasn’t small. It was a little surprising to learn Scarlett was an enforcer, because while she wasn’t small, she might have been the smallest I’d ever met. But she was a part time enforcer, and I gathered there were good reasons for that.
So one pattern enforcers universally followed: they were powerful.
Intelligence varied. I’d met some that were dumber than doorknobs, and I’d met others that were quite intelligent. And so I couldn’t say there was a pattern there.
But swagger was a pattern, one that was lacking in this pack. Instead, what I saw instead was confidence. Sometimes that would be taken to extremes, but I didn’t see that here.