Blood of the Pack

by Jenny Frame

  Both wolves saluted and bowed their heads to Zaria.

  “Hi, Mater, let be introduce you to our master distiller, Judah,” Rhuri said.

  Zaria was struck silent for a second. It was the first time anyone had addressed her as Mater. It felt so strange. Kenrick squeezed her hand.

  “I’m not quite Mater yet,” Zaria said.

  Kenrick leaned closer and said, “As good as. You’re my mate and the wolves want to show their respect.”

  Zaria nodded, then the wolf’s name clicked in her head. “Judah? You’re Donny’s mate?”

  Judah smiled. “Aye, that’s me, Mater. Nice to meet you.”

  “I just had tea with Donny, Heather, Florrie, and Moira,” Zaria said.

  Judah rolled his eyes. “I hope he didn’t tell too many embarrassing stories.”

  Zaria pursed her lips and nodded. “There were one or two. One about a bucket of fish guts.”

  Rhuri, Judah, and Kenrick looked at each other, clearly embarrassed. Kenrick cleared her throat. “Aye, not one of our better ideas. Anyway, Judah does a brilliant job here, and Rhuri helps me oversee the distillery, the forestry, the fishery, and the bottling plant.”

  “You’re all kept really busy then,” Zaria said.

  “Sure are,” Rhuri said.

  Judah smiled and nodded, “I better get on. Great meeting you, Mater.”

  “You too.” Zaria was really heartened by the welcome she was getting from all the Wulvers. She thought they might resent a foreigner coming into their pack and mating with the most eligible wolf, but the opposite was the case.

  “Are you enjoying the tour?” Rhuri asked.

  “It’s so interesting. Oh, I saw Milo this morning. Her class was going to do their art lesson down at the shore.”

  Rhuri smacked her forehead. “Shit…eh, sorry for the language. The cubs have a short day today. There’s a teacher’s meeting or something. She needs to be picked up from school in a couple of hours.”

  Kenrick said, “Don’t panic. Go and get her or I’ll ask my ma to get her.”

  Rhuri shook her head. “Your ma’s got to help take care of Ms. Norah today.”

  “One of our elderly wolves,” Kenrick explained. “Just go early and take Milo home.”

  Rhuri growled softly. “I can’t, Marcus had a problem over at the bottling plant. I said I’d go over there next, and I hate always asking Heather, Florrie, and Moira. They have their own cubs to deal with.”

  Zaria felt so bad for Rhuri—she looked really conflicted. Zaria had an idea. “Why don’t you go get Milo, and I’ll be finished my tour by then. I can take her. Milo wanted to show me the loch anyway.”

  Rhuri screwed up her eyes. “Are you sure? You’ve just arrived and I’m dumping my problems on you already.”

  “Don’t be silly, you’re not. I’m glad to help. Besides that’s what Maters are there for.”

  She felt Kenrick stand straighter, heard her almost growl, and felt her arousal through their connection. Zaria wasn’t quite sure why.

  “Thank you, Mater. I really, really appreciate it. I’ll get back to work just now and go and pick Milo up when it’s time.”

  When Rhuri walked away, Kenrick said, “Thank you for that, lassie. I know she finds it difficult asking for help all the time. She’s a proud wolf and she does the best she can, but a dominant can’t be everything to a cub. She has so many responsibilities to the pack, especially now as she’s going to be Second.”

  Zaria turned around and put her hands around Kenrick’s waist. “Rhuri needs a mate to help her.”

  “I know, but it’s hard for her. Look how far I had to go to find mine.” Kenrick leaned in and kissed her softly on the lips.

  Kenrick’s hunger was growing and Zaria was responding. It had been too long since they had last touched properly, but they were being watched by humans passing through the room and the other wolf workers.

  “Where next?” Zaria asked.

  Kenrick grinned like a Cheshire cat and whispered sexily, “The cellars below this room. Come with me.”

  * * *

  Zaria followed Kenrick down two sets of stairs to an underground cellar, much bigger than the first room they visited. The light was dim and it was much cooler down here. Rows and rows of dark oak casks, one on top of the other, lined the walls and the centre of the room.

  Kenrick stayed by the stairs and Zaria walked ahead. “It’s surprisingly big down here. You’d never think there was a place like this under the distillery building.”

  Kenrick walked up behind her and traced her fingers down Zaria’s bare arm. Zaria shivered. Kenrick’s arousal that started upstairs only got stronger as they descended. She could feel it in her blood, and her wolf dared her to respond, but not yet.

  “Where are the people though? The tourists?” Zaria asked.

  “They don’t get to come down here. This is private. There are a few other places next to this building that they visit, but this is just for Wulvers. We call this warehouse number one. Let me show you.”

  As they walked Kenrick kept her hand on the small of Zaria’s back, making her shiver.

  “Officially this is called the maturation room. Once the whisky is distilled, the spirit is put in these casks. In Scotland the spirit has to mature in these casks for three years before it can be legally called whisky.”

  Zaria looked to Kenrick. “Really? That’s a long time.”

  Kenrick shook her head. “Not for a good single malt. They take a lot longer. During the maturation process the spirit reacts to the outside air that seeps through the wood, and about two per cent escapes through the wood. In Scotland the humans call it the angels’ share, but I prefer to think the Great Mother enjoys the fruits of our labour.”

  “It’s amazing. I never knew so much went into it. You’re so knowledgeable.”

  “It’s in—”

  “Your blood. I remember.”

  They still hadn’t gotten halfway down the cellar. “Where are we going?”

  Kenrick smiled. “Wait and see.”

  They finally came to the end aisle of the room and turned left. There was one cask sitting alone on a table with a gold tap on it and above it a coat of arms. Above that was a large ancient looking sword with a gold handle.

  “What is this? Zaria asked.

  “This coat of arms represents the descendants of Princess Scota and the weapons she left us with. To each pack she gave a weapon that was part of our ancient heritage. The Wulvers got the sword.”

  Kenrick laid her hand on the barrel with reverence. “This is the first ever cask of whisky we produced on our land. When Princess Scota left us to found the other packs, we had to learn from the human locals to live in this environment. It was quite different from Egypt, as you can imagine. One of the things they taught us was how to make a spirit called whisky.”

  “What a cool story. We had nothing like this. Clearly my descendants took the wrong option when they left Princess Scota’s voyage,” Zaria said.

  “At my Alpha ceremony, I and the elite wolves will drink some of this cask, and the sword will be presented to me as a symbol of power,” Kenrick said.

  When Kenrick said power, Zaria growled without even thinking. She could feel Kenrick’s power and her wolf demanded to feel it.

  You’re calling me, Kenrick said telepathically.

  Zaria turned away and walked over to the rows of barrels on the wall, purposely ignoring and challenging Kenrick.

  Kenrick walked over slowly, a low growl escaping her mouth. Zaria turned around and backed up against the barrels.

  “What are you growling about?” Zaria asked.

  “You. I want you.” Kenrick’s eyes and teeth shifted as she bore down on her.

  Zaria’s heart started to flutter. “What if someone comes down here?”

  “They won’t.” Kenrick popped open the button on Zaria’s jeans and sucked on the mate bite on her neck.

  Zaria gasped when Kenrick thrust her fingers deep inside h
er. She moaned, “Ricky, that’s so deep.”

  “You like that?” Kenrick dragged her teeth over the mate bite she made.

  “Yeah…more.” Zaria’s hips were gyrating backward and forward, faster with each thrust.

  Kenrick slipped in a third finger and stilled her hand. “Is that okay?”

  “Uh-huh,” Zaria groaned, almost in pain.

  Kenrick pushed her fingers in and out, taking her pace from Zaria. When her hips thrust faster, so did she, until Zaria shouted desperately, “Bite me now.”

  Kenrick sank her teeth into Zaria’s neck, and Zaria did the same to her. The bite on Kenrick’s neck was gloriously painful.

  She just had to come. Kenrick turned Zaria around and pulled down her jeans to expose her mate’s buttocks, opened her own jeans, and thrust against Zaria hard and fast.

  “Yes, come Ricky,” Zaria moaned.

  Kenrick was going to come all over her mate in seconds. Then Zaria pushed her buttocks hard into Kenrick’s sex and it was all over. She cried into the crook of her mate’s neck, emptying her essence all over Zaria’s cheeks.

  When Kenrick got her breath back, Zaria giggled and said, “Big bad wolf.”

  Chapter Twenty-two

  Zaria walked outside the distillery and saw Rhuri pull up in her Land Rover. Milo jumped out and ran to hug her.

  “Hi, Mater. Rhuri said we were to call you that now.”

  Zaria ruffled Milo’s curly hair. “When we’re together you call me Zaria.”

  Rhuri lowered her window and said, “Thank you so much for this, Mater. I’ll try not to be too long.”

  “Don’t worry about. Do what you have to do.” Zaria smiled and they both waved her off.

  She took Milo’s hand and said, “Okay, let’s go and see if you can show me the Kelpie.”

  They walked down to a part of the shore that was quieter. It was later in the day and the tourists were heading home.

  “Why don’t we sit on those rocks.” Zaria led them over to a collection of stone boulders sitting by the water’s edge.

  They sat down and Milo said, “Alpha Fergus told me giants put these huge rocks here.”

  “This place is just full of cool legends,” Zaria said with a smile. “So, when did you see this Kelpie?”

  Milo picked up some small rocks and threw them into the water. “A few weeks after I came to the Wulvers, after my mum died.”

  Milo looked down at her feet and Zaria put her arm around her. She could feel her pain so deeply. Milo’s situation was so similar to Marco’s.

  “You know, I have a nephew back in Wolfgang County called Marco. He lost his mom too, and I lost my sister, but you know what helped? Talking about it with Ricky. Do you talk to Rhuri?”

  Milo shook her head. “No, it makes Aunt Rhuri sad and made my grandpa and grandma leave Wulver Forest.”

  Tears rolled down Mio’s cheeks. Zaria remembered Kenrick telling her about Rhuri’s parents. She couldn’t imagine turning her back on a child. Zaria had lived a life on the run and in poverty just so she didn’t lose contact with Marco. “You mustn’t feel bad about them leaving. People do strange things when they’re sad and their heart is broken.”

  Milo hugged her tightly. “I’m really glad you’re here, Zaria. You’re different, like me.”

  Zaria kissed her head. “Different is a good thing. We all have different strengths. Look how awesome you are. You’re going to have the strength of a wolf and the powers of a witch.”

  “I guess so, but sometimes I feel too different from the other cubs,” Milo said.

  “We’re both in the same boat. I’m an American walking straight into the Wulver pack to become Mater. Maybe because were different we can help each other out. You know more about the Wulvers than me, and you can talk to me about anything. Your mum, school, witch stuff, what do you think?”

  Milo wiped away her tears and smiled. “I’d like that. Here, let me show you something cool my tutor taught me.”

  Milo picked up a stone and held her palms one above another. She whispered an incantation and levitated the stone, then pushed her hands towards the water, and the stone flew across the loch until they lost sight of it in the distance.

  “Wow! That was fantastic, Milo. Who’s your tutor?” Zaria asked.

  “Madam Hilda. She comes once a month to teach me about my magic,” Milo explained.

  “Is Madam Hilda a witch?”

  “She lives much further north in an old castle with her clan. They’re called the BaoBhan Sith.” Milo struggled over the words.

  “I’ve never heard of them,” Zaria said. It appeared as if there was a whole new world of paranormal and mythical creatures for her to learn about in Britain.

  “Aunt Rhuri says they are like fae and Vampires mixed together. It’s confusing but they know about magic, and Ms. Hilda is really cool and nice,” Zaria said.

  “I’m glad. So, teach me about this Kelpie. You saw it just after you arrived here?”

  “Yeah.” A big smile and excitement came back to Milo’s face. “I was here myself and it was quiet everywhere. Then I heard this noise, water rushing. I looked up and it like a wave, but the rest of the water was still.”

  “Did it just look like a wave?” Zaria asked.

  Milo shook her head. “As it got closer I saw it looked like a horse’s head. Then it stopped in the middle of the water and just stared at me.”

  “A horse? Strange in water, isn’t it?” Zaria said.

  Milo nodded. “Aunt Rhuri says it’s a water spirit, but because the ancient Celtic people around here sacrificed horses to it, it took on the appearance of a horse in water. But it’s a shapeshifter. Stories say it’s appeared as women, men, and all sorts of creatures.”

  “So what happened then, when it stopped?”

  “I heard a noise and looked away, and when I turned back it was gone, but I know what I saw. Do you believe me?”

  Zaria stroked Milo’s back. It was very important to Milo that she was believed, and Zaria did believe she saw something. “Sure, I do. With these paranormal creatures around, there’s no telling what might be out there. Do the humans know about this myth?”

  Milo laughed. “Yeah, they come with binoculars and fancy boats with radar to try to find it. They sell Kelpie souvenirs in the gift shop too, but she won’t show herself to lots of people like that.”

  “You think it’s a she?” Zaria asked.

  “Yeah, I can feel it in here.” Milo pointed to her chest.

  Zaria shivered as the breeze picked up. She looked around and realized it was getting late. The evening gloom was settling over the landscape. When she looked around, Zaria got the feeling someone or something was watching them. She felt like she had when she was at the airport arriving in Glasgow. She sniffed the air but couldn’t discern anything other than the natural scents around them. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up, but she shook it off. It was all the talk of mythical creatures.

  “It’s getting late. We better get you back. Thanks for telling me about the Kelpie.” Zaria hugged Milo but couldn’t shake her bad feeling. “Let’s go.”

  * * *

  Kenrick had never been so eager to get back to her den in her life. Normally after work she’d spend time at her mum and dad’s or with Rhuri and Milo, since the rest of her friends were mated and went home to be with their mates.

  It was crazy to think that was the position she was in now. Mated to Zaria, the wolf that the Great Mother dropped into her lap. Now she understood why her friends were all so eager to get home after work.

  Every inch of her being needed, hungered, demanded she be with her mate. As she got closer to her den, her mate bite started to throb and her skin began to tingle. When she got to the bottom of the stairway, Kenrick scented meat cooking and heard the laughter of her mate and her mother.

  Kenrick got a warm glow inside and ran up to her door. She walked through and found the happiest sight she’d seen in her den—Zaria and her mother making food tog
ether and getting on so well. She was so glad the two women in her life had hit it off. Not only for her, but Zaria needed family and the mother figure she hadn’t had since her sister died.

  “There’s my big bairn.” Elspeth walked over and gave her a hug.

  “Ma, I’m going to be Alpha in a few days. Do you have to call me a bairn?” Kenrick said.

  Elspeth kissed her on the cheek and said, “You’ll always be my bairn, Ricky. Even when you have grey hair like me.”

  Kenrick rolled her eyes and kissed her mother. When she got closer, her mother whispered, “Thank you for bringing us Zaria. She’s perfect for us, and we are perfect for her, but you better have your mating ceremony soon, or I’ll bite your tail. Don’t think you’re too old for that.”

  “Thanks, ma, and I promise it’ll be soon.”

  Elspeth went back over to Zaria and hugged her. “I’ll leave you to it, Zari, and thanks again for helping with Milo.”

  “Anytime,” Zaria replied.

  As soon as Elspeth left Zaria ran and jumped into Kenrick’s arms. “I missed you so much.” Zaria growled and rubbed her scent all over Kenrick’s neck.

  “I missed you too.” Kenrick kissed her and carried her over to the kitchen island. While they kissed, Kenrick ran her hands underneath Zaria’s top and scratched her belly.

  I want you, Kenrick thought while they kissed.

  “Nu-uh.” Zaria pushed her away and Kenrick didn’t resist. She was always careful to show Zaria that she could stop anytime she wanted, and nothing had changed now they were mated and never would. The way Ovid abused Zaria’s innocence and control would never happen again.

  Mating and making love were a gift to Kenrick, but it was Zaria’s right to bestow that on her.

  “I’ve got it all planned,” Zaria said. “We’ll have our first dinner together, then lie in the hammock at light-up time, watch the stars, and talk.”

  Kenrick nuzzled her cheek. “Sounds perfect. You know how good it feels to have you here in my den, cooking for me?”

  Zaria smiled. “Yeah, I think I do, Highlander, but remember, I learned to cook in diners, so it might not be up to your mom’s standards.”