Freya's Inferno (Winging It Book 1)

by Sonja Bair

  David nodded and put on his business face. “I’ll try my best. Your question was how much mental control you would feel from a large but not fatal bite. Let me back up and explain the mental control between two werewolves in the same pack.” He grabbed my hand so quick, I didn’t have a chance to pull away. He gently led me to a large boulder and I allowed him to pull me up and sit on the top with him. The car-sized boulder had a light layer of lichen which colored the boulder in vibrant patches of red and green. I kicked off my sandals and put my feet up on the rock, which was cool and scratchy under my feet.

  David continued. “Two werewolves in the same pack can partially connect by our mental link. We can communicate our location and our emotional feelings. Think of it from a survival standpoint. If we are under attack or if we are attacking, we can synchronize our movements so we function as more than individual wolves. We can act as one large, precisely coordinated entity instead of many individuals. When the pack is in close range, I can tell you the exact location of every wolf in the pack. When it is more dispersed, I can only tell you a general sense of where they are. Am I making myself clear?” he asked, turning to me. I nodded slightly.

  “Good. As far as the mental influences, again, think of it as a survival mechanism. If a werewolf is hurt or in pain, he or she can tell the pack without words. Or if a werewolf finds a particularly tasty meal, the sense of excitement can be communicated back to the pack, even over a short distance. But there is also another layer where werewolf rank comes in. A good leader of any sort, werewolf or president of the United States, is able to share and inspire their followers into action. So werewolf leaders, especially the Alphas, can pass emotion to their pack, but in a much more visceral, real way than a... let’s say... passionate political speech. An Alpha can make a pack member feel happy, sad, excited, or angry... but only to a point. As the pack member moves farther and farther away, the influence lessens. Also, if a pack member is aware of the forced emotion, he or she can fight back and resist the emotion, but it takes self-awareness and willpower to do. But this is only referring to full werewolf pack members. Your question, rightfully, is what in the world do you have to do with any of this?”

  The question was rhetorical, so I said nothing. I started to absentmindedly pick the lichen off the rock. Another apt metaphor, I thought in frustration. I felt like I could peel back the outside layers to David to see beneath, but any other attempt to understand him was thwarted by his stony resistance. Ah, well. Even rocks can be broken down with enough time and patience. And I felt a strange bond between us, which meant I would probably be sticking around for a while.

  After a pause, David continued. “When I came to San Luis, I was without a pack. You know this. But a werewolf without a pack is not long for this world and after a few months, I was starting to push my luck, sanity-wise. Then I met you. It wasn’t immediate, but by the second time I saw you, I was much more myself. The darkness retreated some. At first I didn’t understand, since I had never heard of this happening before. By the end of the first dinner, I put two and two together. You had become my pack, not as a natural associated with the pack, but as a full pack member. Even more, you were the other Alpha of this crazy little pack. I didn’t feel the need to establish my superior rank with you, as I would if you were anyone other than a co-Alpha. For me, I was beyond overjoyed. My life was back to normal, so to speak. I wasn’t about to go crazy and destroy the town or have to take matters into my own hands, if you know what I mean.”

  David stopped and gave me one of those sardonic half-smiles. I had a hard time imagining David committing suicide. He was so dynamic and firmly rooted in the world. He looked away and continued his story. “And then to make things even more convoluted, I discovered that I was still part of the Santa Fe pack. I still have no idea if or how much you are connected with my old pack. And I don’t think Robert and Maria know what to make of it, either. My guess is that they were trying to get a sense today when Robert attacked and drew blood. Blood, for a werewolf can provide a lot of information.” He stopped and gave a small, sarcastic laugh. “So long story short, you are a non-werewolf Alpha of a really messed up werewolf pack undergoing some serious leadership issues. Congratulations.” His body language shifted, and I could tell he was done with his explanation and now waited for my reply.

  I had no idea what to say, so I said the first thing that came to mind. “What’s the secret werewolf handshake? Or would it be a pawshake?”

  David looked at me askance; his eyebrows rose in disbelief. “Really? That’s the first thing you ask?”

  I laughed and rolled my eyes. “Come on, what do you expect me to say? There is no good question or comment to follow up from an explanation like that. But honestly, I had guessed I was somehow tied up with your pack, though I couldn’t imagine why or how, or that it was to this huge of an extent. So what are my duties for now, and how do we go about electing a new co-Alpha?”

  “Freya, this is serious. There is a civil war going on in the werewolf world right now. You could get hurt or killed.”

  “I’d rather not, so let’s try to get this problem taken care of. So am I right that Pedro and Philip are part of our little pack?”

  David looked at me seriously. “Yes. They are aware that you are co-Alpha as well. They have...”

  I interrupted. “You are using a euphemism, aren’t you? There is no such thing as a co-Alpha, right? But there are Alpha mates.”

  David paused and then laughed without any humor. “Yes. I was trying to make things a little easier for you. In the world of werewolves, you would be considered my mate. I, too, now feel like you are my mate, but I am trying incredibly hard not to allow that to show. You did not have a choice in the matter; you have been unfairly shoved into this mess. I have no right to think you are truly my mate.”

  I bristled in anger. “Okay, from now on, you are not allowed to spare my feelings at the cost of my knowledge. I’m a big girl and I like to have all the information to make decisions,” I huffed, then collected myself and continued. “First of all, let me clear the air. I do not feel like I am your mate. You are my friend, and perhaps I could see something more, but that’s a big perhaps. ”

  “Ouch. I’ve been friend-zoned,” David said with a playful pretend stab to his heart, his antics covering what I could see was a major hurt.

  I wasn’t going to sugarcoat my feelings because it would only lead to bigger disappointment later. “Yes, firmly. But, on the other hand, for reasons beyond my understanding, I have been pulled into this werewolf civil war. And as a friend, I want to help. I’ll help you until Robert and Maria are taken care of, and then after that, we will figure out how to un-Alphabetize me.” Please let this be possible, I said to myself. “So, Robert is obviously in San Luis. Does that mean Maria is in town as well?”

  “Not many people would have your reaction to what I said. Most would have gone running away.”

  I shrugged it off, hoping if I were in a similar spot, my friends would help.

  David continued, “Yes, Maria is in town as well. Because I seem to be Alpha of a different pack while still being a member of their pack, I can’t access their location as well as I used to. I also believe that they cannot access our location as well, either. They are in San Luis, which is all I can tell you. Pedro and Philip should be warned as well. I can track the Alphas through smell, but only to a certain point. Anytime they get into a car, we will lose them.”

  “You mentioned mental influence; tell me more about how Maria and Robert could play with my head,” I asked. Honestly, that was the part of David’s story that scared me the most.

  “Watch for unusual thoughts or feelings. If you recognize the thoughts as not your own, you can overpower the foreign thoughts. But again, I don’t know how much influence they will have over you. Ask your sister and Alrik to keep an eye on you as well. Sometimes, it can be subtle.”

  I felt my all blood drain out of my face. I hadn’t thought of that before. How was Al
rik going to take this? David seemed to follow my train of thought.

  “Yes, that’s going to be a problem, I realize,” he said. “Alrik and your family are not going to like hearing that in werewolf world, you are my mate. I will tell them myself, since I am responsible.”

  “Oh, no. No, you will not tell Alrik about this fiasco. He would kill you without hesitation. I don’t know what his deal is, but all of a sudden, he has involved himself in my life. I don’t think he could be rational when he hears about this. I’ll tell them and spin it in a way that sounds less frightening. Perhaps they can even help us take on the old Alphas.” I found myself already trying to reframe my situation to something easier to accept. Perhaps Alrik was right when he said I had a talent for soothing monsters’ fears, my own included. “So what now?”

  “I suggest we keep looking for Jia. We have a plan for searching her out. Let’s keep with it. One problem at a time.”

  I put my sandals back on and hopped off the rock. One problem at a time. I should use that as my mantra, seeing how my life was becoming so confusing and overwhelming.

  Chapter 19

  “Ms. Wen, when you became partnered with Mr. Meng, how did you feel? I could see from Jia’s perspective it was a scary and not entirely welcome experience.” I had wanted to talk to the couple ever since David unloaded the crazy story to me on the rock. The balance and peace radiating from them was irresistible.

  Wen looked at Meng and smiled. She looked back at me. “Aaah. For each couple, it is a different story. Before the ceremony, I saw Meng across the plaza and had already decided he looked very nice. I was a flighty, high-strung little girl. My mother kept pinching me to make me stand still. When my name was called as a partner, I was happy to get away from my mother and excited to be with him. Meng and I were instantly compatible. Now, this is not always a good thing.”

  It sounded like a good thing to me, and I said as much to them. Meng answered me.

  “Think of the toy that children play on outside where one child sits on one side and the other child sits on the other side. What is that called?”

  “A teeter-totter?” I offered.

  Meng smiled. “Hmm. I like that word. It sounds like how the toy works. Yes, a teeter-totter. Wen and I sat very near each other on the teeter-totter, only a little bit from the center. We balanced easily, but we never would have swung high or low without being taught. There was much more of the teeter-totter we would have never experienced. So it did not take much learning for us to balance, but it took us many years to be less alike. Jia and Qiang sat farther apart from each other on the teeter-totter than any couple we had ever seen. It took much training to balance each other, but they knew so much more of the scope of what it means to be human in the meantime. They were very helpful counselors for people who were in conflict with others. No human conflict is ever really one-sided and to be a good judge, one must understand the truth in both sides.” Meng smiled at me. I smiled back. He had a subtle but effective way of giving advice.

  Wen picked up where Meng had left off. “If Meng had been killed in earthquake, I would be a mess, but not like Jia. Jia is very unbalanced right now.” Unspoken, but clearly communicated, was her concern.

  “Before her training, was she a violent person?” I wondered if she was reverting to pervious behavior.

  “Oh no. But Meng was. He often would get in fights in school. He had to be taught to solve problems using his brain and heart, not his fists. He later became a black belt in several martial arts to help him use his talents in a more useful way.”

  I sat back in my seat and digested her words. I am not sure if this meant anything or not. Eventually, my thoughts circled back to my family, my mother, and then the USN. Even though I wasn’t employed there anymore, I felt an obligation to the organization.

  “Mr. Meng and Ms. Wen, how much did Jia and Qiang talk about the USN to you?” I asked.

  There was silence from the backseat and then Meng answered. “Some. We are not a tribe used to interacting with other supernaturals since our powers are so different than any others.”

  “Yes, and that is why the USN needs you and you need the USN.” Oh boy, the old role of Director of Associate Members was slipping on so easily again. “All supernaturals are on that spectrum of humanness that you talked about. Your tribe is so uniquely situated to help us fit to this rapidly changing world. We are desperately looking for somebody who is comfortable with balancing emotions and need.”

  “Perhaps we can talk about this after Jia has been found,” Meng said quietly and decisively. Ah well, I thought. One problem at a time.

  The rest of the day was uneventful and unproductive. We made a fairly comprehensive sweep of southern natural areas within a ten-minute drive of town. One more person recognized Jia. A gas station attendant remembered her because of the odd disconnect between her and her rattletrap car. He also remembered her buying basic food stuff, but even though she’d been in the day before, he couldn’t remember exactly what. Although it was nice to get another clue, my sense of foreboding grew. She was still around and therefore, she was probably still planning on causing trouble.

  I called Elin and Alrik several times during the day. I told them about the two people who recognized Jia, but I said nothing about the werewolf attack. That was a conversation better done in person. After dinner and sunset, we dropped Meng and Wen off at their hotel. David and I walked them to their room and left them with strict instructions to answer the door for no one. They seemed amused at our overbearing concern and politely smiled and agreed.

  Unfortunately, dropping the Yus off at their hotel room put the Jia trouble on hold for the day. That meant that my new mantra of one problem at a time couldn’t protect me from my other troubles. David looked at me and smiled, as if he knew what had popped into my mind.

  “Does our status of co-Alpha mean you can read my mind or emotions?” I purposely used the phrase co-Alpha. Alpha mates sounded way too intense for what I felt.

  “No, but your face is very expressive and I like to watch it change with your mood. You wear your emotion so clearly.” He tried to touch my face, but I moved away. His did not betray any feelings, but I could see disappointment in his eyes. Too bad, I thought. He doesn’t get to treat me as a mate, even though werewolf magic had decided I was.

  “Are you going to tell Elin or Alrik about the situation tonight?” David asked softly.

  “I don’t like keeping secrets from people I love, so I suppose so,” I sighed.

  “Do you want me there?”

  “Not if you want to keep your head attached to your shoulders,” I said with a snort.

  “Your choice if I come or not. But I will stop over if they have questions or want to talk to me.”

  “Okay, but I want to remind you—I did not choose to be an Alpha mate, nor do I want the role. I will help you get back on your feet, but that’s it.”

  “Okay, but I also want to remind you that although I didn’t purposely pick this role for you, nor will I take any advantage of it, you and I do have chemistry which we shouldn’t ignore.”

  I didn’t reply, but pulled out my cell phone and called Elin. She and Alrik were at the ranch house. I told them to stay put; I would meet them out there. David drove me back to my car in silence. I said a quick goodnight and hopped into my car. It was an oven inside since it had been sitting in the sun all day. I snickered to myself. I would be going out of the oven into the fire—my sister and Alrik would be flaming mad at me very soon.

  ***

  Alrik answered the door at the ranch, but Elin rounded a corner the next second and right away gave me one of those fabulous big sister hugs. The relief of family and familiar washed over me and I realized how tired I was. My eyes started to fill with tears, so I cleared my throat and took a deep breath. I refused to cry. Go away, tears. And then the traitorous tears mocked my attempt at self-control and started to roll down my cheeks. The roll turned into a stream and the stream turned to a flood.
Elin released me from the hug and glanced down at me in concern.

  “It’s nothing. I’m tired. It’s been a big week. I’m tired.” Elin accepted my lousy explanations without a word (for now) and pulled me into another hug. The tears continued for a few minutes but soon dried up. I hiccupped a few times and then, more to be a brat than anything, wiped my face on Elin’s shirt. She laughed and let me go.

  Alrik and Drew were sitting at the kitchen table, each with a smaller tumbler of ice and what I assumed was top shelf bourbon in front of them. They both were trying to convert me to be a bourbon drinker, but they had a long way to go. My nose burned and I felt like sneezing whenever I tried to drink the stuff.

  “Care to tell us what’s up, Freya?” Alrik said calmly.

  “Well, it was my first week at teaching at a new school, I got trapped in a burning building, and now I have a madwoman out to show me the many levels of Hell. I’m not in top form currently.” It came out a little snappy, which was not intentional. Nobody seemed to mind though, bless them.

  Alrik studied me with his deep blue eyes for a moment and then cocked his head to the side. “Yes, all those things are true, but something else is bothering you.” And then I had the urge to tell them everything. Tell them all about David and his mixed-up pack and the crazy Alpha mate situation and Robert attacking me. I felt like if I told Alrik everything, maybe he could help. I believe my mouth actually opened and I was about to sing like a canary when I realized what was happening and snapped my mouth shut. My canary of loquaciousness flew out the window and anger flew in to replace it.

  “How dare you pull that stunt on me, Alrik? Did you think I wouldn’t notice? We promised we would never do those mind tricks on each other.” I was nearly shaking, I was so mad. Elin put a restraining hand on my arm. Drew had his normal baffled, and yet resigned, look that he wore whenever things got too supernatural for him to understand.