by M. L. Briers
“Oh please, if your foot travels up any further you’ll be measuring him for tailored trousers,” Moira shot back, and Eileen’s lower jaw made a slow progression downward.
“So, Ross sleeps on the sofa, settled,” Gran said before pointing her index finger toward the ceiling, “and that would be for me.”
A moment later there was a knock at the door, and all argument around the table ceased as Gran did what Gran did best, meddle, but this time it was in someone’s love life.
~
“It’s not really a good idea, me staying here,” Ross grumbled.
My dad had gone out to dig over his small vegetable fetch, Gran had retreated into the greenhouse once her guests had left, my mother had refused help and was beating up the pots and pans in the kitchen, and the grown-ups among us were in the living room.
“Why, do you think you’re going to have a problem keeping your hands off Moira?” I chuckled and got the stink eye from Moira in return.
“No!” Ross bit out without thinking about how that answer was bad. Moira turned her head sharply and offered him a glare.
“Enjoy chewing on your foot,” Malachi chuckled.
“I respect your family too much to do anything like that,” Ross rushed out.
Good answer, but Moira still didn’t look entirely happy. She offered a small grunt in return, which caused Ross to take on a strained look.
“Does anyone else think Ross looks constipated when he does that?” Malachi asked, and I didn’t even try to bite off the chuckle that escaped me.
“I was just thinking the same thing,” I said and brought Malachi’s attention toward me.
“See, this is what I’m talking about,” he motioned between us, “it’s like we’re on the same wavelength…”
“Planet stupid calling,” Moira bit out.
I chuckled again as my sister came to my rescue once more. It didn’t seem to matter how many times I batted him over the head with my verbal denials, like a Weeble, he bounced back for more.
“After the last time the pack was here, I don’t think it’s a good idea,” Ross said.
“But the last time you won, so where’s the harm?” Moira shrugged.
“Because this time I might not… ”
“Even more reason to be here,” I said. “If it looks like you’re in danger of losing then we can…”
“That’s not the way,” Ross said, his testosterone-fuelled ego was definitely on show. “I’ve been reading some of my father’s journals, and a challenge is a challenge, man on man, or wolf on wolf.”
“But what if they don’t play fair?” Moira said. She had a point.
“I have to expect them to have some honour,” Ross said.
“Why?” Malachi asked.
“Because everyone isn’t like you,” Moira tossed back with an innocence to her tone that was wrapped in sarcasm.
“Harsh,” I said, and then I realised that I’d just stuck up for Malachi.
I could have slapped myself on the forehead, dug a hole and buried myself in it, but I resisted the urge. That didn’t stop Malachi looking at me with a heck of a lot of amusement that was mixed with something else — that something else I didn’t recognise, but I’m sure there wasn’t going to be rainbows and dancing unicorns behind it.
“Listen to you,” Eileen chuckle. Trust her to pick up on my little brain-farting mishap.
“Shut your yapping,” I snapped back.
“Speaking of yapping,” Bat-boy said, motioning to Ross.
“Nope, I’m going home,” Ross said.
“Fine,” Moira sighed. “Then I’m coming with you.” Ross opened his mouth in protest.
“Me too,” I said.
“And me,” Eileen shrugged.
“That’s me in,” Bat-boy declared, looking at Eileen instead of Ross.
“I suppose,” Malachi offered with an exaggerated roll of his eyes and a begrudging sigh to top it off. I didn’t believe him for one moment, but the sound of Ross groaning was classic.
We had the man where we wanted him.
~
There was a plan, and that was for Ross and Moira to go in the front door of his house, while everyone else went around the back. We left before Ross so we could get there and get inside just before he arrived with my sister, that way if anyone was watching Ross we’d be a surprise. Duncan was leading us in, while Malachi decided to snoop around the area to see if he could spot the pack goons.
That was the plan, but in reality, things didn’t always go the way you expected them to because real life wasn’t a plot in a movie. I had a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach as we weaved our way around the rocky outcrop, and at the same instant the bells and whistles of my magic signalled that we had company, so muscles appeared right in front of us, like the rocky outcrop had taken on a living, breathing, mean as hell persona that was coming right at us.
Rather stupidly, Duncan decided to put himself between him and us, rendering any use of magic impossible, well, unless I wanted to fry bat-boy before I got my hands on muscles. I thought that might just be overkill, after all, we didn’t know what the werewolf was going to do.
If he shifted into his beast then all bets were off, pun intended.
“Stay behind me,” Duncan tossed back over his shoulder at the exact same moment that I called out.
“Get out of the way, stupid.”
“Meddling witches…” muscles growled, and when I say growled – he did.
It was like all he could see was me, perish the thought that there was a vampire in front of him, nooo, witches were the bad guys again. Figures.
“Back off,” Duncan warned him, and I was impressed. For someone who looked like a teen idol, he did have something of a commanding presence. It was probably because I knew he was a vampire.
Unfortunately, it didn’t impress muscles much. He still stormed toward us with his over-inflated arms apparently unable to hang down at his sides, and a look on his face that said he didn’t want to play fetch the stick.
“This isn’t your fight, vampire,” muscles growled.
“It is now,” Duncan tossed back. Ooo, I had chills — not really, but you know?
“A needless display of testosterone when you consider that I could just zap the guy,” I said to Eileen, knowing that batboy could hear me.
“Fine,” Duncan caved, and I was surprised, but not surprised enough that it stopped me from unleashing my magic on muscles.
The old adage of as far as you can throw him came to mind as my magic ripped his feet from the ground and he folded in on himself as he flew backwards through the air, a good twenty to thirty feet. I was impressed with myself when he came crashing back down to earth with the sound of a satisfying thud, and I think I even heard the air being expelled from his lungs on impact.
“Impressive,” batboy said.
“Was there any doubt?” He’d already seen my magic in action; you’d have thought he would have given me a little more credit at being able to deal with a schoolyard bully.
With a roar of anger, muscles was pulling himself up to his full height, when Malachi tore through the area like a good Scottish wind and grabbed the man in a headlock.
“Don’t kill him!” Eileen called out.
“I’m sorry — we’re not doing that?” Malachi asked as muscles fought to gain his freedom, but there wasn’t a lot that he could do against Malachi’s strength and position.
“No!” I tossed back.
“Whoops! My bad,” Malachi said, raising just his left eyebrow and looking a little too sheepish for my liking.
“What did you do?” I asked. It had to be something; it was Malachi after all.
Malachi cleared his throat and considered his answer for a long moment. “There were two of them,” he offered back with a small, apologetic look.
CHAPTER TEN
~
“Were?” I demanded.
“Hey, he challenged me, not the other way around,” Malachi said.
“So, let me get this straight, we’re not killing him?” Malachi asked with a slight air of disbelief about him.
“Yes,” I bit back.
“Fine, but if this comes back to bite me in the butt, I won’t be happy,” Malachi grumbled.
“I know you’re a vampire, but do you have to go around killing things?” I snapped back. “Look at bat-boy; he doesn’t get his jollies off going around killing things.”
“That you know about,” Malachi offered back.
“Fair point,” I shrugged.
“Not really,” Duncan said, with a flick of a look toward Eileen.
“Let me the hell go and I’ll…” Muscles said no more, as Malachi let him go and he dropped to the floor like a ton of bricks.
“I said don’t kill him!” I grumbled, motioning to the man at his feet.
“Oh, how you think the worst of me…” Malachi tossed back in an overly dramatic moment of hand waving and gesturing between the dead guy and me.
“So, he’s sleeping, is he?” I tossed back.
“Actually, yes.” Malachi folded his arms across his chest and offered me one raised eyebrow in return. “Don’t you feel stupid?”
“Actually — yes,” I grumbled. I was going to deny it and list all the reasons why I could have come to the conclusion that I had — but, really, what was the point?
“So, based on this moment in time — are you going to give me the benefit of the doubt in future?” Malachi demanded.
“Probably not,” I said, but I did have the good grace to grimace when I said it.
“She’s got your number,” Duncan chuckled.
“And she can use it whenever she needs a booty…”
“Do not finish that sentence.” I hissed out.
“You’re right,” Malachi offered back. I knew there had to be a punchline, so I waited. “Those things are better discussed when we are alone.” That wasn’t so bad. “I mean, I know how much you want this body…”
He had to make that one last comment, and I had to zap him. It was also easier to expend my pent-up magical energy that way than having to defuse it. At least, that was my excuse, and I was sticking to it.
“Butthole,” I bit out.
“Ouch,” Malachi grumbled.
“Oh, vampire up, you’ll be fine in a moment,” I hissed back.
“Ross is coming,” Duncan informed me.
It was good to have an early warning system, I suppose, even if it was a vampire with his super hearing.
“Quick, hide — we can jump out and yell surprise,” Malachi offered in a bored tone.
“And what are we going to do with him?” Eileen asked, pointing to the skin-sack full of muscles at Malachi’s feet.
“Supper?” Malachi offered back, because he could, because he liked to get a rise out of people, and because somewhere deep within him he might even have meant it.
“Would you stop?” Duncan bit out.
I could see Duncan’s point, he was trying to offer Eileen an image of himself that didn’t come from one of her books, and yet Malachi was playing the monster that she’d often read about.
“Yes,” Malachi even nodded in agreement. “When she agrees to go on a date with me.” He pointed in my direction, and I yanked my head back on my neck and curled my top lip in disgust.
“That would be no then,” I sneered back at him.
“I thought you said you do anything to help family?” Malachi challenged me. I heard a small chuckle that came from my sister, snapped a look in her direction, and she snapped that sound off.
“There are even some lines that I won’t cross,” I lied.
“And now you can’t even blackmail a woman into going out with you,” Duncan chuckled.
Malachi went to speak, but muscles grumbled a growl as he started to stir. “Hold that thought,” Malachi made a fist and punched muscles in the face, knocking him back off to sleep. “Would you like a wager on that?”
“Un-bloody-believable,” I bit out, as I started away from the group, down the rocky path that was cut into the landscape, toward Ross’ house.
“Something I said?” Malachi smug voice followed on after me.
“Pretty much your whole existence,” I tossed back over my shoulder.
~
To say that Ross wasn’t happy was an understatement, but at least he was alive so that he could bitch and whine all he wanted, so I didn’t really care. Yes, Malachi was probably wrong to have killed one of the pack; but nobody knew what had transpired between them, and muscles had tried to attack us without real provocation, so I could let Malachi’s actions slide, and did.
“You know that by letting him go that he’s just going to come back again to challenge you?” Malachi said after Mr Muscles had reluctantly taken himself off to recover is friend’s body and supposedly leave the island. Whether that would happen or not was another thing.
“I’ll deal with that when it happens, but this is why I didn’t want any of you involved,” Ross growled in annoyance.
“Well, excuse us for protecting ourselves,” Malachi tossed back.
“Moira, I want you to go home with the others,” Ross said, and my sister looked perplexed, but I had a feeling that I knew what was coming.
“Ross…” She started, but he never let her finish.
“I want you to be safe, and right now you’re not safe around me…”
“That kind of goes with the territory…”
“Well, it shouldn’t — I shouldn’t put you in danger,” Ross said. “You need to keep your distance.”
Moira didn’t immediately answer him. I could see the wheels turning in her mind, and she chewed on the inside of her lip for a moment as she caught the real meaning behind his words.
“And what if I choose to stick around?” Moira asked.
I didn’t like the way the conversation had gone, the way it was going, and I really didn’t think I was going to like the way that the conversation ended.
The look on his face said that he was not going to be swayed by anything that Moira said. He was determined to do it alone, even if that meant an end to him.
I felt sick to the stomach for her, and for him, because I could see that what Ross was trying to do was tearing him up inside.
“That’s not really an option right now,” Ross said.
“O-kay,” Moira bit out.
Ross had blindsided her, she looked shocked to the core, and she hesitated — not knowing quite what to do with the moment, with herself, or with Ross.
“Let’s get you home,” Eileen said, and I thought that was probably for the best because at that moment all I wanted to do was smack Ross upside the head until I woke his brain up, and given the circumstances that might not have been the most helpful thing for my sister.
“Yeah, sure,” Moira said, everything about her seemed muted, diluted — including her bubbly personality.
“You guys go to the car, I’ll be there in a moment,” I said, not looking at Ross as I tried to hold onto my temper.
“I’ll stick around and walk her back,” Malachi said, and I shot him a glare, “I think I’ll be right over there.” He pointed up the mountain, back the way we’d come.
Even without looking at him, I could see that Ross was agitated. He was shuffling his feet as the others left the scene of his crime against my sister on fast feet.
I was biting my tongue, biding my time until they were out of earshot. When I took a big, deep breath to speak, Ross cut me off.
“I know what you’re going to say…”
“Oooh, no you don’t,” I bit out with a small chuckle of disbelief.
“Trust me, Maggie, this isn’t what I want,” Ross said.
I looked at him then, really looked at him, and I could see the pain in his eyes, etched onto his face, and my heart broke a little more.
“Then stop being a dick, and
come home with us,” I bit out. “Stupid male pride…”
“It’s nothing to do with pride,” Ross bit back. “For better or worse, and I generally think it’s for worse, that damn pack is my family, my brethren, and my problem. I’m not going to drag Moira, and the rest of you into it when it can only end badly.”
“Well, that’s not for you to decide, is it?”
“Maggie…” Ross bit out, and I could feel a lecture coming on.
“What are you going to do if I decide to stay? Throw me off your mountain?” I tossed back.
“I’m kind of hoping that it’s not going to get to that, but, yes, if I have to,” Ross grumbled a growl of annoyance. His eyes implored me to give up, give way to his male stupidity, ego, and the big heart inside of him that didn’t want to put any of us in harm’s way.
I loved that he had such a big heart, that he’d always been there for us. My childhood friend and the best of us, and that was why I wasn’t going to let the stupid numpty put himself in harm’s way and break my sister’s heart in the process.
I pulled on my magic and zapped him; it wasn’t friendly tap, it was a wake-up call to his body, brain, and a way to show him that I wasn’t the little schoolgirl that he’d grown up with. Pain registered on his face as his muscles contracted to the point of tearing apart within him, and I hated it, hated every second that he suffered, but it was the only way I knew to get through to his thick, male pride.
“Now, I know you are a big, tough werewolf, and as soon as I release you from my magic your body is going to be healed — at that point, you could rip my head off with your strength, rip my throat out with your claws, or shift into your wolf and eat me — but, I’m a firm believer in what Gran says — you have to be cruel to be kind. This is cruel…” I released my magic and watched him cave in on himself as he dropped to his knees on the ground. “Now for the kindness — you’re my best friend, Moira loves you, and if you die so help me, I will drag your spirit back from hell and torment you for the rest of my bloody days.”
“Maggie,” Ross growled in warning.
The man was on his hands and knees as his body renewed itself. It didn’t take long for him to recover enough to snap his head back on his neck and glaring up at me. His jet black eyes devoured me with anger, and for one long moment, I had to wonder if he might shift into his beast and kill me.