“Great.” I looked for a free chair but found none. “Sorry I’m late, but Matt’s girl is a talker.”
A large blond boy with a neck as thick as his face crossed his beefy arms in front of his fridge-sized chest. I suspected he could crush a tree trunk with those arms.
“What are you doing here?” Jeb asked me.
“It’s a pack meeting, isn’t it?”
“It is.”
“You have to be a member of the pack to sit in on it,” someone said.
“Good thing I am, then.”
An elder with bushy white hair and bushier white eyebrows linked his hands together before him in a business-like manner. “Ness Clark, you’re not part of the pack.”
“But that was under Heath Kolane. Now that he’s gone, you’ve surely amended your misogynistic ways.”
Everest made a little sound in the back of his throat. He wasn’t the only one. Matt turned a shade darker, as though soaked with wood stain. August and his father gaped at me. Where Nelson tapped his fingers nervously against the laminated wood, August fought off a smile.
“You would have had to pledge yourself before puberty to become part of the pack,” one of the elders said.
The mix of nerves and anger loosened my tongue. “What makes you think I hit puberty?”
Half the room checked me out. In their defense, I’d invited the attention.
“Okay, fine. I hit puberty. But it’s a dumb rule. Besides, I was physically absent from Boulder, so I should get a free pass.”
“Rules are rules.” The declaration delivered by a bald elder was like a whip. Scorching.
Bastards.
Silence descended upon the room, punctuated only by the sound of denim rustling against leather.
Jeb turned pained eyes on me. He was going to ask me to leave. I could sense it in my bones. “Ness—”
Everest blurted out, “Alphas can bring new pledges into the pack at any age, as long as they have pack blood and can change at will.”
All eyes were on him now. Everest’s cheeks, neck, and ears glowed crimson.
I mouthed a thank you.
“You’ve been away a long time. Can you access your wolf form at will?” Liam asked.
“Yes,” I lied.
I hadn’t changed in six years, but now that I was back in Boulder, in proximity to the pack, I supposed it was a question of days until my nails turned to claws, my hands turned to paws, and the fine hair on my limbs thickened to fur.
“When was the last time you became a wolf?” he continued.
“Three days ago.” From the corner of my eye, I could see Everest’s lips pinch. Hopefully no one else caught his expression.
“The issue remains that there is no Alpha yet,” the white-haired elder said. “Once one is chosen you will be able to plead your case. Until then”—if he said shoo or flicked his fingers, I would punch him—“you are not privy to pack discussions.”
“Who are the contenders?”
Exasperated sighs grated up corded necks.
“Liam Kolane.” The elder gestured to Liam as though I didn’t know who Liam Kolane was.
“And?”
“That’s it.”
I scanned each and every face around the table. Didn’t all wolves long to be leaders? Especially when the opportunity to become an Alpha so seldom arose? This would probably be our generation’s one and only chance. After forty, a werewolf was no longer eligible because his body couldn’t morph at will.
I looked at Everest. Challenged him to give Liam a run for his money. Heath would’ve hated that.
The elder with the gleaming bare scalp cleared his throat. “Kindly leave.”
Jerk. “What are the requirements?” I asked. “Besides the age, what are the requirements?”
“The requirements for what, Ness?” Nelson asked, his ebony skin crinkling.
“For becoming Alpha.”
“You must be under forty and have pack blood in your veins,” Everest said.
“So I qualify?”
The planes of my uncle’s face tautened. “Ness—”
“It’s just a question, Uncle.”
“It’s a very specific question,” Bushy-Eyebrows said.
August had paled, or perhaps it was the contrast to his father’s much darker complexion that made my friend seem paler.
“You qualify,” Everest declared.
The realization that I ticked all the boxes drummed against me like soft rain. But like rain, it also splashed a good deal of sobriety into me. What exactly was I thinking?
To put my name into the proverbial hat to annoy Liam Kolane was a dangerous game. One I wasn’t sure I wanted to play, and not because I was afraid of losing—I had nothing to lose—but because, what happened if I won? I’d have to stay in Boulder and lead a pack I abhorred until I died or was demoted.
That wasn’t the life I wanted.
At least, I’d never wanted it before.
Chapter Four
As I applied a thin coat of mascara to my lashes, someone pounded on my door. Pounding was never good. It meant I was in trouble. After the stunt I’d pulled, I wasn’t surprised. Actually, that wasn’t true. I’d assumed the deafening knocks would’ve come earlier. Then again, I’d been helping Evelyn out in the kitchen, so maybe my haters hadn’t known where to find me.
Lips squeezed into a smile to hide my hammering heart, I drew the door open. My rigid lips slackened. I’d expected Jeb or Everest.
I leaned against my bedroom door, draping on an air of boredom. “To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit, Liam?”
He shoved past me.
I pressed away from the door but didn’t close it. “Come right on in…”
He whirled on me. “What the hell was that?”
I cocked an eyebrow.
“Are you seriously entertaining the idea of challenging me?”
“Oh. That.” I strolled back into my bathroom and lined the insides of my lower lids with kohl.
Oblivion irritated people. I had every intention of irritating Liam and trampling his inflated ego.
He filled the open doorway, eyes flashing to mine in the mirror.
“I’m thinking about it,” I said sweetly.
“If it’s just to get into the pack, I’ll consider your candidacy once I’m Alpha.”
“How generous of you.” I tossed my eyeliner into my makeup bag and spun, leaning back against the cold porcelain sink top and crossing my arms.
He lowered his brows. “Do not go against me.”
“Or what? You’ll hurt me?” I walked up to him and jabbed my finger into his chest. “I lost both my parents and was forced to come back to this hellhole where people look down on me because I wasn’t born with the right blend of chromosomes. What exactly do you think you can do that will hurt me, huh?”
He stared down at my finger. Stepped back so it fell off his rock-hard chest. “I wouldn’t hurt you, but you’ll lose.”
“You don’t think very highly of me, do you?”
His eyes darkened.
“What if you lose?” I asked.
“I won’t.”
I hadn’t decided what to do yet, but that…that decided me. “I see cockiness runs in the Kolane family.”
He scowled as he backed out of my bedroom. “You know what? Go for it. Challenge me.” He rolled his fingers into fists and cracked his knuckles. “It’ll be my pleasure to teach you a little humility.”
I felt the color rise in my cheeks. When he left, I slammed my door shut and stared at the wood paneling until my breathing no longer came in rough pants.
I debated a long while whether to head down to dinner. Going would show Liam I didn’t care that he’d come inside my bedroom to threaten me. But going also meant having to bust out small talk, and I was in too foul a mood to carry on any conversations.
I yanked off my jeans and black swing top, then pulled on leggings, sneakers, and an exercise bra. Sticking my hair into a ponytail, I tore throu
gh the empty hallway, down the deserted stairs, and straight for the cavernous gym.
I shut the door then flooded the room with light and music. I dragged the dummy from where it lurked in the shadowy corner like a stalker and thrust my hands into a pair of boxing gloves. Jeb and Lucy stocked this place with more exercise gear than the shoddy gym I’d spent hours in before Mom got sick.
I squinted at the dummy, replacing its blank face with Liam’s. I kicked and jabbed at it. It shifted on its springs as I pummeled my fists and feet into it, but it didn’t bleed and it didn’t bruise.
Liam thought I didn’t stand a chance. He was wrong.
Wrong.
Just because I was a female didn’t mean I was weak.
Asshole.
I pounded my fists at dizzying speed into the dummy. Sweat slicked down my spine, soaked the back of my exercise bra, dripped down the sides of my face. I swiped my forearm over my brow, then wound my arm back and let my fist fly. A hand hooked around my bicep and wheeled me around. I reacted with a direct punch to the gut. A breath whooshed out of August’s mouth as my glove connected to his abdomen. He released me and rubbed the spot.
“I’m so sorry,” I yelled over the thumping music.
Tearing my gloves off, I crossed the room toward the water fountain to saturate a towel with ice-cold water, then brought it back to him, but he shook his head at my offering.
A crooked smile replaced his grimace. “Where’d you learn to punch like that?”
“Self-taught.” I used the towel on my face and neck, chilling my flushed skin. “Is dinner already over?”
“No. We’re at the main course.”
“Then why are you here?”
“Because the seat I saved you was empty.”
I lowered my gaze to the black rubber flooring. “I wasn’t hungry.”
“You’re not hungry or you’re mad?”
“Maybe both.”
“What did Liam tell you?”
I whipped my gaze back to his. “How do you know he came to see me?”
“I heard him ask your aunt for your room number.”
So that’s how Liam knew where to find me… The fact that Lucy had doled out this information peeved me. Did she think his visit would be pleasant, or was she happy to encourage his intimidation technique? Probably the latter.
“Yeah. He dropped by.”
“Look, I didn’t come down here to discuss him.”
“I hope you didn’t come down here to drag me to dinner, because I’m not going.”
“As much as I admire your spunk, I think you shouldn’t go up against Liam. You don’t want to be Alpha, Ness. Even I wouldn’t want to lead the pack.”
I tried to steady my breathing, but my larynx felt snarled. “Why not?”
“Why not what?”
“Why don’t you want to lead the pack?”
“Because dealing with overblown egos and temperaments takes a toll on you. Even though Heath was…well, not the finest specimen…he gave a lot to the pack.”
“He might’ve given a lot to the pack, but he took a lot from people who weren’t part of the pack.”
August’s full mouth thinned.
“Everest’s girlfriend tried to take her own life from shame,” I continued.
“He’s gone now.” August’s voice was low. “He paid for what he did.”
“He might be gone, but Liam Kolane isn’t.”
August touched my bare shoulder. “Liam isn’t Heath.” When I didn’t shrug his hand off, he closed his fingers over my rotator cuff and squeezed gently. “Let him have this.”
A new aroma ribboned over August’s sawdust and Old Spice scent—flowery, watery. In the open doorway, I spied a pale face set with glittery eyes.
“Your girlfriend’s here,” I muttered.
He didn’t release me. “If you want a place in the pack, I’ll make sure you get it, but don’t do this.”
The beat-heavy Drake song faded. Just before a new song came on, Sienna spoke August’s name. He didn’t acknowledge her.
“You will lose,” he said.
Like claws, his words scraped against my self-esteem. I straightened my spine and squared my shoulders. “Did Liam put you up to this?”
“No.”
I backed away from him.
A shadow muddied the green in his eyes. “Ness—”
“I’m a big girl, August. I’ll make up my own mind.” I walked toward the hamper and chucked the towel inside. “Thanks for your concern, though.”
“You’re going to go through with it, aren’t you?”
“I like proving people wrong.”
“This isn’t a game.”
“I’m aware of that.” I drew the door wide.
Sienna scrambled out of my way and flattened her back against the mirrored wall. At least I inspired fear in someone. Not the right someone, though.
“Sorry to have kept your date away,” I muttered.
Not that it was my fault. I hadn’t asked August to come and tell me how foolish I was.
From anyone else, I wouldn’t have cared. But August…August’s opinion mattered.
I hated that it mattered.
I hated that it made me question my decision.
Halfway back to my bedroom, I crossed paths with Everest. “If you’re here to talk me out of it, don’t waste your breath.”
He kept up with my hurried strides. “Are you kidding? I’m totally on board with you going up against Liam.”
That took me by surprise. I stopped. “You are?”
“Hell yeah. But if you’re sure, you need to tell the elders before midnight.”
“Why? Do they turn into pumpkins after that?”
Everest smirked, and it shook off the cloying anxiety that had marred his face since Becca swan dove off her roof. “The blood oath happens at midnight.”
I remembered my father telling me about blood oaths, but it was in the context of electing the Alpha. Pack members needed to slash their skin, then touch their seeping wounds to the Alpha’s. Once the contact happened, the magic took place and turned an ordinary wolf into a true beast. I wasn’t sure how it worked in terms of competing for the title.
“Get cleaned up and meet me on the deck,” Everest said.
In front of the dining room entrance, I spied Liam exchanging words with Matt, the blond giant, and another boy who was as tall as Matt but built narrower, with shaggy black hair and an ugly scar across one of his eyebrows.
When they caught me staring, I turned my attention back to Everest. “I’ll be there in a sec.” And then I jogged away to get ready.
I’d give the jerk a run for his money.
Did I want to win? Sure. Who wanted to lose? Did I want to lead a bunch of jerks? No. But if I did win, I could probably nominate someone else to run the pack. I wondered what my father would’ve thought of my decision. Would he question my sanity, or would he be proud?
My mother had raised me to go after what I wanted. And what I wanted was to stop another Kolane from being in a position of power. I held on to that as I readied to fight for my beliefs.
Chapter Five
Dessert and drinks were being served on the spacious deck when I arrived. Flickering candles in giant hurricane holders cast eerie glows and moving shadows over the faces angled my way. Conversations halted. The only sound was the instrumental jazz whirring from hidden ceiling speakers.
Jeb shifted toward me, a tumbler of whiskey clutched between his fingers.
“Sorry I missed dinner,” I said.
“You want to eat something?”
“I’ll eat later.”
He lowered his glass to his narrow hip, and the ice clinked. “Ness—”
“Please, Uncle. Don’t tell me what to do.”
“A month ago, you didn’t want to come back here. You wanted nothing to do with the pack, and now you’re vying for—for Alpha.” He joggled his hand, and whiskey splashed out.
“Let me guess… I shouldn’t c
ompete, because I’m a girl, and according to you, girls are mangy little things.”
Color crawled up his throat.
“I might’ve been weak when you kicked me out of Boulder, but I’m not anymore.”
“Stop saying I kicked you out, will you?” he hissed.
“Well, it’s true.”
Through gritted teeth, he added, “It was to protect you.”
I dropped my voice. “Because of what Heath did to Mom?”
White appeared around Jeb’s iris rings.
Although people were near, they were too busy gossiping to listen to us. Or maybe they’d heard.
Like. I. Cared.
More whiskey dribbled along his wrist. “You—You—”
“Know about it? Yeah. Mom told me. I also know you didn’t do shit about retaliating. Besides getting us to leave, that is. Better Mom not tempt your revered Alpha again, huh?”
At first, I’d believed the cancer had made Mom delirious, but then Everest had confirmed it during one of our late-night chats after Becca’s attempted suicide. The confession came out almost at the same time as Mom’s last breath. Once she’d untethered herself from the lurid secret, her soul slipped out of her body and left me to deal with the aftermath of the terrible truth.
I’d been angry with her. But then Evelyn reminded me anger was one of the stages of grief, so I allowed myself to feel angry. With Mom and with Heath. Where I’d forgiven my mother for not telling me, I hadn’t forgiven Heath.
“So this—you entering the contest—it’s a personal vendetta?” Jeb asked.
“Not only.”
His Adam’s apple bobbed. “Liam is not like his father.”
Gosh, how many people were going to tell me that? I gave a sharp nod and went to find Everest. Crossing the deck was like walking past a firing squad. Even though the slanted gazes pricked, I raised my chin and pretended to be unaffected by the petty glares.
“I’d forgotten how friendly Coloradans were,” I muttered once I reached my cousin by the stainless-steel drinks dispenser.
He poured coffee into a mug, then handed it to me. “Did Dad try to talk you out of it?”
“I didn’t give him time to.” I took a sip of the charred-tasting beverage. “He knows I know. About Mom.”
A Pack of Blood and Lies Page 3