Blood of the Pride

by Sheryl Nantus

  Kolanski continued to flail back and forth, grabbing hold of my leather jacket in the same way that Jess had his own—but it wasn’t working out the same way. Instead of trapping my arms, he was instead tying up his hands and kept taking my blows to the face.

  “Reb.” A hand landed on my shoulder. Jess. “Stop. He’s not going anywhere now.” The grip increased. “Rebecca. Look at what you’re hitting.”

  I glanced down at the battered and bloodied face under me, both of us panting. Tony had Changed back. He blew scarlet bubbles out of his nose and mouth as he stared at me, his eyes now fully human. His hands fell away to the ground and dug into the sand.

  “He’s a kid, Reb. You told me that. Let’s take him away from here and get him some help.” Jess’s soothing tone ran over me like a cold shower. I closed my eyes and exhaled, the blood rush leaving me as quickly as it had come on. The sights and smells of the playground returned to a dulled state, the muted tones of the city overwhelming the base feral odors and images. I didn’t need a mirror to know I had Changed back.

  I got to my feet, leaving the kid on the ground. He didn’t move, glancing back and forth between Jess and me. A low whimper came out every few seconds from between his cracked and swollen lips.

  “First lesson, kit.” Already finished Changing back, Jess leaned over him and pointed a single index finger in the air. “Know when to stay down. There’s no shame in being beaten by a woman.” She gave me a sideways look. “Especially that one.”

  Kolanski rolled on the ground, shifting his hips around in the sand. “What are you going to do to me?”

  Jess held out her bare hand. “We’re going to take you home first. Then we’re going to teach you how to be more…” Her lips twitched. “More human.”

  The teenager took a firm grip on the hand and pulled himself to his feet. Turning to one side, he spat out a mouthful of blood before wiping his nose on the sleeve of his torn leather jacket. “Yeah. I guess so.” Tony looked up at Jess. “My parents?”

  “We’ll take care of it.” She kept hold of Tony’s hand, turning the handshake into a test of strength. “But if you try to run or do anything without asking me…” A burst of anger shot through her blue eyes. “I will rip your throat out. And no one will be able to stop me.” Jess’s eyes flashed to mine then returned to locking with the kid’s. “No one. Understand?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” Kolanski muttered, breaking the lock to stare at the ground, both hands tucked into the top of his jeans. At least he’d accepted Jess as an alpha. That’d take a bit of the edge off the training.

  Jess offered me her hand now, a wide grin on her face. “Suppose it goes without saying that you’re welcome back at the farm, no questions asked.”

  “What?” I spat into the sand, covering the detritus with a kick of my sneaker. “You toss me out on my ass and now it’s all forgiven ’cause I managed to Change?” A pain started in my chest, something that could have been a panic attack. It burned and throbbed, stretching out tentacles to shred me from the inside out. Then it began to die down, leaving only a ball of nausea in my belly and a headache that demanded quick and heavy medication.

  “I never doubted that when push came to shove you’d have it in you.” Jess nodded to the kid who was busy brushing sand off his jeans. “We’re going to the farm. You go find your man.”

  I spun around. Brandon was nowhere to be seen.

  “He ran off. That way.” Jess shrugged. “Hope he can handle it. Not a bad guy.” She took hold of Kolanski’s arm and began to walk away, keeping a firm grip on the leather. “I’ll call you with an update.”

  “Wait.” The throbbing in my chest began to expand, threatening to steal my breath. “You…me…” I swallowed, my throat bone dry after being so full of saliva and blood only a few minutes ago.

  “If you’re going to challenge me it’s a damned bad time to do it.” She smiled. I could see the weariness in her eyes. The fight had taken more out of her than she wanted to admit.

  “I’m not coming back.”

  “I didn’t expect you to.” She licked her lips. “I guess I could apologize for screwing things up all those years ago but I’m not sure if it’d make a difference.”

  “It would.” Every cell in my body ached.

  “Then I do.” She extended a hand. “I’m not too big to say when I’ve screwed up. I could tell you that it was all tradition but I think we’ve had enough of that lately.” Her eyes went to the kit next to her. “Times are changing. Either we adapt or we’re going to end up with more problems than we know what to do with.” Jess tilted her head to one side and smiled. “Good to have someone with a firm grasp on the outside.”

  I rubbed my eyes. “Yeah, just make sure the check doesn’t bounce. I’d hate to have to come up there and cause trouble.”

  Jess chuckled. “I’ll make sure of it. Your dad, he’d be proud of you.” There was a flash of something in her eyes, something like regret. “He’d be real proud.”

  Before I could pursue that line of questioning she turned away, yanking on the kid’s arm. “You so much as twitch and I’ll give you a beating you won’t soon forget.”

  The two stumbled off the playground leaving me alone. I limped over to sit on one of the benches, letting the cool night air wash over my heated skin. My hands were sore and the scratches on my cheek still oozing enough blood to remind me I needed to get cleaned up—you’d be surprised how much crap you can catch from a cat’s claw, never mind a Felis’s. I took a deep breath, searching.

  Bran’s scent was long gone and I couldn’t find it on the wind now sweeping up the street from the evening commuter traffic. I sat there for a while, letting the shadows cover me and the cool night air clear my mind.

  A street cat yowled at me as he took his position atop the wooden tower. I got the message and stood up, feeling the burning start in my muscles.

  Save the man, lose the man. No wonder superheroes stay single.

  The taxi dropped me off at the condominium on King Street. Dan grabbed the front door’s metal handles with a wide grin as he opened it. He touched the brim of his hat.

  “Pleased to see you again, Ms. Desjardin.” His left eyebrow twitched once, twice. “Are you all right? Your face…”

  I held up a hand. “I’m fine. Just need to clean up a little bit.” The smile on my face was extremely forced. “You know how kids are.”

  The eyebrow twitched again. “Mr. Hanover hasn’t returned yet.”

  “Figured as much.” I forced a smile, knowing the older man wouldn’t fall for it. “I need to get my cat out of his apartment. May I request your attendance for same?”

  He let out a soft sigh. “I usually don’t allow admittance to anyone’s apartment without the express written permission of the owner.” One side of the moustache came up. “But I can understand your position. I’ll escort you upstairs.”

  “Wouldn’t have it any other way,” I replied. Not that I couldn’t have broken in and retrieved Jazz on my own, but I figured Bran deserved better.

  The doorman opened the lock with his passkey and stepped aside to allow me to walk in. Jazz, ever the attention-whore, sauntered out to curl her whiteness around Dan’s legs where he stood.

  “Stay.” I waggled a finger at the cat. “Let me get your food and litter box and we’ll be off.” Making sure Dan had me in full view, I grabbed the necessities, with the travelling container for Jazz. Within ten minutes we were back down at the front counter, the bright lights of the security camera monitors flashing on and off as they cycled through their routine.

  “Can you call me a cab?” Jazz mewed pitifully from inside the dark blue plastic box, sticking her paws between the metal bars. I reached in with one finger and stroked her soft white fur.

  “Of course.” The elderly man picked up a phone and tapped in a number. “Shall I take a message for Mr. Hanover?”

  I paused for a second, weighing my options. “No. He’ll know where to find me. Or not.” I offered my hand
to the doorman. “Thank you for your help.”

  “Thank you.” The man smiled broadly, showing off a set of perfect teeth. “You’ve brought a bit of…excitement to these old bones. Can’t say that I haven’t enjoyed it.”

  “Good. Just stay safe.” I grabbed the handle of the cat carrier as the cab pulled up. “And thanks again.”

  The hotel’s management was understanding, at least after I promised to pay any damages caused by Jazz sharpening her nails on the furniture. True to her innate ability to tell my emotional mood, she spent the two days we were there lying either on my lap or curled around my neck, purring softly while I worked on the paperwork to get the house repaired, the cheap bandages from a store-bought first aid kit helping the cuts on my cheek heal.

  Hank was right about the contractors. They were in and out so quickly I was able to move back in and re-open the business before the hotel got uppity about the cat.

  I was sitting behind my desk, working on yet another set of insurance papers when I heard the front door creak open. Jazz lifted her head from the couch and let out one of her enquiring trills before returning to her usual position. My pulse began to race when I tracked the familiar scent and then slowed as I placed a name with the smell.

  Jess stepped through the hallway into the small lobby. “Hey.” She stood there, her hands tucked into the front pocket of her jeans, a smile on her face.

  “Hey.” I didn’t get up. “How’s it going?”

  “Pretty good.” She pulled out a small envelope from the inside pocket of her leather jacket. “Check for your services. Thought I’d deliver it personally.” The woman walked forward, stopping just in front of the desk. She didn’t move to sit. I didn’t offer.

  “Thanks.” I got up and took the envelope, placing it on the desk atop the stack of unpaid bills.

  One eyebrow rose. “You’re not going to open it?”

  I shrugged. “I know you’re good for it.”

  “You should.” She sat down in the empty chair and looked around the office. “They did a good job.”

  “Sure did. Still looking for a new Brown Betty, but beggars can’t be choosers.” I rocked back in the squeaky wooden antique chair. “How’s Tony?”

  Jess let her breath out in a low whistle. “He’s working. Hard. Got him putting in so much time on the chores, he barely has time to think.”

  “And Mike? The kids?”

  “They’re…coping.” Jess nodded to Jazz who returned her look with a quiet purr. “I let Mike and Tony slug it out once already. Mike held back but still bloodied the kid up. Not going to close open wounds but it’s a good catharsis for everyone. Mike understands it’s partially our fault. Shouldn’t have happened. Calamity of errors and all that.”

  “Moving forward and all that,” I said, trying not to sound too sarcastic.

  “Figure the best option is to keep Tony in custody for years, maybe let him out on a short leash if he earns it. Killing him ain’t no proper solution.”

  I nodded. “How about the kids?”

  “The younger one’s still confused. The girl’s going back and forth between swearing a blood oath to kill him and falling in love with the bastard.” She shook her head. “Teens.”

  “Tell me about it.” I rocked forward again. “And Tony’s real father?”

  “Kelly beat Frank up pretty badly, and now she’s smothering Tony with so much affection that I think she’s going to offer to bottle-feed him next. Frank’s falling over himself with trying to take over as a father to Tony and groveling to Kelly, to say nothing of trying to make amends to Mike. It’s not perfect, but it’s a start.” Jess shook her head. “We screwed up. Can’t take it all out on the kid.”

  “Right.” I glanced at the sealed envelope. “As long as the kids and Mike can live with it.”

  “They’re more understanding than I’d thought they could be.” She flexed her fingers, knuckles popping with a loud crack. “Tony’s been pretty contrite. I think he’s getting his emotions under control.”

  “His…other parents?”

  “They’ve agreed to send him to our ‘special school’ for the time being.” Jess grinned. “Dad didn’t care as long as the kid was out from underfoot and Kathy, well…” Her face softened, suddenly reminding me of my mother. “She knew this day was coming. She’s just glad he’s not going to jail for the rest of his life. Tony’s spoken to her a few times. A bit of crying but they’re both coping with it.”

  “So everyone wins in the end.” I pushed papers around the desktop.

  The woman shrugged again. “Best we can come up with given the circumstances. It’s not only Tony’s fault or Frank’s or Kathy’s, it’s everyone’s.”

  “Best you can do.” I tried not to sound judgmental but it rang through.

  Jess leaned in, her voice low. “Look, no one’s perfect. No system’s perfect. This is all new to us. We never had this sort of kit before.” She let out a sigh. “Wish we still had Ruth around. She’d be able to sniff the kid right straight up.”

  I nodded and twisted the metal clip straight. “Except she’s dead, and you’ve still got Davis to deal with.”

  “It’s all a mess.” Jess sighed again. “And it’ll take a while to clean up. We nominated Harry Wheaton to the Board, just so you know.”

  Now it was my turn to shrug. “I’ll make a note.”

  “You know you’re welcome to come home. I made that clear to everyone.” Her eyes went a steely blue. “If they had a problem then they’d have to deal with me.”

  “Yep.” I raised my head to meet her gaze. “But that’s not my home. Not anymore.”

  Jess cleared her throat. “I understand. Still, it’s good that you’re all right again.” She paused, staring at me.

  I looked away. I’d never been a good poker player. Too many tells, as they call it.

  “You can’t do it again, can you?” she asked, a bit of sadness creeping into her usually neutral tones. “You’ve tried and you can’t Change again.”

  My tongue rolled into my cheek and around to the other one before I responded. “Would it make a difference?”

  “Not really.” She shrugged. “Not now.”

  “Not going to beat me up again? Revoke my status?” I felt my blood pressure rising.

  She put up her hands. “Don’t put words in my mouth. I didn’t say that.”

  “Then what?” My voice rose. “What happens now?”

  “You do what you do. We do what we do,” Jess said. “Hey, we all screwed up on this one.” She got to her feet. “Can’t say that I’ll be any wiser in the future, but at least we can start making things better.”

  I glanced at Jazz who tilted her head to one side and rolled onto her back. “Guess we’re all learning.”

  “Ain’t that the truth.” She put out her hand. “You’ve caused quite a stir, by the way. Between your…change of status and Tony’s existence things are changing quickly and furiously. Tell you the truth, it’s sort of exciting. Been a long time since the Pride’s been rocked with this sort of news. Suddenly people are thinking and talking and asking questions, and wondering what else is out there that we’ve ignored or missed along the way.”

  I returned the smile, forcing myself to stay silent on that particular interpretation of “exciting.”

  “Well, keep me in the loop.” I stood up.

  “Sure will.” Jess turned as if to leave, then paused. “I’m sorry it didn’t work out with him.”

  I was grateful she hadn’t used his name. “Thanks. So it goes.”

  “He’s a good man, just so you know. I liked him.” Jess stepped away, stopping to pet Jazz’s exposed tummy. “Dating humans, well, some people just can’t deal with it.”

  “I guess not.” I didn’t move out from behind the desk.

  Jess smiled as she reached the hallway. “You never know what you can handle until you try, Reb. Never underestimate yourself.”

  Suddenly I caught it on the air, the faintest of scents carried in
from the street.

  The woman grinned like a Cheshire cat before stepping out of sight. “Or others, it seems.” The words hung in the air for a second. I had to get her to teach me that trick.

  Bran appeared in the doorway. He was wearing his black leather duster, as usual, with a white T-shirt and jeans. A small bandage covered the cut on his throat. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other while staring at me.

  “Hey.” I exhaled the word, still standing behind the desk.

  “Hey.” His hands moved to sit in his coat pockets, then to his jeans pockets then to flop around in front of him like fish out of water. “Jazz okay?”

  “Well, she misses all the extra treats.” The white cat let out a full-strength yawn, letting everyone know she knew we were talking about her. “Other than that, she’s fine.”

  He shuffled his way into the lobby. “They did a good job cleaning up the place.”

  “Yep. Hank said they were good and they were. Expensive, but good.” I floundered through the conversation. “Jess was just here.”

  “Ah. Good news?” Bran moved closer to the couch and Jazz.

  “Depends on your definition.” I watched as he reached out and began to stroke Jazz’s soft fur. Ever the traitor, she rolled over and let out a wide yawn, exposing her tummy for even more attention. “Tony’s in rehab, or what passes for rehab up on the farm. Cops aren’t any the wiser and have closed the case. Mike’s coping, so are the kids.”

  “And you?” Bran left the cat and moved closer to the desk, standing opposite me. “How are you doing?”

  “I’m…coping.” I couldn’t lie. “Jess told me I could come back to the farm if I wanted.” I pushed the thick envelope with my index finger. “Don’t think I’m going to take her up on the offer. Been out here in the world too long. Besides, I’m not sure if the rest of the Felis will be as forgiving as she is. Right now they’re trying to deal with the concept that we can breed with humans and the possibility of other lost kits out there. It’s a lot for them to deal with.”

  “And you?” Bran moved around to the right side of the desk, coming closer. “How are you coping now that you can…” A puzzled look came over his face as he waved his right hand as if he were brushing away flies. “You know.”