“We’re seeing them now.”
Kelton rolled his eyes before they darkened threateningly. “I don’t think you’re listening to me, pal.”
“Oh, I can hear you just fine. And I am not your pal. You’re a blood sucking vampire. You’re not one of us.”
“I should watch what you’re saying. You’re here on my turf and we outnumber you by about seven to one. Think about those odds before you keep on throwing insults around.”
“I don’t give a shit about any of that. The boys shouldn’t be here. They should be with their pack. This isn’t right.”
“Well, your pack master and I have deemed this a necessary move.”
“I don’t give a flying fuck what our goddamn pack master thinks! He’s wrong!” the shifter roared. “We’re here to take our boys back and you can’t stop us.”
“Like hell I can’t. This is private property and you can get your ass off it now before I personally kick you off it.”
“Are you threatening me, fanger?”
Kelton bellowed out a sarcastic laugh. “You’re the one who has come here all heavy handed, throwing insults and looking for a fight. And, you’re asking me if I’m threatening you?” he bit off the laughter suddenly and stepped forward, looking the shifter directly in the eye. “You take yourself and the rest of your members out of here right now and this won’t have to go any further. You brought the fight to the wrong person. Back off.” Kelton radiated lethal intent and he could see the shifter starting to see reason, but he was clearly too stubborn and stupid to back down, especially in front of his friends.
“We’re here to see Caleb and Rees. None of you dead-ass vamps are going to stop us.”
“Oh we’ll see about that.”
There was a violent glint in Kelton’s eyes. The night out on the streets had pumped him full of energy and this shifter getting all up in his face was making it resurface once again. No one, and he meant no one, ever came to him, especially when he was on his own property, and threatened him or any members of his academy.
Well, they came looking for a fight and Kelton was more than happy to oblige. He wouldn’t want to disappoint them…
From a political point of view, the last thing Kelton wanted or needed was to start a fight with the shifters, but they were the ones who had come looking for trouble and he wouldn’t lie down and roll over like some obedient pet. Kelton was trying to do his best by the shifter boys, treating the trainees in his care just the same, regardless of whether they were Lamia of shifter. They were all working towards the same goal. The warrior mark had started them on this path and Kelton was the one that made sure that they successfully followed that path. He looked out for each and every one of them. He would protect them all until his last breath. He would fight to the death for them. Even against their own kind.
Sure, he knew that this situation wasn’t nearly that extreme, no one was going to die here, and the shifters would just get a beating. There’d merely be a few bruises, but that wasn’t the point. These shifters had come to the academy without their pack masters express consent and permission and were hell bent on destroying the peace that Kelton had built here. He wouldn’t stand for that. Caleb and Rees were going nowhere tonight and they would be seeing no one. This wasn’t the time or the place for this kind of thing.
Kelton had to hold back a grin. This group of shifters weren’t the smartest bunch. It was clear in their eyes that they thought they would only have to get past Kelton to get to their boys. How wrong they were. Even though he had warned them that they were outnumbered several times over, the moment the Harley’s had been spotted rolling up outside the academy, Master Warrior Verynai had put the rest of the warriors on alert and had already sent word to Patrick. Kelton didn’t have to hear the words to know that this had already happened. He knew. Verynai was in charge of the place while he was out on the streets and he knew what to do. As second-in-command, Kelton had complete faith in him. If those shifters thought that the fight was on now, he couldn’t wait to see their faces when the rest of the warriors piled out of the door, let alone when their Alpha turned up.
After a moment of tense silence, Kelton felt the energy in the air rank up a notch. He saw the shifter move to take a swing at him and easily blocked the anticipated move. Kelton didn’t last lash out himself, he simply evaded the attack. This was a bad situation that didn’t need to be made worse by him pulverising the pack. Yes, he knew that he was still hyped up from the night out on the streets and was itching for a fight, but he knew better. He was better than that. There was no way he wanted to burn his bridges with Patrick and the rest of the pack over this fool. He was smarter than that.
Blocking kick after punch after kick, Kelton started to get bored. The rest of the pack seemed to be waiting for some kind of single to join in the fray, but the shifter in front of Kelton was too busy trying to prove was a big man he was, and failing miserably.
The rest of the pack soon enough got restless and surged forward, planning on a fight with the wall of warriors behind Kelton to try and get to their shifter boys. It was easy enough to see that this attack wasn’t very well planned or thought out. They didn’t have the sense or the man power to rival the expertise of the warriors. Even the trainees in this place would take on these ragtag shifters with ease. They were obviously hoping that brute force would get them through.
Kelton heard the sound of splintering wood from behind him. Surprisingly, one of the shifter had actually managed to get through the line of warriors and had tried kicking his way through the front doors of the mansion. Kelton was keeping half an eye on the shifter that was still attempting to inflict injury on him, to no avail, while making sure the shifters didn’t actually get into the academy. The shifter was breathing heavily and was already starting to run out of steam whereas Kelton hadn’t even started yet.
Shouts and battle cries rose up in the crowd, but Kelton didn’t need to bother to turn and check what was going on. He didn’t need to look to know what was happening. The aggressive yelling was already dialling down to a dull roar after only a few minutes. The plan was working. Let the shifters wear themselves out.
Having had enough of the guy in front of him, Kelton suddenly launched forward and grabbed the shifter in a choke hold. It took a couple of seconds of restraint for him to calm down and go limp in Kelton’s arms. The shifter gave up quicker than he thought he would, but it was clear that he was exhausted. Kelton slowly released the hold on his neck, moving to grasp his arm in such a position that if the shifter moved too suddenly, he would have a shattered arm to worry about.
Moving slowly up the front stone steps of the mansion to the destroyed doors, Kelton glanced over at the warrior standing in the open doorway. Master Warrior Verynai nodded over at him and Kelton knew that everything was under control. He moved closer to the top of the stairs with the shifter still in a tight hold.
The entryway was dangerously quiet. Unfortunately, several shifters had managed to breach the entrance, but each that had were standing with a sharp blade pointed at their throats. Kelton didn’t want this situation to get this far, but the shifters had left them little choice.
The only sound to be heard was the low rumbling growling coming from the shifter in Kelton’s uncomfortable grip. It was obvious that he was he royally pissed off that he and his men had been bested by the vampires.
“As I said before,” Kelton said in a loud voice that could be heard by all, “The boys are not being held hostage here. They are here of their own free will and with the express permission and encouragement of your pack leader.” Kelton glared around to make sure that all those who had entered their walls uninvited and those still outside had heard him.
It was partly true what he’d said. He was probably stretching the whole ‘free-will’ thing, but the sentiment was the same.
“Get your goddamn hands off me.” The shifter growled.
“Why should I? You came in here, to our home, bringing us trouble.”
“Get off me!” the shifter tried to struggle, the embarrassment of being overpowered by Kelton getting to him, but he only succeeded in hurting himself more.
“WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?”
Kelton turned his head slightly to see Patrick standing at the bottom of the steps, silhouetted by the moonlit sky. He looked several steps past furious.
“I think we have it all under control now.” Kelton raised an eyebrow at him.
“This should have never happened in the first place. You have my sincere apologies.” Patrick said to Kelton before turning to address the other warriors and trainees. “To all of you. This should not have happened.”
Before Kelton could reply, the shifter who was still doubled over in pain shouted, “You’re apologising to him? To them? You have got to be shitting me!”
Patrick lurched forward, pounding up the steps and grabbed the shifter by the scruff of his shirt. Kelton quickly relaxed his grip. If he was going to break the guys arm, it wasn’t going to be done by accident.
“The Sons are helping us, you idiot. This is something we can’t do. What part of that don’t you understand? If we kept the boys with us, they would have only suffered. Here, the warriors can help them in a way we can’t.” Patrick violently shoved the other shifter away from him, sending him tumbling down the stone steps.
“You’re choosing to defend them over your own kind? What’s wrong with you, Patrick?”
“Bullshit. That’s not what’s happening here and you know it. They’re trying to help us. We need their help. It’s not about taking sides. We’re not children, even if you are behaving like it.”
“Only because you are too weak to deal with it.”
Silence rang out as Patrick slowly stalked forward, rang and incense steaming out of his pores. “Be very careful what you are saying.” He growled menacingly.
The shifter pulled himself up off of the floor and stood to his full height. There wasn’t much difference between them, but Patrick wouldn’t back down regardless. He could have been twice his size and Patrick wouldn’t have batted an eyelid. He was the Alpha. He was the pack master. There was no way that he would let some jumped up little bitch talk to him like that.
“Believe me, Patrick. I know exactly what I’m saying.” The shifter said in a loud, proud tone.
“You really want to do this? Here? Now?”
“Damn straight I do. This needs to come to an end and you can’t see that. Our boys can’t stay here. It isn’t right. You made the wrong call for the pack.”
“I made the only call that made any sense for the pack.”
“I think you’re wrong. Many of us think you were wrong.”
“Once you say the words, there’s no taking them back.” Patrick said in a warning tone.
The other shifter puffed out his chest and tried to look confident. “I, Carlos Sandera, challenge you, Patrick Mulholland, for the position of pack master.”
A gasp rose up among the other shifters. The warriors glanced at one another questioningly. They had no idea what was going on. Sure, the words were pretty self-explanatory but they had no idea what it all meant. Kelton had a slightly better idea than the rest of them, but even he didn’t know the finer details of what this involved.
Kelton really wasn’t sure that he wanted to know, either. It was clear that whatever was happening was huge for the pack. He looked over at Patrick, who looked calm and collected in comparison to the other shifter who was shaking with barely concealed anger. It was obvious to even those who didn’t know what this all meant that Patrick had just been challenged for his position of pack leadership, but they had no clue what that challenge entailed.
“I accept your challenge.” Patrick replied formally.
“We fight to the death.”
“We fight to the death.”
And with that, each of the men turned their back on one another. Kelton immediately followed after Patrick, who moved back within the walls of the building, as the other shifter stayed outside.
“What’s going on here?” Kelton asked, shoving a couple of trainee’s who lurked nearby out of the way, not wanting them to over-hear.
The whole room was abuzz with noise, though the shifters studiously stayed away from the warriors. No one but Kelton approached Patrick as they moved into a corner to speak privately.
“I’m sorry that this had to happen here. I’ve spoken with the pack at length and I’ve explained that all of this is necessary, that the boys will be better off here than struggling with the pack. They should all know that I hate the fact that they’re not with us, but you always get some dumbass who thinks he knows better. I didn’t think they’d go this far, though.”
“I didn’t mean that. I meant the challenge.”
Patrick nodded. “I knew that there were some of them out there that didn’t agree that this was the only course of action that we could take. I should have known that Carlos would have been at the centre of any problems like this. He’s a trouble maker and doesn’t know when to stop.” Patrick set his eyes in steel as he glanced around the room. “I should have seen this coming. Carlos was a problem from the start. And now he’s challenged me to the role of pack leader.”
“So, what happens now?”
“No one from the pack must approach the current leader of the pack or the challenger. To do so would show allegiance, which could be a dangerous thing, depending on the outcome of the fight.”
“Dangerous, how?”
“If they were to come to me and Carlos was to win the battle, he could punish them in any way he saw fit. I put this rule into motion several years ago. I thought that it would be better for the safety of the pack.”
“And what exactly does this battle entail?”
“It’s a fight to the death. The winner takes all.” Patrick looked at Kelton intently. “The challenger chooses whether the fight is in fur or flesh. They usually choose the form that they think they can beat me in.”
Kelton looked understandably shocked. He knew nothing of pack dynamics. “So, this has happened before?”
“A few times. I’m just sorry that it’s happening here. This is the last thing you need landing on your doorstep, but it can’t wait.”
“It’s fine.” Kelton nodded. “It’s tradition for you and I can’t and won’t stand in your way. After all, it’s our tradition that has brought you here to this point. I’m simply concerned for you.”
“Don’t be.” Patrick grinned, as humorous as a shark. “I can kick his ass with my eyes shut.”
“Good to know.”
Patrick stepped closer and spoke softly. “You do know that if Carlos is the victor, he will demand that Caleb and Rees are returned to him.”
“That’s not going to happen.”
“You won’t have a choice in the outcome, Kel. The boys won’t have a choice if it comes to that, either. They’ll have to obey him. He’ll be their pack leader.”
“As I said, that’s not going to happen. You’ll defeat him. I know you.”
“Let’s hope.”
Kelton looked at him for a moment. Patrick had a deadly look in his eyes, but he was talking reality. They didn’t know what would happen. “I need to go and sort out the warriors. I know that this is your fight, but we must be prepared.” He moved away from Patrick, giving him some time and space to think about what he was going to have to do next.
Kelton walked straight over to Verynai.
“Damn, Kelton. What the hell’s going on here?”
Kelton shook his head. “Bloodshed. And it’s not ours this time.”
Verynai rumbled out a laugh, but his hand was still gripped on the hilt of his dagger, knowing just how dangerous this situation still was and could get. “How long are these fleabag’s going to be here for?”
“Be nice.” Kelton mock glared at him. “They’ll be gathering outside for the challenge fight any minute now. I want everyone on high alert. Patrick should take this, no problem, but just in case
the worst happens, I want Caleb and Rees kept as far away from this crowd as possible. I need time to figure out if Patrick isn’t successful. This could mean the start of a war between us and the pack.”
“Sounds bloody.”
“It will be. But hopefully it won’t come to that.”
Verynai nodded. He turned to start rounding up his men, the warriors and the trainees who had gathered to defend the academy. Kelton noticed that the shifters were all starting to head outside for the battle.
Kayleigh was hanging back behind the warriors. Patrick was a good friend to her and Kelton and she hated the thought of watching him get beaten to death. A shiver ran down her spine.
“Kayleigh, what are you doing here?” Kelton said as soon as he spotted her silently standing behind the reception desk.
“I heard the commotion.”
“You shouldn’t be here.”
“But, Patrick –“
“That’s not our concern.”
“But he’s supposed to be your friend.”
“This isn’t about friendship. This is pack business. Which makes it none of our business. I can’t get involved in this in any way. And neither can you.”
“But-“
“But nothing. I need you to go upstairs and wait for me up there.”
“Kelton –“
“I’m not going to take no for an answer here, Leigh. I want you where you’ll be safe. We’ve never been involved in something like this before. I don’t want you getting caught up in the crossfire.”
Kayleigh glared at him before she stormed off. Kelton knew that she was going to be pissed, but he would rather that she was annoyed at him as opposed to getting caught up in the violence. If he knew that she was somewhere safe, that would be one less thing for him to worry about.
Moving around the large entry hall, Kelton kept the graduated warriors and Master warriors with him and sent the rest of the trainee’s back to their rooms. He knew that they would probably all congregate in the windows to watch the action, but there was nothing he could do to stop that. All he could ask was that they kept out of the way. He had no idea how this was going to go down and he needed the guys that he trusted to take care of themselves with him.
Dawn of a New Age: A Sons of Satrina Novel Page 20