“It’s nothing, Gia,” David spoke up, his voice calm as it always was. “I am merely surprised that our lycaeon won’t be the one accompanying you tomorrow.”
“Jacob hates Claudiu,” Gia said shortly. “He would be more of a hindrance than a help at the meeting and I don’t want to end up at war with Jacob’s pack over a clash of personalities.”
“Very sound reasoning,” David nodded.
Alice’s eyebrows rose a little higher. Annoyance flared inside Gia, momentarily fighting back the quiet depression that had hung around her like a fog since she’d returned from Sorin’s.
“Alice, either spit it out or get a grip on your facial expressions! For Artemis’ sake, I’m your lupa and I will not stand here and watch you twitch like that when I’ve given a very simple order—one that doesn’t even concern you, I might add.”
The informal social secretary of the pack shifted from foot to foot, her conflict obvious on her face. There was something on her mind, but she was clearly hesitant to say it out loud. Gia mentally counted to ten, fighting to urge to scream at her. She didn’t want to talk about Claudiu. She didn’t even want to talk about Jacob and his straying wolves. She just wanted to be alone.
“It’s just,” Alice started carefully. “It’s just you always take Claudiu with you.”
“I told you, Jacob doesn’t like him,” Gia ground out.
“None of the other alphas like him,” Alice pointed out, seeming to grow braver now that the first move had been made. “That’s never stopped you before.”
Gia stared at Alice as if the girl had grown a second head. Social secretary wasn’t actually a formal office in the pack. It just so happened that Gia had noticed Alice always seemed to know a little bit about everyone. People talked to her and it made her an asset on those occasions when Gia had to deal with touchy situations.
Now Gia regretted inviting the petite brunette to this meeting. The last thing she needed was a precocious pup poking her nose into her personal affairs. A cold anger began to spread through her veins. She didn’t need this shit.
“You disagree with how I am running this pack, Alice?”
Alice’s eyes widened. “No, lupa. I think you are making very sound decisions now.”
“But I was not making sound decisions before, is that it?”
Alice looked at David as if silently asking for his help. Fury blazed a trail down her spine and Gia grabbed the edge of the desk and shoved it to the side, sending the heavy wood sliding four feet to the right. Alice made a small sound of surprise and David tensed. They both bowed their heads, but the show of submission didn’t do anything to soothe the frustrated anger burning Gia alive. She grabbed Alice by the front of her shirt and hauled her up until she had to go on her toes to stay on the floor.
“Do you wish to challenge me, Alice?” she hissed. “Have a few years as social secretary made you think you know better than me what is best for this pack?”
The acrid scent of fear spiked in the air as Alice’s eyes rolled to reveal more white.
“N-n-n-n—”
“Well?” Gia growled.
“She couldn’t challenge you even if she wanted to,” David spoke up quietly.
Gia jerked her head to face him, her stare boring a hole through his head as he refused to meet her gaze and stared straight forward instead.
“You have something to say, David?”
“You have a mate. Pack law says that only another couple can issue a challenge for leadership.”
Anger ran through Gia’s veins like molten lava as she threw the petrified Alice to the floor and turned her full fury on David. The ex-army man’s face remained calm as he finally met her eyes. His serenity only pushed her temper higher.
“Perhaps you would like to pair with her then?”
David’s jaw tightened and he went back to staring straight ahead. “No, lupa.”
Gia’s limbs trembled with fury as she took one slow step to stand before David. His blank expression infuriated her, taunting her with the difference between his calm façade and the raging emotions that threatened to boil her alive.
“So you intend to speak to me with such disrespect, but you don’t have the balls to challenge me like a real wolf?”
David opened his mouth to respond, but her hand was faster than his tongue. The sound of the back of her hand hitting his cheek sounded unnaturally loud in her ears. The strength of the blow coupled with his complete surprise almost brought him to the ground, but he staggered and remained on his feet. After a brief pause, he fell to his knees and turned his head to the side, offering her his neck. His sign of submission only pissed her off more.
“You all pretend to respect me,” she choked, struggling to speak past her fury. “You say all the right things, make all the right gestures, but it’s too late. You revealed your true feelings last month when you took advantage of my own personal hell to force me into a barbaric ritual that took away my humanity. Your little coup failed and now I’m supposed to pretend I don’t know what you’re thinking? I’m supposed to ignore all the furtive little glances you all share when you think I’m not looking?”
She raised her leg and kicked him in the shoulder, sending his unresisting body sprawling on the floor. “I will have true respect if I have to beat it out of every one of you!”
A pathetic whimper drew her attention to the left and her lip curled back as she noticed Alice cowering on the floor, completely abasing herself at Gia’s feet. She stepped closer to the other woman, satisfaction sizzling over her nerves as the small blond pressed herself even harder to the ground.
Before she could say anything to the younger female, David spoke from his position on the floor.
“We never pretended to accept Claudiu.”
Shocked by his audacity, Gia turned to David with her mouth open. “Excuse me?”
David remained lying down, his head bowed and his eyes on the floor.
“You said we revealed our true feelings last month, but that’s not true. We revealed them the day you took up with Claudiu. There isn’t a member of this pack who hasn’t made it perfectly clear that Claudiu is unacceptable as lycaeon.”
“It is my choice!” Gia screamed.
“Yes, it is. And we gave him the allegiance he didn’t deserve out of respect for you. You should recognize it for the sign of admiration it is that more of our wolves haven’t left the pack rather than be forced to bow to Claudiu again.”
“You have a strong lupa, you don’t need the perfect lycaeon,” Gia whispered, doubt giving her anger a fuzzy edge.
“You are a very strong lupa and you’ve done very well for us. But you cannot truly believe that two strong leaders are not better than one?” He shook his head, still keeping his eyes on the ground. “Claudiu insulted you and he insulted our pack. It was the final insult after a long line of offenses and you cannot truly blame us for taking the one chance we had at standing up for ourselves and for you.”
“And what now, David?” Gia snarled, the tears burning behind her eyes igniting like kerosene in the fire of her anger. “Claudiu is my mate once again. What will you all do now?”
Movement by the door cut off her rant, silence falling on the room as she recognized the oracle’s form. The grey haired wise-woman quietly stepped inside, her eyes never leaving Gia’s. She was dressed in a simple blue cotton dress, as usual, her long hair tied in a long braid that hung over her shoulder. Gia had always found her very appearance to be calming, like the sight of a grandmother. Today was different.
Gia couldn’t look away. The room seemed to spin around her as she faced an emotion in the oracle’s eyes that looked too much like disappointment.
“David, Alice, get out.”
Alice sobbed as she launched herself off the floor and flew out the door. David rose slowly to his feet, keeping his head and gaze down as he passed Gia. It hurt more than Gia wanted to admit to see that gaze without a trace of affection.
“How long have you been sta
nding there?” she asked the oracle.
“Long enough.” The oracle stepped closer, that heavy gaze weighing down on Gia’s heart. “Can I be of service to you, lupa?”
“You think I was too harsh with them.” Gia crossed her arms. “You’ve always told me they need a strong leader.”
“They do not need a cruel leader,” the oracle said quietly.
“You think I’m cruel?”
“I think you are acting from a place of pain and that is bringing pain to those around you.” The oracle reached out a hand and smoothed it down Gia’s cheek. “Gia, what happened to you during the Hunt?”
Sorin’s face flashed into Gia’s mind and she bit her lip to keep a sob from escaping. The coppery taste of blood exploded as her teeth pierced the skin and the flavor brought a flood of memories crashing over her. The floor seemed to heave under her feet as the scenery around her wavered between the plain white walls of her office and the tapestry draped walls of Sorin’s mansion.
“I just want things to go back to how they were,” she whispered. She reached a hand out and the oracle took it. She didn’t fight the mystic as she lowered them both to the floor. “I’m just trying to get my life back.”
“What happened?” the oracle repeated gently.
“Tell me about Aphrodite’s Hunt.”
The oracle raised her eyebrows. “You already know the rules and the purpose. What is it you want me to tell you?”
Gia’s heart pounded with anxiety as she struggled to hold onto reality. “When the alpha mates with someone, does it form a bond?”
“What do you mean? Like a contract?”
“No, not like that. I mean, does it . . . magically tie the two together?”
“Aphrodite’s Hunt is a ritual that lets us overcome the complication of humanity. In nature, wolves have survived for thousands of years by following their instincts. They mate for long periods of time, so much so that humans once believed they mated for life. However, the truth is they change mates if necessary.”
Gia’s heart sank. “I’d always thought they mated for life.” That had always been something she and Claudiu hung onto. He reminded her of that fact all the time.
The Oracle shook her head. “Some do, but not all. The wolf does not argue with its instinct. If a different mate will help the pack survive, then a different mate is taken.”
“What does that have to do with Aphrodite’s Hunt?”
“Werewolves are half human. This causes numerous complications, as you well know. One such complication is the addition of love to an alpha’s relationship.” Her face softened as she looked at Gia. “An alpha can fall in love with a mate who is not the best choice for survival. The wolf will readily sever the relationship, but the human will cling to it long after she has realized the relationship is detrimental. That is why we have Aphrodite’s Hunt.”
“So Aphrodite’s Hunt breaks the bond between the alpha and her current mate and creates a new one with whatever wolf she mates with during the full moon?”
As she said the words out loud, Gia was both comforted and disturbed. On the one hand, if it was true it would explain her abrupt break in feelings for Claudiu and her upsurge of feelings for Sorin. Neither would be her fault. Hope sprang up inside her. There would be no reason to feel guilty about the death of her feelings for Claudiu if it was all because of Aphrodite.
The hope dashed almost as soon as it rose. On the other hand, it would mean she was indeed bonded to a vampire who had been very clear he would kill her before admitting he loved her. Trapped again.
“Not exactly,” the oracle hedged. “Aphrodite’s Hunt merely strips away the human complications of the werewolf and simplifies them to their wolf instincts. Under the spell of the Hunt, males were driven to mate with you and you were driven to test them. If one had mated with you successfully, your beast would have felt a wave of peace that comes with the certainty that you have found a mate that will help you and your pack survive.”
Gia’s heart sank. “So, if I mated with someone, would he be drawn to me as much as I am to him?”
“Yes.”
“And if we wanted to stop being drawn to one another?”
The oracle frowned. “I’m not sure. Typically, the two of you would feel very happy with one another. You wouldn’t want to break the spell.” She tilted her head. “I suppose if you did, you would have to convince your beast that another wolf was the better choice.”
“What about the other person? How would he break the spell so he wouldn’t feel drawn to me?” Oh, Sorin, what have I done to you? Guilt clawed at her belly as she waited for the Oracle to answer.
“Gia, I am trying to be patient with your questions, but you are really being very difficult. This bond you speak of as if it were iron chains is not a burden. It is a gift. The Hunt brings you together with one who will keep you safe and happy. You will desire him and he you, you will bring one another a sense of peace and well-being.” She threw up her hands. “Never in my life have I heard anyone speak of such a blessing as if it were a death sentence.”
Everything the oracle said echoed in Gia’s head. A gift. A blessing. Her chest ached with the weight of the information the oracle had laid on her. A perfect mate. It wasn’t true. She’d cheated, she’d locked herself away with Sorin. She hadn’t fought him, not really. Her only objection to their sexual union had been her pride. She frowned.
Had that counted toward the Hunt? Had her emotionally motivated struggles against him and his defeat of those challenges satisfied her beast of his worthiness? Her mind swam with the possibilities. Was she looking at this wrong? Should she be happy?
You fool. Why would you be happy? Have you forgotten that Sorin doesn’t want you?
Images of Sorin flashed into her mind. He’d ripped her life apart, called her foolish and insulted her feelings. In all his tirade about Claudiu’s unworthiness, he had not once offered himself up as an alternative. She swallowed and blinked rapidly to keep tears from forming. She wasn’t a gift to him. She was a curse. Even if Aphrodite’s Hunt could overwhelm his resistance, that isn’t the kind of love I want.
“Gia, what are you not telling me?”
The oracle’s soft voice grated on Gia’s nerves and sent waves of pain through her mind. The one clear fact in this entire mess was that her relationship with Claudiu couldn’t continue. Her beast had found a new mate and she wouldn’t rest until she got him back—unless Gia could find another replacement to satisfy it. She swallowed past the lump in her throat. Claudiu would not do.
“The Hunt is over, oracle,” Gia whispered. “But I have no mate.”
The oracle frowned. “Claudiu announced to the pack that he is your mate.”
Gia shook her head, cursing the tear that slid down her cheek. “I tried to cheat Aphrodite and the goddess took her revenge. My tie to Claudiu has been severed and I have nothing to replace it.”
“You aren’t making any sense, Gia. How could your tie to Claudiu be broken if no one broke it? If someone broke it, then you do indeed have a replacement.” She frowned. “Tell me what has happened.”
Gia shook her head. “It doesn’t matter.”
“Gia, of course it matters. How could Claudiu make such an announcement if another has won you from him?”
“Because the other man doesn’t want me,” she whispered.
Saying it out loud made it all so painfully real. The oracle held out her arms, silently offering Gia the comfort she so obviously needed. Part of her wanted to fall into the oracle’s lap, to let the older woman comfort her while she wallowed in her misery for awhile. But she didn’t have that luxury. She had a pack to consider. One way or another, she had to find a new lycaeon. And to do that, first she had to break up with Claudiu. Her stomach sank and she pushed away from the oracle, suddenly ill.
“Does your pain have anything to do with the scent of vampire on your skin?”
The oracle’s question froze Gia. For a split second she wavered, wanting to confid
e in the Oracle, but terrified to do so. What would the wise woman think of her lupa consorting with a vampire? Sleeping with the dead? Bonding with the dead over her living werewolf brethren?
She stood up, not meeting the oracle’s eyes. “I’ve got to shower and get dressed.”
“Gia, we are a pack. You don’t have to do this alone.”
The kindness in the oracle’s voice called to her and Gia almost turned around. Sorin didn’t want her and she was about to sever her ties with the one wolf she’d spent the last fifteen years confiding in. She hadn’t realized until this moment how much of a wedge Claudiu had driven between her and the rest of her pack. The thought added even more weight to her shoulders and she struggled to keep her back straight as she shook her head.
Aphrodite's Hunt Page 15