As we park the bikes, Cara, Trip’s ol’ lady comes rushing out. She’s only a few months pregnant but she’s already got that man wrapped around her little finger. Seg’s woman is next to come out, followed by Bridget and Alec.
Bridget’s smile fades when she sees my face, “What the fuck is your problem?” she asks.
“Talk to your brother.” Is all I say before I head into the clubhouse. The smell of momma’s food eases my tensions and causes my stomach to become its own Lycan. Fuck, I’m hungry. I don’t even remember if I ate at Sierra’s.
I head to make my plate when Nico calls me over.
“You talked to your cop buddy?” I ask as we go into the tech room.
“Yeah, look man, BR has been seeing increased activity, as well as Lafayette. We need to step up our game.” He says with a mouth full of red beans and rice.
“Sierra will be here in the morning.” Was all I could say. I turn to leave and Nico stands.
“Wait, what? You spring that on me and expect to just walk out of here. You can’t have her here with the families. They haven’t even met her.” Nico protests.
“Won’t matter, she’s coming. Families will meet her alright. Just not the way they had hoped for. We need to come up with a training schedule for all of the guys and the women who are lycan. No one is excluded from any of this.”
“So you want me to have a schedule ready for training and worry about the clubhouse?”
“No, I’ll worry about the clubhouse. You just figure out the training schedule and keep an eye on those cameras.” I point to the line of computer screens along the wall. “I want to know who comes in and who goes out at all times.”
“On it.” Nico sits back down turning towards his computers and gets to work. I make my way back out to the clubhouse. Time to announce our guest for tomorrow.
As I head out to the common room, I see everyone hanging around, having a great time. I know I’m about to crash the party but fuck it. It’s necessary. I grab the closest thing I could find and start banging the counter.
“If I could have everyone’s attention.” I yell. The room grows quiet as all eyes fall on me. I clear my throat. “As most of you know, a few of us went to Morgan City today. The meeting went well, so well that Sierra will be coming here first thing in the morning to discuss further matters.” Murmurs start forming in the room. I raise my hands to quiet everyone back down. “Now, there is nothing to worry about. The only thing I ask of the ladies, is make sure everything is cleaned up. No need to hide the children. She already knows they are here. Hopefully, everything runs smoothly and we can all return to our normal lives. But this is important, unfortunately.” The murmuring picks back up. I understands everyone’s apprehension with Sierra. She’s one of those leaders who doesn’t put up with shit but she’s also one of the few that has kept us at peace with everyone for 75 years. “Everyone, please. What we need to remember is that this is our Alpha coming in. She’s here on business. Do not step in her way.” I made sure I was looking at Trigger when I said that.
I turn back to the bar, letting everyone know that my speech was over. As the room quickly fills with music and voices again, Trigger walks over. He signals to the prospect that he wants a beer and hangs there for a minute. The tension between us is enough to make anyone stay away. He may be my VP but he was way out of line.
“Look, bruh,” he starts as he looks among the crowd of people. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean no disrespect.” I look at him, the apology is there in his eyes. But I don’t know if I can forgive him.
“Funny, you looked pretty serious about what you said.” I take a swig of my beer.
“I’ve just had a lot of stress. I don’t know, man. All this is a little much.” He says as he picks away at the paper on his beer bottle.
“A little late for that now, Tony. You think you can just run away from your responsibilities? You can’t. You have a woman relying on you for strength and a child who depends on you since his mother is still adjusting. Don’t be a fucking pussy.”
“You’re right, brother. Still no excuse for what I said about Sierra. You never said anything like that about Eve.” I look at Trigger and slap his shoulder.
“Don’t worry about it, brother. We’ll get through it. Tonight though, Eve has to be sedated. I’m sorry. I’m not taking the chance with everyone here.” Trigger nods. He knows he’s not winning this one. He also knows it’s for the best.
I walk into my office to grab the sedation kit. It’s not very often that we have to use them but at times like these, they’re good to have. I measure out what’s needed for Eve when I hear a knock on the door frame.
“Yep” I say not taking my eyes away from the vile and syringe.
“Hey, bruh. Got the schedules done. You good?”
“Yep, just set em on the desk.” As I recap the syringe. Nico’s eyes say it all. He’s worried about sedating Eve. He’s worried about the addiction it might cause. It’s widely believed throughout the clubhouse, that this is the stuff that did my mother in after my father died.
“Don’t worry, brother. It’s only for tonight.”
“It’s not healthy for her. She needs to learn to adapt.” He sounds concerned.
“I know, and she will. But the last thing I need or that any of us need is her going on a rampage with children here. You really want that on your hands.” Nico shakes his head. “Then let me do my job. That’s what you guys voted me in for.”
I put the syringe in my top desk drawer and lock it. No way am I risking it getting lost in a little kid’s hands. “How’s the schedule look?”
“Chaotic. How you going to fit in all that training for one chick to do. That’s at least 20 or so guys not including the women.”
“We’ll break it up. Our stronger guys will help with training. You made sure Eve was on that schedule?”
“Is that a good idea?” Nico questions.
“Sierra seems to think so. We’ll see.” Nico just nods.
“This is going to get bad, isn’t it?”
“Honestly, bruh, I don’t know.” I shake my head. I can’t give him a definite answer. I just hope we are still intact when this is all over.
8
Sierra
Hearing Malik from my room, my heart soars with a feeling that what we have may last through this whole thing. I know we can’t be together. Our laws don’t permit it, which was one of the reason I never found a mate. I don’t want to be ordered to marry someone within my original pack. I don’t want to spent the rest of my life with someone I don’t love. With Malik I can be myself. I can act like that high school girl who has her first love.
My phone vibrates with a text message. LeRoy. He’s supposed to help Marie prepare for more questioning.
LeRoy: He’s putting up quite the fight.
Me: You can tell him he can give me what I want or he can die. Either way, he’s going to talk.
LeRoy: And if he chooses death?
Me: Then make it as slow as fucking possible
I lock my phone and go back to my thoughts of Malik. Something that Senqua said to me has been eating me. The child. Is he talking about Eve’s son? Or another child within the pack? Is a human child at risk of dying for the sake of their evil vendetta? Nonetheless, these people need to be put down, and quickly.
I make my way down to the dining room. Pierre has made such an extravagant meal, I wouldn’t want our guest to miss it. Crawfish étouffée, cornbread, potato salad, and collard greens. It smells like heaven in this huge house right now. I seat myself at the head of the table, with four place settings already there. LeRoy comes in with Senqua with Marie quickly behind him.
“Ah, Mr. Senqua. Are you hungry?” I greet him.
“Fuck you, bitch.” I plate my food with a smile on my face. LeRoy is quick to jump up to catch his pressure point on his neck. Senqua screams in pain.
“You will treat Miss Sierra with respect.” LeRoy growls. “She doesn’t have to feed you, remember
that.” Senqua nods but no apology comes out of his mouth.
“That’s okay, LeRoy.” I gesture to his plate. “Please, sit and enjoy your dinner.” LeRoy takes his seat but his eyes never leave Senqua. He’s on edge with this one, just like Lucias. They sense something I don’t. I finish filling my plate with food and before I take my first bite, Senqua decides to talk.
“I know what you’re doing, Sierra.”
At the mention of my name, a growl arises from LeRoy. I put my hand up to quiet him.
“And what’s that, Mr. Senqua?”
“Hold me prisoner until I talk.”
“Now, Mr. Senqua. What kind of person would I be if I did such a thing. No, you’ll talk whether you’re my prisoner or not. Tonight, you’ll enjoy the food my cook has made especially for you. You really don’t want to upset my cook. He’s got quite the killer attitude in the kitchen.” Mr. Senqua and I look back at Pierre. His eyes are glowing orange. He knows how to take a cue.
“Your kind don’t scare me.” Senqua instigates.
“Well, I suppose not when you’ve been working for them.” His eyes grow huge, almost to the point where they could pop right out of his head. “That’s right, we know. We also know, that that particular group of wolves has been a longtime ally. So what made them change their mind? Why turn their backs on us?” He looks terrified, like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar. He remains silent.
I take another bite of my food, savoring each bite. “Now, tell us Senqua. Tell us the truth and I’ll make sure you see tomorrow. But if you lie, I’ll know. If you lie, it takes one phone call to that pack to find out what happened. And since you got caught, how do you think that’s going to go?”
Senqua grabs the glass of water in front of him without even thinking. I got him right where I want him. “Maxwell Thomas was selling secrets to them. I was his best friend before you filthy mutts destroyed him.” LeRoy stands at this comment and Senqua flinches. I lift my hand slightly from the table, signaling him to sit back down. I lean back in my chair. “Continue.” I calmly say.
“When he died, they looked to me to give them the answers they were looking for. To them, you killed one of their own. To them, it means war.”
“While all that might be true with our laws, Maxwell also broke the law.” I state flatly. “You see, he changed his DNA to be able to mutate anyone into a lycan. He targeted one of our own and changed her from human to lycan with a simple scratch. Deadly, but somehow, she survived. Now she’s battling herself to control the change.” I explain.
“That’s impossible.” Senqua’s baffled. It seems he didn’t get the full story.
“Rare, but not impossible.” I flatly say.
“She survived, though?” He asks not out of concern, more like curiosity.
“Barely. She almost lost herself and her mate due to the connection. Once broken, she no longer has ties to Maxwell. Now, you’re going to tell me what’s in the antidote.”
“I don’t know.” I look up at LeRoy and give him the signal. Senqua starts to panic. “I honestly don’t know. They injected me with it and sent me here with clear instructions to get the serum back.” Senqua’s fighting LeRoy. I motion to LeRoy to release him.
“The serum, you’re not getting back. But we will be taking some of your blood to see what the chemical makeup is of the antidote. You won’t have a say in it. After which, you’ll be free to leave but I cannot guarantee your safety outside these walls, let alone my city.” I reach for my glass of wine to take a sip.
“Please, ma’am. I can work for you.” Senqua begs.
“I think not. You see, you’re already a traitor. And I won’t have one amongst my people working for me. You’ll give your blood and leave. That’s my offer.”
“You might as well kill me.” Senqua says defeated.
“Is that your wish?” I ask.
He nods.
“Then it’ll be arranged.” I stand from the table. “LeRoy, you can now see our prisoner back to his chambers.” Senqua’s eyes grow angry. “Oh, Senqua. Did you think that I would treat you special just because you agreed to die after I get your blood? No, you’ll go and live your final hours in peace. That’s a generous offer.”
Senqua, looking defeated and helpless, goes with LeRoy without fight this time. I turn to Marie, who has been sitting quietly while she ate her dinner. “Make sure he’s calm for execution.” Marie wipes her mouth with her napkin and looks up at me with inquisitive eyes.
“Ma’am, with all due respect, why give him comfort?”
“Because, contrary to popular belief, I still have a conscience. The man was sent here to do a job. I could torture him, but I’m just to tired to do so. He gave me the information I needed. At that, he will have his wish granted. Better to die here, then go back and have a rogue pack think you betrayed them.” I explain to her.
I leave the dining room and make my way to the foyer. It was only a few hours ago, that Malik and I were in here, practically savaging each other. I sighed. I needed to focus on what’s at hand. I need to pack indefinitely for New Orleans. Tomorrow, training begins. But tonight, the moon is mine. I open the door to find the night clear and the air cool. I let the breeze hit my face, thinking about my transformation. My bones begin to shift and break to accommodate the Lycan body. My black hair starts to come through on my arms and chest. This is the uncomfortable part. I come down on all fours allowing the Lycan inside me to takeover. My vision soon turns to what looks like night vision. As the Lycan brain takes over, my human side drifts off into a dream-like state. It doesn’t take me long before I rush off to the wood line, wanting to put some distance between myself and the events that have happened in the last twenty-four hours.
9
Malik
This god forsaken desert. The sounds of weapons being fired, grenades going off, and the disembodied screaming echoes through my head. Everything around me glows a tangerine orange against the night sky. My buddies on the ground, bleeding out from their wounds that they may never recover from. I look down at my weapon but where my weapon should be, is replaced with something you would find on Supernatural. I’m not human. My hair is more of a dog’s hair, course, gray. I glance down where my feet should be in my boots to find two overgrown paws, but not like a dog’s. They are flat so I can stand on two but the hair and the claws are prominent.
What the fucking hell? I think to myself. What is going on here. And then I hear a voice. It sounds almost like music to my ears compared to what I’ve been listening to the last few minutes. The sweet sounds of a woman.
“Malik,” the voice echoes in my head. I turn myself in circles trying to pinpoint the location of where she’s coming from.
“Who’s there,” I thought I had said this out loud. But my lips never moved, of course, what lips. I bring my hand to my mouth to find an elongated nose. A fucking snout. Are you mother fucking kidding me?
“Malik, you know me. I visit you every night in your darkest dreams.” The voice continues.
“Sierra,” I question. It sounds like her, but I can’t be certain.
“My love.” She replies as I see the silhouette of something appear in one of the tents. As I make my way over to the dark tent, it’s illuminated by the orange glow as weapons continue to be fired, my vision starts to focus on the strange figure in the opening of the tent.
I’m within yards of the tent, the figure not moving, doesn’t even appear to be breathing. But I can hear her soft breathing in my head.
“Sierra,” I start to panic. She’s in the middle of a fucking war zone. She shouldn’t be here. “You can’t be here. You’re gonna get yourself killed.”
“These dreams only hurt me in my heart, not my physical form. You can’t hurt me, Malik.” She responds.
“But why are you here?” I question.
“To see the devastation, you caused.” I can see in my mind’s eye the sinister smile creep on her face. The same one she had when Max was killed.
&nbs
p; “I caused? I didn’t do any of this!” I’m starting to wonder if this is really Sierra.
“Think, Malik. Think back to the bombing in your tent. Think about how you were the only one to survive a bomb that killed your friends. Do you remember? Do you remember just moments before laying on your bunk, talking to a little girl who just happened to get past the MP’s.?” Before I could even think about the questions, the world melts around me and we are back in my old tent. I’m watching myself and my friends just hang around and relax before the next mission. I look around and see nothing out of place.
I continue to watch when the creature comes up next to me. “You see, Malik, all is calm. All is calm until you talk to that child. Now watch.”
The next few moments seem to play in slow motion. I watched my self morph into something hideous. I watched as my buddies looked up and saw a monster standing before them.
“Shoot to kill,” One of my friends says.
“What the fuck? What is that? Bourque?” another says as he points his M16 at me. They are lighting my ass up but I don’t go down. I charge the guys firing their weapons at me. I don’t even seem like myself. And then a flash of light blinds my vision. I escape out the back side of the tent. No sooner does that happen, the world melts again. Only this time, in the middle of the desert. No rounds being fired, no orange glow to the sky. It’s darker than dark, with only the stars to light up the sky.
I can’t speak for the longest time. Then I hear her in my head.
“You see, Malik. We’re all monsters. Humans, lycans, vampires. We’re all monsters. The difference between us and them,” she motions behind her, “We look the part. You, my love, have never walked this path alone. I’ve been with you every step of the way. We are bound by the powers. You cannot fight what you crave.”
“What do I crave?”
“Blood,” as an evil laugh echoes through my head. I cover my ears, not wanting to hear anymore. When it doesn’t stop, I lunged. Ripping open this creature’s throat would make every nightmare I have, leave.
Malik's Reclamation (Hellfire Dogs MC) Page 4