by Robin Roseau
"How are you feeling?"
"Better," I said.
"You aren't the airhead you portrayed."
"I guess no one will play poker with me now."
She laughed lightly. "Probably not. Did we really teach you to play that night?"
"Yes. The first time I touched a deck of cards was after you left. I knew the poker hands, and I knew the odds for five card stud, but I got those from the internet the day before."
We sat quietly for a minute.
"You didn't come to talk about poker. And I don't think you came to sit with me."
"I came to thank you."
"For what?"
"Everything you did."
"I didn't do any of it for you. You don't like me. You really don't like Lara."
"That isn't true, not entirely. What my husband tried to do was deeply wrong. If he wanted to issue a challenge, then he should have issued a challenge, not a coup de ta'. I spent ten years ostracized from the pack after that. That has left me at some times bitter and jealous, and at some times, that comes out in a bitchy fashion. I am not happy about that, as I was once a very pleasant person, and I have tried to suppress it, but it has been difficult. Even fifteen years later, I am distrusted and rarely invited to social events."
"Why were you invited to the poker nights?"
"I am not sure. I attended hoping that over time, my position in the pack would settle into something palatable."
"Has it?"
"Yes. Thank you."
I didn't understand.
"Do you know why, when those pictures started showing up on everyone's phone, I was the one who started asking those questions?"
"No, actually. I would have expected Lara to control the conversation."
Janice smiled. "She did. I received my own text from Elisabeth asking me to ask the questions that needed to be asked. I was seen as someone who would be the most likely of everyone in the pack to take a hard stance against Lara, and thus I was the best to ask those questions. But I asked them fairly."
"You're back in."
"Yes. Thank you. Lara and Elisabeth have both made a big deal of including me, which means others are starting to as well."
"So fast?"
"Yes. So fast."
I thought about it. "I hope this helps the pack to heal."
She smiled. "That was very diplomatic of you."
I took a breath. "I suppose you are hoping I will treat you like a friend as well."
"I wouldn't at all mind," she said.
"But you still won't let me come to the poker nights."
"I can hardly stop you."
"It won't be as much fun to take your money if we're friends."
She laughed. "I will make sure you have invitations when there are at least two people there I would most particularly like to see you fleece."
"Deal."
"Your airhead routine was over the top."
"You bought it."
"Yeah," she said. "I did. But it won't work in the future."
"Never underestimate the power of the airhead routine."
* * * *
Lara cleaned house. There wasn't really any to do. Some of the enforcers such as Reggie had been more loyal to David than to Lara, but none of them approved of what he had tried to do. None of them knew any details, and Lara assured me she was absolutely convinced they were guilty of no worse than misplaced loyalty towards someone who was deemed to be a loyal pack member. A few people lost status, but no one was evicted from the pack or suffered significant loss. I was assured we wouldn't see much of Reggie, but even he still had a place in the pack.
* * * *
A week to the day after Natalie clubbed me senseless, Lara and Elisabeth admitted I was fully recovered.
"And now we're going to talk about what obeying orders means," Elisabeth told me.
"I'm sorry," I said. "The next time Natalie is shooting bullets into Lara's body, I promise to let someone else handle it."
No one thought I was funny.
"I followed every other order I was given."
"Just not the one that mattered," Lara said. "And you promised."
She was right, but I was fox, and I wasn't going to admit it. At least not directly. "Lara, if someone was shooting me, and even if you absolutely knew you were going to get hurt, would you stop the shooting?"
"Of course."
"Is there anyone in the pack who would answer differently?"
"No."
"Then do not ask any less of me."
Neither of them was happy about that. The score was now one to one.
I sighed. "I would apologize, but I'm not sorry, Lara. She was shooting you. Do you really think I should have let her?"
"I would have handled it," Elisabeth said.
"You didn't! I was behind several enforcers, and I still got to her first, by several seconds. Seconds. Not a half second. Multiple seconds. I don't know what I should have done instead. I didn't know they weren't silver. I didn't know she was a crappy shot. You tell me what should have happened and I'll admit I was wrong."
I turned to Elisabeth. "If Lara gave you an order, but something happened that turned into an emergency, would you override her order?"
"I don't know."
"In the situation I was in?"
She sighed. "Yes."
The score was two to one for the fox.
"Are you here to yell at me for last week, or are you getting ready for future concessions?"
Elisabeth smiled, which annoyed Lara.
"Michaela," said Lara. "In the future, there may, from rare to very rare time, be instances where there is no time for debate. During those times, I usually cannot afford to worry about whether the people around me will obey my orders. And I equally cannot always afford to assign a pair of babysitters to you to make sure you remain safe. In times such as those, I expect you to follow any orders that Elisabeth or I give you."
"Perhaps you should assume I wouldn't follow your orders. That way you don't have to worry about it."
"If I can't trust you to follow orders, then I am forced to assign babysitters, which I would rather not do."
"Why can't you trust my judgment?"
"Because there can only be one general," Elisabeth said kindly. "I'm sorry, Michaela, but that's Lara."
Point to the wolves. Tie match.
I looked between them. "Lara, did you assign Elisabeth to guard me?"
"Yes."
"And when Natalie began shooting, if she had gotten to her instead of me, would you be having this conversation with her?"
"No," said Lara.
"Why not?"
"Because Elisabeth can handle herself in a fight and you-" she clamped her mouth shut.
"And I can't?" I asked.
"No," Lara said after a moment. "You can't."
I smiled. "So I just have to prove you wrong, and this conversation is over?"
"Don't be ridiculous," Lara said.
"Who do I have to fight?"
"Honey, now you're just being absolutely ridiculous."
"If I win, then you start trusting my judgment. If whoever I fight wins, then I will agree that in those no time to debate situations, I will follow your orders to the absolute best of my ability. Who am I fighting?"
"You can't possibly win, little fox. It's not even conceivable."
"Who am I fighting, Alpha?"
Elisabeth sighed. "Me, Michaela. You'd have to fight me."
"Fine. Outside, let's do this."
"No," said Lara. "You would have to fight me."
Lara and Elisabeth shared a look, then Elisabeth said, "Yes, of course."
"Stacking the deck, Lara?" I asked. "The alpha, the one wolf that seems to be able to neutralize one of my biggest advantages?"
"Michaela, it has to be her because if anyone else hurts you, she'd have to kill him."
"All right," I said. "Outside. We're fighting to first blood?"
"No. Submission."
"That's
not fair," I said. "In a fight, I don't have to make the wolf submit. I only have to survive long enough for someone else to step in. Or until I can escape."
Elisabeth smiled. "She's right, Alpha. You're not asking her to win, you're asking her not to get killed. So her terms are reasonable."
"All right," Lara said. "Survive two minutes with me on your tail, then escape. If you submit in less than an hour, I win."
"Fine. We're agreed no one else interferes."
"Of course."
I didn't say anything else, but headed downstairs. "Let's go then." They hurried to follow after me.
"This is foolish, Michaela," Lara said.
"You can always just agree to trust my judgment."
"If this is a sign of your judgment, I think I'm right to question it."
I laughed. "If you are sure I am that completely helpless, then you shouldn't have the slightest problem forcing me to submit."
"I seem to recall you were awfully easy to catch the last time I tried."
I reached the front door and turned around. "Everyone gets lucky." Then I raised my voice. "Gia! Angel! Want to see the alpha get owned? Get outside!"
Then I slipped out the door, pulling it back closed behind me and giving me a desperate two or three seconds. Elisabeth had been ever so slightly in Lara's way, and the two fumbled at the door.
"Catch me, Alpha!" I yelled. Then I took two steps and leapt into the grass, shifting as I did so. I lost a desperate second shedding my clothes, and then Lara, still on two feet, was after me.
On two feet, I could easily outrun her, but I interpreted "two minutes with Lara on my tail" as meaning I had to stay in close proximity to the courtyard, evading her rather than escaping from her.
When I had stepped out, there wasn't anyone in the courtyard. There were no trees to provide obstacles, either. But two of the SUVs were parked there, and I knew I could go under them much faster than Lara could.
Elisabeth stepped out of the house, and then so did Gia, Angel and Francesca.
I turned around and Lara was two big leaps away from me, stalking me slowly. She was grinning. I think she anticipated an easy win.
"I know all your tricks, little fox," she said. As if. Then she took two leaps after me. I feinted left and dashed right, but she had anticipated the feint and leapt to my right. I shifted direction just barely fast enough, and she almost had me, but I got past her to the left, yipping like crazy to draw more attention.
Lara actually got fingers in my fur, but not enough to grab hold. That had been close.
I dashed straight for Elisabeth, listening for Lara. She had rolled to her feet and was stalking me again. I spun around to face her, my back to Elisabeth, Gia and Angel.
"Friendly game of catch," Elisabeth told them. "Don't interfere."
Lara smiled, approaching slowly, crouching down with her arms out. I would have loved to kiss her right then, but I that may have been a tiny bit cocky.
I continued to yip and bark at Lara, and people were streaming into the courtyard. Elisabeth kept telling them not to interfere.
Finally, Lara leapt at me, and I didn't really have anywhere to go except straight back between the small gap between Elisabeth and Gia. I'd picked that gap instead of the one on the other side because I thought Gia could take it better if Lara plowed into her than Angel could. One backwards leap brought me right through the gap, and Lara came up short, not wanting to run through her wolves. She tried to shove through the same gap, pushing everyone aside, but she lost time and I ran around the other side, still yipping for attention.
Someone laughed. I wasn't sure who.
After that, I used the other wolves as obstacles for Lara, but then I miscalculated and she made a lunge, grabbing me firmly by the scruff.
"Gotcha!" she said, lifting me into the air.
I instantly shifted to human. The fur she'd been holding me was suddenly gone, and she lost her grip. I took two steps, yelling, "I hope you're timing this, Elisabeth," and then jumped and shifted. Lara made a tackling motion, and she almost had me, but my shift shrunk me just enough her arms closed on open air, just brushing my tail.
"Oh heck, Michaela," Elisabeth said as I ran around behind her. "I forgot to time it."
"Thirty seconds have elapsed," Lara declared. "You have another ninety to go. Start timing, Elisabeth."
"Alpha," Elizabeth said. It had been a lot longer than thirty seconds.
"Thirty seconds, Elisabeth," she said again. And then she was running straight at me. She leapt, turning wolf, and again almost had me, but she lost time untangling from her clothes.
After that it turned serious. Twice she managed to knock me off my feet, but both times I rolled and kept going, diving between Jason's legs at one point. Lara tried to follow me, but they got tangled together, and I made a dash for the cars.
"One minute," Elisabeth declared.
Lara untangled from Jason and came straight for me. At the last possible second, I dashed under the car and she came to a skidding halt, banging against the car hard enough to leave a dent.
"Hey!" Jason said. "Watch the paint!"
"A minute fifteen!" Elisabeth yelled. Lara crouched down, shifted human, and almost had me. I hadn't expect her to shift. I dashed out through the front tires, the cut back underneath the second car and gained several seconds while Lara went over the top, shifting in midair, and leaping over me to land just in front of me. She spun faster than I would have thought possible, but I cut left. She kicked me with a rear leg, and I rolled once, yelping, but then I was on my feet and running. I heard her leap and cut right, directly into a group of wolves, then turned and ran right back out of them.
I batted at her back leg on my way past, which actually threw off her timing.
At a minute thirty, I was behind Elisabeth again. I shifted human and put one hand on Elisabeth's shoulder, one on Gia's. The two shifted apart, leaving a wolf-sized gap instead of the wall I had counted on.
"Hey!" I said. "Not fair."
"This is fun to watch, Michaela," said Elizabeth, "but deep down I want the alpha to win. She'll catch you eventually, you know."
Lara tensed her muscles and sprang for the gap. I jumped, pushing with my hands on Gia and Elisabeth's shoulders, then shifted as I leapt over their shoulders, Lara passing underneath me.
The leap was much higher than I normally jump as a fox, and I was afraid I'd break something, so when I landed, I tucked and rolled, yelping once, then was on my feet and cut left immediately. Lara slammed into the ground where I'd been just a breath before, and I ran for the cars again.
I had to avoid her twice, but I made it under the cars and spun around. She approached slowly.
"Two minutes," Elisabeth yelled. "I wouldn't have believed it possible."
I was free to escape, even with the extra time Lara had cheated out of me.
I chuffed at her, letting her know we were still friends. She chuffed back, and then with no warning, she made a leap to the thin space under the car, a space far too small for her.
It had to hurt as she scraped her back against the bottom of the SUV, but she got her paws on me.
I scrambled and kicked dust in her eyes, squirmed away, and ran out the other side, under the next car, and then dashed for the woods.
It took time for Lara to climb back out from under the SUV. I got a good six or eight seconds lead. I got to the brush first, but Lara was hot on my heels, and in a straight run, she was much faster than I was. I couldn't play keep away forever; she only had to win once, and besides, it was too dangerous. One of could make too big a mistake, and I could get hurt. I had to lose her.
Or submit.
I wasn't ready to give up yet.
If I could get some real distance, I was sure I could lose her, but I wasn't at all confident I could get the kind of distance I would need. And she knew these woods like the back of her hand. I did not.
I used the tricks I knew. I took advantage of small spaces. I went under fallen trees an
d through tight brush. I found a copse of thick evergreens, and I went dashing through them, hoping the thick spruce scent would offer even a tiny bit of confusion. She remained firmly on my trail, leaping after me whenever she got close, but not quite catching me.
But I wasn't shaking her, either.
I was having the time of my life.
We spent several minutes dashing between the trees not far from the main compound. From the compound itself, I heard the sounds of wolves shifting into fur. Pretty soon the entire woods would be full of more wolves, and even if they weren't interfering, it would complicate things. I needed to lose her. Or lose.
I feinted right, and Lara made a leap, then I dashed left. By the time Lara could arrest her flight in the wrong direction, I had put two large pine trees between us then took a wild path away from the compound.
It took Lara twenty seconds to find my path, but I found a downed tree, ducked underneath it, then ran along underneath it towards its large upturned root system. There was a gap, a very narrow gap, and I squeezed through it. Behind me, Lara went over the tree ran a short distance past, then came to a stop, puzzled. I gained more time. She found my trail again, but I had a minute on her.
I ran.
I found a narrow stream. I jumped over it, took three steps, then jumped directly backwards into the water and ran upstream for twenty steps before turning at an oblique angle to the stream. I gained more time.
I ran.
I found a large tree with a stream just shortly past it. I set a false path out, ran downstream and set another false path, then ran back upstream to where I had entered the water, ran to the tree, and leapt into it, climbing quickly while listening for Lara. She was moving quietly, directly on my back trail. I froze, hoping I was high enough she wouldn't smell me immediately, and she passed directly under my tree. She didn't even look up but continued to follow my trail. She got to the stream, and while she investigated my false trails, I slipped around to the other side of the tree and moved higher until I found a place I thought I could hide for an hour.
It took Lara a good ten minutes to realize I had effectively disappeared. I heard her pass underneath my tree, searching for where I'd gone instead.
By now, the other wolves were after us, but Lara howled at them and then seemed to hold back. At least I didn't hear any of them coming any closer.