The Golden Claw

by K A Faul

  “It’s not that I don’t like him. Well, I don’t. But he’s also an ass.”

  Her older brother Sean entered. Since he was only twenty-four, Mina could still relate and deal with him, giving her some decent anchor of sanity in her house, especially since he wasn’t a shifter.

  “I’m not an ass,” her brother said.

  Mina snickered. “Sometimes you are, but I’m talking about Thomas.”

  “Oh, yeah, he kind of is, but he’s good at what he does.” Sean shrugged. “Isn’t that kind always the way?”

  “Et tu, Sean?” Mina groaned. “The guy’s obsessed with proving some grand point to me because I’m the king’s daughter. He’s got issues. He needs to see a psychiatrist, not train me.”

  Her dad shook his head. “Maybe you should do what you need to prove that being the King’s daughter means something.”

  “I’m doing well on my training. He just doesn’t like my attitude.”

  “Attitude is part of training.” Her dad headed toward the cabinet to pull out a plate, then over to the remaining sausage in the pan on the stove. “He’s made a name for himself in the short time he’s been here, despite being so young. He’s already a beta, and his alpha speaks highly of him. Given how much I respect Carl, his opinion about a younger wolf means a lot.”

  “And my opinion doesn’t matter?”

  Her dad plucked several juicy links from the pan. “When it comes to good trainers? No. Maybe in a few decades. I can’t and won’t undermine Carl by replacing his beta as your trainer without a reason. It’s important as Sheriff that people respect him, both human and wolf.”

  Mina resisted the urge to crack a joke about Sheriff Storm’s name. It was easy to be respected when he had such a badass last name. Instead, she put down her fork and sighed. “Look, I’m not saying I want the guy exiled. I’m just saying he’s letting his personal feelings get in the way of training me. That’s not what anyone wants, right?”

  “Sounds more like you’re letting your personal feelings get in the way of training.”

  “My personal feelings say I don’t even need all this training to go mushroom hunting in the forest.”

  Sean grabbed some sausage from the pan. “Better to be overtrained than undertrained, right? You never know what could happen on a Rite.”

  Mina opened her mouth and then shut it. For a brief moment, she’d wanted to make a crack about Sean not having to deal with a Rite of Passage, but there was no way she’d ever shove her brother’s Unturned status in his face. Some lines shouldn’t be crossed.

  Instead, she decided to change tactics. “For all the pomp and circumstance, in the end, this is just about me and a bunch of wolves finding some rare mushrooms. It’s not exactly the stuff epic legends are made of.” She smirked. “I can see it now. Mina the Mushroom Wolf, an epic three-act opera. It’ll be the defining artistic work of our century.”

  Her dad stared at her a moment, his dark eyes unsettling. Mina squirmed in her chair. For all her attitude, her father ruled over a thousand werewolves. Even if they were spread out among states and provinces, that didn’t change the fact the man commanded respect.

  “Wolves face danger on Rites,” her dad said, his voice low. “And you’re not just finding mushrooms on Earth, but on Esper. That place is dangerous and filled with monsters.” He let out a low growl. “Not to mention things that are worse like fae and mages.”

  Mina waved a hand dismissively. “Yeah, yeah, I know. Spooky boo. I’m sure some mage will make me play the fiddle for my soul, but the joke’s on him. I don’t even know how to play the fiddle, and I’ll make sure not to agree to any deals while I’m standing at a crossroads.”

  Her dad slammed his fist on the table. “Damn it, wolves die on Rites, Mina.”

  Mina blinked several times, taken aback. When she finally recovered her presence of mind, she narrowed her eyes. “No wolf in our clan has died in thirty years on their Rite, and I’m going to be honest, Dad. I know most of the wolves around here, and a lot of these guys aren’t exactly bright.”

  Her dad grunted in annoyance. “Wolves also fail. You want to bring shame to yourself, shame to your family? Shame that will last a year? Shame to me?”

  The guilt shot through her, almost enough to smother the snark. Almost.

  “Come on, Dad,” Mina said, her voice unsteady. “No one’s failed in five years.” She stood, shoving against the table. “Do you really have so little faith in me? I am your daughter, and I have a bad attitude or whatever you call it, but I’ve not slacked off in my training since my first shift. There’s no way in hell I’m going to fail this Rite, short of some damn dragon eating me in Esper.” She glanced over at Sean. “Do they have dragons in Esper?”

  He shrugged. “Lots of weird stuff. Not sure.”

  “Anyway,” she said, returning her attention to her dad, “even if the dragon, or the kraken, or the soul-stealing fiddle player eats me, I’ll make sure to take the bastard with me. The last thing I’m going to do is bring any shame to you, Dad.”

  Mina resisted the urge to ask Sean to back her up on the safety of the Rite. She didn’t want to get him too involved in anything that would be a reminder of his own failure to shift.

  The King stared at her for another long and unsettling moment before shaking his head. “I don’t have time to debate this right now, Mina. Thomas will continue to train you. That’s non-negotiable. I have to discuss clan business with my pack.” He snatched a few more sausage links from the pan and strode toward the door, where he paused. “You’ll appreciate all of this sooner than later. The dangers to our kind don’t end with the Rite.” He threw open the door and stepped out, closing it behind him.

  Mina let out a loud groan and slumped back into her chair, rubbing her temples. “What is he even going on about? I’ll sail through this Rite, and then I’ll earn my place in a pack. He seemed not to care that much all that long ago, and now he’s almost as bad as Thomas.”

  Sean laughed. “You sure it will be so easy? And getting a pack will be so easy?”

  Mina shot him a glare. “What are you getting at?”

  “I love you, but you are kind of weird at times, and your best friend is a raven, not a wolf.”

  Mina scoffed. “Since when do you have a problem with Linh?”

  Sean’s face softened for a moment as a warm smile appeared. “Linh’s about the last person I have a problem with.”

  “Then don’t whine about her.”

  “What’s wrong? I was just teasing.”

  “It’s nothing. It’s just… Thomas made a similar crack about how I shouldn’t be around a raven so much.”

  Sean’s face darkened, and he looked down. “Bastard.”

  “It’s okay. I told him to stuff it, basically. He got the message. What I don’t get is why Dad’s being so uptight all of a sudden. It’s just… not him.”

  “That’s easy enough to explain.”

  “Okay. Then enlighten me. Because I don’t get it.”

  Sean took a deep breath. “You’re going through the Rite.”

  “Yeah, and? It’s not that big of a deal, not the way he’s carrying on. Most of the wolves who went through the Rite last year weren’t all that uptight, either.”

  “Maybe it wouldn’t be a big deal normally, but I think it’s reminded Dad of Brent. It wasn’t that long after his Rite that he disappeared.”

  Mina’s stomach knotted. Bile rose in her throat. “Crap. I didn’t think how the Rite might remind him of Brent.” She rubbed her forehead. “I feel like crap. It’s like I forget he existed.”

  “It’s not your fault,” Sean said. “He disappeared before I was even born, let alone you, and it’s not like Dad ever talked about him much, and I was still pretty young when Mom was still alive. Whatever hope Dad had that he might still be alive is long gone now.” He shrugged. “It just hasn’t come up before because I didn’t need a Rite because I’m a Never.”

  Mina winced at her brother’s use of the
slur. She didn’t need both her dad and brother upset. “Don’t call yourself that.”

  Sean let out a quiet chuckle. “Is it better if I call myself Unturned? Doesn’t change how people see me.”

  “Screw everyone else. You have me and Dad, and he’s the damn king, so yeah. Besides, plenty of assholes out there like Garett who can shift, so it’s not like being able to shift makes you a better person.”

  “I’m not sure about that, but I am glad you’re my sister.”

  The siblings fell into comfortable silence for the next few minutes as they worked on finishing off their food.

  Mina let her thoughts drift back to her training. She didn’t resent the training as much as she resented the attitude of her trainer. In the end, she didn’t want to let the Rite change who she was.

  She glanced down at a half-finished sausage. “Yeah, hunting exercise coming up today.”

  “And you haven’t munched any rabbits or anything yet?”

  “I guess it’s no better than raising some animal and then killing it, but it’s… just…” She sighed.

  Sean leaned forward. “What? You can talk to me, sis.”

  “It involves the shift.”

  “Please don’t tell me you don’t want to talk to me about it because I’m a Ne… Unturned.”

  Mina shook her head. “No, it’s weird when you shift, you know? It’s like all those instincts rise up, and you really can understand that our ancestors were animals made into people, and not people made into animals.” She shivered. “What if I like it too much?”

  “Eating rabbits?”

  Mina swallowed. “Killing.”

  “If you’re killing something to eat it, I don’t see the big deal. Just apologize to the animal or something if you feel bad. It’s not like normal wolves get all philosophical about it.”

  Mina considered that for a moment and nodded. Sean always did have a way of making her feel better about things.

  “You know that bastard Thomas and his crony Garett have preservation amulets?” she asked.

  “And that pisses you off?”

  “I don’t like the idea that I have to get naked, and they don’t.”

  “What, are they checking you out or something?”

  “Nothing like that. It’s just, you know, sense of control.”

  “You’ve not seen them naked yet?”

  “No, I have. I just don’t want him or that idiot pack member of his having any sort of advantage over me.”

  Sean rubbed his chin. “I can understand that. What would you say if I could get you one?”

  Mina fluttered her eyelashes. “I’d say you’re the best brother in the world.”

  “You can’t ask where it came from.”

  “I wouldn’t even want to know. My brother the smuggler. I like it.”

  Chapter 4

  A couple of hours later, Mina ended up lying on a black leather couch in Linh’s apartment, resting the back of her head on her hands. She hadn’t planned on seeing her friend until later, but she needed someone else to bounce a few stray thoughts off.

  Life had become more complicated with her upcoming Rite, and she only had a few people she could bother. Her dad had more important things to do than listen to her whine. Well, that, and every attempt to convince him of her troubles ended in failure.

  At a certain point, Mina needed to consider her dignity, but she was less concerned about her own problems than another person she loved.

  “I’m worried about Sean,” she said to Linh.

  Mina idly glanced down at the slight lump underneath her shirt. As promised, she didn’t ask where the preservation amulet came from, and having it there comforted her. Thomas wouldn’t be one up on her the next time she met him. A little control might do a lot to kill her frustration.

  “Why are you worried about your brother?” Linh asked.

  “First of all, he’s suddenly some sort of shady black marketeer.”

  The other girl blinked several times. After about three seconds, she responded with a well-thought out, “Huh?”

  Mina pulled out the preservation amulet.

  “Sean got that for you?” Linh asked.

  “Yep. I wanted one, and I didn’t ask where it came from.”

  “Big deal. He’s not going to do anything to get himself in serious trouble.” Linh shrugged. “That’s what you’re worried about?”

  “No, not really. You should have heard him earlier. He actually called himself a Never.”

  The wereraven winced in her chair. “He’s never seemed to care that much before, even when he was taking crap from people.”

  “Yeah, because he didn’t have a younger sister about to go through her Rite. I’m sure it’s only made him think about how he’s never shifted.” Mina sat up. “I just wish there was something I could do to help him out. I’m the freaking wolf. I should be protecting him.”

  With obvious effort, Linh smoothed out her features. “Nothing you can do unless you can track down Rogan about it and persuade him to do something. Sean will learn to deal, because he always does, and then he’ll be smiling that great smile of his—” Her cheeks reddened.

  Mina smirked. “You two are so cute. I love how you keep trying to pretend you’re not into each other. Let me be very clear, Linh. It’s painfully obvious.”

  “We’re not into each other.” Linh picked up a throw pillow and tossed it at Mina.

  The werewolf snatched it out of the air with ease. “Yeah, that’s the way someone reacts when they aren’t into someone. Look, he’s my brother, so the idea of someone being into him that way is kind of funny to me, but he’s also a good guy, and you two would be good together. So it’s not like I have any objections.”

  Linh sighed and shook her head. “What difference does it make? It’s not like either the Golden Claw or the Pacific Wing would let a member of a werewolf family mix with a wereraven like that. There is talk in my flock of banning even Unturned from being with full ravens.”

  “That’s stupid. How is any shifter society supposed to last if they start treating Unturned like crap? It’s bad enough even here in Golden Oaks. It’s like everyone wants to double-down on being assholes.” Mina groaned. “Am I the only sane person in this entire territory?”

  “Not disagreeing, but the flock elders keep going on about how thin the blood is. How we’ll be nothing but humans before too long and how we’ve betrayed Rogan’s gift.”

  Mina grimaced. “Really? They sound like True Breed.” She suppressed a shiver at the mention of the werewolf fanatics.

  “We’re ravens. We don’t take things as far as you wolves. There are no ravens running around saying having a human form is wrong, or that we should take the planet back from humans or whatever. Always remember, you guys like to kill. We like to learn things.”

  “I always thought that whole idea of taking the planet back was dumb anyway,” Mina said. “It’s not like the old days. Humans have nukes and planes and machine guns. It doesn’t matter that we heal fast.” She waved a hand. “You know what? Who cares? None of that has to do with Sean and you.”

  “Doesn’t it, though? I can’t go against my flock any more than you can go against your clan.”

  “I can’t go against the clan?” Mina pointed a thumb at her chest. “Did you forget who I am? I piss people off all the time and offend the clan. Just ask Thomas, and he’ll explain in length about why I’m a terrible werewolf.”

  “Annoying Thomas with a few snarky comments isn’t the same thing as going against your clan, and you know it, Mina.”

  “Whatever. Just saying, sometimes it’s good to push back a little. If you don’t want them to order you around like a good little soldier, then don’t always act like one.”

  Linh sighed and slumped down in her chair. “I guess I’m destined for disappointment in the romance department.”

  Mina waved a hand dismissively. “I’d like you to fight for what you want, but romance is overrated anyway.”

 
“Are you so sure?” Linh sat up and peered at her friend. “Thomas is a bit of a hottie. You’re not into him at all?”

  “If hottie is the new raven slang for ‘asshole,’ then, yes, I agree, and no, I’m not into him as anything other than a target for my fist.”

  Disappointment spread across Linh’s face. “Come on, you don’t like him at all? No kiss, kiss, slap, slap, thing? I thought that’s what you were going for.”

  “No damn way.” Mina rolled her eyes. “Slap, slap, stab, stab, maybe. No kiss. Never kiss. He’s not my type and never will be.” She gagged at the thought. “I’d sooner go out with a bloodsucker.”

  Linh eyed Mina for a long moment, long enough that the werewolf twitched under her gaze.

  “What?” Mina asked.

  “Yeah,” the wereraven finally said. “I know what’s going on.”

  “What do you mean by that?” Mina’s heart kicked up. She had a pretty good idea of where her friend was going, and she did not want to talk about the subject.

  “Admit it,” Linh said. “No one’s ever your type, and they never will be. At least not in Golden Oaks.”

  “And what’s that supposed to mean?”

  “You’re just not someone who should be talking to other people about who they are attracted to because of your… leanings.” Linh shrugged.

  “I don’t have leanings.”

  “Don’t you? When we both got to the age where we should start checking out guys, and I noticed you weren’t, for a while I just figured you were a lesbian. That would have made a lot more sense. I thought you were going to be my token sassy lesbian friend.”

  “That’s something you’re looking for?”

  Linh shrugged.

  Mina snorted. “I remember you trying to hook me up with that one chick from Seattle. What was her name… Lisa? She was nice. I felt really bad when I realized she thought I was a lesbian and that we were on a date.”

  “Yeah, it was an awkward few days, and I thought I was doing you a favor, but the point is you’ve never really been into anyone around you, man or woman.”

  “So?” Mina put a hand over her heart. “I’ve got another hundred years or so to find someone. I have a life to live before then. Romance can wait. I’m sure I’ll find a guy who works for me.”