by C C Solomon
“Oh, look at you both,” Lisa said, clasping her hands together. “Two beautiful people in love, lust, like. Who knows? It’s just so damn cute.”
Crap, they were still there the whole time watching our exchange?
Charles looked like he had just ingested something that wasn’t sitting right with his stomach. “I think I’m going to be sick. I didn’t survive the magical apocalypse to watch this.”
“Oh, grow up,” I said, squinting my eyes at him.
Felix looked confused. “So, am I a third, no, fifth wheel or not?”
“We’ll find you someone, Felix. Meanwhile, there’s Seth,” Faith muttered looking behind Erik and I. “I really don’t like that dude.”
I turned and looked through the crowded bar, past the band on the stage area and both packed bar counters. I spotted Seth sitting at a large table surrounded by women with bottles of alcohol and beer on the table. He snapped his fingers then wiggled an empty glass in the air. A man soon rushed to him with a pitcher of beer. Apparently, Silver Spring had its own brewery that a few people decided to bring back to life; enter a new local magic-infused beer that tasted like whatever type of beer you liked, even flavored. Blueberry beer was becoming my personal favorite. Hagerstown didn’t even have a stake in the beer game yet. Not that beer alone made a town better. I’d give up beer any day to live in a real democracy without corruption and with jelly beans.
I shook my head. “I really don’t care for your boss,” I mumbled. I was in a space full of weres with great hearing, so I knew that a whisper didn’t keep my words private but I really didn’t care.
As if hearing me, Seth spotted us and waved us over.
“Come on, put on a fake smile and play the game, woman,” Erik said, leading me away by the hand. “We’ll catch up in a minute,” he told the others.
“We’ll be at one of the bars,” Charles replied.
“Why do I have to come with?” I asked.
“You’re right, having you there might be a block to Raya,” he replied, looking ahead.
I stopped walking and he stopped as well, turning to me, a smile on his face. I tried to yank my had back but his stupid were strength wouldn’t let me go. “You just promised to court me. I don’t feel courted,” I grumbled.
He moved closer to me and put his hands on my waist. “I’m sorry. Raya is not on my radar. I just love seeing you pout. Now come on. I need arm candy I can trust to help me deal with this guy.” He stepped back and held out his hand.
I grumbled some more but took his hand.
We reached Seth and crew and I put on my best neutral face. I did some acting in college, so I was just going to have to tap into that and act like I didn’t want to high kick the arrogant S.O.B. in the face.
“Hey, Number Three, good to see you,” Seth stated with a big, teeth baring grin. He looked over to me. “You fill out that dress nicely, A.”
Do not cast a spell on the pack’s alpha. Do not cast a spell on the pack’s alpha.
I grimaced slightly as Erik’s hand grew tight around mine. He was going to have to find another way to hold his anger in before my fingers got bent up.
“Take a seat and join us.” Seth nodded to two women seated on a couch opposite from his and they rose without protest. One stood behind him and began to rub his shoulders and the other stood beside her, waiting her turn I guessed. I was appalled.
“They didn’t need to get up,” Erik stated. “We were just coming over to say hi.”
“Oh, no. You and your lady have to have a drink with me. The others in the top five are around here somewhere.”
Erik nodded and motioned for me to sit down on the couch opposite Seth’s. I took a seat next to an overly-done-up redhead with glassy eyes. Erik sat on my other side.
A waitress appeared and I ordered an Old Fashioned. Erik just poured a beer for himself.
“So, who is everyone?” I asked.
Seth threw his arms around two women seated next to him. “These are my wives.”
I pouted. “Say what now?” I thought weres were monogamous creatures but apparently, Seth and his harem of five women was exempt from that.
“This is Tasha and Jessica.” He pointed to a black woman with a short pixie cut beside him and a blonde, white woman to his other side. “Darla.” The red head next to me. “Kiki and Beth.” The women he made get up; a Latina with honey-blonde curls and an Asian woman with long, burgundy red hair. Well, at least he was an equal opportunity chauvinist pig.
“I thought weres were monogamous?” I asked.
Seth shrugged. “I am, to my wives.”
I cocked my eyebrow. “Do they have other husbands?”
He shook his head grinning. “Perks of being a leader in the pack. Anyone in the top five can have similar arrangements.”
I let out a puff of air in shock. I really, really didn’t like this guy.
“Of course, having a pack member, especially a top five, with a non-were is not preferable,” Seth began, eyeing me. “Erik, you can keep Amina, but you’ll need to add a were wife to balance it all out.”
I bared my teeth and looked at Erik, whose eyebrows were furrowed together.
Seth drew his hands up in surrender. “Don’t mean to ruffle feathers. I’m just saying pack sticks with pack. That’s the way it is everywhere. We’re just starting out and we want to preserve our kind. Hey, Amina, we could turn you. A quick bite. I mean, you aren’t a regular human but I’d think a witch would still be susceptible to catching our gifts. We don’t have any other werejackals. Maybe you get Erik here to bite you and you can be Mrs. Jackal.” He looked pleased with his idea.
I wanted to knock the glass out of his hand and backhand him a few times. “Thanks, we’ll consider it.” I could be diplomatic.
Erik looked at me as if I’d lost my mind, his eyebrows raised. He looked back to Seth. “I think the pack is going to have to get over it. I’m not getting a second girlfriend or turning Amina into a were. They will take her as she is, just as I do.”
There he went, claiming me again. Except this time, I wasn’t going to fight it. If I was looking for a romantic declaration from Erik, this would do just fine. I smiled at him. Seth’s sister wives all looked at Erik with sad puppy eyes, as if they were watching the cutest thing in the world. I supposed compared to being with Seth, Erik was a nice distraction.
Seth, looking unconvinced, shrugged and took another gulp of his drink. “Don’t say I didn’t warn ya.”
I’d had enough. I scooted forward on the couch. “How about I let you guys talk shop? I’m going to see what the others are up to.” I leaned over and kissed Erik on the cheek. “Behave,” I whispered.
He smiled. “Always.”
I walked through the crowd, searching for Charles and the others. I passed Raya. She gave me a stare down as she headed over to Seth and Erik. I was tempted to follow her but after Erik’s defense of me, I let it go. Her charms weren’t going to work, even if she was a were.
I eventually spotted the others at a corner table with Carter. I pulled a chair from a nearby table and sat down. “I just had a nice conversation with Seth in which he inappropriately commented on my body and then told Erik to get a were girlfriend or turn me into one. He clearly is not trying to win me as a fan.”
“I don’t think he has many fans period,” Carter said in a lowered voice. “He’s just the strongest. But maybe Erik can change that.”
“Oh, no. I need for Erik to chill out on the whole challenging people to death bit.”
Carter nodded. “Fair enough. And Seth’s a good fighter. He used to be a professional MMA champ.”
I widened my eyes in shock. “Well, that’s fun. Carter, please make sure Erik doesn’t make another challenge.”
He gave a curt nod with an all too serious face.
A sudden force slammed me into the table, cutting into my stomach. I turned, ready to right the world. A thin, white man of average height with a buzz cut, who was obviously inebriated, st
ood behind me.
Felix jumped up. “Hey, man,” he yelled.
The drunken fool looked around at the table with half-open eyes. “You got a problem?” The man slurred.
Faith rose up as well. “Yeah, man. You bumped into the third’s girlfriend. Apologize,” she stated.
The drunk looked down at me and scoffed. “This bitch? She ain’t pack. And no one cares about Erik. That piece of shit killed my friend.”
My fingers itched to do a spell.
Charles and Carter got up as well.
“Luke, apologize and get out of here before you get hurt,” Carter announced.
“Fine,” he said with a screwed-up face. He looked down at me again. “Sorry... Bitch.”
“I can turn him into a rat. Let me turn him into a rat,” Lisa cried.
“I was thinking cockroach,” Faith stated, fire rimming her eyes. This would not be good.
“Or a gnat. Then we can swat him,” Lisa went on.
Drunk Luke looked over to Lisa and sniffed. “What are you?”
Uh-oh. She should smell like a regular human to him. “You human? I thought only those with powers could live here. Only thing we need from plain old humans is food.” And before I could stop what was happening, he lunged at Lisa and bit her arm.
I screamed in shock. It was getting close to a full moon but even so, while in human form he wasn’t supposed to just try to eat a person.
Felix pulled him off of Lisa and tossed the man in the air to the nearest wall in one swift motion, as if pulling a miniature dog off of her. I moved to Lisa but Charles was already near her, whispering a healing spell over her shredded right arm, as Lisa whimpered in pain.
“Oh, shit,” Carter yelled, looking past me.
I followed his eyes and saw Drunk Luke, impaled through the heart by the antlers of a stuffed deer head mounted to the wall. He was not alive.
Everything stopped in the room. The band stopped playing. People stopped talking.
“He killed him!” A woman screamed from a nearby table. “The big guy threw Luke into the wall!”
And that was it, there would be no hearing of Felix’s side of the story. With this one act in defense of Lisa, Felix was doomed.
Pack members growled and started to surround us. They would see a pack member they knew, who was allegedly murdered by a non-were who was on the side of the new third in command they weren’t sure they liked yet, with the non-were girlfriend. No one would be taking Felix’s side.
Except for Carter, who jumped in front of us and held out his arms. “Fall back. He was defending this woman, who Luke attacked,” he pointed to Lisa, whose arm Charles had just about healed. Which, of course, didn’t aid to the cause of her being a victim. “Luke bit her! He tried to eat her. He wasn’t in his right mind.”
I looked around the crowd and no one looked convinced of Carter’s explanation. I locked eyes with Phillip, who I had not noticed earlier. He was leaning against the bar and looking disturbingly amused. What was he up to?
“One of ours was murdered by another pack member,” Seth shouted, walking through the crowd. “We don’t stand for violence against our own unless it’s a challenge and this was not. This does not go unpunished. Take him down!”
“If anyone lays a fucking hand on him, I’ll rip your throats out,” Faith shouted. She kicked off her heels and stood beside Carter.
“Seth. Carter told you what happened,” Erik replied, standing next to the pack leader.
“Move, Carter,” Seth shouted. Ignoring Erik. “Now!”
Carter sighed, shook his head, and reluctantly moved to the side. Faith steadied her position in front of Felix. Several pack members charged at Felix, who took a wide-legged stance to hold his ground. He was built like a wrestler. I still didn’t understand what Felix was, but after seeing him in action at the prison I knew that I didn’t want to be on his bad side.
I had no idea what the pack members were going to do. Beat him up, take him into custody, or kill him. I wasn’t willing to find out. The six had to live and stay together.
I threw out my hands and the charging pack stopped in mid-stride. Several people who were approaching, close to ten, froze like statues. An explosion of pain ripped through my head, bringing me to my knees. I fought back the urge to vomit. I wanted to control the attackers but I still wasn’t prepared physically or mentally for it to happen.
Phillip walked from the bar. “Now, now, mi corazon, can’t interfere. This is pack business,” he stated, his tone chiding. He stopped beside Erik, who looked like he was suppressing a growl.
“I’m not going to let them hurt my friend. He was saving Lisa from that monster. He took a chunk out of her arm,” I replied, still on my knees. Charles knelt down beside me and helped me to my feet. I leaned heavily on him, still feeling extraordinarily weak.
Phillip lowered his head. “Amina, do not use your power. This is not your business.”
I knew he was exerting his mind control. If I listened, I preserved my secret that I couldn’t be controlled by him. But then they would hurt Felix. We were family and I couldn’t let family get hurt.
I could already see Erik with clenched teeth and balled fists. He would fight this whole bar to prevent them from hurting Felix. I didn’t have to turn to look at Lisa and Charles to know they would do the same. I had the best chance out of all of them to stop this without getting anyone hurt. We could still rebound if Phillip knew I wasn’t controlled. This didn’t hurt the bigger plans.
I looked at Phillip. “No.”
He frowned. “Amina, leave this bar.”
“I will not let them hurt my friends.”
Phillip tilted his head and considered me. He then sighed and smiled. “I should have known.”
“Should have known what?” Seth asked, looking over to Phillip, body ready to charge at Felix and myself. “Tell this bitch to fall back before I make her.”
I felt like folks knew my name. “Bitch” was not going to be my going nickname.
Erik flexed his hands. I foresaw a bloody Seth and the whole pack pouncing on Erik. Or worse, him getting carried away with the moment and making a challenge against Seth.
The crowd grew restless and antsy. Some other people shifted closer and I stopped them too. I’d freeze this whole damn bar if I had to.
Phillip continued to look at me. “Erik, remove Amina from the premises.”
I looked to Erik, whose eyes suddenly went blank and devoid of emotion. His back went straight and then he looked at me with laser focus before walking over to me and grabbing my hand. I yanked it away. He grabbed at me again and I moved back before he could touch me, bumping into the table.
“Erik, stop!” Charles shouted.
“Erik, pick her up and carry her out of here,” Phillip stated in an annoyed voice.
Without missing a beat, Erik scooped me up like some damsel in distress and started walking to the front entrance. I was horrified. Once I left the building, the action would start again and who knows what would happen to Felix or even Charles, Faith and Lisa.
“Erik, put me down on this floor or I will kick your ass!” I yelled, kicking my legs.
He ignored me and continued to walk.
“Put me down, Erik! Now!” I cried.
Erik stopped walking just as we reached the door. He looked down at me and gently lowered me to my feet.
I looked up at him with wide eyes. Had he just listened to me? Act now and question later, I told myself.
“We need to go back and stop them from hurting Felix.”
He looked at me with the same blank eyes he had before and nodded. He followed me back through the frozen crowd to stand in front of Felix.
“This is the second time you’ve broken my magic. You’re the same as me, aren’t you?” Phillip asked me, visually unsettled.
I gave a slight shrug. I wasn’t telling him a thing.
“Phillip, get her to unfreeze my people. We can’t let this asshole get away with murder,” Se
th shouted.
“You can’t kill him,” I stated, glancing over at Seth. “I know you knew Luke longer, but Felix is a good man and this was a mistake. Luke was drunk and out of control. Felix reacted quick to save our friend.”
“Lock him up if you have to, until we figure this all out,” Erik began. I looked back to him and his eyes were filled with life again. “But he doesn’t get hurt for defending someone. If Luke had attacked one of your wives, you’d want Felix to react the same way. Any of you would want Felix to defend your loved ones the way he did. Lock him up and give this a fair investigation and trial if you have to. We’re not animals.”
Seth looked unconvinced but the crowd seemed to shift, even while locked in place. Their faces became less certain. If I had any mind control power, now was the time to test it out. I looked at Seth. “Seth, Felix is a good man. He deserves a fair trial. He would never hurt anyone on purpose. You know this,” I stated in a steady voice.
Seth squinted his eyes at me. “We lock him up. He hasn’t shown himself to be a menace. Let’s give him a chance to tell his story,” he stated in a monotone voice.
I sighed and released the crowd from their frozen positions. I looked over to Felix. “Don’t worry. I’ll represent you. We’re going to have a fair trial and get you out of lockup.”
Felix looked sick and I felt like crying for him. “If you say so, Amina,” he said in a low, pained voice. He was a gentle giant who had only ever protected us. He didn’t deserve this.
Faith turned around and they embraced. I knew she loved Felix like a brother and he loved her like a sister. I wasn’t sure anyone would be able to break them up without a fight.
“It won’t be a trial like you’re used to,” Carter whispered, moving closer to me. “But I’ll make sure it’s something as fair and humane as possible.”
I shook my head as two guys I didn’t know roughly grabbed Felix by the arm.
“Get the fuck off of him!” Faith yelled, still hugging Felix.
“Hey, little mama,” Felix said gently. “You gotta let them take me away. I’m going to be okay. I don’t want anyone else to get hurt.”
Faith, who I had never seen cry, reluctantly released him. Her face was wet with tears. “I will come and visit you in lock up,” she said before raising her voice. “And if he has even one scratch on him, I will hunt you people down and end you.”