Oath Sworn

by Kristen Banet

  “Here, boss.” One ran up and handed over exactly what he asked for.

  Heath, in turn, handed them to me and sat across the table. “Would you like to sit down and play with us?” he asked the wolf.

  I started shuffling, showing I had some skill in it. I played on the bar sometimes, and more than a few times, I’d hosted small poker nights at Kick Shot. I absolutely knew what I was doing.

  “Sure…” The wolf fell into a seat as if his Alpha’s words had been an order and not a question. The remaining three seats were taken slowly as I shuffled, waiting to see if anyone else dared to come play with the werecat. Once they were all full, I announced the game.

  “Texas Hold ‘Em. We’re in the right state for it and it’s in vogue,” I said, smirking. “I’ll deal, and then pass counterclockwise.”

  “All right then.” Heath waved a hand, welcoming the cards.

  The game kicked off. None of the wolves really spoke to me, but it wasn’t cold or rude either. Heath continued to strike up conversation, talking to others to put everyone off his own actions. I knew the strategy, keeping others distracted and hiding tells easier. I’d seen some blustery men try it more times than I could count.

  About an hour in, I had won every other hand, grinning as I won another.

  “Well, another game for me,” I purred.

  “I think one of us should shuffle the deck,” a wolf muttered.

  “I’m not cheating. Just practiced,” I said softly.

  “Sure.” He took the deck anyway and began to shuffle. I shrugged when Heath stiffened up. It was rude to accuse a guest of cheating, but I wasn’t going to take it seriously. I was a cat. For all they knew, I could very well cheat and have no problem with it because most of them had never met one of my kind.

  So when I won the next hand, especially since four of them folded, it was no surprise when the wolf who had taken the deck from me jumped up. “This is ridiculous. Are we really going to let her play us like this, Heath?”

  “She’s not cheating. I’ve been watching her. Don’t be a sore loser.” The Alpha pointed the wolf to sit back down before settling those grey-blue eyes on me. “Professional?”

  “No. Just a lot of practice against amateurs at my bar,” I answered. “Everyone here except you has really obvious tells. If there was money involved, you would be the person with the most money because you play safe and keep everyone distracted. I would just clean out the fools.”

  “Fools?” the wolf snapped.

  “You. The customers at my bar. Most people who get mad at poker with no money…” I raised an eyebrow, daring him to question my logic. “Don’t make this a big deal. Just trying to kill time.”

  “Maybe, you should walk away,” Heath warned his wolf.

  “No! She’s cheating, I know it.”

  “Let him,” I ordered the Alpha, who tried to stand up to stop his wolf. I rose out of my chair, sighing. It would have annoyed me, but I had dealt with drunk men, angry men, and confused men. Kick Shot was quiet until the cards came out.

  I spread my hands, let him check my seat—which was absurd— and even my pockets. When he touched my ass, probably an accident, I grabbed his wrist, spun him and pinned his arm behind his back.

  “Happy now?” I asked softly. “I’m not cheating. Werecats are quite honorable. We know we have advantages. We don’t need to cheat. My sense of smell isn’t as good as yours, but it’s still very good. You get upset over a bad hand, and it comes through in how you smell. Learn to control your reactions more and take the game less seriously.” I released him, letting him step away from me.

  “That was fast,” he noted.

  “I’m faster than your kind,” I informed him, smiling.

  “All right. Everyone sit back down or leave the table if you can’t play nice.” Heath sounded like he was done with the antics. I retook my seat politely and so did the other wolf, who was nodding to himself, mumbling about his scent. Heath leaned over to me. “We normally don’t use our supernatural gifts for card games.”

  “I use every legal advantage I have,” I told him. “How do you think my kind stays alive when we’re loners?”

  “Fair point.”

  We went back to the cards, and no one tried to accuse me of cheating anymore. Instead, when a guy lost to me, he leaned over. “How did you catch my bluff?”

  “You tap the table once, softly, when you have a good hand. It’s hard when you have a bad hand. A small act of aggression.” I grinned as he groaned, leaning back. “I can hear the subtle difference.”

  “Don’t turn my pack into professional poker players, please,” Heath pleaded from his seat.

  “I make no promises. If you got a pool table—”

  “BOSS!” someone yelled. “Boss, they’ve contacted you!”

  The cards were forgotten in an instant. Heath and I were both out of our seats at the same time. It was a race I won to the back office, and I leaned over the werewolf at the laptop, who made a disgusted noise as my scent must have hit her nose.

  They had contacted. With a time and a location. It was in twelve hours, putting it after sunset.

  Heath was behind me now, reading over it as well. “They don’t want me bringing anyone except you, Jacky. You must have pissed them off.”

  “Or they know this will fail if you can’t put Carey into someone’s care,” I said. “They might not want any of the wolves loyal to you, but I’m supposed to be impartial. Carey is my only concern.”

  “If I’m dead, the turmoil ends and whoever takes the pack has the right to challenge my will and claim my daughter as their own, ‘for her own protection’ and as a ‘sign of good will,’” he said harshly. “They might think you’ll hand her back over.”

  “Oh, that’s really something I should have known before now,” I muttered, shaking my head. “I’m not going to give her to anyone but you or one of your sons. I swear to it now.”

  “Even if one of them forced their way in as her new legal guardian?” He straightened up, looking down at me. I realized in that moment how much taller than me he was, just over six feet tall. For a second I felt very small.

  Not all of it was thanks to his physical display.

  I puffed my chest, all bravado and confidence even if I didn’t feel it. “She deserves her family, and while under my protection…she is my family. I don’t see any reason to believe she might be safe with the wolves who killed her father. I’ll find anyone else or keep her before I let them have her.”

  “Thank you.” He stepped away, beginning to shout orders, telling everyone in the pack the news as he walked out.

  I realized I had just signed up to possibly care for a little girl for the rest of her life. It sank in. When Lani had said something about it, it seemed like a far off possibility. Now it seemed like a reasonable outcome.

  Shit.

  20

  Chapter Twenty

  I was sitting in a large circle as everyone argued about how this should play out.

  “I’m sorry, sir, but you can’t go in with just the werecat as back up!” Shamus snapped. Then he glanced at me. “Sorry.”

  “Oh, no. I agree. I’m not a warrior. I am not, and never was, prepared to be the sole defense of anyone. I would love to take all of you and crush them with overwhelming force, but that might just get Carey killed.”

  “Exactly. I think we follow their rules, to a point.” Heath was pacing in a circle. “Jacky and I will be driven in by a small group. A couple of guards and a driver, who will wait outside for us—”

  “So you aren’t planning on actually sacrificing yourself? That’s good.” I couldn’t resist making the comment. Should have, but couldn’t.

  “No, of course not!” Heath furrowed his brow and I found it kind of cute.

  Bad Jacky. “Good. I just figured since it hadn’t been explicitly said yet, it might be good for the class to hear that.”

  “You have a mean little attitude over there right now,” he said softly, narr
owing his eyes on me.

  “I’m stressed out and possibly going to die tonight. It’s the only way I can deal with it. If it helps: no, I never acted this way in front of Carey. For her I was a stoic, strong source of support and only cried and freaked out by myself in the shower while she was sleeping.” Well, not exactly that way, but close enough.

  “That’s reassuring,” someone said darkly. “Our so-called trump card is an anxiety-ridden mess who has no real experience. Heath, you sent your daughter to her to be protected.”

  “Well, it wasn’t a bad idea of his. I did kill over ten werewolves in something like three days,” I retorted. “I’ve just never walked into a wolf’s den with the specific purpose of killing one of the wolves before. On top of that, even being a werecat should have deterred them. Obviously it didn’t…but don’t think your Alpha’s plan wasn’t sound.”

  “Jacky, do you want to be in werecat form or human?”

  “Werecat,” I answered immediately. “I have training in self-defense and hand-to-hand techniques, but I’m more comfortable in a fight when I’m in werecat form and less likely to die from a stray bullet.”

  “Communication wouldn’t be possible, though.”

  “Let me worry about that,” I said. Brin had fixed that problem, and while I would never be comfortable with the gift, it was handy. I didn’t want to use it, by any means. It would make me a target of the werewolves if it got out that their major advantage was suddenly being used by a werecat, but if push came to shove…I had the ability now and would use it.

  A few of the wolves gave me odd looks and I shrugged. “I’m good at pantomiming,” I explained. I mean, I am.

  “Fine. That gives us a very powerful combatant in the fight.”

  “Wait. Her? Powerful?” A wolf snorted.

  “I’m four feet tall at the shoulder in werecat form and over four hundred pounds, and none of that is fat,” I informed him, yawning. “You really need to start educating your wolves better on werecats. I can tell you all sorts of things about werewolves.”

  “We don’t run into your kind much anymore, so it’s fallen to the wayside. The vampires are more of a problem these days.” Heath seemed patient, but I could tell he was tired of everyone interrupting him. “Jacky brings up a good point, though, you do all need to start respecting her a bit more.”

  “That’s not my point…”

  “Werecats are larger, stronger, and faster than our kind. If you ever encounter one, make sure you have friends. Not a few. More like ten and even then, you’ll probably lose a few wolves in the fight. That’s what I’m counting on with bringing Jacky.” He smirked my way. “While she’s a bit of a hot mess, she is a werecat. She knows how to fight wolves. It’s in her bones. She just needs to listen to them.”

  “I’ve fought before in my werecat form. This isn’t new to me. Well. This particular case is, but I’ve fought other werecats. I’m not a pushover when I’m in my werecat form.”

  “Good,” he said softly. “And you’ve had quite a learning experience with wolves recently. When do we need to let you Change? Before the trip, or…”

  “I can Change when we get there. Doesn’t take very long.”

  “Okay.” He stopped staring at me now and turned to his advisor. “I want you to stay here, Shamus. Just in case.”

  “Heath…You think I’m going to let you—”

  “You don’t have to let me. I’m ordering you to stay here in case I die,” Heath snapped. “Don’t try to put our long friendship over the pack. Everyone left here will need a leader if I don’t make it out.”

  Shamus lowered his head, displeased but respectful.

  There were moments I was glad werecats were loners. There was really no one I had to worry about if I died. Carey was the exception, but if I died and her father lived…well, I didn’t have to worry about her either. I didn’t have to think about how this would leave Hasan without anything because he had other children, more family. He would lose another daughter, one who didn’t like him all that much. Oh no. Lani would lose a friend who was off breaking the Law anyway.

  No one would miss me. Not really. And my being gone wouldn’t ruin anyone’s life.

  Not that I want to die, but hey, at least no one will be bereft of anything important if I’m gone!

  Can I get any more pathetic?

  “I’m going to pick who is guarding us next,” he said loudly. “As honor dictates, I’ll ask first. Are there any volunteers?”

  Every wolf in the room stepped up.

  I sighed. Wouldn’t it be nice to have so many people willing to jump in front of a bullet for you? Scary, but nice.

  I left the room after that, not needing to know who was chosen or be involved with the process. I shoved my hands into my hoodie pocket and left through the back of the building, enjoying the warm sun on my face.

  Someone followed me, I could smell them, but I couldn’t see them. I sighed. I wished I was home for a moment. At least on my own territory I would be able to pinpoint the exact location of my mysterious companion.

  Then I caught the scent of human on the air, one I knew now.

  “Stacy, come out,” I ordered. “I don’t like people sneaking up on me, and I would have hated it if I’d accidentally hurt you.” And it was a real possibility. If I hadn’t smelled her humanity first, I would have roughed her up like a werewolf, and it might have killed her.

  “Sorry…” She stepped around the corner. “I got tired of being there, useless.”

  “Me too,” I said, exasperated. “Now we just wait for the wolves to make their plans and follow along. You just have to wait out the storm.”

  “I can help, but…”

  “You can’t,” I said softly. “Don’t get any foolish ideas.”

  “But—”

  “People could die. Accept the lesson the easy way. Please don’t risk learning it the hard way.” I rubbed my face as she stepped up next to me. “You’re human and your body is fragile. You’ll be Changed when it’s time, whenever the pack has a chance, and then you can get into the bloody mess with all of them, but you’re not a wolf yet.”

  “Yeah…” She stared out over the terrible view with me. Other warehouses. So majestic.

  “It sucks, I get it.” And soon it won’t be my problem.

  “How? You’re a werecat.”

  “I was once human, remember? I was an EMT. I saw…humans break all the time. I know exactly how fragile they are. Let’s not give Heath or your father any reason to worry about you breaking, please? I’m not sure I can protect two human girls.” Hell, I’ve already failed at protecting one.

  “Good point. I just want…”

  “What are you ladies doing out here?” Shamus said from the door.

  “I was enjoying the sun for a minute. Stacy was keeping me company,” I answered. “Any decisions made?”

  “He’s got a top five to choose between, which is where I step back. He likes making final decisions by himself.”

  “Of course he does.”

  “Stacy, come inside. It’s not safe wandering outside as a member of the pack right now.” It was a tone I knew from Hasan and my human father. Chiding, soft, loving. A father who wanted his daughter to do as he asked without an argument.

  “The door is right there!”

  I resisted a snicker. “She’s fine, Shamus.”

  “No. You’re safe out here, but they’ve come through this place before and we barely stayed hidden. I don’t want to see if they might have plans to try and find us right before we’re done with this mess. If they catch you out, they might just assume you’re squatting without us.” Shamus stepped out further and motioned to the door. “Please, Stacy.”

  “Fine! Be safe out here in the dangerous world, Jacky.” The amount of sarcasm in those words made me grin.

  “I will.” Shamus didn’t follow his daughter inside, stepping to stand next to me. I leaned over and whispered, “Hypocrite.”

  “I wanted to talk to yo
u alone, actually, and my daughter beat me to it,” he said. “Are you sure you can handle tonight?”

  “No, but I’ll do my best,” I answered, becoming as serious as he was, my humor dying.

  “If you have to shift back to human, do you know how to use any weapons?”

  “I can shoot a gun and I’m trained for self-defense with a silver knife.” I threw my hands up as I remembered one thing I should have told the wolves about already. “Damn it. I’m sorry for not telling you this soon, but I stole a couple of sidearms from the wolves that attacked me. They’re in my gym bag. You might be able to track—”

  “None of the pack’s firearms are registered. Thank you for finally telling me, but don’t worry. They would be useless.” He smiled kindly. “A silver knife, huh? Not what I’d expect.”

  “A gift from the werecat who Changed me before I moved out,” I explained. “So yeah, I should be handy around a weapon if I get my hands on one. If I need to have hands.”

  “Good. I’m trusting you with my Alpha’s life. It’s not an easy thing for me to do, but you came here, got our attention, and offered help. When this is all said and done, he’s probably going to rush into retirement so there’s no chance of it interfering with his daughter’s life again.” Shamus took a deep breath. “Please make sure he has the chance to enjoy it.”

  “I’ll do my best,” I promised again, swallowing. “Let’s get back inside.” The sun didn’t feel warm anymore.

  He held the door for me and as we walked inside, I noticed it was much quieter than when I had left. Heath was standing with five wolves in the middle of the room, having a quiet conversation. I didn’t interrupt, taking a seat nearby and watching. Whoever he picked were wolves I was going to have to rely on tonight. An odd place for a werecat to be. I couldn’t forget that, no matter how hard I tried. I was a werecat in a warehouse full of werewolves in the middle of a werewolf war.

  I’m an idiot and I’m going to pay for this. The Tribunal I’m going to face once it’s all over…