Her friend went limp. “Yes.”
Both parents beamed. The expressions disappeared so quickly, Susan wasn’t sure if she’d seen it. They turned more reserved gazes on Susan. These people spoke English yet she couldn’t, for the life of her, understand anything going on. Attacked, chased, and made both her and Kele grovel, but they found a moment to look proud?
“It’s about time you take a stand and strive for more dominance in the pack, Kele.” Her father continued to eye Susan as if she’d transformed from an insect to a sentient person before his eyes. “Though I question your motives.”
Chaska rolled off her daughter. She strolled to the cushions and crawled next to the vampire, whose smile turned to ice at her proximity. With a languid stretch, she reached over and snatched the cup from his hands. After draining the contents, she tossed it to an attendant.
The cup thudded on the carpeted floor, sending the servant to chase after it.
The bitch apparently enjoyed spreading her loving nature to all those around her. Susan wasn’t special. It almost made her want to cry. Not.
Chapter Five
Benic’s frozen smile cramped his face as Chaska settled in next to him. He sighed. If he showed any sign of annoyance, she’d only treat him worse. Inali ruled this huge pack with his intelligence, and Chaska made sure he remained dominant over everyone with her less than demure ways.
Through superior vampire armies, Benic’s people had taken over the vast lands of the wolf shifters. This grand forest reserve housed five packs. All that remained of the Iroq Nation. It was his responsibility to keep them under control. Otherwise the council would exterminate the proud race. Cat shifters were easier to manipulate with their desire for material goods. The wolves, though, were connected with their land. He hated to see such power wasted.
He ruled this forest and its surrounding lands, but years of experience had taught him good relations worked better with these packs than brute force.
Chaska had the right to take Benic’s drink if he was shifter. But he wasn’t. The bitch had done it on purpose to needle him, trying to get him to lose his temper so he’d appear weak. Vampire Lords were supposed to remain in control at all times. Instead of ripping her head off, he offered Chaska his kindest smile as if she were a simple child. He’d call her a wild beast, but she’d take it as a compliment.
As lord, he could technically cage her. Then he’d lose Inali’s friendship and his fine supply of wine. The trade-off wasn’t worth it.
Chaska lay across the cushions, her taut muscles relaxing.
Benic’s gaze traveled to Kele, sprawled on the rugs like a naughty pup. Thank God shifters didn’t all grow up to be hunters. The young female definitely had been filling out nicely over the last two or three years. With her mother’s beauty and her father’s intelligence, she’d be quite a catch.
Inali sniffed at the stranger next to his daughter and shook his head. “What exactly are you?”
The question snagged Benic’s attention like a baited hook. He leaned forward, studying the reckless female’s slim, plain face and the tangle of brown hair on her head. Dirt smudged her clothes and skin as if she’d rolled across the ground. Who was he to judge another species’ habits? His people fed off the blood of others.
“I am Dr. Susan Barlow, and I’m a human.”
Benic’s slow-beating heart squeezed painfully. “I’ve never heard of your species before, and I’ve been all over the world.” After all these centuries, nature could still surprise him with a new creature to study. He jumped up and down inside his mind, not wanting Chaska observing his excitement. She’d probably kill Susan out of spite. “Where do you come from?”
“From everyone’s reactions, I assume humans are a rarity.” She began to stand, but a low growl emitted from Inali. Kele’s hand shot out and tugged her back to the floor.
Benic swallowed his laugh. The human would receive more than a swat if she didn’t act more submissive. No one met Inali’s stare unless they were high in the pack hierarchy and no one ever stood to tower over him. The shifters would consider this human a stray, the lowest in rank, even worse than an omega. Someone without a home or pack—someone who wouldn’t be missed if killed.
“Susan, is it?” Benic offered a reassuring smile, but she cringed. “If you plan on staying with the Payami, you’ll need to be better at playing by their rules.”
Her hands clenched at her sides. “And I can’t play by the rules if no one tells them to me.”
He had wandered the world to add to his collection of blood samples and here appeared a new species, almost on his doorstep. If he was going to get a sample, he’d have to do it soon. With her attitude, she’d be dead by the end of the week.
Inali slipped his finger under her chin. “You’ve never been in contact with shifters before?”
“Never.”
“How is that possible? We populate most of these lands. Wild”—he glanced at Benic—“or otherwise occupied.” Inali sniffed her hands. Benic knew shifters tended to leave temporary scent markers in these areas. The alpha marked him every time he came to visit, warning anyone away from demanding some silly challenge. As Inali passed his nose over her right wrist, he chuckled. “Now I understand Ahote’s involvement.” He slapped the prone male shifter’s injured shoulder. “It’s always commendable to protect your interests.”
The young male sat up. A huge smile spread across his smug, idiotic face. Handsome and charismatic in a more-muscle-than-intellect way, Ahote drove Benic mad. Females threw themselves at the selfish shifter. He didn’t deserve such bounty.
Vampires cherished the few females born to their race. Their male-female ratios were even worse than the shifters’. However, most pack males would experience having a mate of their species at some point in their lives. Vampires males were lucky to even get a glimpse of one their females, let alone bed one.
Inali tapped his daughter on the head. “Kele, return to your room and teach your guest some manners.”
Without question, the alpha’s daughter snatched the human’s hand and pulled her out of the pack room. Benic didn’t miss the longing look the human gave the Apisi alpha hanging from the chains. How interesting.
He hadn’t had a chance to deal with that small pack personally. This offered so many opportunities on political, financial and personal levels. If he were a cat shifter he’d be purring.
Inali glanced at Ahote. “Get out, scamp. No more trouble tonight.” He watched the warrior saunter after the girls before returning to the comforts of the cushions. “Do you need to be so hard on Kele?” he asked his mate.
Chaska picked at the food displayed on the table next to her. “Yes, I do. She needs to learn to fight. We won’t always be around to protect her.” Chaska chewed on a piece of jerky. “Don’t misunderstand me—I’m happy she jumped me and defended that—thing. But why now? What is so important about the human that Kele would risk my wrath?”
“Maybe she’s just tired of you.” Benic grinned and didn’t care if his words hurt. He knew he was tired of her. The cruelty of fate astounded him when faced with the fact that a creature like Chaska would be gifted with a family and not him.
Inali laughed. Benic understood the alpha didn’t need to defend his mate since she was more than capable of tearing out throats. He protected her in other ways, like keeping Benic from putting her in chains.
Benic rubbed his chin as he watched Inali gesture for another wineskin. His relationship with the Payami pack was profitable, yet tentative to which alpha ruled. Benic’s life span had outlasted three Payami alphas already. A bond with Kele could be used to strengthen ties with the next generation.