“So the moral of the story is don’t cross over to the dark side.”
Katrina leaned forward until their noses almost touched.
“No, it is not to let the beast get control. Ever.”
“You keep speaking like I have a creature living inside of me. Am I not the beast?”
“Yes, you are but the animalistic side of your nature will be more prevalent. Instinctual urges will want to dominate, but you need to be in charge of them.”
“Like what?”
“Hunger, territory, sex, and pack will affect you.”
Spice cleared her dry throat. “When you changed I could still see you in the beast’s eyes. How do you keep it under control?”
“I always stay in the forefront of its mind. Never succumbing to the lure of oblivion.”
“Oblivion? Why would you want that?”
“You have to remember, most werewolves did not choose this path. They were made against their will. The fact you volunteered for it will give you a greater advantage since you will have less inner turmoil and a purpose to your existence.” Katrina took her hands. “Let us do an exercise.”
She nodded. The noise in the shower, far below them in the basement, distracted her. Her new and improved hearing made it possible for her to hear that Sugar was doing more than just washing Daedalus’s back. She smirked until Katrina squeezed her hands.
“I want you to close your eyes and focus inward. Try to…introduce yourself.”
Crossing her legs, Spice tried to get comfortable. Meditation wasn’t on the list of things she liked to do. She closed her eyes. How did someone look inward? Roll their eyes back? Her parents always told her to quiet her mind and stop thinking, but there was no “off” button so how did—
Something prowled in the darkness.
Her eyes sprung open. “Oh, crap.”
“Don’t be afraid. Remember it’s part of you.”
“It’s a lot freakin’ bigger than me.” Her heart pitter-pattered at the thought of becoming that creature. Arnold Schwarzenegger, watch out. She took a deep breath. Nobody made her cringe without a fight. Did she always win? No, but boy did she try.
Closing her eyes, she tried to remember what she did to get past the guard dogs to escape her last place of “employment” in Vegas. She pulled out a piece of imaginary meat and set it in front of her. Not a moment later the beast appeared and sniffed at the offering, then swallowed it in one bite. Covered in pure white fur, it eyed her with her own emerald green eyes. “Cool.” It approached and rubbed against her shoulder. She ran her fingers through its soft fur before it disappeared.
The phone rang.
Her eyes snapped open again. Katrina stood, then walked to the desk and answered it. “Where?” She nodded. “We’ll be there soon. Stall them, Tyler.” With a grim expression, Katrina considered her and hung up the phone. “It’s time. I know you’re not ready. It may still be best if I challenge Clair first.”
Spice took a shaky breath. “No. It ends tonight.”
Chapter 11
If Eric ever saved enough money, he’d buy this abandoned warehouse and tear it down. Empty and worn, it symbolized his pack. The Alpha was the soul of his werewolves, but this pack didn’t reflect him. He sighed. They needed him to have a mate. She would be the heart, and then the real healing could begin.
His people, his pack.
He observed the large group as they gathered inside. Every lifestyle and race was represented in the mix of the people who mingled in front of him. They owned Chicago after all. Some chose to attend in their beast form, which he accepted. Not everyone wanted their human form to be known.
After searching throughout the night and day for Clair so that he could confront and deny her, he’d decided to draw her out instead. She wouldn’t be able to resist the opportunity to try and claim him in front of everyone. If he succumbed to her, then they’d be mated in the eyes of the pack for life. His stomach rolled at the idea. It could never happen, not with Spice in his life, but the pack would remain damaged.
Raising his arm as he stood on a dais constructed for such meetings, the room became silent. All eyes turned his way. It used to make him nervous to speak publicly. Not anymore, practice made perfect, and boy did Daedalus make him practice. He recalled his advice each time he needed to make a speech. A good leader must know how to sway his people to his way of thinking. Words are power.
“My people,” he cried out. “My pack, some concerns have been burning in my mind. The foremost is the way I keep thinking of us.” He rested his hands on his hips as he took a relaxed stance on the stage. “I don’t know if any of you do this, but I keep thinking of this pack as divided. There’s the original Ayumu, the Omegas…” He gestured to his friends standing on the dais with him, except Katrina who should be arriving soon. “And those who recently joined us in the past year.”
Most in the group nodded their heads.
“This is wrong. We should be united. A family, that’s what a pack is. When one of us falls down, we lift and support them. Do we fall upon them and rip out their throats? Are we Jackals?”
A few cries of “no” answered him. Good, at least someone listened.
“Of course not, our souls have been mixed with those of wolves. Strong predators who hunt together. Honesty, honor, and heart describe the wolf. Do they describe our pack?”
A low mumble developed among his people. It was about time he made them think.
Pacing the length of the dais, he waited a moment. “No, they don’t. Some may say those aren’t the true traits of a wolf, that wolves in their essence are vicious animals.”
Someone shouted, “Yeah.” He made note of who and would deal with them personally later.
“These characteristics come from us.” He gestured to himself. “The human part of the equation. Every time you allow your beast to consume your humanity, the less control you have over it.”
Silence blanketed the room, and his people watched him expectantly.
“As your Alpha I have decided we will no longer be known as the Omegas or as the Ayumu. We’re one pack.” He shouted the last sentence and paused as he waited for the echo of his voice to subside. “We’re Vasi. Guardians of the streets of Chicago, our territory.”
Cheers began before he finished his announcement. It warmed his heart to hear them support his idea. For a year, he wracked his brain trying to figure out what to do with his pack. Spice inspired the protector in him and brought forth this concept. They would defend the city instead of prey on it.
As the noise died down someone clapped loud three times. “Very nice, Alpha.” Clair slinked through the crowd. She wore a short red dress and a pair of matching stilettos. Her long, brown hair swayed as she made her way to the dais. “As your mate, I agree with the name change. Omegas made us sound weak, but giving us a role in what…crime fighting? I don’t think this would be a profitable venture.”
“I don’t accept you as my mate, Clair.” He crossed his arms. If he didn’t make a stand against her now, in front of everyone, then she’d slowly gain power.
“Your year is up, and I’ve won the challenges. You need a dominant female at your side. One of your own kind, not some floozy.”
His lips parted to respond, but the side door burst open and the most beautiful creature he’d ever laid eyes on stalked into the warehouse.