Psyche Moon (24 page)
Authors: Chrissie Buhr
His grey muzzle, transformed into grey hair and beard, fell in messy strands nearly to his waist. Only the color of his hair and the depth of his eyes betrayed his age. He stood motionless for a few moments before settling on the floor near the others with graceful movements. Reaching for a food container, he nodded at Billie. “Thank you for the meal, Beta. Human food tastes best in human form.” Billie canted her head in answer as Jason handed the Elder a bottle of water. She’d have heated the food for him but knew from experience that he preferred it cold. “Warm food,” he’d told her once, “is at the end of every successful hunt. Only as a human do I eat food cold, and that is something I cherish.”
“I’m glad you were nearby, old friend.” Jason spoke deferentially to the old man.
He nodded and swallowed before speaking. “I smelled unrest in the wind and have stayed close to the Pack since before the last moon.” No one understood how the Eldest Wolf knew when they needed him, but he always came.
“We need your wisdom and counsel.” Jason replied.
“Mages are among us again. You are afraid to trust your instincts.”
Bristling at the last statement, Jason did not reply, knowing the truth in the sage’s words. A truth he did not want to face. Only respect for the old man held his tongue from challenging the statement. “Nathan was turned by a Mage's pet Wolf and may be collared.” The weight of his words hit the others like a stone in the face. They all knew the outcome if the young Wolf was indeed collared. They would be forced to kill Nathan, hopefully before he killed anyone else. Each hoped it wasn’t true.
Jason let out a long breath and told the story as Nathan told him.
Richard spoke first. “Has he shown himself to be collared?
Jason shook his head. “Nothing definitive. He was forcibly bitten, so erratic behavior is to be expected.”
Billie bit her lip solemnly, remembering the first months of her new life. She’d have killed someone if not for the guidance of the Pack. By sheer luck Kathryn had found her and brought her home before she caused any real harm. “I’ll work with him. I’ll keep my nose up for any signs of Mage coersion while I’m at it.” The word still stung when she said it. Her mate was a Mage, and she loved and trusted Sadie. Yet she still spoke of Mages as the enemy and the dichotomy of it brought up conflict within her.
Richard noticed her difficulty. “Is this something you can do right now, Billie?” Even the air in the room stilled as he questioned his Beta’s ability. “Now that you know your mate is a Mage, do you trust your judgment with this situation?”
Billie growled low, the human hairs on her neck rising. She fought the urge to challenge him for questioning her ability and for speaking of Sadie with contempt. She could take him easily, but the fight would enhance the conflict rather than ease it. Instead she responded icily. “I think the better question is do you trust my judgment?”
Richard spoke softly, almost apologetically. “I don’t know, my friend. I want to, but I can’t banish the memories. I’ve seen what they can do.” Richard’s world had once crumbled under the shoe of a Mage. Nearly his entire pack, including his mate, had been killed by a collared Wolf. The memories still haunted him.
“You know Sadie, and you used to like her. You haven’t even spoken her name since we found out she’s a Mage. Even she didn’t know.” Billie spoke in an even tone, emotions flat. Only seven days ago she’d killed two teenage boys and watched her mate kill seven more. She’d discovered the love of her life belonged to a race that Wolves had called enemies for as long as anyone could remember. Her mate’s kin had enslaved and murdered countless Wolves over the centuries. She didn’t need Richard to remind her how complicated her relationship had become. She’d thought of little else since the discovery.
“Mages can’t be trusted.” Richard replied.
Billie’s tenuous emotional thread began to wear thin. Exasperation mixed with anger bled into her tone, and her jaw tensed. “Her name is Sadie. She is my mate, and I trust her.”
Billie, are you okay?
Sadie’s concerned voice threaded across her mind.
I’m okay, love. But I can’t talk right now. Elder Meeting.
Sadie’s voice receded with a mental kiss.
The others noticed their exchange in the way that all Wolves could sense mental contact. Only Billie could communicate directly with Sadie, and none could explain why or remember that ever happening before. Richard’s eyes widened at Sadie's sudden presence in the meeting. Jason’s breathing deepened, and he tensed slightly. Kathryn lowered her eyes in thought but gave no indication as to what she thought. Kato peered curiously at the Wolves surrounding him, eyes bright and clear, absorbing the entire situation with silent interest.
“We can’t even have an Elder Meeting without her. Am I the only one concerned about our safety?” Richard blurted.
“Of course I’m concerned.” Jason interrupted with a growl. “Don’t forget she saved Billie’s life and prevented a confrontation with humans. I don’t know whether to trust her or not, but I made a promise. I will not break it. So long as she does not harm the Pack or coerce Billie she lives.”
“She won’t harm us.” Billie spat the words she’d been repeating for a week. “She felt my distress and asked if I was okay. She was worried about me. I told her I’m in a meeting and can’t talk right now. That’s it.”
Richard stood and began to pace, looking like a cornered animal ready to snap at the first creature to come near. “I don’t like the idea of her knowing Pack business. I say we do not tell her about the Mage problem or any of our concerns about Nathan.”
“She could help.” Billie’s eyebrows rose, her one hope for Nathan's situation dissolving in front of her. Only Sadie could ascertain whether or not another Mage had any hold over Nathan. "One peek and she could tell us if Nathan's collared. We need to know."
“No.” Jason answered with swift determination. “I agree with Richard. Keep all of this from her, and keep her away from Nathan entirely. Warn her away from this information, however that’s done between you two. She’s not to know Pack business.”
"She is my mate. That makes her one of the Pack." Billie argued.
"By tradition we have granted that to Humans. She is not human." Richard replied vehemently.
Kato continued to watch with amusement. Billie turned to him, her bright green eyes pleading for help. "Kato, Eldest. What do you say?"
His brown gaze softened in affection towards her before addressing the group as a whole. “You are afraid to trust your instincts.”
“I’m afraid of losing another mate.” Richard stated bluntly.
Billie’s body relaxed and her shoulders dropped minutely. The Elders knew her postures and stilled while Jason readied himself. Their Beta didn't tense before a fight, she relaxed. Only those who didn't know her were deceived. Billie's voice deepened into a growl. “You would risk the safety of my mate? Your fears are in the past, Richard. I’m interested in today. Sadie is in just as much danger as the rest of us, possibly more. She’s Pack now. She’s one of us, and we don’t know what other Mages would do to her because of that. If you won’t let her help, at least let me warn her.”
“Out of the question. We can’t trust her.”
Kathryn patted his leg and spoke for the first time, her voice carrying confidence and serenity. “I trust Billie. Billie trusts Sadie. That’s enough for me.”
Silence filled the room, thick and palpable. No Elder Meeting had ever been this divided. Conflict had always existed towards something or someone else and they came together to resolve it together. They’d disagreed many times, but they’d never been divided.
“Thank you, Kathryn.” Billie spoke first, emotion thick with gratitude towards her friend. “I believe wholeheartedly that Sadie can help us with Nathan. She is our best chance at discovering what the Mages are up to and fighting them.”
“No.” Jason and Richard spoke in unison.
“I agree with Billie.” Kathryn voted.
All eyes turned to Kato to break the stalemate. He remained thoughtful for several long moments, searching the faces around him. He sniffed the air and cocked his head before speaking. “You want wisdom and guidance but do not ask for it. I offer it anyway. Trust your instincts.” With a shimmer, he changed into the silver tip wolf, and without a glance backwards, he left.
The others watched him duck through the doggie door, shocked by his abrupt exit. By tradition, the Elders advised and although the Alpha could choose the course he or she believed best, Jason usually acted on the majority opinion of the Elders. With a stalemate, Jason became the tie-breaker.
“That was unusually obscure, even for Kato.” Jason commented. He spoke to Billie, “Work with Nathan, and keep all of this from Sadie. I know she’s your mate, but she is still a Mage. She does not belong in Pack affairs.”
“I do not agree, but I’ll do as you say.” Billie replied formally.
Jason, concerned by her formality, simply nodded his acknowledgement. Speaking to both Kathryn and Billie, he turned the conversation back to the new Wolf. “Come to John’s house before dusk. We’re taking Nathan for his first run.”
We agreed. They’d need several strong Wolves to control him if he panicked during his first shift. Not if ... when he panicked. What Kathryn lacked in strength she made up for in her ability to breathe calm into any distressed creature. Without her it would be a very long night.
The meeting ended. Billie said goodbye to her friends, her packmates – the people she trusted and loved most in the world second to Sadie. The only thing stronger than a packbond was a matebond, and her own instincts told her to put Sadie ahead of even her Pack. She would follow her Alpha’s orders, but she didn’t like the distrustful and aggressive attitude towards her mate. She could feel the wall rising between them, and she didn’t know how to dissolve it.
Look for the rest of Psyche Honor at your local online retailers early 2014.
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