Pinemoor, Here We Come?
Theodore was still strong as he fought against his restraints. Ryder got up and rolled Theodore over, placing one foot on his chest. “Dare make one wrong move, alpha,” he warned the prisoner.
The ice-like eyes watched him with wariness. But there was a cunning animal lurking just beneath the surface, and Ryder had to admit that Jack had a point. Theodore could simply refuse to help them, even though he might be interested in finding Cassandra, the destroyer of his pack, and exacting his revenge.
“I do not believe a word that comes out of your lying mouths,” Theodore growled at them. “This clairvoyant has no capacity to see the future. The light of knowledge is weak in him.”
“Hey,” Jack protested, “I’m going to take that personally, I swear. Come on, wouldn’t you like to sink your fangs into that witch?” He spoke like he was goading a kid into swallowing bitter medicine.
Ryder shook his head. Jack had proven to be quite an excellent clairvoyant and Theodore’s appraisal was off the mark concerning the young fortuneteller.
“You are lying, trying to recruit me for your foul plans,” Theodore growled. If he was in pain over having his members restrained, he didn’t show it. He was an alpha through and through, and Ryder had to admit that even among wolves, Theodore was strong.
Jack came near. He threw Ryder a questioning look, and once he received the expected nod of approval, he knelt by Theodore’s side. He chose one of the cards, one that showed half the moon in darkness and shoved it right under Theodore’s nose.
“If you think I’m talking out of my ass, please, do tell, what do you think this means?”
Vince was right behind Jack, looking ready to intervene in case Theodore tried to hurt the clairvoyant. Ryder couldn’t help noticing how Vince had accepted his role as protector of Jack, and, in the past, for Danny, too. Danny would no longer need his friend to do that because now he had his fated mate to protect him.
For as long as his pack existed which, according to Jack’s cards, might not be very long.
Theodore tried to look away from Jack’s cards, as the clairvoyant kept pushing them at him. Ryder could understand an alpha’s pride, but they didn’t have time to indulge it now.
“You were convinced you had to kill Cassandra when you threw me off the top of that building. Are you backing down now, like a coward?”
Theodore’s eyes flashed in anger at him. Ryder was well aware that he was pressing on an old wound that would never completely close, but his pack’s survival was at stake.
“Untie me, and I will destroy you,” Theodore growled at him. His eyes moved around the room. “Who hit me over the head?”
Ryder moved to protect Danny, but it looked like his mate had a mind of his own and very much liked to use it.
“That was me,” Danny said, putting a hesitant hand up. “So sorry about that. But you were killing Ryder, and that was a pretty convincing argument at the time to give up on my pacifistic views.”
“What sort of weapon did you use?” Theodore asked, ignoring Ryder who was still trying to obstruct his line of sight to Danny.
Danny let out a short, embarrassed laugh and scratched the back of his head. “My toaster. It’s made of stainless steel, if that helps.”
“A toaster?” Theodore growled. “Was a toaster enough to bring down an alpha? You are lying!”
“A toaster?” Vince and Jack both echoed at the same time, something that earned them a venomous look from Theodore.
“No, I’m not,” Danny defended himself. “I didn’t think it would work, either, but I believe you were in pretty bad shape since Vince had already gotten you with that alpha-killing boomerang.”
Theodore’s anger seemed to direct itself at Vince now, but Danny’s best friend appeared unimpressed by the daggers being thrown at him.
“I have an idea,” Jack said brightly. “Danny could smack Theodore over the head with the toaster again, with all of us as witnesses. That might convince this asshole.”
“Who are you calling an asshole?” Theodore growled, expressing his impotence and anger at it.
“Aren’t you tired of repeating yourself?” Jack chided him. “And you are an asshole. Stop denying it. You basically own half the city--”
“Eighty-seven percent,” Theodore corrected him.
“What?!” Jack shook his head in disbelief. “Hit him, Danny, hit him right now. Show this bastard a nice right swing. Or left. Whichever works for you.”
“I’m sorry, Jack, but I won’t do it. I’m afraid I’ll hurt him,” Danny said, in his usual honest way. “It was only in the heat of the moment that I did it in the first place.”
Jack appeared dissatisfied with Danny’s answer, but his mood improved again in the blink of an eye. “Give it to me then,” he said, opening his palm, while stashing his cards underneath one arm. “I’ll hit him.”
“No,” Danny said, along with Vince, who appeared to share some of his friend’s pacifistic views. “Mr. Pembroke, I know we are asking a pretty big thing of you, but this Cassandra character might very well continue to kill wolf packs right and left. If she has already destroyed your pack, as I have come to understand, what makes you believe that she doesn’t plan on finishing you off as well?”
Ryder watched Danny, feeling proud of having a mate with such excellent skills of persuasion. Theodore’s resolve would waver now.
“Who are you, human?” Theodore growled at Danny.
“My name is Daniel Wilson, I work as a clerk in a store selling clothes--”
“Not what I asked,” Theodore barked, showing more of his beast than he must have intended. “You hurt me, which means you are no ordinary human.”
“Ah, well,” Danny stammered, “I must apologize for hitting you, but--”
“Who are you, human?” Theodore boomed, loud enough to startled Jack and Vince, too, along with Danny.
“He is my mate,” Ryder intervened, gripping Danny by the shoulders.
“Humans don’t mate with wolves,” Theodore threw at them. But, in his eyes, Ryder could read the truth. The only explanation the powerful alpha would accept was the truth: Danny was no ordinary human, indeed.
“This one does,” Jack said promptly. “The cards showed it from the start, but boy, you alpha boys are really hard to convince. Do you want me to tell your future, Theo?”
“Theo?” Theodore choked on his anger. “Who do you think you are, clairvoyant?”
Jack moved the cards around, holding them in one palm. “I think I’m the guy who’s going to tell you that the only way for you to get out of here is to play nice and join us in our witch hunt. Ugh, that came out wrong. Anyway, I’m sure the cards will tell me that you must kill Cassandra, and since you seem like the type who enjoys this whole mumbo-jumbo thing, I’ll have to lay down the cards for you.”
“I’m afraid you’re going to be spending a lot of time on your belly, the way you are now, if you don’t let Jack read the cards for you,” Vince said, resting his hands on Jack’s shoulders.
“Do what you want,” Theodore said, his voice a lot more subdued.
“Yes, win,” Jack said, grinning like a cat.
***
Danny had to admit that he was beyond curious about Jack’s gift. In the span of less than a day, he had learned that wolfshifters were real, that, apparently, he was Ryder’s mate – which meant all sorts of things, many of them capable of making him blush – and that there were clairvoyants in the world, Jack being one of them.
They all watched Jack carefully shuffle and arrange the cards on the floor and then flip them over with a flourish, frowning, and pursing his lips. Whatever was written there, the city clairvoyant – as Ryder preferred to call Jack – was hesitant to disclose.
“Do I need to remind you that we are pressed for time, Jack?” Ryder warned the clairvoyant with a low growl.
“No, no, it’s just that the cards can be a bit silly at times. Anyways,” Jack said, clapping his hands, “it’s all here. Theo, pay attention.”
“Stop calling me Theo. It’s Mr. Pembroke to you,” the alpha said in a threatening voice.
“I’m not polite like Danny,” Jack shot back. “Someone like you, who owns the entire city, needs to be brought down a peg or two.”
Theodore’s nostrils flared. “And you think you’re the one to do that, puny clairvoyant?”
“Obviously,” Jack replied brightly. “Anyway, on a need-to-know basis, you’ll be glad to learn that the cards say you can rebuild your pack.”
Theodore seemed to forget all about being a nasty alpha, because he stilled, watching Jack with hopeful eyes. It lasted only for a moment. The next, he was back to being his usual unpleasant self.
“Lies,” he spat.
Jack shrugged. “The cards don’t lie, just like the hips. Gosh, you’re such a hardass you can’t even take a joke? Anyways, what you must do is come with us to Pinemoor.”
“An alpha doesn’t step in another alpha’s territory without getting ready for war,” Theodore said in a somber voice.
“No war,” Jack said. “Ryder, a bit of help here, please?” The clairvoyant turned his pleading eyes to Ryder.
“I accept your presence at Pinemoor,” Ryder declared solemnly. “The Luna Sentinels welcome you, alpha.”
Jack sighed in relief. “Great, now that’s out of the way, let’s synchronize our watches. Pinemoor, here we come?”
“Why the question mark?” Danny asked, his eyes moving to his destroyed window.
“Um, maybe because I don’t know what plane will take us there?” Jack offered the unexpected explanation.
“How did you get here, Ryder?” Danny asked. “Is it very far?”
The idea of all of them getting tickets to go to Pinemoor by plane seemed a bit ludicrous, given the circumstances. They’d have to keep an eye on Theodore, which would be difficult to do, especially if they didn’t manage to get seats close to each other. Also, was Pinemoor big enough to have an airport? It seemed unlikely.
“It is far. An alpha can rush through forests and rivers, cutting a clear path for himself. But that isn’t possible, given our current circumstances,” Ryder said.
Danny tried to hide how sad that made him. “You must go with Theodore then. The rest of us can wait here. Unless you need Jack with you, of course.”
“I will not leave this place without you,” Ryder said fiercely.
Danny doubted he had words to express how happy that made him. But they had to be practical.
“Are you people forgetting who I am?” Theodore hissed. “Release me, and we will take one of my aircraft.”
“Of course, he has aircraft,” Jack said, opening his arms wide. “Don’t tell me you even know how to fly such things.”
“Of course, I do know how to fly such things,” Theodore shot back.
For some reason, Danny couldn’t stop thinking that the banter between the dangerous alpha and the plucky clairvoyant was quite entertaining. What was he thinking now? They needed a proper plan, and putting all their lives in Theodore’s hands seemed like a bad idea.
Ryder put a stop to his worried thoughts by pulling Theodore up and cutting all the ties restraining him. “Take us to your aircraft. We must not postpone this one moment more. Cassandra might very well be expecting us, since she can foretell the future.”
“Unless she’s busy doing something else,” Jack intervened. “It’s not like she’s playing with her crystal ball all the time, right? Or with her cards?”
“That is the only thing I ever saw her doing,” Ryder replied.
“Goddammit,” Jack cursed under his breath. “I so hate overachievers. Ryder, tell me again how good I am at this clairvoyant thing.”
“We don’t have time for your whining,” Theodore warned, cutting Jack’s words short.
“You are very good at being a clairvoyant, Jack,” Danny said, taking Jack by the shoulder to offer him reassurance.
Theodore made them both yelp by moving to their side. “You will answer for your deeds, clairvoyant. And you will disclose the secret you hold close to your chest.”
“I’m not hiding anything,” Jack protested.
Even Danny, who wasn’t as astute as a wolfshifter by far, saw it was evident that Jack was, indeed, hiding something. So, as soon as Theodore moved away, he caught Jack’s hand and whispered in his ear, “What you’re hiding is nothing bad, I hope, Jack? Is it?”
“No, just weird as fuck,” Jack replied. “Wait until Vince hears about it.”
“What is it?” Danny insisted.
Jack waved him off. “I can’t tell you right now. And the cards can change at any moment. I’ve seen it happen before, when Ryder was supposed to die by trying to mate with Theodore. There’s no sign of that now. That Cassandra witch is our main problem. What comes after we deal with her, well, we’ll see.”
“So, Pinemoor, here we come!” Danny exclaimed in a warm voice.
Ryder took him by the shoulders. “You will meet my pack, mate.” He had the most beautiful smile on his face, and Danny thought he was in danger of falling for this wolfshifter for a second time, if such things were even possible to begin with.
He threw one last look around his small apartment. The broken window was a big problem, but it would have to wait for his return.
Would he ever return? He looked at Ryder with eyes full of love. They were still in danger, Ryder’s pack and everyone else. Supposedly, getting caught in a war involving wolfshifters and a witch clairvoyant had to be a good enough excuse to skip work and not pay his rent on time, along with the expenses for the damages.
***
The sleek aircraft resting in the field spelled money with a capital M. Danny couldn’t remember ever seeing such a thing from up close. It was nothing like the planes destined for commercial airlines, but it was big enough to hold all of them. Since Theodore was capable of piloting it, they didn’t need an extra person with them, something that would have been a terrible inconvenience.
“Are you kidding me?” Jack moaned, once they were close enough to board the plane.
“What’s the problem?” Theodore hissed at the young clairvoyant.
“You’re practically advertising that we’re coming,” Jack said. He pointed at the Pembroke Industries name and logo, painted on the side of the aircraft.
“Cassandra will know we are coming anyway,” Ryder said. “She has her cards and crystal ball.”
“Yeah, I know, but still,” Jack commented. “This guy’s such a showoff. I can’t believe we have to kiss him.”
“What?” Danny asked.
Theodore had chosen to ignore the rest of them and he was already inside with Ryder close on his tail.
“Don’t ask,” Jack said, waving one arm quickly. “Let’s get to Pinemoor and be ready to smack some sense into some witches.”
“Is there more than one?” Danny asked, frightened by the possibility. A single clairvoyant had appeared capable of destroying Theodore’s pack in its entirety. An entire coven of such powerful beings would be many times more dangerous.
“Supposedly not. But I refuse to think that she’s working alone,” Jack said.
That did nothing to help soothe Danny’s nerves. Would Ryder be okay? His pack, too? Ever since he’d met Ryder, his life had been a whirlwind, and now they were heading toward danger.
He was Ryder’s mate, Danny told himself as a means of encouragement. He would have to prove he deserved the role fate had given him.
***
Now that he no longer wished to kill Ryder, Theodore seemed calm and focused. At Jack’s insistence, Ryder had agreed to keep an eye on their pilot, so he was sitting next to Theodore in the cockpit. From time to time, he stole a glance at Danny behind him. The bond between them existed even before they had properly mated. How could he have been such a fool as to not understand it? Fate was powerful. He had only believed in the wrong version of it, manipulated as he had been by Cassandra.
“I will kill her,” Theodore announced. “But afterward, I want nothing to do with your pack, your mate, or you.”
“As you wish,” Ryder replied stiffly. “A wolf without a pack--”
“There’s no need for you to remind me of my fate.”
“You are welcome to join us.” Ryder didn’t care how thoroughly Theodore intended to be on his own. He would say what he meant to say, and allow the other to make his choice.
“Are you relinquishing your pack to me, alpha?” Theodore took his eyes off the controls for a moment and threw Ryder a wolfish grin that fitted him to a tee.
“You know that’s impossible.”
“Of course.” Theodore scoffed and focused on piloting the plane. “I should have killed you when I had the chance. Then I might have taken your pack, left without an alpha.”
“You are so full of… nonsense,” Jack intervened in their conversation. It looked like the clairvoyant couldn’t stay in one place. Ryder assumed he might be nervous about the flight, the impending confrontation and, most likely, even Theodore. Jack had every right to feel that way. A lot was resting on his shoulders, too.
“What do you mean?” Ryder asked, when Theodore ignored the clairvoyant.
“Theo here is going to rebuild his pack. The cards say so.”
“I do not trust a word leaving your mouth,” Theodore replied. “And stop calling me that grating nickname. I have never had my name shortened in my life.”
“I bet,” Jack said, rolling his eyes. “Anyway, we’re close, right?”
Ryder observed his clairvoyant friend. “Can you feel her power?”
“Yeah,” Jack admitted in a faint whisper. “And it’s bad.”
TBC
@Derek - and you guessed right about Theodore :) Not only willing, but he's really into it now (despite being really pissed at the whole gang) And Mark was right on the money with his reply to you that no two alpha can have the same pack. I have it all figured out, guys, trust me :D
@Mark Mortland - you're so right about Theodore. Ryder understands his pain, since they're both wolves and alphas. That's why - *whispers quietly - someone needs a sequel, te-he-he... That bareback scene will happen, only not right away.
@DavidB - he-he, that's easy - two are finished! (So they're only being posted per the usual schedule)
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