Chapter 38

The wolf struggled against Basil’s hold, thrashing back and forth and nearly dislodging himself. The two men crashed into one of the leather chairs and it toppled over. The other wolves in the room pushed themselves against the wall like the blonde, Ivanna he called her, had.

Henrik, Regory, Wynn and I got out of the way. We weren’t werewolves and this wasn’t our problem. Even if, to be honest, part of me wanted to step in. The part that took in fourteen kids who had no homes when I was but a kid myself. I was not one for avoiding problems just because they are difficult.

However, stepping in now would throw the entire pack-that-wasn’t-a-pack’s dynamic off. Basil had to keep his man in control even if that meant fighting it out. To step in would make Basil look weak and he’d have to do a lot damage control.

The five that had been in the dining room eased back and took their spots once again. Declaring that they thought their alpha had this under control.

The other man, Al, punched his fists into Basil’s chest, trying to dislodge him from his hold. The move was partially successful. It knocked Basil’s hand off his throat and Al managed to slither across the floor and almost out of the stronger wolf’s grasp. It only enraged them both more.

Basil roared, a sound that tore through his human throat and hurt all the sensitive ears in the house. He grabbed Al by his shoulder and threw him. Normally, whatever. This time, bad call. Ivanna was still huddled up to the wall and suddenly found herself staring down one hundred and eighty pounds of werewolf coming at her.

Everyone in the room moved toward her, because if that didn’t do serious damage it would be pure luck. However, the only one who thought was Wynn. He threw his hands up and magic wafted through the room smelling of freshly cut grass, the way spell-caster magic always did to me.

The sheet of power slid in front of Ivanna two nanoseconds before she got clobbered. Al hit the sheet of magic and rolled to the ground, groaning. Ivanna jumped to her feet and away from the other werewolf, moving faster than one would think.

Hands grabbed her and yanked her out of the way. She shrugged them all off, saying she was fine. It was clear to me that she wanted them all to chill and move away from her. Werewolves were perceptive of body language, so they were ignoring her wishes instead of being oblivious to them.

Yet…maybe I was wrong. I could tell from the second that I saw her that the girl wasn’t some helpless creature. The wolves and my companions hadn’t been able to tell that. I wasn’t sure any of them were even aware of her tripping Al.

If she didn’t want them to know, I wasn’t about to enlighten them.

Most of the fuss died down after she had assured them, for the sixth time, that she was fine. She went back to her wall perch the second they were away from her. She had her arms crossed over her chest and her eyes were shifty.

I’d had more chaos in Seattle in the last five days than I’d had the entire year back in New Mexico.

I’d like to assume the same was true for everyone else, but none of them seemed too stressed out. Maybe the legions, but they were dealing with a kidnapped toddler. What was worse? The longer I stayed here, the more time I spent with Asire and the other Orphans, the more unsettled I became about leaving her.

Reggie was right on more levels than one when she said Asire didn’t belong here. She had been Orphaned because of rumors, unsubstantiated rumors. But also… She was so much calmer than everything around her. Reggie had a seed of rage deep in her soul. She let it peek out when it was needed, but it was always there. Henrik? There was darkness in him too. Lixa was such an angry little thing.

The wolves. The vampires. Everyone I had met refused to play by the rules that I knew from outside of Seattle. It was the oddest thing. Two seconds of driving out of the city and it felt normal. The second you set foot in? All the rules I’d lived by my entire life no longer applied.

Police didn’t care what anyone did.

Vampires did whatever they pleased.

Wolves attacked in the streets.

Annihilists could hide from us.

Yet, there was Asire. She was calm. She was collected. She didn’t let people push her around. I had little doubt that she’d break the rules if she thought she had to. While talking with her, I never got the feeling that she was dangerous, though. All the rage and violence I’d seen in everyone else… She was missing it.

So why was she forced to live here?

My pondering only lasted a couple of seconds because the doorbell rang. Ivanna hopped up and rushed to answer it. Reggie and two wolves stepped into the room. One, a girl, looked exactly like Ivanna. They embraced and then Ivanna let her sister take over from there. She hid behind her better than she did against the wall. No one noticed her next to her twin.

The other werewolf was in wolf form. He slunk into the room and plopped down next to Basil. His eyes looking up at him. Basil stiffened. He turned back to Reggie. For a second, some of the concern left his eyes. He glanced behind her and all of a sudden my murderous rage was back when the disappointment showed in his eyes.

That’s right. Basil the Bastard was into Asire.

Well, I can’t conveniently kill him now.

He shoved aside the disappointment and got to business. “What the hell happened to my wolf?” he demanded. But his anger was contained, so none of us reacted to it.

“Spell,” Reggie said. “I was assured, when we switched cars, that Loki could handle it?” She glanced at me and raised her eyebrows.

Taking the cue, I knelt down next to the wolf. He lifted his muzzle at me in warning, but I ignored it. Legion magic is a force. It made things do what they weren’t meant to do. It wasn’t gentle, but it was just as easy to break as normal magic. I unraveled my own power and let it blanket the wolf so that I could feel out what happened.

He didn’t like that. He went to get to his feet, but Basil put a hand on his head and the wolf settled down. He still showed his teeth and his chest shook like he was growling so low I couldn’t hear. I wasn’t too worried with Basil there to keep in line, though.

Besides, I could take on a wolf.

My power seeped into the animal slowly, so not to startle him. He vibrated with the need to defend himself, but he couldn’t force his body away from Basil’s.

I grimaced when I found what had been done. The force was still there. Whoever had done this was precise and cruel. They had taken the human half of the wolf and shoved it into a tiny box. I spun my power into a spear and threw it at the box that was containing the person. It sliced through the exterior and the magic imploded within the wolf.

He threw himself back, snarling and biting at air as the magic seeped out of his skin. If it had been a liquid or anything identifiable, it would have been dripping down to the floor. Instead, as it escaped his body, it flooded through the air and vanished. Unable to hold substance.

Basil grabbed his wolf by the ruff and held him in place. All the muscles in his arms were strained and his feet were planted firmly. It was the only thing that kept the beast away from my throat.

For almost three minutes, the wolf’s rage continued before the last of the magic dropped off him. He stopped clawing the carpet and his head and shoulders dropped. He whined at Basil until the man let him go, then dropped to his stomach and scooted forward until he was right in front of me.

There was no way to communicate with one of us in human form and the other in wolf form, but he did the best he could. He rolled onto his side, showing me his stomach and throat. His tail tucked up between his legs and he whined one more time, low in his throat.

Essentially: Hey, sorry I was an ass. You get a freebie.

I smirked. “Nah, man. It’s fine,” I said, getting to my feet.

Basil had his arms crossed and was watching me. I got the distinct feeling that if I had taken the shot, he would have attacked. No holds barred. Good thing I was not the kind of person who gets off on attacking someone who is defenseless. That being said, if Basil showed me his throat? Not sure what I’d do.

The wolf rolled to his feet and shook his fur out. He trotted into the kitchen, hoping for some scarps of food no doubt.

Basil stepped forward and I resisted the urge to glare. He offered me his palm. “Thanks,” he said. “I appreciate it. I promise, no more attacking you or yours.”

“Good,” Reggie said from behind me.

Since there wasn’t a graceful way to refuse his hand, I took it. Thankfully, that didn’t last long.

“Let’s go,” Reggie ordered. Then her sharp heels started marching out of the room. We all followed. I was the last because Basil and I were eying each other. Not for the same reason, I was sure. I was still thinking of clocking him and he was assessing me as a danger to him.

But still.

When Regory cleared his throat, I peeled away and left the house. Reggie’s car was parked behind Henrik’s. When we asked, she explained what happened at Debienne’s concisely. When she got to the part where Debienne admitted it was legion magic, I just nodded. After seeing the wolf? Not a surprise.

“Wynn?” I said. “Once we’re back at Asire’s, why don’t you call up Dria, Moth and Jarret and see if any of them know of a spell to disturb the one keeping us from finding Millie.”

He nodded gravely. “Already planned on doing it.”

“Good.”

“You think you might be able to do something?” Reggie asked.

I shrugged. “I don’t know. Moth and Dria know legion magic pretty well. They might be able to think of something.”

Reggie pursed her lips. Without another word, she turned on her heel and marched to her car, getting in and starting before the four of us had piled into Henrik’s. By the time we pulled away from the curb she was gone.

Gray light was still pouring through the clouds. Odd. It wasn’t even lunchtime, but it felt like hours had passed in that house.

The drive back was fairly silent. My jealousy ran out pretty quickly after leaving Basil’s. In its place? Guilt. Here I am, not wanting this girl. Then one man’s interest turns me in an imbecile. I felt like I had to apologize to Eve and Asire both, but one was dead and the other would have no idea what I was talking about.

The worst part? I could feel Regory’s eyes on me the entire way back to the Orphans’. I couldn’t tell if he was judging me or trying to figure out how to fix this himself. Surely he wouldn’t want me anywhere near the girl who was almost his sister.

It was a strange kind of relief, getting back. I didn’t have to sit in that car anymore, but I’d now have to deal with the cause of all my problems. Not that I could really blame her. She didn’t decide how she wanted to look and her personality was kind of needed for this life she lived.

We went our separate ways once we got out of the car. Wynn to go call home, Regory to check on his mate and Henrik to do whatever it was he did. Me? I had been planning on checking on the rest of my Family, but when I walked in the door through the garage, I paused. Took a deep breath. Asire had been through here, of course. And because there was something seriously wrong with me, I followed the scent.

She was at the other end of the house, in a massive laundry room. She was stuffing a bunch of towels into the dryer— and thank god for that. She noticed me a second after she closed the dryer door. “Oh. Hey…” she said. The awkwardness of it all was somehow pleasant. There is something wrong with me.

“Hey…” I said back.

“How’d dealing with the werewolves go?” she asked, turning her back on me so that she could finish her laundry.

I wished she had stayed facing me. As distracting as her front was, I couldn’t ogle her while she watched me. With her back to me? My eyes went right down the smooth shoulders and spine and to that tight ass.

It took all my control to answer her question as she grabbed a dryer sheet and threw it in. “All right, I guess,” I said. “They’re going to back off, anyway.”

“Ah, good,” she said.

After the towels were going, she dragged over a hamper full of her dirty clothes. She stuffed it all into the washer and then threw her shoes in. She was currently wearing socks. Upon seeing them, I thought of Basil in his house wearing his boots. For some reason, I felt vindicated, but then I had to ask, “Why are you washing your shoes?”

“Vampire’s had a squishy carpet.”

I grimaced.

“Yup,” she said.

She finished with the laundry and turned back to me. Her eyes skipped around for a second before landing on my face. It was tempting to think she was checking me out. Too tempting, matter of fact. Because if she was checking me out?

How was I supposed to live with myself if she wanted me half as much as I wanted her? I couldn’t betray Eve like that.

Her shoes thumped around the washer and she looked awkward standing there. I wanted to comfort her, but it was too dangerous. If I couldn’t even touch her arm, how was I supposed to sleep in the same bed with her?

I don’t recall ever feeling so helpless.