Chapter 30: 30: Luther
“I’ve gathered you all here today to discuss the attack and the lives we lost,” I begin, looking down from the top of the stairs at my pack gathered in the lobby. My pinstripe suit chafes my skin; I should be naked with my mate, but I had to send her away for this. She didn't need to be overwhelmed by the sheer size of the pack. Over five hundred werewolves look up at me, some of them crying, some of them angry.
“Heather, though her body was never found, will be remembered by us all as the brave and kind wolf that grew up next to most of us. She and I were meant to mate before the Dark Moon pack interfered, and then I met my fated mate. I will always regret the pain I caused her, and now, with her lost, I know I can never be forgiven.
“The Loss of Carter Richards will shake this city in a way I hoped never to see. As his daughter's mate and fiancée, I will do everything I can to prevent Seattle from financial collapse and ensure no jobs are affected by his absence. Please be understanding of my mate as she deals with the loss of her father and the idea of becoming a werewolf without her consent.”
I try to ignore the snicker from Bane standing behind me when I call Chrissy my fiancée, but I fail. I feel like im going to have to take this wolf outside and kick his blatantly rude ass. I smile at the crowd and turn to glare at Bane, running my thumb over my neck as I nod and smile at him.
The look of terror is worth everything. He starts backing away with his hands up, but also a shit-eating grin on his face. We are going to run each other into the ground, and he is going to love every minute of it. Punishment is like a game to him, because his favorite thing to do is fight, even if it isn’t to the death. Sometimes I wonder if he does it just to get me to spar with him when I’m otherwise distracted.
“Boss, has anyone figured out how they got in?” Someone in the crowd asks.
I wince, because I’m not sure, but with Heather’s body missing, there is little room to doubt. We found her room destroyed and bloody, the clothes she was wearing shredded by a wolf. So either they took her, or she staged her death to betray us.
“The investigation on that is active, and we will not fail to find whoever betrayed us,” I say plainly. Trying to keep it as general as possible. “For now, go about life as usual. This has not crippled us; it has made us stronger as a pack!” A cheer goes up as I make my way to the back doors of the hotel.
Every once in a while i make sure that Bane is following and that he can see the murderous look on my face.
This is going to be so fun.
Once in the alley, we strip our clothes, both of us smiling because we know what's about to happen. It's been a while since we needed to go all out and rock each other's worlds, but now is the perfect time to get together and kiss his mother fucking ass.
“You ready, fucker?” I ask as I pull the manhole cover off and set it aside.
“Never been more ready, boss!” He says, jumping in place and shaking out his hands.
“I grin and jump into the hole, shifting as I go and landing on all four feet.
“Show off!” Bane shouts. He jumps in, trying to do the same move, but fails, and his giant black wolf ends halfway in and halfway out.
I start barking wildly and spin in place, laughing at him as he hears their growling. “Youll have to shift again! Moon above i pray someone is watching this and gets a picture.”
Yellow eyes flash to me with mock murderous intent before he shifts back and forth so quickly I almost don't see it, until his wolf is lying on its back in a foot of waste water.
“Run,” I bark at him, bowing my front half and wagging my tail excitedly.
I swear I hear the song Seperate Ways by Daughtry in my head as I begin the chase. Bane has always been faster than me, which always makes me work harder for the attack. He takes off in a spash of water, and I leap after him. The twists and turns in the sewers have me jumping and leaping off walls. I dodge rats, leap over gaps, and soar around corners.
By the time we get to the exit, Bane is panting, but I am only just beginning.
We leap out of the sewer's side by side and fall 10 feet into the runoff below. Bane wastes no time; he swims immediately for the shore and takes off into the woods as fast as lightning.
I have to cackle because he is so predictable. He will tire himself out, and I’ll catch him and beat him to smithereens because he wasted all his energy on the run. It isnt long before I lose his tracks, which can only mean one thing. He’s switched to hiding.
Big mistake, now I get to track and hunt.
I lower my nose to the ground and sniff, following his scent in the air and in the earth. He jumped, but where? I look around at the trees, rocks, and foliage, trying to find the easiest and noiseless way to escape my sight without me noticing.
There, at the top of the bushes, I see the slightest amount of a fallen tree. Leaping on faith alone, I soar over the bushes and run up the fallen tree trunk until I find Bane in a clearing, pacing.
When he sees me, he throws his head back and howls in excitement. He crouches down, preparing to fight as I jump into the clearing. We circle each other at the edge of the clearing, snapping and growling and barking at each other.
This is going to be so fun.
I attack, leaping at him sideways and catching him off guard. We roll into the bushes and start snapping and biting at each other's throats. I manage to grab him by the scruff while he’s on his side, and I drag him back to the clearing and throw him across it through the air.
Actual laughter comes from where I threw him, “You fucker you threw my ass back to a human!” he laughs, fighting his way out of the bushes and getting himself all scratched up in the process.
Instead of shifting again, Bane grins at me wildly through his long black hair and lunges, wrapping his arms around my neck and swinging onto my back. “Buck me off, man! Let's go!”
Furious, I thrash and try to bite his feet, but he’s fast; this is a new tactic. Never before has he tried to fight me in his human form, so I was caught off guard. I roll, hoping to crush his brazen ass, but he jumps out of the way just in time.
He’s coming at me again when we smell it.
Another wolf is here, and it’s one we know.
We turn in unison to find Heather, in her speckled gray coat, stalking out of the bushes with her head held high. “You’re not supposed to be alive!”