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“Because I don’t usually comment about things I like or dislike.” The older man at the end of the table agreed with Lica. Even going so far as to say that his word was his bond, too. And everyone knew it. “Thank you, Mr. Bates. That means a great deal to me.”
No more was said about her employees, and she dug into her meal. Suddenly hungry, she tasted the mashed potatoes and moaned. They were the best thing she’d eaten in a very long time. But then Lica stiffened up and dropped his fork in his mashed potatoes and gravy, which splattered all over her face. She turned to look at him, and that’s when she realized that he was staring at her.
“What?” The older man laughed as did both the women. She didn’t so much as glance in their direction when one of the many Frazier men asked Lica if she was the one. With his nod, she spoke again. “Am I the one what?”
There wasn’t any chance for her to get an answer when the front door to the house exploded open. Every person at the table stood up, and she was shoved to the back of the men. Making her way to the front again, she asked what was going on. It was then that she saw a young man with a gun in his belt with two other men who looked like they’d been out trick or treating and hadn’t changed.
“What do we have here? A party for the retiree.” She didn’t know what that meant, so she kept her mouth shut. But Lica asked the man what he wanted. “Didn’t you hear? Bates is retiring? He’s put it out there that he’s not going to be our big bad alpha anymore. Isn’t that what this little get-together is about? The retiring alpha?”
“Lincoln?” The man at the other end of the table said that is why he was here. “To retire? Or something else?”
“To see if you’d take over the job.” The man with the gun laughed. “I should have known word would get out faster than I could talk to you.”
“What you got here, Lica? A bit of pussy?” Her nerves already shot had Brandy punching the man in the face, completely forgetting about the gun. “What the fuck was that for?”
Brandy punched him again, this time knocking him back a foot. He reached for his gun, and Brandy felt the air around her tighten, like right before lightning struck close to you. Not turning around, she took a step back and felt Lica put his hand on her back.
“You’ll have respect in this house. Now, I’ve told you once and hit you twice. I don’t want to hear another remark like that out of your mouth while you’re in this house. Do you understand me?” She had no idea where all this bravo was coming from, but she knew that if she backed down now, he’d eat her alive. “I asked you if you understood me.”
“Listen here, you fucking cunt.” This time, she slapped him. The extra strength that she suddenly had was enough to knock him into the two men behind him and onto the floor. He was shaking his head when she finally turned to look behind her. Then she turned to face the men still on the floor.
“Lica…I’m assuming that he’s Lincoln?” He nodded at her. “Yes, I remember now. I’m assuming since he offered you to be the alpha that you’re someone that could…are those wolves behind me your brothers?”
“Yes. They’re there to protect you.” She nodded, then looked at him again. “You’re doing just fine, Brandy. I’m here if you need me, but I’m thinking you have this.”
“All right.” The man got up, and he lunged at her like a child would do to make you flinch. She didn’t. Sort of afraid if she did something like that, the wolves behind her would think she was…well, she didn’t know what they’d think, actually. “The next time that I have to remind you of your manners or the lack of them, I’m going to…I’m going to remove your hand. If you think I’m kidding, then you’re going to be—Lica, he’s a wolf too, I’m guessing. If you think I’m kidding you, then you’re going to be one paw-less wolf.”
Before she could figure out what the hell was wrong with her, taunting a man with a gun, she turned her back on him and made her way to the kitchen. She was going in there to be sick, her belly not cooperating with all this going on one bit. Getting herself a glass of water, she was drinking it down when the man and his two idiot friends came into the kitchen with Lica and his brother wolves. The other three, Brogan, Lincoln, and his wife Judy, were the last to join them.
“I’ve had enough of your bullshit, woman. When I take this pack over, the first thing I’m going to do is make an example out of you.” Lica growled, and she saw his own wolf race over his face and arms. For whatever reason, she was going to blame it on the insanity of herself; she knew that if he did shift, then there would be carnage like never seen before. She told him she wasn’t afraid of him. “You should be. Have you ever been bitten by a wolf? I’m going to tear you apart, piece by little piece. Then, when I’m finished with you, I’m going to let any male around have at you.”
“If you tear me to little pieces, how will anyone…you know what? Never mind. I don’t care. Would you like to know why? Because you’re not going to do a thing to me.” She picked up the large clever that was on the table and told him to put his hand on the chopping block. When she was finished here, she was going to have her head examined. There was something very wrong with her. “Put your hand right here. I have warned you.”
He did it all the while laughing. This was the most surreal thing she’d ever done. When he laughed at her, telling her that he was going to enjoy killing her, she picked up the clever and cut his hand off at the wrist. Just brought the blade down with a hard swing like she’d done this a million times.
It wasn’t real, she told herself. Not a bit of what was happening was real. Until the screams started. Then she knew that there really was something wrong with her. She’d just chopped a man’s hand off for threatening to kill her.
~*~
Lica didn’t move from his stance beside Brandy. He wasn’t touching her, knowing on some level if he did, she’d fall apart. His brothers, all of them men now and dressed, were waiting for the police to show up. Brandy hadn’t said a word in the last twenty minutes, and he was beginning to worry about her.
“Lica, did you call my parents? They must be worried that I didn’t show up for dinner.” He told Brandy that he’d called and that he had spoken to her father. “He’ll be worried. I don’t usually show up late to have dinner with them.”
“They’re on their way here. My grannie is going to talk to them when they arrive. Do you need anything?” Brandy said she was all right, and he nodded. “I have some whiskey in the cabinet that we use to make fruit cakes. I don’t care for it but we make some to sell for some extra cash after Thanksgiving.”
“I think you’re supposed to make it with rum. Or bourbon. Not whiskey. I don’t care for it either, but my dad loves it. You’ll have to let him have some when he’s here. Do you think that I’m going to prison?” He told her, for the eighth time, that she wasn’t going to go to prison. “Thank you for that. But I believe that I killed that man.”
“You didn’t kill him. I swear to it. He’s out there licking his wounds now that he’s shifted and has healed up. Remember? I took a bit of his blood?” She nodded and said that she had too. “Yes. You did. You need to know when he’s around.”
“Yes. He’ll come after me now, won’t he?” He said he’d never get past him. “You said that before. I don’t know why I believe you, but I do. Just…I don’t want any of you to get hurt. Did you call my parents?”
Officer Billings came in the back door. It put him right in the middle of everything that was going on, but he was as calm as he had ever been. It was Lincoln that spoke quietly to him about what had happened. He told the officer that Brandy had warned him three times about him disrespecting her house.
“One thing that I’ve learned in all my years as an officer was not to disrespect a household when you’ve come uninvited. Having dinner, were you?” Lica hated to admit it, but he was proud of his human mate. He didn’t want her, but he was proud of her. “Ms. Brandy, can you tell me what happened here today?”
When Brandy started talking, he stepped back out of her way to let her get it off her chest. If she didn’t get to talk, he knew that it would haunt her for the rest of her life at what she’d done. She didn’t kill the punk, David James, but he would never heal from the missing paw until he told her, honestly, how sorry he was. The alpha bitch had wounded him.
“I did warn him not to talk like that. We were having a nice dinner until he broke the front door and came in with his two friends. I didn’t know if you were told or not, but he had a gun in his belt.” Brandy spoke about what happened like she was giving testimony in a court of law. When she looked at him, he had to ask what was being said as he was mesmerized by her calmness. “Lica, he wants to know if you have anything to say.”
