“The stronger male has the right to take any female he wants,” Jerrold growled. “If he can win her, he owns her. That’s how we eliminate the weak from the breeding pool.” Herbert, Maurice and Juliette looked at him with contempt. Oscar stood back with a frown, giving nothing away. Sylvester, Minnie and Phineas nodded their approval. They were old-school, each over a hundred years old, and their mores had never evolved with the times. Minnie still dressed like it was pioneer days and thought that women who revealed their ankles were hussies.
It was going to be a long couple of weeks.
“I stand in for Alvin,” Cliff said coldly. “Let’s get this party started.”
“Aww, no! That’s not fair!” Junior whined. He looked anxiously at Jerrold. “You’re not going to let him, are you?”
“You’re standing in for this weakling?” Jerrold looked at Cliff with contempt. “No wonder your pack is full of rejects and losers. When I’m Alpha, I’ll get rid of the trash and make this pack something to be proud of.”
“Well? I’m waiting,” Cliff said, and started to unbutton his shirt. “What’s the matter – you shy?”
Junior took a step back, looking alarmed. He tried to take another step back, but bumped into Truman, who snarled, making Junior flinch.
“But I can’t!” he whined. Then he flashed a fearful look at Jerrold, who had now focused his contemptuous glower on him instead of Cliff. “I mean… I’m not… Why don’t we wait until after the Alpha Trials are over?”
“Spoken like a cowardly little pussy,” Cliff said scornfully, throwing the words out as a challenge. “If you’re too scared to fight, just say so.”
Junior glared at him with hatred, but tilted his neck to the side in surrender. He mumbled something under his breath.
A crowd had gathered now. James was there with his mate Anita and several of his older children, and dozens of other pack members were standing in a semi-circle, watching.
“Can’t hear you,” Cliff snapped.
“I’m sorry for what I said to the girl,” Junior muttered a little louder.
“That’s not enough,” Cliff gritted out. “You insulted a female from my pack.”
He sent out a wave of power and called forth Junior’s wolf. Being forced to shift was agonizing. Junior shrieked in pain as his bones cracked and reset.
His face pushed forward into a ghastly wolfman snout, fingers curling and contracting into horror-movie claws. Fur sprouted over his body in coarse, uneven patches and he staggered on legs with knees that suddenly bent the wrong way before dropping to all fours. His back arched and shuddered as a tail whipped from the base of his spine. His clothes tore to shreds. He fell to the ground, fully a wolf now, flopping onto his back and whining as he exposed his soft belly.
Cliff released Junior, and Junior shifted back with a howl of agony, his clothing now hanging off him in rags.
“Jerrold,” he whined, scrambling to his feet. “My new jeans. They cost me two hunnert bucks!”
Jerrold answered him with a tremendous kick to the ribs. There was the sickening sound of bones cracking. Junior screamed in pain and fell to his knees.
James’ mate, Anita, hurried forward. She was the most powerful healer in the pack.
“Let me help you,” she said, gently laying her hands on his chest. Junior slapped them away, which drew a growl of anger from James.
“Get your hands off me, bitch,” Junior wheezed. “I’m not weak. I don’t need any help. That didn’t even hurt.” Then he cast a fearful glance at Jerrold.
Anita sighed and stepped back.
“Oh, didn’t it?” Jerrold sneered. “That was just a love-tap. Get back to our house, and we’ll have some real fun.” He said the“‘our”‘in a loud, challenging tone. Staking his claim.
Junior climbed slowly and painfully to his feet and whirled around to face Alvin. “When Cliff’s not here to protect your little bitch ass any more…” he hissed, then hurried off in a pained, half-limping trot. Cliff could hear him whimpering with each step.
Jerrold stormed after him. Cliff knew that Junior could expect a ferocious beating. Even with a werewolf’s accelerated healing, it would take weeks for his bones to knit back together.
While he felt sorry for some members of Jerrold’s pack, who were trapped and had nowhere to go, he felt no sympathy at all for Junior.
‘Alvin’s mother put her arm around her son and they slunk off, hanging their heads. If Jerrold won, it would spell their doom.
Truman hurried up to Cliff.
“Nice job,” he said.
