Page 16 of Virtually Guarded

He didn’t respond. Heading downstairs was almost worse than lying in bed, but I made my way to the front door and peered through the frosted glass window beside it. After a couple of minutes, a large figure approached.

“Ren, it’s me,” Xavier called when he got to the bottom of the steps. “Come on out.”

Definitely his voice. Definitely him. I opened the door and went outside. “Thank you.”

“Yeah, of course.” He held out his hand, which I ignored as I went down the steps to stand beside him. Not that I didn’t want to touch him. The problem was that I wanted it too much. He let his hand fall back to his side. “The room you were using in the main house is still vacant. The Anax intended it for a guard or staff member. So you can stay there.”

“You’re sure he won’t be angry that I’m disobeying?” I looked toward the main house. A few lights shone in its windows. “I don’t want to piss him off.”

“Like I told you, if there are repercussions, I’ll take them.” He motioned toward the main house. “Come with me.”

I did, back to the house and upstairs to the tiny room. Voices and noises were all around us, with so many of the invited guests on site now, but somehow it felt more peaceful than the silence of the other building.

“Don’t worry about the guests,” Xavier said. “Consider yourself my guest, I suppose. I’ll clear everything for you. It won’t be a problem.”

I nodded. I believed him. The Anax might be upset, but I trusted Xavier to make everything okay.

Trust. That was something else I would have to get used to.

“I’m just down the hall.” Xavier waved in the direction he meant. “Come find me if you need anything. Breakfast starts in the morning around six. It’s self-serve, and there should be food available most of the morning, so help yourself whenever.”

“Okay.” I would have to try to get food when the Anax wasn’t present. Staying under his radar for the next few days would probably be best.

“I’ll be on duty every day, six to six, give or take.” He hesitated. “In the evenings, we can hang out. Talk more, if you want. Get to know each other.”

I was too overwhelmed to make that decision right then. “Yeah. Maybe.”

He nodded. “All right. Try to get some sleep. I’ll be working in the morning, but I’ll probably see you around.”

I didn’t have anything else to say, so I just nodded and went into the room. Where, fortunately, I did sleep. I was near my mate. I wouldn’t have admitted it for the world, but that was where I needed to be.

Chapter Four: Xavier

The kiss with Ren. For the entire night, that was all I could think about. Our kiss. Touching him. Him touching me.

I hadn’t lied when I said sex didn’t mean much to me. I’d had sex, but I didn’t really get the hype. For me to really feel it, really want it, I had to have a strong connection with and strong feelings for the other person. I’d rarely had that depth of emotion with anybody. With Ren, I did, even though we’d only just met. Maybe it was the mate bond. Maybe just Ren. I was attracted to him, though, no question. Mind and body.

Even so, and despite my wolf getting pissy about the desire to claim my mate, I could wait. I had to wait. This was my first national gathering, not only as the Anax’s guard but at all. I had to be on my game the entire time, regardless of whether I was on duty. My job was to keep the Anax safe, and that would be no easy feat when we were surrounded by people who wanted him out of the rank—and out of existence.

The threats started at the first official meeting of the gathering, the morning after I brought Ren back from the guest house. The Pacific Region Arkhon walked out, taking several of his alphas with him. The meeting devolved into chaos as the Anax and the remaining arkhons tried to navigate the situation.

I was in the thick of some of it, assigned to ensure the Pacific Region wolves left the premises as the Anax had commanded. They didn’t put up any resistance, which worried me. If they were so opposed to the Anax that they would abandon the national gathering, they should have been opposed to following his orders. I didn’t like where my thoughts were going, but I kept my mind on my job.

Once the Pacific Region wolves were gone, I went to Seth to report my concerns. I found him in the front hall outside the Anax’s office, where the Anax was meeting with two of the arkhons. “I’m concerned about fallout with the Pacific Region wolves,” I said. “They left too easily.”

He studied me. “You think it’s bad that they left without fighting?”

“I know how it sounds.” I sighed. There was no easy way to explain my thoughts. “They’re angry with the Anax. They’ve positioned themselves against him. Yet when he told them to leave, they just left. Something about it doesn’t feel right.”

“Keep an eye out. I’ll tell the others to do the same.” He glanced at the door. “He has allies. I’ll speak with them as well.”

“Behind his back?” I raised my eyebrows. That wasn’t like Seth. He had served as guard under Tobias Rogan’s predecessor for decades and had learned—the hard way, as I understood it—to obey unconditionally and take no action without explicit orders. Tobias didn’t run things with as heavy a fist as his predecessor, but among the three guards who had served under that Anax, the conditioning had held.

“If need be.” Seth sounded regretful. “The Anax has had struggles. You’ve seen. But despite those struggles, he has done more to improve and save lives among the werewolves of this country in the past year than the previous Anax ever did. Knowing who would be likely to challenge him, I would vastly prefer that Tobias Rogan retain the rank. I won’t act beyond my role, but I will do what I can to help ensure that happens.”

“As will I.” Although I hadn’t worked for the previous Anax and had never encountered him, I had lived as a werewolf in this country long enough to be aware of his deterioration into a leader who had no one’s best interests in mind. He had actively caused harm, going so far as to instigate conflict between the werewolves of the U.S. and those of Canada. Something Tobias and the Anax of Canada had quickly rectified once Tobias took the rank, though there were still pockets of fighting and resistance to peace. From all that I’d heard, even at his worst, Tobias was a far better ruler than any of those in line to take the rank from him could be.

“You’re sure the Pacific Region wolves have gone?” Seth asked, pulling my attention back to the present.