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CHAPTER ONE
Judah Helm had been back at the Coven for less than a week but already felt comfortable and at home. He loved his new quarters that overlooked a section of the vineyard. His previous assignment for the past sixty years had been as a field agent. He traveled the world gathering information and eliminating problems for his Master and Coven, and according to all reports, he was very good at his job.
Judah was contacted two weeks ago and offered the position of Commander of the security forces for the Coven proper. The new position would bring him home and put his focus on their immediate territory that encompassed Old Mission Peninsula, Eastport, and adjacent properties.
He commanded a team of five agents as lead field agent, and now, under his new command, he would lead several hundred. It was an elite team of security officers, and Judah was eager to put them through their paces. What he'd witnessed so far was extraordinary and showed the leadership skills of the previous Commander, Simeon Cortell.
Commander Simeon Cortell had received a promotion to Coven Second, a position he was eminently suited for, which left the position of Commander open. Judah was honored that Master Cabot had chosen him to fill Simeon's shoes and swore to carry out his duties with dignity and honor.
Upon returning home, he discovered that several of the Coven leadership, including Master Cabot, had found their beloveds and had settled into their blessed unions. He was happy for the Master, who had been alone for many centuries. He deserved to be happy and bonded. The Master's beloved was a young wolf, which made the pairing even more interesting and exhilarating for the Master.
According to legend, shifters and humans made impressive pair bonds with their earthy, powerful stock and life force. Such unions brought the vampire energy and revitalization unmatched by other couplings. It was legend only, but no one had ever contradicted the belief.
"Meet me in my office at the Black Dog." The text came from Sam, the Master's nephew and heir to the kingdom. Sam was a fine, strong man, and the Master had raised him well. He would be an outstanding leader when the time came.
“On my way.” He shot back and headed out.
"Nash, Nash!" The yelling began louder and angrier as the seconds passed, and he did not respond. "When I catch you, I'm going to . . ." His voice trailed off as he went toward the woods lining the property to the north. Nash had decided to hide rather than run away this time.
No matter how hard he ran or how far he traveled, Arthur had always caught him, so this time, he hid. He was under a haystack in the corner of the large broken down old barn, and he was planning to stay there . . . forever maybe.
They'd come to this town two days ago, and this was the third time Nash had tried to run away. He kept trying because it felt good to be free, even if just for an hour or two. There was hope when he was running that didn't exist any other time. Arthur always made him pay in painful ways when he caught him, but the freedom, even temporary, was worth the pain.
They went from town to town and show after show, presenting Nash as the answer to prayers and problems. Arthur scheduled thirty shows over the course of three months, and then he would head off to Vegas for a month and spend everything they made. He would return broke and angry, and the routine would begin again.
He left Nash with his sister Edna in northern Wisconsin on the Michigan border whenever he went to Vegas. She was ruthless and lived in the backwoods on a makeshift farm. Nash was used like a slave during his stay, and she kept him locked in the barn in a small room with no windows when he wasn't working. It wasn't so bad, though, because it beat being in the house with her.
The only perk was the fact that she was afraid of him, and he knew it. His freaky talents scared the shit out of her, so Nash made a point of acting as peculiar as possible around her highlighting his mysteriousness to keep her on the back foot.
Nash had escaped from there once and made it to Michigan's Upper Peninsula. It was a nice area. He'd managed to disappear into the forest for several days before he was spotted by a hunter. He was then picked up by the cops and returned to Edna. She had her farm hand beat the living daylights out of him, injuring him so badly that Arthur had to return early from Vegas because Edna thought she'd killed him.
The positive in it all was that Arthur then beat the daylights out of Edna. He didn't want anything happening to his cash cow. She could treat him like shit; she just wasn't allowed to kill him. It didn't stop Arthur from continuing to dump him at Edna's every time he decided on a trip to Vegas, but the beatings were measured now and not life-threatening.
Tomorrow, when they finished here in Eastport, they were heading to Wisconsin and to Edna's farm. He overheard Arthur arranging a flight out of Green Bay and reservations at a hotel in Vegas. But things were going to change. Nash was over eighteen and legally no longer under Arthur’s rule. He wasn't going to Edna's this time. Arthur no longer owned him, and he was done with these assholes; all of them could go right straight to hell.
"You're going to pay for this bullshit Nash. I'm going to beat you until you can't stand up anymore." The threats kept coming, and Nash sat deathly still.
Sam met with Judah in his office off the back of the Black Dog Lounge located inside the Indigo Hotel. It used to be a small, discreet little bar. They added an extensive drinks menu and a short but upscale food offering along with some interior design upgrades, and now it was a lounge.
The Indigo Hotel was an expensive and somewhat exclusive hotel and owned by the local wolf pack. Judah recently returned to the Coven after working for the Master as a field operative for several decades, and Sam wanted to make sure he was properly introduced to the wolf pack.
He also wanted him to be familiar with the Indigo Hotel, where many of the Coven members were employed. He and Sam had always been good friends since the days when they first came to this country and began to set down roots on the Old Mission Peninsula.
"Nice place you have here, Sam." He commented as he sat down. "You like working with the wolves?"
“Yes, they’re honest, loyal, hard-working, and fierce as fuck." He ended with a grin.
“That’s what I’ve been hearing.” He added approvingly.
Sam had worked for the pack for many years, rising from bartender to manager of the Black Dog Lounge, Weston's Pub, and Pino's restaurant. He worked at the hotel in order to maintain a good relationship with the pack and to stay informed.
He knew the time would come that he would have to leave the hotel and put all his attention on the Coven as they continued to grow and expand the winery, having recently acquired a vineyard in California. He was keeping good relationships and building bonds, which was smart for a man known as the Master's right-hand man.
"I enjoy working for the pack. It also strengthened our connections in the area, which you know will be beneficial in the future. There are other groups moving into the region. Our paranormal societies are expanding." Sam explained, and Judah nodded his understanding.
“Good idea to stay aware.” Judah smiled. “Master Emmanuel is lucky he has you.”
"I'm the lucky one, Judah." Sam made that very clear. "Without my uncle, my life would have been a nightmare after my mother's death."
