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“Let me clean up the dishes, and we can head out,” I said.
“You don’t have to do that. I’ll clean up.”
Getting up from the seat, I grabbed both our plates and kissed her. “You were the chef, so that gives me clean-up duty.”
“I can help.”
“Nope, I got it.”
With another cute eye-roll, she finally conceded, “Fine.”
After parking my SUV in the mayor’s parking spot at my office, Tori and I got out and headed for the sheriff’s office. I grabbed Tori’s hand and linked our fingers. I loved that it was second nature for us to touch each other, that we naturally gravitated toward one another.
Even with the unpleasant conversations we were both heading toward, we still smiled and spoke about nonsense as we commented on the displays that were being set up on Main Street and the town square. The whole main drag was closed off to traffic to make room for all the different activities and booths. The shops would stay open throughout the day since the extra foot traffic tended to boost sales.
Tori’s smile froze as we made it closer to the sheriff’s building, and I looked ahead to find what had shifted her mood so drastically. In front of us were Martin and Christie Greenthorne, looking more smug than usual. Unfortunately, they headed straight for us.
“Ah, Ridge, we were hoping to run into you. We wanted to inform you that you’re finished in this pack.”
Martin’s haughty voice had me fighting the urge to clench my jaw. He was such a pompous ass, always working at getting digs in any way he could.
Then his equally snobbish wife added, “Since we’re such respected members of the Northeast Pack…” She deliberately snubbed the Blackwood nickname most people called our pack for the official pack name. “I’m going to call a meeting soon among all the shifters to blow the whistle on how reckless you are for bringing a hunter right to our town. You made it that much easier for hunters to find us.”
Keeping a calm demeanor, I dampened every gut reaction to ensure I didn’t fan their flame. They were ruthless. They’d take anything they could to make life hell for me. This wasn’t the first time they’d tried to stir up questions and doubts within the pack regarding my leadership, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last time.
“Greenthorne, you’ve been after my leadership since I took over, and I’ve bested you at every turn. But this is the worst time for any sort of division among our pack. It puts everyone in genuine danger. And you’d be responsible for the consequences.”
Sticking his piggish nose in the air, Martin huffed, “I agree that our pack’s in danger, but I’m not the one who will be held responsible. We just visited the hospital and learned of Zander Elkins’s fascinating condition.” His evil eyes stared at me as a matching smile formed on the entitled ass’s lips. “You’ll have a riot on your hands, and shifters all around will find out you’re just as bad as your predecessors.”
Rage lit my blood. The bastard didn’t care one bit about what had happened to Zander and what he was going through. He only appreciated that a wolf could be stripped from a shifter if it fell into his wormy hands for his own gain.
Tori clenched her hand in mine and wrapped her other hand around my bicep, but I stayed firm and gave the Greenthornes no response. Nothing that would show they had gotten to me.
Mentioning my ancestors had been a low blow. The people who knew me knew how much I hated my ancestors for betraying shifters and having them slaughtered for my family’s gain. I fought and worked to rectify it every day. The fact that Martin had implied that I was doing the same infuriated me. Still, I kept my best poker face and didn’t show my hand.
Calling on my alpha side, I allowed my wolf to overpower the measly wolf who had no strength to do anything about becoming a leader himself. He was nothing but a chew toy to me if I so chose.
Snarling, I hovered over the short man. “I’m warning you that your fear-mongering will only endanger my pack. If you choose to induce a panic right now, when the hunters are out having a heyday everywhere but in Blackwood Creek, I’ll gladly banish you both from the Northeast Pack.”
Martin’s face went so red, I wondered if a vein would burst. He struggled to maintain eye contact with me, but his wolf didn’t stand a chance, and he bowed his head and showed me his throat. I was tempted to snap him into submission, but forcing the proud wolf to submit was enough while we were in public.
Surprisingly, Tori bristled beside me and didn’t shy away from adding her two cents. “I’m sure the loyal shifters in town, including your own daughter, will vote in favor of your banishment without batting an eye since you can’t see past your blind need for power that lives are at stake, that you’re willing to risk the destruction of this town for your own personal vendettas. Nobody will back you on that.”
Watching my mate’s fierceness and protectiveness over my pack and me thrilled me, and my wolf took notice because he loved having a feisty mate. Tori shined everywhere she went and would be a fantastic luna. I couldn’t wait for other shifters to see her in her element because she’d blow their minds.
The Greenthornes started blustering like the blowhards they were, daring to act like they were the victims in this exchange.
“You have no room to talk,” Christie Greenthorne spat and sneered. I’d never seen her look uglier. “The hunter we saw in the jail looks like he could be related to you. In light of the deputy’s murder and everything else that’s happened, it makes your arrival in town that much more suspicious. It’ll be easy to make the other shifters see that you two must be working together with hunters to cash in on all the shifters here. In fact, the other shifters will be so angry about being betrayed, they’ll be out for blood, and who’s to say they won’t come to the jail first and kill the hunter who has probably killed so many of our kind? That’ll be a sight to behold.”
Taking a huge breath, I imagined getting my teeth around the woman’s throat for having the audacity to speak to my mate that way. My wolf yearned to come out and show those two who was in charge, but Tori’s already angry breathing started picking up, and she clasped my arm.
Worried her wolf would come out because of the perceived threat of the useless wolves, I grabbed Tori and headed up the stairs, ignoring the Greenthornes as they continued to taunt us.
Getting Tori away from them was more important. If they realized her wolf was even a little feral, they’d use that against us to make everything worse. They’d appeal to the other shifters in town and have Tori banished from the pack. I’d let that happen over my dead body. Or once I destroyed them, whichever happened first.
After we entered, Clawson lifted his head, rushed to the partition, and ushered us back into a private room. He could see what was happening to Tori and acted without a word. Once Tori and I were settled in the room, he left us alone, but I could tell he was guarding the door.
I pulled Tori into my arms, placing her face straight into my neck so she could scent me while I soothed her. Her wolf would soon realize that there was no imminent threat and ease up. I sat in one of the plastic chairs and cuddled her while she took big lungfuls of air.
