Nodding, a sneer curving his thin, bloodless lips, Cleland gave Nick a condescending wink. “Fine boy you’ve got there, Sampson. He’s got gumption. Something this council could use more of.” Waving his hand as if he were the ruler of more than a wolf pack, the alpha’s gaze returned to Beau. “Go ahead, young bear. Let’s hear what you have to say.”
Feeling strength and love flowing freely from his dad, Beau walked across the room and stood in front of the huge multi-colored map. Pointing to the tawny colored region, lands belonging to the mountain lions, he looked at the lion king. “Can you not give Pack Benton access to the farthest side of the lake and the pasture lands to the south? If I’m not mistaken, the terrain isn’t suitable for your sheep, and Alpha Cleland stated he only needs grazing land and water for his cattle.”
Leaving his question open-ended, Beau held his breath as the room grew eerily quiet. All eyes were on Cleland, but his stayed glued to the lion king, willing the shaggy-haired leader of the big cats to see reason. To live to fight another day.
After one full minute of silence, the longest sixty seconds of Beau’s life, the king had given one sharp nod before growling, “I’ll need to take it to my advisors.” Up on his feet, with his son in tow, the mountain lion was gone before anyone could utter another word.
And that was the last time anyone ever saw him again. No body, no fur, no nothing, the king disappeared from his bed that very night. A week later, his son relocated the entire pride to another state without so much as a word to any of the other shifters.
And Cleland had absorbed all the land, every resource, and had a bonfire with what was left of the lion king’s house. It was nothing short of a travesty, and still, no one spoke up…no one but Beau’s dad.
Nick was outraged. He spent a month questioning anyone and everyone only to have doors slammed in his face, people crossed the road to avoid him, and he even got more than a few threatening letters. Council meetings turned into sixty minutes of silence with each leader glaring at the others, suspicion and accusation looming in their eyes.
Unable to stomach the charade any longer, Nick had gotten to his feet and walked to the head of the table. Stopping right beside the old alpha, the bear leader demanded, “Face me, Cleland. Look me in the eye and swear that you had nothing to do with the lion king’s disappearance, and I’ll stop asking questions.”
It was as if the air had been sucked from the room. Not a single shifter moved. Most didn’t blink, and no one took a breath…except for Cleland.
Taking a long draw off his nasty cigar as he slowly turned toward Nick, the maniacal alpha blew smoke into the bear’s face as he chuckled dismissively, “Oh, Nick, go sit down. We’ve all had just about enough of your stupid investigation and silly accusations.”
Waving his stogie around as if he was conducting an orchestra, he went on, condescension dripping off every syllable. “Your efforts to discredit me have failed. Your insatiable, albeit sadly inept need to be the council leader thwarted. Just tuck that little tail between your legs and go home before you embarrass yourself in front of your son.”
“At least, I have a son,” Nick countered, his tone deep and threatening with the growl of his bear.
Fire flashed in the alpha wolf’s eyes. They glowed with the power of his animal. Everyone knew Cleland hated the fact that he’d only been able to father one child, and that Lucy was a girl. The old asshole openly blamed his mate for his lack of a male heir, not caring who knew it was her fault and not his. No longer boasting about his pure mate, her usefulness to him wore out. The pompous sneer he’d been sporting turned sinister as the bear leader went on.
“Oh, and I have a daughter. Yes, a girl, who I love with all my heart and who loves me. Yes, I love my children and my mate, more than life itself. Can you say the same? Where is your daughter? Aren’t those next in line for leadership supposed to be present at all council meetings once they are of age? Or are you ashamed for Lucy to see how you treat your peers?”
Taking a threatening step forward, looking down from his nearly seven-foot height, Nick pushed out his chest. “Would she see you for the asshole that you are? See that you have no regard for your wolves? That you treat them like chattel?”
Pointing at each of the other leaders present without looking away, Nick snarled, “Everyone in this room values what they have. See leadership as an honor. I am proud to lead my clan. My bears are family just as much as my children and my wife. Can you say the same, Cleland? How long do you think you can treat your people…”
Throwing his arms open wide, he leaned closer, “…this council, all the shifters of this region like your personal playthings? The day is coming, Cleland Benton, when you will no longer have power over others. The day is coming when you will be knocked on your ass. I just hope I’m here to see it.”
Sadly, he wasn’t…
Two weeks later, Nick and Sandra had gone out for dinner to celebrate their anniversary. On the way home, their truck hit a guardrail and went over the side of the mountain.
The sheriff said it burst into flames on impact. Beau had identified what was left of the burnt-out pickup, his father’s necklace, and his mother’s wedding ring. He’d come home to his little sister and a clan in mourning with a box of ashes and a broken heart, but he’d never forgotten the look in Cleland’s eyes and could never shake the feeling that the alpha had caused the death of his parents.
But I had to move on… Had to lead the clan… Had to take care of Amelia…
Cleland’s tyrannical rule got worse with every passing year. The younger shifters, well, younger for supes, although alphas in their own right, were forced to obey the bureaucratic bullshit as they took their rightful helms of leadership. They knew if Cleland ever got wind of what the others really thought, there would be war.
Some banked on the dwindling number of wolves in Pack Benton. Thought Cleland’s “pure bloodline” rules would somehow change the tide, but it never did. The old alpha had deep pockets and an even deeper well of treachery.
New wolves were always joining from other states, some even from other countries. All highly trained; mostly rogues willing to die for whatever bullshit the alpha had fed them.
War was most definitely not the answer. Hundreds of casualties of all species, no winners, just unneeded bloodshed, would do nothing for anyone. So, Beau went to council meetings, sat in the back, and bit his tongue until he could come up with another answer.
Everyone knew he hated Cleland, but so did they. Why did he have to be the one to figure it all out? What were they all waiting for?
Me to nut up…
So, when Lucy turned up at his front door and asked for a job, Beau was dumbfounded. Enveloped in the sweet scent of orange blossoms and heavenly female musk, it had taken every ounce of his grizzly bear strength not to fall on his knees and beg her to be his.
Before his brain had time to engage, he blurted out, “Why the hell would you want to work here? Your dad owns half the damned state. His horses are renowned. Y’all have a whole damn room just for the trophies and ribbons.” Motioning toward his newly renovated paddocks, he snorted, “We look like Romper Room compared to what’s sitting right out your back door.”
“Well,” she’d faltered nervously, shrugging as she anxiously twirled a silken curl around her finger. “That’s exactly why. Ever want people to see you for more than the leader of the Sampson clan? See you for who you really are? Just for you? Not your name, or your pedigree, or the blood that runs through your veins?”