you will know my fury. I hope I have made myself clear.”
Christoph fell to his knees in front of the bank of pay phones, sweat beading on his forehead. He managed a weak cough.
“Good. And, Christoph, know also that any act may be forgiven and any may rise again to stand amongst his peers.”
Christoph nodded even though his alpha couldn’t see him.
The deep, ancient voice turned from serene to deadly, making Christoph’s bones reverberate with the anger of centuries. “Unless the cub comes to harm.”
The line went dead.
Back in California, Gregory couldn’t believe his senses. The alpha of Goliath was pacing in front of him, his strange, slightly rolling gait giving the impression of an animal stalking its prey. The alpha stopped and turned abruptly to Gregory.
“What is Alec Royce like?”
Gregory’s mind went blank. Had the alpha asked him about the weather conditions in New York, the best angle for attack, or any other hard, physical information, he would have been quick to reply. This was unexpected.
“He’s…famous.”
The alpha was unnervingly still. He nodded his head once, indicating Gregory should continue.
“He owns a lot of property, territory, and people, in New York and a ways south as well. I don’t know exactly. He’s high profile, very much liked by humans.”
The alpha started moving again. The room was dimly lit and the alpha was keeping to the shadows. His dark shape turned and paced. Gregory watched him, still on his knees.
“Please, rise,” the alpha said. Gregory did so.
“If I may say so, he doesn’t seem very smart to put himself in the open like that,” Gregory ventured. He flinched and dropped to his knees again when the alpha spun around and growled.
“I did not come through war and hardship to assign a witless Were as my deputy. Use your head for more than a battering ram. A Shadow Man loved by humans? He is smart, clever. A monster loved by its own food. He is a new kind of danger, one we have never faced before.”
He turned away from Gregory, a shudder running through his whole body. He snapped his head left, then right, his neck popping loudly.
“I suppose killing him is not an option.”
“That would cause a lot of trouble for us. Actually, it would cause a lot of trouble for Weres in general,” Gregory agreed.
“I never thought we would see the day when our own kind would hate seeing a Shadow Man downed.” The alpha turned back to Gregory. “What does he do?”
“He’s a businessman. Restaurants, I think.”
The alpha gestured and Gregory rose again. “No Were should kneel to me, you least of all.”
Gregory nodded.
“A very intelligent, manipulative Shadow Man in the public eye, slaves at his beck and call, and a great deal of territory and money. Gregory, when did our war council start sounding like a board meeting?”
Gregory had no answer. Mostly because he was intensely nervous. Also because he wasn’t sure if the alpha was making a joke. This was the first time he’d seen the Goliath’s beloved and mysterious alpha up and about in ten years.
The alpha took a deep breath, running his clawed fingers through his thick hair. It reached his waist in a wild tangle and was black streaked with gray. His features, strong and primitive, were in shadow. The dim light caught smooth, shiny scars that crisscrossed his dark skin. To Gregory’s amusement, he noticed that the alpha was wearing the pink Hello Kitty pajama pants he and Gavin had sent him as a gag gift at Christmas. The alpha, in his solitude, had sent them both a letter thanking them for the gift with an explanation that, although he knew it was all in good fun, he was still going to wear them because they were the most comfortable pants he’d ever received.
“Are any of us good at negotiating?” the alpha asked.
“Farhad Ahmadi, the man in charge of the Attenwald’s business.”
“I need him here. Please call him and let him know that I request his presence.”
Gregory winced. Farhad had never spoken with the alpha before and would likely be overwhelmed at the honor.
“He’s a businessman, not very keen on deep internal pack matters,” Gregory warned.
“He owns Attenwald Corporation,” the alpha said, stretching the stiffness out of his limbs. “All he does is get foreign products approved for U.S. distribution, and then he becomes the distributor.” He cast an admonishing look at Gregory’s surprise. “I may have been hidden for a long time, but I am not blind or deaf as to the