Did that mean I’m sorry in some weird werewolf tongue?
His friend, the one with the matching wifebeater and buzz cut, shot his arm out. I guessed Landon was a name.
August dodged the fist flying at his face, then backhanded Landon in the jaw so suddenly that he blinked and stumbled backward before toppling onto the ground. I charged the other friend just as he raised his foot to kick August between the legs. August would’ve probably blocked the hit, but I didn’t wait to find out. I slammed my foot against the boy’s rising leg, flinging it away, then grabbed his shoulders and kneed him so hard in the groin he let out a high-pitched shriek before bending over and panting in pain.
Adrenaline coursed through me, sharpening all of my senses. I could feel the cluster of raw energy on the lawn of the inn and the din of voices. I could hear the whisper of the smile growing on August’s lips and the steady thumps of his heart as he gazed down at me.
“Fuck… you… both,” Justin hissed, snapping August’s attention back onto him.
“That didn’t sound like an apology,” August said.
Justin’s nails curved and sharpened, and then he clawed at August’s hand.
August tossed him almost as far as the rock he’d skipped on the lake. “If any of you so much as look at Ness again, I will shred you like the vermin you are.”
I grabbed onto his hand. Blood trickled out of the puncture wounds, ribboning down his wrist and soaking the cuff of his cream cotton shirt. I pushed his sleeve up, then dug a tissue from my handbag and pressed it against the four small wounds.
“You’re a fucking lunatic, Watt, just like all the Boulders. All fucking inbred degenerates,” Justin rasped, rubbing his reddened throat. “First thing Julian’ll do when he wins the duel is kick your pack off our land for good.”
“We aren’t on your land,” I said, still tending to August’s wounds.
“He’d have to win first,” August added matter-of-factly. I didn’t think for a second he hoped for another outcome, but the taunt made Justin purple with rage.
“Like that bitch has a chance in hell,” Landon muttered.
“She beat the Aspen Alpha,” I reminded him.
“I see where your loyalties lie.” Justin tugged on the hem of his white wifebeater to lower it over his baggy jeans. “Is it because she’s a bitch like you?”
“Stop referring to my gender like that.” I lifted the bloodied tissue and balled it up in my fist. The torn flesh had stopped bleeding and was already knitting together.
The fight begins in five minutes.
Both August and I craned our necks in the direction of the lawn at the sound of Liam’s call.
“Let’s go.” August snaked his arm around my waist and towed me up the driveway.
No one was inside the inn-no housekeepers, no perfidious aunt. I stretched my hearing to check if I sensed human heartbeats, but all the hearts that pounded were not the least bit human.
Before we walked into the living room, August said, “You were remarkable out there.”
I rolled my eyes.
He stopped and pulled me against him, stroking my cheek. “I’m serious. In case you forgot, I was at the receiving end of a punch once.”
I frowned.”The day I startled you at the gym… ”
The day I’d decided to enter the trials. That day felt like eons ago.
He dipped his head. Before he could kiss me, I pulled out of his arms.
“August… hispered.
Thankfully no one was around. Justin and his friends must’ve circled the inn walls.
August rubbed his mouth. “Right.”
I knew it was silly to worry about being caught, considering what was happening outside the inn walls, but I couldn’t help it. I was a ball of nerves-because of August, but also because of the impending duel.
We crossed the living room toward the wall of bodies lining the deck’s railing. I slid in next to Cole, scanning the grounds for Sarah. She stood between her brother and another girl-a short redhead.
Although the Matzs were too far below for me to gauge their expressions, the set of their shoulders told me Julian’s family was on edge. The rest of his pack seemed slightly more relaxed. They formed a loose web behind Julian, who was discarding his clothes. He was down to a white undershirt and a pair of tight white briefs.
His sister was circling Cassandra, whose body was already bared, shoulders held back, large breasts hanging low. Did the Creeks walk around naked all the time? Nudity was really the last thing I should be wondering about at this moment.
“What is Nora Matz doing?” I asked.
“She’s Julian’s Second,” August said, just as Lori broke away from the Creek Pack and crossed the field toward Julian.
“What’s a Second?” I asked.
Cole leaned his hip against the railing, one eyebrow raised.
“Don’t look at me like that, Cole. My werewolf education was cut short when my dad died, and although I’ve learned a couple things recently, I know there are still a lot of gaps in my shifter knowledge.”
“Alphas can’t duel without Seconds. It’s a human tradition that the packs adopted and have used since the first recorded Alpha duel in the Appalachians.” It was August who answered. “Like in human duels, Seconds are in charge of making sure there’s no foul play. They’ll also watch the duel up close-like referees of sorts. If any rules are broken, they can separate the parties. The duel is then either postponed if both parties desire a rematch or canceled altogether. If that happens, then each pack has an obligation to return to their territories and the Alphas are no longer allowed to challenge each other during the rest of their lifetime. However, if one of the packs sees a new Alpha rise, then that new Alpha may challenge the reigning Alpha of the enemy pack.”
“What if the Seconds can’t stop the duel in time and one of the challengers dies as a result of a broken rule?”
“Then the Second of the fallen Alpha can challenge the victor instantly, without waiting a full moon cycle.” August was focused on Lori who was circling Julian’s now entirely naked form, stopping to grab his hand and look beneath his fingernails. She then tilted his head up and stuck her finger inside his mouth.
“She’s checking for concealed weapons and illegal substances implanted in the enamel,” Cole explained, angling his big body back toward the lawn.
If anything, I was more confused now. “I don’t understand how fighting right away benefits the Seconds,” I said, returning to the rules of dueling.
“The victor expends a lot of energy during a fight. Especially in an Alpha battle. Considering the Second isn’t an Alpha, their odds of winning against one are usually nil.” August’s eyes were on me now. “Let’s say Julian beats Cassandra, but somehow Lori notices that he used foul play to do so-a trap on the ground, or a staged commotion in his ranks, or he somehow turned a stick into a weapon-Lori has the right to challenge him on the spot. She’ll have the advantage of being fresh and her body won’t go through an inspection, so technically she could have a concealed weapon. You can bet both Lori and Nora are prepped to counteract. Of course, it doesn’t mean they can beat an Alpha. They won’t have the body mass or training of an Alpha. Most of the times, Seconds forfeit to save their hides.”
“I’ve never heard of a Second challenging a victorious Alpha,” Cole said.
The Creek Pack shaped a compact arc behind Cassandra. I guessed from the sheer swell of unfamiliar faces that all the Creeks had arrived for the event. The mass of bodies made the hundred Pines standing behind Julian seem measly. The Seconds met in the center of the field. After they exchanged quiet words, they both nodded and traipsed back toward their respective families, ridding their bodies of clothes before shifting into fur.
You stayed. Liam’s voice inside my mind was so jarring that my heart leaped.
I placed a palm against my chest before looking for him in the row of Boulders lining the railing. I’d imagined he was standing somewhere below, holding Cassandra’s son in some death vice, but Liam was right there amongst his men and me, no Alex in sight.
I’m truly sorry, Ness. And not that you found out. I’m sorry for having wanted your father dead. I’m sorry that I kept it from you, that I hurt you… that I disappointed you… again. I hope in time you’ll be able to forgive me.
I bit my lip, whisking my lashes down to counter the surging slickness. I darted my gaze back to the field, Julian’s and Cassandra’s naked forms coming in and out of focus. Next to me, I felt August’s fingers graze my hip. I moved away from him, bumping into Cole.