25
ALICIA
The Boneyard is a dead, dry place, and I hate being here. It’s not just the climate that’s barren and terrible either. It’s the whole energy of the place.
I’ve only been to the Boneyard a couple of times in my life. As teenagers, we came out here, daring each other to see how far we would go, to see if anyone was willing to try drugs. I never did. They never held the fascination for me that they seem to hold for others, and I’ve seen people out of their minds on drugs enough times to feel like the whole enterprise is a complete waste of my time and energy.
Today, though, I’m here on a mission that’s not a waste of my time at all. I have to make sure Lonnie knows I will not be a threat to him.
Lonnie, fortunately, is easy to find. And Deidre is right beside him. I was hoping not to see her, but since Lonnie wasn’t at his house this was my only choice. The whole group here at the Boneyard is oriented around them, as if the two of them were holding court or something. I don’t know how they command such focus, because they’re not doing anything. They’re just lying around.
I walk right up to them. The others turn their attention to me as I pass by, but no one says anything, probably because they’re bombed out of their minds on whatever it is they’re on. This isn’t going to work unless Lonnie’s fairly sober, and fuck, I really hope he is, because I don’t want to have to keep coming back here. I don’t want to have to even try to have this conversation more than once in my life.
He peers up at me. “Alicia? That you?”
“Well, if it isn’t the prodigal daughter. What the hell are you doing here?” Deidre slurs. I stare at her in shock. The twenty years I have been away has not been kind to her. Her skin is cracked and wrinkly, and it seems as if half her face is sunken. She looks so haggard from all her days spent at the boneyard, that I almost feel sorry for her. As usual, she’s a hell of a lot more confrontational than her son. She’s never made a secret of the fact that she hates and fears me. Lonnie, for all his flaws, has a lot more confidence than she does. I don’t think he thinks I can do anything to him-not today, at any rate.
I swallow hard. It’s so painful for me to be around them. I need this to go well. I am doing this for Brandon and Emmy.
I can’t let them see how important it is to me, because I know these two well enough to know that they would do anything to keep me from being comfortable and happy. If they knew how much power they had over me in this moment, over my happiness, they would immediately start trying to exploit it.
“I thought we should talk, Lonnie,” I say, ignoring Deidre. “Since I’m back in town now and everything.”
“What’s there to talk about?”
“How things are going to be between us. I know the pack is yours,” I say
quickly. “I don’t want to get in the way of that. I just want you to know that. I’m not going to try to mess up this thing you have going.”
“As if you could,” he snorts.
“Right. I couldn’t. But I could probably annoy you if I tried. And I’m just saying…it isn’t like that. I’m going to stay out of your business, okay?”
He eyes me shrewdly. “What do you want?” “You and I have never…gotten along.” “Understatement.”
“But I don’t want us to be at each other’s throats now. My father is going through a lot, he doesn’t deserve that, and when he passes the alpha seat to you I want you to know that I will be supportive.”
The wind gusts, blowing the dust of the boneyard around my ankles. Some of the others are sitting up and blinking blearily at me, evidently aware that something important is going on.
I do my best to ignore them, even as the hairs on the back of my neck start to stand tall.
“What is it you do want? Does this have something to do with that half- breed daughter of yours?” Deidre demands.
I glance at her, even hearing her talk about my daughter makes me want to vomit, but I’m not going to answer her directly. This is between me and Lonnie.
“I have a daughter now it’s true, and she is more human than wolf. I have no plans to make her a member of the pack. We are going to leave after we’ve helped out Dad, but until then,” I tell my brother. “I’ll stay out of your life. And you stay out of mine.”
He regards me.
His gaze creeps me out. It’s like he’s looking through me, plucking my
secrets right out of my mind or something.
“Fine,” he says calmly. “For the sake of our father.” “Yeah?”
“Sure. I’ll stay out of your life.”
He grins at me in a way that makes me doubt his sincerity. But this-the answer he’s giving me now-it’s what I wanted.
“Good,” I say, feeling a little uncertain and trying not to let it show. “Then I’ll stay out of yours too.”
I turn and walk away from them without looking back, but I feel his eyes, and Deidre’s too, watching me.