Not The Leader Of The Pack by Annabeth Leong Page A

“Do you believe shifting is legal at any time besides the full moon, simply because you’re inside a private home, or keeping company with only other werewolves?”
    Neil dropped his head. “Of course not,” he muttered sullenly. “Why don’t you ask Juli what she thinks about that too?”
    Juli snapped her gaze to his and found open rebellion in his eyes. A sense of betrayal curled through her stomach. Heather Compton frowned and turned to Juli. “Care to tell us what Mr. Statham is referring to?”
    Juli cleared her throat, resisting the urge to shoot Neil a death glare. She wanted to engage as little as possible with these childish accusations. “I’ve been having some strong emotions around my father’s death,” she confessed. “I’ve had a few slips. Never in front of humans.” She hoped that last part was true.
    Heather’s expression turned sour. “Have you been reporting them? You know we need to monitor these things for signs of a pattern spiraling out of control.”
    Juli swallowed. “I hadn’t gotten around to filling out the paperwork.”
    Heather slapped a sheaf of papers into Juli’s lap. “See that you do. Your tenure as alpha is off to a troubled start.” She glanced pointedly at Neil. “You wouldn’t want to make things any worse than they need to be.”
    The investigator stood, hefting an elegant leather briefcase as she did. She wore black stockings without a single perceptible run. Juli wondered how she looked when she shifted. The woman seemed more feline than lupine, and too put together to ever run on all fours or throw back her head and howl.
    Heather caught Juli’s expression and responded with a challenging stare. That did help Juli envision how the other woman would look if she grew sharp fangs. Juli touched the collar of her shirt as a subtle sign of retreat, and the investigator again gave her restrained nod.
    “We’ll head back to Lewistown tomorrow morning. Feel free to contact us if you need further assistance. As far as I’m concerned, this case is closed.”
    Neil sat up straight. “What are you talking about?”
    Heather gave him a cool stare. “We issued our decision. We have no reason to stay any longer.”
    “That was the final decision?”
    “I gave a very thorough explanation, Mr. Statham.”
    Neil paled a little. “You certainly did.” He stood slowly, then looked at each person in the room in turn. “I’m afraid I can’t accept it.”
    “What?” Juli sat back in her chair, stunned. How much conflict did he want to make out of this?
    Heather laughed. “It’s not your choice whether to accept it or not. What matters is the Council has accepted it.”
    “I challenge the decision.”
    “You’re perfectly welcome to challenge Miss Gunby for the position of alpha at the next full moon, as our ancient law provides.”
    He glanced at Juli, curling his lip. “I’m not going to fight her. I’m challenging you.”
    “I’ve explained the details of form FV9.”
    “I’m not filling that out. I object to this entire process.”
    Heather shook her head in amusement and laughed even harder. “You’ll have to stop with the jokes, Mr. Statham. I’m an alpha-level investigator. My word can’t be challenged.”
    “Listen, I know you had a bunch of numbers and codes to justify what you’ve decided, but it’s wrong. Darrow Gunby can’t just treat an entire pack like chattel. We can’t be inherited. We’re werewolves, not objects.”
    Heather raised a perfect eyebrow. It appeared neatly plucked, and Juli again wondered how she managed it. Her own eyebrows sprouted stray hairs at a hopeless pace, all hours of the day and night. “When a rival alpha conquers a ruling alpha, the pack is transferred, no? Do you object to all of our customs, or just the ones that don’t suit you?”
    “Maybe I object to all of them.” No one could mistake Neil’s expanding chest and threatening step forward. The two silent investigators interposed themselves between