small family. Book taught him how to ride a bike after his old man died. Taught him how to fight. Taught him the difference between right and wrong. Without him, Grant would probably be involved in less than honorable activities.
“I know, and I thank you for that. I haven’t seen many men who deserve to rule, who would be fit to rule. With all the work you have done keeping the territory clean, I have no doubt of your prospects. You deserve it. I have not seen someone so fit to have their own pride in years.” Book put a hand on his shoulder, “You are my brother in arms. How will you convince her to officially support our pride?”
“I can’t do anything to convince her. The pride has to.” Book replied, “If you try too hard, she will know your intention, and she will know about our little trap. You could lose her forever.”
He was right, the smarter big “brother”, always giving him the advice he so desperately needed.
Grant’s thoughts shifted. The council wasn’t the only problem they were facing, far from it. A couple of prides had been encroaching on their territory lately, trying to sell drugs in what was otherwise a clean area.
“And the White Marsh pride?” Grant’s voice slipped almost to a whisper.
“Negotiations don’t look good, Grant. Jake and Amy have been gone for two weeks. No change.” Tension filled Book’s brow. “All we can do is wait until they get back.”
“Does that mean?” Grant’s eyes widened as he tried to imagine the repercussions of failed negotiations.
“Yeah, we have to prepare for battle, and train the new shifters. We have over 23 after the last two moons. I expect 3 or 4 will still be making their way to us. A lot of recessives, Grant. They are going to need a good teacher.”
☼ ☼ ☼ ☼ ☼ ☼
“Just look at this bunch of slobs. Really? This is what they give me to work with?” Eliza wasn’t the most couth partner but she was strong. And she was right. The recruits may have been mostly recessives, but they didn’t look like much.
Standing around inside the training facility Grant was less than impressed. It was a large gym, cleverly disguised as a warehouse, and the recruits stood around in a small circle, looking every bit the part of a bunch of humans who had no idea what they were doing.
Grant’s second in command of training looked down her nose at them. This was going to be fun.
He always picked her when it was time to train new recruits. “Toes against the line,” She barked, “All of you, now. Just because you have been given shelter here doesn’t mean you have to stay. Let’s go!”
She was as tough as nails, with a beautiful ferocity that would leave any man staring while she tore his heart out. Grant had to give her that. He trusted her with his life, and she had gotten him out of more than a couple of bar fights. He considered mating her for several moons, but they never would have been the right fit.
Grant spotted his fit, his mate at the end of the line, her jaw hard as she tried to avoid his gaze. Three days had gone by and they still could barely go more than an hour without a touch, but the cravings were getting easier to handle. He licked his lips as he looked along her jaw, the soft lines leading him down her body, causing him to pause over the more sensual spots. He quickly diverted his attention and looked up and down the line of recruits.
Several looked scared, while others looked kind of feral, a mix of backgrounds, some a lot more pure than his own, some with rougher backgrounds than his own. Those were the ones who Grant worried about. An uncontrollable soldier was a dead soldier, and he usually took a couple people with him. Grant had seen it. Hell, he had been that uncontrollable soldier, pulling his friends into some pretty unnecessary fights. Including Eliza. That was when he was just a kid. This was different. He had been in enough battles, with enough… otherworldly creatures, to know a
“I know, and I thank you for that. I haven’t seen many men who deserve to rule, who would be fit to rule. With all the work you have done keeping the territory clean, I have no doubt of your prospects. You deserve it. I have not seen someone so fit to have their own pride in years.” Book put a hand on his shoulder, “You are my brother in arms. How will you convince her to officially support our pride?”
“I can’t do anything to convince her. The pride has to.” Book replied, “If you try too hard, she will know your intention, and she will know about our little trap. You could lose her forever.”
He was right, the smarter big “brother”, always giving him the advice he so desperately needed.
Grant’s thoughts shifted. The council wasn’t the only problem they were facing, far from it. A couple of prides had been encroaching on their territory lately, trying to sell drugs in what was otherwise a clean area.
“And the White Marsh pride?” Grant’s voice slipped almost to a whisper.
“Negotiations don’t look good, Grant. Jake and Amy have been gone for two weeks. No change.” Tension filled Book’s brow. “All we can do is wait until they get back.”
“Does that mean?” Grant’s eyes widened as he tried to imagine the repercussions of failed negotiations.
“Yeah, we have to prepare for battle, and train the new shifters. We have over 23 after the last two moons. I expect 3 or 4 will still be making their way to us. A lot of recessives, Grant. They are going to need a good teacher.”
☼ ☼ ☼ ☼ ☼ ☼
“Just look at this bunch of slobs. Really? This is what they give me to work with?” Eliza wasn’t the most couth partner but she was strong. And she was right. The recruits may have been mostly recessives, but they didn’t look like much.
Standing around inside the training facility Grant was less than impressed. It was a large gym, cleverly disguised as a warehouse, and the recruits stood around in a small circle, looking every bit the part of a bunch of humans who had no idea what they were doing.
Grant’s second in command of training looked down her nose at them. This was going to be fun.
He always picked her when it was time to train new recruits. “Toes against the line,” She barked, “All of you, now. Just because you have been given shelter here doesn’t mean you have to stay. Let’s go!”
She was as tough as nails, with a beautiful ferocity that would leave any man staring while she tore his heart out. Grant had to give her that. He trusted her with his life, and she had gotten him out of more than a couple of bar fights. He considered mating her for several moons, but they never would have been the right fit.
Grant spotted his fit, his mate at the end of the line, her jaw hard as she tried to avoid his gaze. Three days had gone by and they still could barely go more than an hour without a touch, but the cravings were getting easier to handle. He licked his lips as he looked along her jaw, the soft lines leading him down her body, causing him to pause over the more sensual spots. He quickly diverted his attention and looked up and down the line of recruits.
Several looked scared, while others looked kind of feral, a mix of backgrounds, some a lot more pure than his own, some with rougher backgrounds than his own. Those were the ones who Grant worried about. An uncontrollable soldier was a dead soldier, and he usually took a couple people with him. Grant had seen it. Hell, he had been that uncontrollable soldier, pulling his friends into some pretty unnecessary fights. Including Eliza. That was when he was just a kid. This was different. He had been in enough battles, with enough… otherworldly creatures, to know a
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