Auriele stepped in front of Henry when he would have gone to her. Her lips peeled back. ¡Hijo de perra! she said, her voice alive with anger.
Henry flushed, so the insult hit home. Calling someone a son of a dog is a good insult among werewolves.
Hijo de Chihuahua, said Mary Jo.
Auriele shook her head. Darryl kept saying that it couldnt be Paul behind the unrest weve been having for the last couple of years. No one would listen to Paul. We knew he was right, but no one else fit. I would have suspected Peter before I suspected you.
Peter was the lone submissive wolf in the pack. It was inconceivable that a submissive wolf would play power games. If Auriele was right, this had started long before the disastrous bowling-alley incident.
How long have you known that Mary Jo would have dropped you like a hot potato for Adam? I asked.
He snarled something rude.
You have no common sense whatsoever, said Auriele. I assume she was talking to me, so I answered her.
Hes not going to do anything with you between us, I told her. Hes smart enough to be afraid of you.
Since I was killed for certain, said Mary Jo, answering the question Id asked Henry. Isnt that right? The first time I regained consciousness. You kissed my forehead, and I called you by Adams name. But it sounds like you had a pretty good idea about it even earlier.
Get out of here, said Darryl, his voice low with anger. Get out of this house, Henry. When you come back to see this fight, you come in from the outside door. And youd better hope Adam wins this fight, or Ill wipe the ground with you so hard they wont need a box to bury you in. All theyll need is a mop.
Henry flushed, went white, then flushed again. He left the room without a word. The outside door opened and slammed shut.
Ben strolled in, looking grim, Sam right behind him.
Wheres Henry going in such a hurry? Darryl, goodI was looking for you. I just got through talking to Warren downstairs. Have you heard . . . ? His voice trailed off when he saw Jesse standing there. He took a good look at all of us. I see you have.
Darryl stiffened. Samuel? His voice was soft.
Hes been like this a couple of days, offered Ben. So far, so good. Its a long story, and you can hear it later: were due in the garage in five.
Chapter 11
THE ONLY REASON THE GARAGE WASNT PACKED WITH werewolves was that there hadnt been enough time for the word to go around.
Instead of thirty or so, we only had eighteen, not including Sam, who wasnt pack. But I had to keep looking around and counting because there seemed to be fewer people than my count showed. Most dominance fights, like boxing or wrestling matches, are full of jostling, cheering, jeering, and betting. This one was eerily silent, and only one person was moving.
Paul jogged in place on one side of the padded floor, stopping every ten or fifteen seconds to stretch or do a little shadowboxing. He was a tall man with blond hair and a short red beard. His skin was the kind that is usual for redheads, pale and freckled. The excitement of the impending fight left him flushed. Like Adam, he wore only a pair of gi pants.
There is no tradition that dictates dominance fights have to be done in human form. It is common, though, because it makes the challenge more about skill and strength. When you are armed with fangs and claws, a lucky hit can take out a more skilled opponent.
On the far side of the mats from Paul, Adam stood in horse stance, head bowed, eyes closed, and shoulders relaxed. All signs of pain were gone from his face, but he hadnt been able to eliminate the pain-caused stiffness in the time that hed walked from the house to the mat. Even if he had, only an idiot would look at the broken scabs on his feet and hands and not understand that he was in trouble.
As Alpha, even as badly hurt as he had been, he really should have been healing faster than this. Granted that werewolves, even the same werewolf, will heal wounds at different rates depending upon a number of things. He might have been hurt worse than hed shown us, or the trouble hed been having with his pack could be interfering with his ability to heal. I tried not to look worried.
Jesse and I had the equivalent of ringside seats at the edge of the mat on the side where Adam stoodtraditional for the family of the Alpha, but not smart when neither of us could reasonably defend ourselves if the fight rolled off the mats. Sam stood beside Jesse, and Warren stood between us, presumably to keep the combatants from hurting us.
Adam wasnt wearing a watch, but at exactly nine thirty by the clock on the wall, he raised his head, opened his eyes, and nodded at Darryl.
Wolves arent much given to long speech-making. Darryl strode from the sidelines to the center of the mat. Paul has chosen today to challenge our Alpha, he announced baldly. His lips twisted as he said, He eschewed the formality of running the challenge by the Marrok.
No one murmured or looked surprised. They all knew what Paul had done.
There was the bare chance that the Marrok would look at the mess the pack was in and allow that Paul had no choice but to challenge. The chance that the Marrok wouldnt kill Paul would have been slightly greater if Adam hadnt been hurt already. But Paul probably thought that he was in the right and that he could convince the Marrok of the same thing.
I suppose anything is possible. I dont think Paul understood just how unlikely that was. Hed never, to my knowledge, actually met the Marrok. Henry, who had, probably told Paul that it would be all right. People like Henry are good at getting others to believe them.
Darryl looked around the audience. My job is to see that you stay off the mats. I am willing to ensure that this is a fair fight with your life. Are we clear?
Excuse me, said Mary Jos voice.
She was just this side of five feet tall so I didnt see her until she stepped onto the mat in front of Darryl.
I call challenge on Paul, she said.
And then there was noise, a great howl of noise as the whole garage full of werewolves objectedwomen dont fight in challenge fights.
Darryl raised his hand and quiet spread reluctantly.
Im within three of his rank, she said. Her eyes were properly on Darryls feet, though her face was turned to him. It is within my right to challenge him for the right to fight the Alpha.
I stared at her. This was not something Id have expected of the Mary Jo who had allowed the fae to set fire to my house while she was supposed to be standing guard.
Youre not within three ranks, growled Darryl.
She held up her hand. Paul, she said. Then she held up one finger Henry. Another finger. George and me.
She was right. That was where Id have put her, too.
You are an unmated woman, Darryl said. That puts your rank at the bottom. Alec is after George.
Alec, she called, not taking her attention away from Darryl. Who is more dominant, you or me?
Alec stepped around the other wolves and looked from her to Paul. I could see the answer he wanted to make, and Darryl started to relax. Adam, I noticed, was watching Mary Jo with surprised respect.
Alec opened his mouth, then hesitated. You all could tell if I lied, he said. He raised up both his hands in a gesture of surrender. I hope you know what youre doing, Mary Jo. He looked Darryl in the eye, and said, Mary Jo outranks me.
And chaos reigned. Paul stuck his head in Darryls face and raved. He was one of the very few people in the pack tall enough to stand eye to eye with Darryl. If there hadnt been so much noise, Id have been able to hear what he saidbut I could guess. Paul liked Mary Jo. He didnt want to kill her.
Mary Jo stood there; like Adam, she was an island of quiet in the uproar. She was small, but every ounce of weight she had was muscle. She was tough as boot leather, quick, and agile. I wasnt as certain as Paul was that shed loseI wouldnt want to fight against her. If she won, she could yield to Adam. If she decided to fightand I didnt think she wouldshed be coming into the challenge tired and possibly hurt.
Then I remembered the way Henry had thrown her into the island in the kitchen. She had either broken or cracked her ribs when she hit. Though I couldnt see it in the way she was moving, there had not been enough time for her to heal. No one healed that fast unless they were an Alpha with a full moon outside.
Enough, roared Warren suddenly, his voice ringing out over the hubbub like a shot fired in a crowd.
Darryl turned to Mary Jo, and said, No.
Not your call to make, she informed him. Adam?
I have a problem, he said. Justice demands that I must step away from this determination because I am more than a little vested in the decision. In the name of justice, then, let it fall to the next three in rankMercy, Darryl, and Auriele.
He looked at me.
I know what I wanted to say. Auriele was likely to agree with Mary Joand wed already heard what Darryls viewpoint was. Even if Mary Jo lost, it would help Adam. I looked at the wolves and saw a lot of resentful facesthey had done the math as well, and they were very unhappy with me being a part of the decision.
Then I saw some wiggle room.
It seems to me that there is another problem, I said. If we agree that Mary Jo can fight because she ranks within three people of Paul. I submit that Paul does not stand within three people of Adam. Like Mary Jo, I held up my hand. Adam, then me. I held up a finger. Darryland Auriele, then Warren.
Then Honey, said Warren with a little smile. Then Paul.
Paul snarled. He has already accepted my challenge. That presupposes I have the right.
I looked at Adam.
Nice try, he told me. But I agree with Paul.
And the official code of conduct, said Ben grumpily, which I had to damn well memorize before I was allowed in the pack, says challenge within quote three men unquote. The important word being men.
So Mary Jo cant fight, said Paul with a relieved grin. Shes not a man.
So Mary Jos claim is still valid, I pointed out. Shes within three men of your rank. Does the code of conduct say that the challenger has to be a man? Kyle told me that one of the secrets of being a lawyer was never to ask a witness a question you didnt know the answer to. I knew what it said, but it would sound better coming from someone else.
No, said Ben.
Id done all I could do. Adams silent urging pushing me, I looked at Mary Jo, and said, Like Adam, I have too much of a stake in this.
Mercy, whispered Jesse fiercely. What are you doing? I patted the hand shed locked on my wrist.
Darryl, Auriele, and Warren will decide this, then, said Adam.
Because my mate bond with Adam was sort of functioning again, I knew he believed that if Id been part of the decision, it would have just become another point of contention. Another stupid thing that allowing a coyote into a pack of wolves had accomplishedinstead of what it should be, a recognition of Mary Jos right to challenge regardless of her sex. I figured he was right.
There are only three females in this pack, said Darryl. I dont think he forgot about me so much as he really meant three women werewolves instead of females in general. That is typical for all packs. Most werewolves die before they have spent a decade as a wolf, but for women who are wolves, that life span is almost doubled because they do not fight men for dominance. And still they are so few. You are too precious to us to allow you to risk so much.
It took me a while to realize he wasnt talking to the whole pack, but to his mate.
Auriele crossed her arms. That makes sense in a species where women are important to survival. But we arent. We cannot have childrenand so are no more valuable to the pack than anyone else.
It had the ring of an old argument.
I vote no, said Darryl, snapping his teeth as he spoke.
I vote yes, responded Auriele coolly.
Damn it, said Warren. Yall are going to throw me in the middle of a marital spat on top of everything else?
Up to you, Auriele said grimly.
Hell, said Warren, if this aint a whole can of worms, I dont know what is. Mary Jo?
Yes?
You sure about this, darlin?
It felt as if the whole pack drew a breath.
This is my fault, she told him. That Adam got hurt, that the pack has been in an upheaval. I didnt cause it all, but I didnt stop it either. I think its time I make suitable reparations, dont you? Try to fix the damage?
Warren stared at her, and I saw the wolf come and go in his eye. All right. All right. You go fight him, Mary Joand you damn well better win. You hear me?
She nodded. Ill do my best.
You do better than that, he said grimly.
Mary Jo. Pauls voice was plaintive. I dont want to hurt you, woman.
She kicked off her shoes and started pulling off her socks. Do you yield? she asked him, while she stood on one foot.
He stared at her, his body tight with growing anger. I stuck my neck out for you, he said.
She nodded. Yes. And I was wrong to ask you to. She tossed her second sock aside and looked at him. But Henry used both of us to ruin our pack. Are you going to let him get away with it?
It was very quiet in the garage. Im not sure anyone was even breathing. Henrys name had been a shock. Heads turned toward Henry, who was leaning against the wall between the garage doors, as far as he could get from Adams side of the mat.
Paul looked at him, too. For a moment, I thought it was going to work.
Are you going to let some girl lead you around by your tail like I did? Henry said, sounding miserable. She wants Adam, and shes willing to throw both of us away to get him. It was a masterful performance, and Paul bought ithook, line, and sinker.
The hell with you, then, Paul said to her. The hell with you, Mary Jo. I accept your challenge. He looked at Adam. Youll have to wait. I guess Ill eat my dessert first.
And he strode to the far end of the mat, next to Henry. Mary Jo walked up to where Adam was standing.
Reparations accepted, he said. You remember he fights with his heart and not his head.