The Wolf Fount (11 page)

Taking a few seconds to compose himself, he spoke in a calm, quiet voice. “I am the Fount. I can order you to stand down and you’ll have no choice. Or you can calm yourself. I’d rather you take the second option. I’ve never been fond of forcing my people to obey me.”

He let his words sink in, studying her new form. Morgan was a pretty woman, but she’d become a stunning wolf. She was a silvery gray, with inky black points, and a line of black down her back. They’d look good together, light and dark, as he was solid black in wolf shape.

Don’t be thinking that way
. Cal lowered her until her front paws touched the bed, but kept his hold on her scruff. It wouldn’t be fair to Morgan, trying to make anything more of their current relationship. Assuming she’d be interested in anything more after this. The fact he’d even thought of it meant it was past time to introduce her to Thane and see what happened.

Caught up in not getting bitten, and trying to decide what would be best for Morgan, at least short term, Cal only vaguely noted the sounds of footsteps coming up the stairs. He released her, taking a quick step back, and the door opened.

Sebastian had arrived, along with Thane.

Shit
.

R
eleased, Morgan snarled. The door opened and a pale-skinned man stepped inside. He had the same color hair and eyes as Calhoun and resembled the bastard just enough to make it clear there was a family relationship.

The newcomer smelled oddly musty, which raised her hackles and drew a growl from deep within. She didn’t even think, just acted. Two quick lunges, and Morgan was anticipating flesh in her jaws. Instead, she landed in the embrace of another man, a stranger as large as Calhoun, as he pushed the first man out of the way.

The second new arrival looked into her eyes. His were a pale, golden brown, matching his hair. He didn’t say a word, just gazed at her as if he had all the time in the world. Not a hint of surprise; he acted as though it were perfectly normal for a wolf to jump into his arms.

Morgan’s growl turned into a yelp as a large hand grabbed her by the scruff and yanked her free of the man’s arms.

“One thing you need to know right now.” Calhoun’s face was in hers, his lips drawn back to bare his teeth, canines lowered, eyes orange and narrowed. “Is that you never, ever attack my nephew.”

“I’m fine, uncle. You know it’s instinctive.”

She was unceremoniously dropped to the floor and landed with a thump. Calhoun’s anger felt like a whip lash across her back. Morgan hated the way she cringed at his feet. There was even an urge to pee, but she fought it.

She had made a huge mistake, and now everything had gone wrong. She was trapped in an unfamiliar shape, her belongings were out of reach, and she was surrounded by strangers. Morgan swallowed a whine, noting the door of the suite was still open. Before she could make a break for it, the other wolf nosed it closed.

Fuck you, Jake
.

Calhoun dropped to one knee and used one hand under her muzzle to lift her head. “Sorry. I have a hair trigger where family’s concerned.”

And fuck you too
, Morgan thought, finding herself unable to glare at him. She couldn’t even meet his eyes. Some new instinct kept her from trying.

“This is Sebastian, my nephew, and Thane. Gentlemen, meet our newest Were, Morgan.” Calhoun stroked his other hand over her skull, the caress triggering a small wag of her tail. Frustrated, she lifted her head free of his hand and backed up a step. He let his hands fall to his sides, but didn’t rise.

At least now, she knew who the new guys were. But why did Sebastian smell differently than the others?

“Sebastian is a vampire.”

Morgan felt her ears flatten. Calhoun had told her that vampires were the enemy, so what the hell was going on?

Apparently, Calhoun followed her line of thought, because he explained. “Sebastian’s the son of my youngest sister, fathered by one of my first wolves. He was captured and turned before his Awakening.”

The vampire, now that she was examining him more closely, did look younger than Calhoun. Maybe late twenties. How old were these people? Calhoun had said something about centuries. Morgan shook her head.

“Thane is unique,” he said, and she looked from vampire to the tall, lighter-haired man. “He’s a were-liger.”

She didn’t know what that meant. Animals weren’t one of her interests. Calhoun kept yapping. “He’s also not much of a talker.” That would be a welcome change. Morgan had yet to meet a man who wasn’t in love with the sound of his own voice. “I think it’s best if you go with Thane to headquarters now. At least for a few days, until you’re more comfortable with the situation.”

Ah, he’d gotten what he wanted, and now he was getting rid of her. Morgan felt like growling again, but suppressed the urge. Away from Calhoun felt like a great idea.

I
t was with reluctance that Cal ordered Morgan to leave with Thane, and not attempt to run away. She had no choice but to obey direct orders from him. The were-liger accepted tending to her without a word and carried her meager belongings out once they were gathered.

Cal suffered a pang watching the two of them walk down the hallway to the back stairs. He’d see her again, of course, as she’d be his personal assistant for a while, unless Morgan changed her mind about that. Which, after the disaster her first change had become, she probably would.
Shame, she was interesting
.

He stepped back inside the suite to find Jake pulling on his clothing, while Sebastian had moved to the windows to watch the crowd below. “Thanks for helping.”

“No problem, boss. I have the feeling I may need to watch my back for a while though. She was pissed.”

“Don’t worry about it. She won’t be leaving headquarters until she’s settled down.” Cal patted Jake’s shoulder. “I may keep Thane on her for a few months. He needs a job for now.”

Jake snorted, bending to collect the bags of trash. “I thought you loved him like a brother. Even Thane’s going to have a hard time with her.”

“We’ll see.” Cal opened the door to let the other out. “I’ll be down in a bit.”

“Sure, boss.”

Closing the door, he turned to cross the room and stood by his nephew. Sebastian glanced at him. “A newly Awakened Were is a reason for joy, uncle. Why aren’t you joyous?”

“She tried to attack you.”

The vampire smiled. Not much dented his calm exterior. “It wasn’t Morgan’s fault. You were a bit harsh with her.”

Cal ran a hand over his hair, a grimace flashing across his face. “Yeah, I was heavy-handed. Didn’t mean to be. We had to trick her into first change. I don’t know what happened, but she did an about-face, turned suspicious and defensive.”

“She hasn’t had an easy life,” Sebastian reminded him. “She’s only had herself to depend on for much of it. I’d be more surprised if she hadn’t had second thoughts about the changes in her behavior.”

Sometimes, his nephew’s habit of playing Devil’s Advocate amused Cal. This was one of those times, because the Were being defended had come close to injuring the boy. “Morgan nearly got hold of you, and I’m certain it wouldn’t have ended well.”

Sebastian shrugged, a graceful motion. “Unless she removed my heart or head, the damage wouldn’t have been permanent. I doubt the matter would’ve gone that far.”

No, it wouldn’t have
. Cal nodded, his eyes scanning the crowd below. Blowing off some steam sounded like a great idea, and the club made a fantastic hunting ground. He doubted he’d find a woman able to match Morgan for her voracious sexual appetite, but then again, someone different would speed getting his new Were out of his system. “Let me get dressed and we’ll go downstairs. I’m in the mood for some fun after the drama.”

“Certainly.”

W
ith a faint smile in place, Sebastian watched his uncle. They’d been downstairs for nearly two hours. Calhoun’s behavior was becoming a source of worry for the vampire.

At the moment, the First—which was what Sebastian usually thought of his uncle as—was out on the dancefloor, surrounded by half a dozen young women vying with each other for his attention. The vampire could sense the women’s lust, but Calhoun hadn’t yet singled one out.

It was a deviation from his normal routine. Calhoun tended to select one woman at a time to spend a week or two with. Then he’d move onto a new playmate. He didn’t gather women and divide his attention between them.

The most likely cause for the change was Morgan, but Sebastian didn’t understand why. She wasn’t the first female Sleeper his uncle had bedded, or supported through Awakening and first change. Calhoun had done exactly that more times than Sebastian could remember, to the point that it seemed simply one of his duties as the First. Morgan wasn’t even the first Sleeper to come along who’d had such a difficult human existence. The ranks were full of people who’d led hard lives.

But something about the new Were had affected his uncle adversely. Sebastian pondered the matter, watching Calhoun sandwich himself between two of the women for some heavy grinding.
Perhaps Morgan was just a challenge, one he hadn’t faced in a few years?

That idea didn’t sit well with Sebastian, because it didn’t mesh with his knowledge of his uncle. Calhoun didn’t regard women as notches on his belt.

Maybe it was the lack of his Chimaera. The vampire knew intimately how much Calhoun longed for her to finally appear. The other Firsts hadn’t waited long for theirs, less than a few hundred years at the most. Sebastian had even met one, the Tiger Fount’s Chimaera. They were unusual women, able to change into each of the animals chosen by the Guardians. That ability allowed them to help control Weres not of their own species and was useful to the Founts when they’d worked together.

The vampire also knew that his uncle believed his Chimaera would never appear, because of what Calhoun had been forced to do: kill the other Founts to put a stop to their plans to take control of the world. No one had realized that killing the Founts would also be a death sentence for their Chimaeras and the guilt of those three women’s deaths continued to weigh heavily on Calhoun’s conscience.

And perhaps he was correct, because over two thousand years had passed since the last Chimaera had died. Calhoun’s had never appeared. It was a long time to go without one’s promised mate. A long time to spend mostly alone. Sebastian’s faint smile faltered, sympathy for his uncle quick to rise.
It wasn’t his fault. He couldn’t have known
.

The Founts didn’t take their mates onto the front lines. They left them behind in camp, heavily guarded. But even if Calhoun had known, he hadn’t had much choice. Allowing the others to rule a world meant for humankind, to overstep the duty they’d been selected for, wasn’t something he could’ve turned a blind eye to.

Sebastian took a sip of his red wine, savoring the taste of blood. He’d learned long ago that he could ingest liquids, as long as they were mixed with blood. Were blood had been his only diet for longer than he could remember. He’d given up preying on humans after saving his uncle’s life and being given the chance to rejoin the family.