~Mason~
I was standing on the sidelines as Riley got up on the table with a carafe in his hands. The green liquid didn’t look safe to drink, but everyone was stomping eagerly. They got louder as he raised it to the sky and lit a match. He held the match under the carafe. The liquid began to boil, and someone got up there with him and held a knife in her hands. I walked closer. Her head was covered with a hood, and the blade was raised and then punctured Riley’s hand; the blood trickled down his wrist and into the neck of the carafe, mixing with the green goo.
This backward pack was crazier than I thought. The pack erupted in cheers and howls, everyone reaching out their cups to get a fill of the blood-mixed drink. I was working on keeping the meat pie down.
The girl started jumping next to Riley. She lowered the hood and smiled widely as his lips slammed down on hers. His tongue entered her mouth, and it looked like they were eating each other up on the table in front of their pack.
You just fingered the Alpha’s girl, my wolf said amusingly.
Holy shit, you’re right.
I walked closer. Her eyes were electric, and her hands roamed over his body. How could that be? Those two together didn’t make any sense. One was an old junkie with more opioids in his system than actual blood. His wolf was probably just much of a mess, and he hadn’t fought in decades, and she was a hot twenty-year-old. She clearly wasn’t with him for the money. The old man didn’t have any, so why the fuck would she be licking his face and cutting his hand open in a weird-ass ritual?
You sound jealous. My wolf said.
Shut up.
“Mason.”
I turned around and saw Graham walking up. His eyes flickered back and forth at everyone, and it was clear he didn’t want to be here. He felt under constant threat.
“What’s up?” I asked and tore my gaze away from the happy couple.
“Sebastian is sobering up. I think we should take him and go.” I furrowed my brows and looked around. Sebastian was sitting with his mother around the fire pit, drinking water, and nothing else seemed to be in his hands.
“He’ll be fine til the morning. We’ll leave then,” I said.
“Why prolong it? Let’s just take them and go before something fucks the plan up,” Graham seethed.
“I said no. We leave tomorrow,” I said and turned around.
He grabbed my shoulder to stop me. My hand reacted by grabbing his wrist and twisting it so that he fell to his knee.
“I know what I’m doing, and nothing will fuck up the plan, so don’t try to stop again, or I will pull rank,” I said.
“Your brother already has, and he’s the one I answer to as my Alpha. He was clear about the instructions, Mason.”
I clenched my jaw and bit down hard enough til the taste of blood flooded my mouth.
“He’s not here right now, is he? I’ve got this. You’re either in, in which case I’ll see you inside the house in an hour, and if you don’t trust me, then stay the fuck away from there until I say otherwise.” I let go of his wrist, and Graham stood back up. He shook it off in a second and glowered.
“Is this about Kade? You feel you have something to prove to him?”
I narrowed my eyes.
“Watch your next words carefully, Graham. I’d hate for my sister to lose her mate.”
He scoffed and shook his head, but clearly, he didn’t understand why I told to shut the fuck up.
“There’s a reason why he’s the leader, you know. You never would’ve built the reputation he has. You’re so jealous that you can’t even follow orders without making it about yourself.” Graham’s head flew to the side as my knuckles hit against his jaw.
He leaned back and wiped the blood away, and his eyes darkened in anger.
“This only proves everything I said. Kade was a jackass for thinking you could do this.” Graham turned on his heels and walked away. His hand reached out and grabbed a bottle on the way, and he chugged the bear.
I turned and looked around. In the corner behind Sebastian was the person whose eyes I’d felt on me. Dimitri raised his bottle to his lips, his eyes locked in on mine, and he saluted with the bottle in the air.
The night drew to an end, but people weren’t returning home. Some had fallen asleep on the ground outside, and others were staring at the night sky, admiring the stars. Whatever was in that drink that Riley gave out caused everyone to go from hundred to zero, and they spent the remaining hours slacked in pools of spilled beer and dry dirt.
They had plates filled with food still in their hands. Some were halfway through eating with pieces still hanging in their mouths.
“Mason,” Riley called from over by the house. He held the door open. Dimitri was already inside. I looked around to see where Graham was, but he had apparently taken my advice and stayed away.
“Here you go,” Dimitri said, handing me a pipe.
I reached into my back pocket and pulled one out.
“I have my own,” I said and slumped on the couch.
Dimitri cleared his throat and shared a glance with Riley, who nodded.
“I overheard your talk with that friend you came with, Graham, was it?”
I raised a brow and lit the pipe.
“Anyways, he seems to be under the impression that it’s your brother who controls things here. Doesn’t he know you’re in someone else’s pack now?” he continued and took a puff from his pipe. The thick smoke blew out in clouds and sent an aroma throughout the house.
“My brother gave us clear instructions before we left, and he just wants to make good with his Alpha’s demands,” I said.
“You’re still defending your brother and your friends. It’s very amicable indeed, but it must get tiring always being thought of as the messy little brother who no one has any faith in.”
Riley watched Dimtiri as he spoke. I could swear I saw admiration shining in his eyes.
“It does, but that’s why I’ve been thinking about what you said, and I need to know exactly how you plan on making me Alpha,” Dimitri laughed and reached out his pipe, clinking against my own before falling with content back onto the couch. His body relaxed, and he had a relieved and proud look on his face.
We took another few puffs, and they started laughing. Riley voluntarily brought out another bottle of the good scotch. He poured each of us a glass, and we slammed them in a cheer.
“That little mutt never deserved to be Alpha. You don’t have to worry about him. Sebastian will be out of our hair in no time. We’ll see to it,” Dimitri said.
“How do you plan on doing that? His mother seems very sure of herself and her son when she says he’ll be back to run the pack,” I said and gulped down the scotch before pouring another glass.
It started ripping at my throat. The smoke was like razors followed by scotch, which was the salt in the open wounds, but it was a welcomed pain.
“It will all be taken care of, but I’m afraid it will ruin that little plan you had about taking us back to your brother,” Dimitri laughed.
Riley drew a big puff and made some circles in the air. He was smiling from ear to ear and looked between Dimitri and me with glee.
I leaned forward, placed my arms on my knees, and pointed with my pipe.
“If you hold up your end, I think I can handle my brother,” I said with a wink.
