Star-Crossed Mates (13 page)

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Klaus mentally sighed as yet another spirit wolf gaped at him, making a very adequate impersonation of a fish. He’d expected this reaction, of course, but he and his mates returned from the island almost a week ago. The staff of the Den should’ve gotten used to him by now. They hadn’t.

Ignoring his awed subordinate, Klaus went on with his intended task. Many things happened in their absence, and Klaus was only now catching up to everything. In the aftermath of Joseph’s death, Dietrich apparently found a heavy deposit of a “counter-serum,” the same one Joseph intended to use to create his army of ferals. It had all been destroyed, with the exception of one vial that lay under lock and key in the labs at the Den. Andrew Blunt was studying the formula, although these days, he seemed too busy concocting a new, better serum for the spirit wolves themselves.

For Klaus’s part, he’d been reinstated as the Magistrate’s secretary on a temporary basis, until another competent person could be found—or rather, until Fritz and Dietrich got used to it and could take over. Personally, Klaus didn’t mind. After so many years spent here, he’d have felt useless without having something to do. He’d almost refused the position, fearing his mates would be offended. On the contrary, Ross and Clay accepted his decision and encouraged it.

Their understanding of each other had deeply increased throughout the past few months.

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Smiling, Klaus knocked at the door of his leader’s office. “Enter,”

a slightly breathless voice replied.

Klaus cracked the door opened and hid a smile when he saw Fritz and Dietrich present. Sometimes, even the Magistrate needed a break, but at this rate, Wolfram’s mates would never learn the intricacies of spirit wolf bureaucracy.

“I thought you two were in the archives,” he said in a half-amused, half-chastising tone.

He didn’t mean anything by it, and the two men grinned at him.

“We figured we needed to give our neurons a few moments of peace.”

The awkwardness had disappeared among the three of them, even if old jealousies did occasionally resurface. Klaus liked the two men, though, and he considered them his friends.

“Okay, okay,” he replied. “I’m not such an evil tutor to keep mates apart. Besides, the Magistrate can always fire me if I get too harsh.”

Wolfram laughed. “Like that would ever happen.” His expression sobered when he saw the report in Klaus’s hand. “What do you have there?”

“The list with the guests tonight. So you truly want to go through with this?”

Wolfram nodded. “The Spirit Mother is right. This war lasted for too long. We need to focus our efforts in a different direction.”

“But peace with ferals?” Klaus couldn’t help his skepticism. After all, he’d been killed by one. He was getting over the experience, but the memory still bothered him. And he’d been lucky. Most of those who died in the line of duty didn’t come back for decades or centuries. Even then, reincarnation was tricky. “I’m not sure our pack will like the idea.”

“I’m not so fond of it myself,” Dietrich grumbled.

Wolfram sighed and got up. “I know. It will be hard. But we have to try.” He gestured them to the window. Outside, Klaus could see children, huddled together quietly.

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“Some of them will go to good families, but others won’t be so lucky. And thinking back, do we truly know anything about the ferals? Have we ever bothered to learn the truth about them? Nothing is black and white in this world.”

Klaus agreed with that assessment. In the end, his mate had been bitten by a feral, too. They’d succeeded in saving him, but how many other innocent humans were hunted because of a disease they could not control?

He smiled at Wolfram. “Well, My Lord, I will do my best to assist you.”

Wolfram beamed back. “Thank you, my friend.”

Klaus left the documents on the desk and abandoned the office.

He needed to prepare for the meeting tonight, too, but first, he wanted to see his mates. He’d spotted them watching over the children in the yard. This would be a difficult meeting for them. Those who’d heard of Ross’s involvement with Joseph did not like him, or Clay, for busting Ross out of his parents’ compound.

In a few minutes, he reached his mates and joined them in the contemplation of the silent children.

“It’s so sad,” Ross said.

“Yes, it is. That’s why Wolfram wants to put an end to it. But at the same time, it will make things difficult for him. Some have lost sons and daughters to the ferals. They won’t take this lightly.”

Clay sighed. “What do you think will happen, Klaus?”

Klaus looked at the blue, cloudless sky above them. “What I think… It’s hard to say, but I do see a future when families will raise their children together. Genetics is progressing so fast, and soon, same sex couples might not even need to adopt. But most importantly, imagine one day when we won’t have to worry about waking up to a new attack, to our friends, families and acquaintances dead. I want to fight to achieve this dream.”

Clay nodded. His gaze went from the children to several approaching aircrafts. “Let’s hope they want to fight for it, too.”

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* * * *

That night

The throne room was filled with people. Spirit wolves of all ages and ethnicities had come to answer their Magistrate’s call. Clay could practically smell the excitement, hear it in the buzzing of the conversations around him. The rumor mill already speculated on tonight’s announcement. Did Joseph return? Did something happen to Klaus? Did they reach a breakthrough in the war with the ferals? Or maybe the Spirit Mother appeared once again.

To Clay’s knowledge, none of those ideas were completely correct. He couldn’t be sure as to what Wolfram planned, since not even Klaus was privy to all of it. At the same time, Clay did have a certainty. After tonight, their society would never be the same again.

He waited with Ross in silence, too nervous to even speak.

Finally, Wolfram made his appearance, with his mates trailing behind him. After greeting everyone, he passed straight to the matter at hand.

“I’m sure you’re wondering why I summoned you all here. The truth is, the war with the ferals is straining our pack greatly. We’ve lost a lot of people in the past years, friends of all of us. For that reason, I intend to end the war. We’re heading toward peace with the ferals.”

Silence fell over the room, until, finally, someone found the courage to ask, “Peace, My Lord? But—”

A pointed gaze from Wolfram stopped the talking spirit wolf.

“The hunters will be supplied with different, more modern weapons.

From now on, the priority is to take the ferals alive. Peace cannot be built in one day, so we will start by showing our goodwill. Doctor Andrew Blunt and his son have prepared a new serum for that purpose. More details will be given to the hunters.”

The spirit wolves seemed increasingly restless, but Wolfram offered them a smile. “This is not an end. It is a new beginning. We
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must look forward to a future when we will no longer fear for our children and our mates. All of us here have lost loved ones, friends, and family. Some have been luckier than others and gained them back. But don’t you wish to build a new life, so that you never have to give them up again?”

As Wolfram spoke, the spirit wolves seemed to be more and more enthusiastic about the idea. It probably helped that they trusted Wolfram to lead them. Besides, Wolfram was their Magistrate, their Alpha. They couldn’t exactly say “no”.

On the whole, Clay thought the reunion could’ve gone much worse. When Wolfram finished his speech, all those present applauded. A couple of spirit wolves still appeared to be reluctant, but Clay surmised it wouldn’t be so easy to convince everyone.

With the noise dying down, Klaus joined them at last. “They took it quite well,” he whispered.

Ross nodded. “Better than I expected.”

Klaus pulled them out of the throne room, making Clay chuckle.

“Where are we going?”

Klaus grinned at them. “Taking a break. Starting tomorrow, we’ll have to build a whole new world. But for now, let’s just enjoyed the moment.”

Clay gladly went with his mate. He distantly remembered the words Joseph told them once. Star-crossed mates. No, they were no longer star-crossed, or separated. Joseph’s shadow didn’t exist between them anymore. Now, whatever came their way, they’d face it together, united, the three of them forever.

THE END

WWW.SCARLETHYACINTH.WEBS.COM

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

A native Romanian, Scarlet was born in 1986 and grew up an avid fan of Karl May and Jules Verne, reading fantasy stories and adventure. Later, when she was out of fantasy stories to read, she delved into her mother’s collection of books and, of course, stumbled onto romance.

As a writer though, Scarlet Hyacinth was born one sunny summer day, when a dear friend of hers—the same friend who introduced her to GLBT fiction—proposed they start writing a story of their own. As it turns out, the two friends never did finish that particular story, but Scarlet discovered she had a knack for writing and ended up starting to write individually. And so, between working on her dissertation, studying for exams, and reading yaoi manga, she started writing the Kaldor Saga. Along the way, Scarlet met a lot of wonderful people who supported her, and in the end, she found her story a home and, in the process, fulfilled a beautiful dream.

Also by Scarlet Hyacinth

Siren Classic ManLove: Kaldor Saga 1:
Enraptured
Siren Classic ManLove: Kaldor Saga 2:
Over the Edge
Siren Classic ManLove: Kaldor Saga 3:
Destinies in Darkness, Part 1

Siren Classic ManLove: Kaldor Saga 3:
Destinies in Darkness, Part 2

Siren Classic ManLove: Kaldor Saga 4:
Mending Shattered Souls
Ménage Amour ManLove:
The Three Horsemen of the Black Forest
Siren Allure ManLove:
Truth and Deception

Siren Classic ManLove: Sequel to
Truth and Deception
:
Reborn
Siren Classic ManLove: Deadly Mates 1:
Moon’s Sweet Poison
Siren Classic ManLove: Deadly Mates 2:
Wings of Moonlight
Ménage Amour ManLove: Deadly Mates 3:

Spell of the Predator’s Moon

Ménage Amour ManLove: Deadly Mates 4:
Dragon’s Bloodmoon
Ménage Amour ManLove:
Fire of the Four Seasons
Ménage Amour ManLove: Spirit Wolves 1:

A Mate Beyond Their Reach

Ménage Amour ManLove: Spirit Wolves 2:
Mates in Life and Death
Ménage Amour ManLove: Spirit Wolves 3:

Two Mates For A Magistrate

Ménage Amour ManLove: Spirit Wolves 4:

Three Mates, One Destiny

Available at

BOOKSTRAND.COM

Siren Publishing, Inc.

www.SirenPublishing.com