Watching Out For Fangs (The Cloverleah Pack Book 7) (25 page)

Chapter Thirty Three

By the time four large black SUVs pulled up the pack house driveway, the men were all outside, standing in the formation Kane had discussed. The men were all spread out along the front of the house – Kane and Shawn in the center with Damien and Scott on one side, and Griff and Diablo on the other. Anton and Troy stood beside Scott, the twins determined to fight together if necessary. On the other side of Diablo was Jax flanked by Aelfric and Fafnir, both in their princes’ regalia. Vadim found himself sandwiched between Fafnir and Josh, while Matthew had Dean hard against him, standing next to Anton. Tobias had joined the enforcers, both from Cloverleah and San Antonio, all thirteen men currently in wolf form, flanking both sides of the array. Connor and Fergus, the two Fae guards stood behind Aelfric and Fafnir.

It was an impressive array of casual strength and Vadim could appreciate the psychology behind it. In contrast to Aelfric and Fafnir’s fancy clothes, and Vadim’s Armani suit, most of the other men all wore nothing but jeans – the impression being they were more than ready for a quick shift.  Kane and Shawn were the only exception among the wolves, although they simply added boots and a muscle shirt to their jeans. Kane had pointed out, when Shawn had questioned him about it, that Shawn could have his clothes magicked off in a second if necessary and also, in theory, the Atlanta pack had come to talk. Greeting them, ready to shift, would give the wrong impression.

No one said a word as the doors to the vehicles opened and six men got out of each one. Twenty four in total – it seemed Clarkson had called in some reinforcements.

Four magicked humans, two together second from the left and the other in the same position on the right. Two, no make that four vampires, flanking the Alpha and his second. If a fight breaks out don’t forget to shift to avoid the poison.

Shawn’s voice in his head was a total surprise, but Vadim didn’t let it show on his face. He had already picked out the vampires and although he didn’t know them too well, he had seen them around the coven. One of them caught his eye, and Vadim lifted his lip, showing his fangs. The already pale man stepped back a bit as though afraid. Not that old then. Vadim was confident he could take them if he had too.

Kane waited until the men had arranged themselves about ten foot away. Plenty of room to shift and fight if necessary, but close enough to be heard easily without yelling.

“It’s like a scene out of Twilight,” Aelfric whispered. “Vamps, wolves, and a standoff.”  Vadim wasn’t sure what the heck the Fae was talking about but Josh sniggered under his breath.

“I am Kane Matthews, Alpha of the Cloverleah Pack,” Kane said in a strong voice. “You are invited here today as it has been brought to my attention that you have an offer for some of my pack members.  Please, state your name and your business.”

“I am Alpha Clarkson, Alpha of the Atlanta pack.” The biggest, and yet youngest looking man stepped forward, apparently proud of who he was and cocky enough to step away from the protection of his second, who had the sense to shadow the young man’s back.

“The Council have let us know that you have, among your members certain
unique
individuals that may be happier in a larger, more prosperous pack. We want to welcome them into our ranks.” Clarkson’s eyes roved over the arrayed men and Vadim knew the instant the man had picked out Dean, Aelfric and Fafnir. When Clarkson looked at him, the man’s eyes widened slightly, but the man didn’t say anything.

“It is true we’re a small pack, and we have a lot of diversity,” Kane agreed. “However, every member is here by choice. The unique individuals, as you call them, are all here through meeting their true mates and as such, are pack members.”

“Not all of those here are yours though, are they?” Clarkson’s eyes narrowed as he seemed to notice Damien for the first time. Vadim coughed under his breath. The man was so busy looking for the Omega, he had totally overlooked the largest Alpha on the grounds.

“I am Damien,” the man said proudly. “Related to the Cloverleah pack through mating. Me and my men are just here visiting from San Antonio. Nothing for you to worry about.”

“Damien. Right.” Clarkson looked a little bit discomforted by the idea and Vadim was impressed. He knew that the big Alpha was important in wolf circles, but apparently every wolf shifter knew of his existence. Clarkson was silent for a moment, but a prod from his second had him opening his mouth again.

“So the Council have said that you have an Omega wolf, two Fae, a Cat Shifter and I see that the Regent of the Atlanta coven is also standing among your members. I would like to assimilate these men into my own pack.”

“In return for?” Vadim could hear more than a few growls among the pack, so it was a huge credit to Kane in his position as Alpha that the men allowed Kane to go through this farce of a meeting.

Clarkson looked nonplussed.

“This is a negotiation, Clarkson” Kane prompted. “If you want some of my pack members, and I am not saying you can have them, then you have to have something to negotiate in return. All of the men you have listed are mated, so you are talking about a huge chunk of my pack.”

“Yes, well, I didn’t notice the signs of any females here,” Clarkson said, looking around. “Your mated females are housed elsewhere?”

Kane laughed, a huge belly laugh that rolled around the clearing and tickled the trees on the edge of the forest. Kane’s apparent mirth seemed to unsettle the Atlanta Alpha if the scowl he wore was any indication.

“How much do you know about this pack, Clarkson?” Kane said when he got himself under control.

“I know you have too much diversity. That will change today,” Clarkson said, his fur ruffled by the thought of someone laughing at him no doubt.

“Look around you,” Kane said spreading his arms wide. “Every single man here is gay. All of the mated pairs are true mates. We don’t have one female in the pack. You are looking at our diversity
and their mates
. They are also all really happy living here. So state your offer and I will allow each
unique
individual to make up their own mind as to whether or not they accept the offer given.”

Clarkson’s whole outlook turned cunning. “You would allow me to discuss the offer with the pack members I want?”

“Everything in this pack is done on a pack basis. You can state your offer in front of us all. Saves you having to repeat yourself.” Kane could be firm when he wanted to, and Vadim hoped that the Alpha had noted Clarkson’s change in attitude.

For a moment it looked like Clarkson would refuse, but another prod from his second clearly had him rethinking his decision.

“The Atlanta pack has been established since the mid-1840s. It is large, with a beautiful territory. There are plenty of opportunities for jobs within the pack. We have a large pack house, or members can live in individual housing on the estate if they prefer. The Atlanta region has many activities and leisure spots to enjoy and all pack members enjoy a comfortable and settled lifestyle.”

“Sounds like a tourist brochure,” Kane said. “Which ones of my pack members are you particularly interested in?”

This time Clarkson didn’t hesitate. “The Omega, definitely. We feel such a rare being would be safer in a larger pack environment. We would welcome the Fae and their mates so that we could encourage a good relationship between their species and ours. As the cat shifter is mated, he is of no real use to us, but I would welcome Lord Vadim’s mate into my pack to forge a solid alliance between pack and our neighboring coven.”

“Is that the full extent of your offer?”

“Yes. I believe that your pack members would be better served in a larger, well established pack, in a refined and more civilized location. We can offer them safety, security and a long term home.”

“You have no problem that all of the men you mentioned are gay, with true mates?”

Clarkson’s face twisted up a bit, but he shook his head. “We’ll have no problem with that.”

Kane absorbed what Clarkson had said – well, at least it looked like the man was giving it some careful consideration. For all Vadim knew Kane could be compiling a shopping list in his head, or he could be chatting to Shawn. He glanced down at Josh, who had a neutral look on his face, but when he noticed Vadim’s look, he smiled, showing his teeth.

Get your claws out, sweetheart. Kane has just about had enough of this farce. Clarkson has been lying through his fucking teeth, and Kane is well aware of it.

Vadim didn’t have to wonder how Josh knew that Clarkson was lying. A wolf nose could pick up just about anything. What was surprising is that Kane hadn’t pulled Clarkson up on it.

“Okay,” Kane said at last. “The men here have all heard your offer. In this pack, every man can speak up for himself. Vadim, do you have any desire to leave Cloverleah and give your allegiance to Alpha Clarkson in the interests of better coven and pack interactions.”

Vadim was surprised to be called out first, but he recovered quickly. “No thank you, Alpha. My mate is happy here and so am I. Any alliance with the coven can go through my Proctor.”

Clarkson didn’t say anything, but his little dark eyes narrowed. Kane went on. “Jax, Aelfric and Fafnir. You have heard that Clarkson wishes to facilitate closer ties between shifters and Fae. Are you keen to take him up on his offer?”

Vadim saw the three men look at each other, sharing a secret grin. “No thank you, Alpha,” Aelfric said politely and with a touch of the arrogant tone he was known for. “My mates and I are happy here in Cloverleah. Fafnir and I wouldn’t do well in a different pack.”

“How can you know that?” Clarkson burst out. “You haven’t visited our pack, you can’t know if you’ll like it or not.”

“We know,” Jax growled deeply. “I was one of the wolves involved in your late Alpha’s ridiculous ruse involving your pack, the coven and apparent unresolved deaths. If I never see Atlanta again it will be a blessing.”

Clarkson seemed to take in Jax’s size and wisely kept his mouth shut.

“You’ve already discounted Diablo as being unnecessary, which is not a view we share at all, so that only leaves Dean,” Kane continued. As expected Dean reiterated, very strongly for an Omega, that he was happy where he was, wanted to stay with his family and friends, and no, he definitely did not want to move to Atlanta.

When he was done, Kane smiled. “As you can see, none of the pack members you are interested in are willing to join your pack. I believe that’s the end of our negotiations. I wish you well on your journey home.”

Drawing himself to his full height, Clarkson snarled, “What type of an Alpha are you? Your word should be law and your members should obey you.”

Vadim was sure that Kane would take offence at what was a deliberate insult. But he didn’t. “That’s not how we run things in this pack, Clarkson,” he said with a laugh. “Besides you didn’t offer me anything in return for giving up my pack members. If you had wanted me to order them to live with you, then shouldn’t you have thought to offer
me
something I wanted? Or were you just planning to take what you felt you deserved all along?”

The tension around the Cloverleah men increased.  This was the throw down. Clarkson would either attack for the insult on his integrity, or withdraw, which would be the most sensible decision he could make. Unfortunately Clarkson didn’t appear blessed with any common sense at all. Instead he turned and looked at his own men and then turned back to Kane.

“I have four unmated men among my enforcers. They will fight the mates of the four men we want – your Omega, the two Fae, and the vampire. If they win, the men will come with us.”

Kane shrugged. “You might want to check with your enforcers first. None of them are pinging my gaydar and as all four men in question are true mated, your enforcers better pull something out the bag pretty quick, or, if they do win, they’re going to find themselves with dead mates within a week.”

“My men do as they are told, unlike yours. Any hole is fine for a fuck in the dark.”

Vadim could see there were more than a few looks of disgust among the Atlanta enforcers and he wondered how long it would be before someone challenged Clarkson for his own position. He noticed Josh was stepping forward, and grabbed him by the arm.

Where are you going?

I’m going to face a challenge – you heard Clarkson, and Kane won’t stop it. The enforcers are all beta wolves.

Vadim wanted to say more, but he stopped himself. The last thing he wanted was for Josh to be upset and unfocused if he was going to have to fight. He settled for a quick, harsh kiss and then allowed Josh to step away, joining Matthew and Jax.

This could be a diversion,
Shawn’s voice sounded loud in his head.
Ignore the challenge fights, our men can take care of themselves. Keep an eye on the others.

Luckily Vadim counted himself as a multi-tasker. Shawn’s comments were well meant and valid considering the tension in the air. Personally, he wasn’t taking his eyes off of Josh until the man in question was back in his arms.

/~/~/~/~/

Josh went and stood by Matthew and Jax, while Clarkson was having a hurried discussion with four men who clearly wished they hadn’t got out of bed that morning. After more than a few growls, and showing of teeth, Clarkson turned back to the pack circle, four men by his side.