Winter’s Wolf (4 page)

“With Seth Zakowsky.” Cole smiled again, which didn’t happen much. Clearly Vanessen and Zakowsky must be special to him.

“Yes. Funny. When your two relatives walked in last night to the Way Station, I thought they looked like Lindsey Vanessen. You don’t see hair that color often.”

“True. All Nordic, probably. But my relatives are actually part of the Marketo family. Lindsey’s not.”

Matt looked down at the evidence bag. “I’ll just toss this when we get to a trash can, okay?”

“Thanks. I doubt they have permits. They actually kill to eat, which is pretty rare these days.”

They started walking. Matt wiped his hands on a handkerchief. “Why are they here if they love the wilderness so much?”

Cole shrugged. “I hear that Damon is looking for a good ma—uh, match for his son.”

“Arranged marriage? That’s pretty strange in this day and age. Especially for a guy.”

“Sorry, I misspoke. I guess where they lived was very remote and there just weren’t a lot of eligible girls around. Damon doesn’t want Winter to suffer because of his father’s life choices, so he brought him back to his family where he’d have some females to choose from.”

“That makes sense, I guess.” He pushed through some low brush to where Cole’s truck was parked. “Winter.”

“Yeah, that’s the guy’s name. Pretty, huh?”

“Really pretty.” He swallowed his sigh. So, the pretty one called Winter was looking for a girl to marry.

Shit.

“T
HANKS
FOR
the sweater.” Winter smoothed the white knit across his chest. That plus his best pair of jeans—one out of two—constituted his party attire. The early winter weather had turned warm, so with werewolf metabolism he didn’t need his jacket. Damon had worn his black leather more as a sports coat, and it looked great on him.

“Merced said come casual, so I hope we’re okay.” He fidgeted with his collar.

They walked across the parking lot of a low-rise building. A couple of male wolves hurried in the door as they approached, so it must be the meetinghouse Merced Marketo had described. Suddenly Damon stopped. “Winter.”

His head snapped up. “Yes, sir?”

“I want you to have a good time, but remember these are citified wolves compared to us, so take things with a grain of salt. Not everything is going to be our way.”

Winter’s eyes bugged. “Wait. You’ve been telling me for months that the damned sun rises and sets in Marketo, and now you’re saying take it with a grain of salt?”

Damon shrugged. “Some things have changed since I was a boy is all. Keep perspective, and remember I’m your father and you do as I say.”

“Well, fuck, Damon, talk about mixed messages.”

“Never mind. Let’s just go.” He strode toward the entrance to the building and pushed open the door. Winter ran to catch up.

Inside was a lot like their entrance into the Way Station two nights before—times ten. Every head turned, but this time they were all wolves. Males stood straighter and females’ eyes widened. The smell of that many weres about knocked Winter off his feet.

Merced Marketo hurried forward through the crowd. “Damon, Winter. Welcome.” He turned toward the curious group. “Everyone, listen up. I’m delighted to introduce you to my half brother, Damon, and his son, Winter. They’ve come from northern Canada and plan to settle here and become a part of our community. Please get to know them. I’m sure they’ll both be looking for a place to live and for work, so help them feel at home. I should mention, ladies, that both men are single.”

One female threw her head back. “Ahooooooo.” Several others joined in. Everyone laughed except the young males.

Merced took Damon’s arm. “Come on. I’ll introduce you both around.” He took them to a large, handsome man, taller than most, and reeking of alpha. “This is my friend Landon Harker, alpha of the Harker Pack.”

Damon shook his hand. The big male projected ease and relaxation, unlike Merced, who was more uptight and controlled in his role. Landon Harker extended a hand to Winter. “I’m delighted to meet you. It’s good to have new blood—” He grinned. “—and new power in the packs.”

Ah, good.
So this male didn’t underestimate Damon. He knew a peer when he saw him. Winter glanced around the big open room crowded with wolves. In the corner he spied that burly older wolf he’d seen at the Way Station. Maybe a few well-placed questions could get him some information on the human who’d sat at his table.

A hand clamped on his arm, and Winter jumped. He looked down into the bright brown eyes of a very pretty young female. She smiled. “Hi, I’m Candy. I figured I should get to know you before the other females in here forget they’re canine and start battling like a bunch of cats.”

He grinned. “Should I expect blood?”

She smiled and flashed very white, sharp teeth. “Could happen. Want to get some food with me?”

“Sure.” Okay, she was really attractive. Where was the instant, uncontrollable fascination Damon promised? He turned to his father and the alphas. “Will you excuse me, please?” Damon glanced at the female and smiled like a loon. Winter frowned.
Don’t get your hopes up, old man.

He followed her to a separate room, also large, that housed a huge buffet table groaning under platters of food—mostly meat. The vegetables looked decorative. A line of wolves clutching plates and looking hungry stretched to the door. They tagged onto the end of the queue.

She looked up at him. “So you’re a Marketo?”

He shrugged. “I guess. I never knew it until now. My name’s Thane.”

“That’s some hair you and your father have. Must come from your grandmother.”

“I don’t know much about it.”

“There’s only one other wolf I ever saw with that kind of hair. Have you met Lindsey Vanessen?”

“No.” Winter glanced over toward the corner. The big wolf still hung out there, talking to a couple of young guys and another large male, older and damned mean-looking. The burly male glanced up like maybe he wanted to be sure no one was listening. Winter looked at Candy. “Who’s that big guy in the corner?”

“Where?”

He nodded. Since the guy looked a little paranoid, he didn’t want to point.

“The one with the extra poundage? That’s Ben Freedman, the marshal.”

“I saw him and Cole Harker last night sitting with a human male. I guess he must have to work with a lot of humans.”

She shrugged. “I guess, but the local marshals are all pack.”

They made it to the head of the line, and she started scooping meat onto her plate. “Cole Harker sure is a dream walking.” She sighed. “Too bad he’s married and—you know.” She looked up at him and made a face.

He scraped a serving fork through the pile of beef, looking for pieces that were bloody.
Damned cooked food.
“No, I don’t know.”

She glanced around and then whispered, “Gay. Cole Harker’s gay and married to Paris Marketo, who’s even more gorgeous if you like exotic, which that cat is, let me tell you. And dance? Dear heaven, he’d burn the paint off your car. But they only get it on together, which has to be the waste of the century if you ask me.”

His heart beat too fast.
Be cool.
Was he amazed? Hell yeah, but trying not to laugh ranked among his top ten lessons in self-control.

W
INTER
STARED
at Cole Harker standing across the room. The beautiful
gay male
. “Interesting.”

Candy shrugged. “Yeah. They tell us there’s no such thing as a gay werewolf, but that’s crap. I even know a couple females who are into it.”

“No kidding?” He chewed some meat slowly.

She nudged him. “I know you males. You’re interested because you want to watch, right?”

That gave him an excuse to laugh, but it came out forced. Son of a bitch, that big hunk of alpha was gay. Winter stared at him with new eyes. Had Damon just flat lied? Or did he really think gay werewolves didn’t exist?

“So, want me to introduce you around?” She held up a hand. “No other females, however. You’re all mine.”

“What about the gay females?” He winked and played the game, but he felt like his brain could explode.

“You want to meet them?”

He glanced at Damon, deep in conversation with Marketo and Harker, then back at Cole.
Gay. A whole new reality.
“No, not really. I’d like to meet the marshal.”

“Oh, sure. Those guys who are hanging around him—Mario Fanelli and Junior Betz—are probably about your age. They seem younger, to tell the truth, but you might want to get to know some other young males. They can introduce you to the ‘boys’ club.’” She made quotes with her fingers. “Come on.”

He followed her waggling butt across the room toward the marshal. As they drew closer, he inhaled. What the hell? He knew that scent.

The big man looked up at them and flashed a small frown so fast you could barely see it before he smiled. He stepped forward and extended a hand. “Hello there. When I saw you at the Way Station, I didn’t know I was witnessing such an important return. I’m Ben Freedman.”

“Pleased to meet you, sir. I’m Winter Thane.” The marshal’s eyes widened at the courtesy. Balancing his plate, Winter shook Freedman’s hand and got an impression of tightly contained power and a locker of buried secrets. The marshal probably stood about six four, but he carried a hundred more pounds than Winter—one formidable wolf.

Freedman turned to the older male. “This is Fred Betz, one of our local businessmen and an important member of the pack.”

The male extended his hand and Winter took it. Anger, frustration, and contempt almost masked the male’s underlying power. A dangerous wolf to have around.

The marshal pointed to the two young wolves with him. “Have you met Mario and Junior?”

The dark, handsome one, Mario, sidled up to Candy. “Hey, babe.”

Junior, a short, chunky wolf maybe twenty or twenty-one, looked Winter over—and he had to look up to do it. “So you’re the next big thing, huh?”

Winter’s lip rose over his prominent canine.

Junior stepped back and raised both hands. “Hell, man, just joking.”

Weirdly, familiar smells came from these two young guys, but he’d never seen them before. Why?

Betz slapped the back of Junior’s head—hard. “That’s what you get for being a no-class, rude wolf.” He looked at Winter. “So let me understand. Your father is Merced’s brother.”

“Half brother. Truthfully, this is all pretty new to me too, but as I understand it, they have different mothers.”

Betz frowned, and that was a scary sight. “He never told you about the pack growing up?”

“No, sir.”

“But you’re Marketo. Direct line to the old alpha, true?”

Winter shrugged. “I suppose so. My father was illegitimate, so—”

Betz took a step forward, crowding Winter’s space. “Makes no difference. Blood trumps marriage in our society.”

Freedman laid a hand on Betz’s arm and flashed his big smile at Winter. “What are your plans, now that you’ve returned to your pack?”

Winter shrugged. “Not sure. This was mostly my father’s inspiration, so I’m following him. I don’t have much experience with civilization.”

Candy handed her mostly empty plate to a passing busboy and slipped an arm through his. “You’re a wild wolf.”

He grinned. “Yeah.”

Mario rolled his eyes. What was so familiar about the asshole?

The marshal looked like he wanted to smack Mario too. “So are you a good tracker?”

“The best.” He chewed some meat.

“Can you use firearms?”

Why did he want to know? “Don’t have much need for them since I usually hunt in animal form, but yes, I can shoot.”

Junior sneered, “You must starve a lot if you can only hunt on the full moon.”

He chewed and swallowed, staring at Junior. “Why would I only hunt on the full moon?”

“When you can shift.”

Winter shook his head. “I can shift any time.”

Both Junior and Mario got wide eyes, and Betz glanced at Freedman.

Candy hugged Winter’s arm against her breast. “Oooh, like an alpha.”

Winter frowned. “I’m no alpha.”

Freedman regarded him through narrowed eyes. “Have you thought about going into law enforcement?”

“I’m not big on authority.”

The marshal laughed and Betz joined in. “Well, that’s good to hear.”

Odd, for a lawman.

“Still, you’d be good at it. Do you have a high school diploma?”

“No. Never been to school.”

Mario and Junior sniggered.

Freedman frowned. “Odd in this day and age. Can you read and write?”

Winter let his breath out slowly. “In six languages including Latin and Greek. I didn’t say I wasn’t educated. I just never went to school. I guess you could say I was homeschooled.” Enough of this dancing around. He set his plate on a side table and glanced again at Cole, then back at Freedman. “So I noticed at the Way Station, you and Cole were the only wolves in the place sitting with a human. I figured it must be a law enforcement thing.”

“You noticed that, did you? Good observation. Yes, the human is an FBI agent investigating a case in the area. Cole helped him track.”