“You almost make it sound like wolves and bears are working together.” I flipped through a pile of papers on my desk. You’d think in the digital age, we’d be done with paperwork.
“Crazy, I know. But it can’t be a coincidence.”
“What are they trying to accomplish? Lower shifters can be reckless, but they usually avoid violence for violence sake, and they don’t want to get The Society’s attention.”
“Unless that is what they want.”
“They want to get attention.” The reality dawned on me. “They want to get everyone’s attention.”
“Why? Just to stir up trouble?”
“Who knows.” I thought about the wolf I’d caught the other night outside the coffee shop. When he chose Casey, he’d made it personal. That barista was the one bright spot of my day. I weighed the pros and cons of telling my cousins about it. The pros won out. “I caught a wolf the other night.”
“You what?” Tom surprised me by speaking.
“He was about to attack a human outside a coffee house in the Village.”
“What did you do with him? You killed him, I hope.” Tim took a seat in one of the visitor chairs. They were covered in brown leather and starting to show their age. That oversight wasn’t like my grandfather.
“I doubt he’s shifting back.” It’s hard for shifters to heal in their animal form. I didn’t do him any favors.
Tim shuddered. “I’d hate to get on your bad side, cuz.”
“Then don’t.” I was kind of enjoying the reputation I’d developed after killing my grandfather with my bare hands. Everyone thought I was ruthless and seemed to be scared of me. What they didn’t realize is I’d only acted on instinct. I had to protect Allie in any way I could.
Tim faked a laugh. Always the kiss up. “Of course. So what do you suggest? Is it time to bring in the king?”
I sighed. “I’d like to avoid that as long as possible.” In addition to inheriting my grandfather’s position, I was also the leader of the New York contingent of The Society. Most humans have never heard of The Society, mostly because they aren’t important enough. Any paranormal or other supernatural being, or high ranking member of the human race, is well aware that The Society is the group that calls all the shots.
“Is this because of your personal issues with the king?”
“Personal issues?” I guess you could call the fact that the king had taken my girlfriend as his mate a personal issue.
“Levi’s king now, and he even gave you a good gig. Cut the guy some slack.”
“He gave me this gig because I protected Allie.”
Tim looked away, and I knew he was rolling his eyes. “However you spin it, he gave you some power. Embrace it. The city is ours.”
“Yeah. Just a few months in and all hell has broken loose. It’s like everyone was waiting for the old man to die before digging in.”
The brothers looked at each other.
“You think that’s what it is?”
“Of course. The lower shifters think we’re weak. We have to remind them we’re Pterons, and we don’t take their shit.”
“And how do you suggest we do that?”
“Either you let us have our fun, or we call in the king.”
I didn’t need to think over the options for long. “Have your fun, but keep it clean. No humans get hurt.”
“Got it. You want to join us?”
“No. I’ve got plans tonight.” Maybe there was something positive about agreeing to Emmett’s party. I had no desire to watch my cousins knock around a bunch of idiot shifters who thought that flexing their muscles was going to make a difference. If there’s anything that Pteron’s hate, it’s lower shifters causing trouble. We may have been shifters ourselves, but we were a hell of a lot stronger, faster, and smarter. That didn’t mean that anyone wanted to listen to us—but they always did.
Pterons have been running The Society worldwide for centuries. The North American region has been run by the Laurent family out of New Orleans for several generations. Levi, the current king and the bane of my existence, had just taken his place a few months before. The last time I’d seen Allie was at their coronation. She looked so happy that I decided to stay the hell away. Seeing each other wasn’t good for either of us, especially not me. With millions of human girls out there, Pterons date and mate with humans almost exclusively, I could have found someone new, but I wasn’t ready yet. At least that’s what I told myself.
By the time my cousins left, the sun had set, and the city was dark once again. I loved the night for one reason, and I was about to enjoy it.
I headed up to the roof, unbuttoning my shirt in the process. By the time I pushed through the door into the night, I had already shed the blue fabric. After checking that no one was around, I let myself transform. My large brown wings were easily concealed inside small slits when I wanted them to be, but it was always invigorating to have them out. Nothing felt quite as good as flying, and I did it every chance I had.
I jumped off the side of the building, falling for a moment before climbing again to make sure no one noticed. I headed away from the lights of the city, away from the stress and the constant reminders that I was completely alone.
Chapter Four
Jared
“When did this city get so boring?” I leaned back against the black leather couch in my apartment. I’d been living there since sophomore year of college, and graduation was only a few months away. I needed to find a new place to live, preferably somewhere without roommates. At twenty-two, I was ready for my own space.
“When you finally slept with every girl in the whole damn place.” Owen, my roommate, tossed his controller on the ground. He was in an uncharacteristically pissed off mood.
“I haven’t slept with them all, but I’ll agree I’ve gone through most of the good ones.”
“And you wonder why half the girls at Tulane want you dead.”
“Have I ever wondered that?” I smirked. My smirk always pissed Owen off. If he was already in a bad mood, I might as well make it worse. That probably makes me seem like an ass, but it’s just the way it was with us. We’d been butting heads since preschool. He knew as well as I did that a few angry girls didn’t bother me. I’d been spending a lot of time with the Loyola girls lately. There’s just something about catholic school girls…