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- 09/15/2016
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Stories posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
Home To Roost - 5. Matters of the Heart
It was later the next week when Dean got home to see Kai standing on his front porch with a very large man with stunning blue eyes. Dean knew those eyes; they haunted his nightmares. He thought about them too often, seeing them at the worst times. "I was wondering when you would show up," said Dean tightly.
"I assume that your friend told you I would be coming."
"He did." Dean came and stood over Kai. "Now, get the hell off my property. Take your lap dog and leave."
Kai felt the anger rolling off Dean, but he stood his ground. "I cannot leave until I get a statement from you."
"Come back with a subpoena signed by your Alpha or whatever title he holds. You will have to get it legitimized by the Alpha of the Cali Sands Pack that you are welcome in her territory. Then I will give you my statement. Until then," Dean said as he walked past them, "get the fuck off my property."
The wolf growled.
Dean turned to look at him, his eyes fully golden. "You wanna go, mutt? If you lay one claw on me, you will incite war. Not only with Homestead, but with Cali Sands as well. What will your employers say to that? What will the Alpha you serve say to your actions?"
"Come," said Kai, "he speaks enough of the truth. We shall return with your subpoena. Were I you, I would watch your tone when talking to us. You will not always have a use to me. When you cease being useful, you cease to live."
Dean just shut the door in his face. He watched them drive off, and only then did he take a breath. It was a gamble, but it paid off. That wolf was a loose cannon, one Kai could only control so much. It wasn't wise of Dean to antagonize him, but he had to show he would not be pushed around. This was his property.
The phone rang, making Dean jump. "Hello?" he asked as he picked it up.
"Hey handsome," came Victoria's voice from the other side.
"Hey gorgeous." He tried to put the meeting behind him.
"You sound...upset."
Damn her and her knowing too much. "I have to deal with legal issues now. Not looking forward to it."
"It's nothing too bad I hope." Her tone was concerned.
"Just life and death matters. You know how it is." He tried for levity.
"I know you don't want to talk about it, so I won't bring it up again." Bless her and curse her at the same time, she knew him so well. "Yet if you want to talk, I'm here. I was calling to see if you wanted to come to a party with me. Nothing fancy, shoes optional kind of party."
Dean smiled. "That sounds totally awesome. Meet here or there?"
"There. It's at Belmont Park." The beach side amusement park was always a good place for some fun.
"Be there soon." He needed some jollies.
The place was sparsely packed, which seemed odd to Dean. Even in winter, it was more crowded than this. He parked and found Victoria very easily. Even through the scent of the surf, sand, and the very powerful scent of other Lycans, Dean knew her scent. It may smell wrong to him, but he still knew her. It was the large amounts of other Lycans in the area that bothered him. He was an outsider, and the Little Dude always said Lycanthropes didn't like outsiders. Still, he was welcomed by the Cali Sands alpha. He should be fine...he hoped.
Victoria was dressed in sandals, a T-shirt, and shorts. It really was one of those kinds of parties. "Hey handsome," she said as she gave him a kiss. Everything seemed normal.
"Hey. So, why so few people?" Dean asked as they strolled hand in hand to the boardwalk.
"Well. I got a new job."
"Really? Awesome." He kissed her hand.
"It is. This is a company party. The boss said to invite someone close to me. Since the cat would crap in the sand, I picked you."
Dean laughed. "That he would." Dean had a very bad feeling about this company party. Not too long ago he heard about another company that farmed humans for infection. "Still working payroll?"
"Nope. VP of HR." She sounded proud.
And she should be; it was a huge promotion. "That's totally tubular. So, Madame VP, intros to the boss so I can thank him?"
"Her. Grace 'Goldie' Kirkland."
Dean knew it. "I've met her. Through Jon. Ball buster, but fair."
"That about sums me up," came her voice just as the wind shifted. "Nice to see you again, Dean. Call me Goldie. Ms. Kirkland is for work, and only my father calls me Grace."
"Nice to see you again, Goldie. Thanks for seeing how amazing Victoria is." This could be a very bad thing. A very, very bad thing.
"Hey, when I saw her credentials come across my desk, I snagged her away from that job quick. You have quite the lady there, Dean." Turning to Victoria, she asked, "Did you sign in? We like to keep a record of who comes to the parties."
"Thanks for the heads up. I'll be right back." Giving Dean a smooch on the cheek, she jogged over to the table.
"Is she being farmed for infection? I know East Coast Pack does that."
Alpha Kirkland took in the tone of his voice, the tightness of his shoulder, and the fact that he was purposely not looking her in the eye. "No. We don't do that here. Since you seem tense, I'm guessing she doesn't know about us."
He shook his head.
"Then until such a time as you tell her or she finds out, she will not be approached at all for anything like that. Only about thirty-five percent of the work force is Lycan." She saw a lot of the tension melt away. "We're not all Angus McLeod, Dean. I can't blame you for asking though. You care about her."
"I do. I would marry her when she is ready..."
"But she's not your mate." There was no question in her tone.
"How can you know that? I have been told that if she accepted infection, she could become my mate. My wife." He loved her.
"But you have found your mate already. I can smell him on you."
Dean's body went cold. It was a shock to hear someone say it. "How can a guy be my mate when I'm not interested in men...much?" To deny it would be untrue. Some guys had caught his eye enough to sleep with them, but he couldn't ever date them, let alone marry them.
"It doesn't matter. Jon was the same way. Patrick infecting him, and the fact they were meant to be together, made it possible. Jon will have no other man in his bed but Patrick, and they share it with women they agree upon, but that does not lessen the fact they are mates. Something to think on when you get home. I don't mean to cause you distress, but imagine what he would feel to find you mated to someone else?" She patted his arm as she walked away.
How did she know about Kao? Dean didn't even realize they had become that close. Yeah, he really liked the guy. Almost as close as Jon was. Which was scary. Very scary. He'd known Jon for years, but Kao was right there in the same category of feeling. It couldn't be. Dean wasn't gay, but he wasn't dumb enough to discount the closeness they shared. He knew people could have that special someone who overcame all boundaries.
Dean thought about how he would feel if Kao found someone else. His heart felt sick at the thought. Even thinking about Kao with someone else made him ache. Could he do that to Kao? He loved Victoria so much, but he knew she was not meant for him. Her scent said as much, Jon hinted at it, Goldie confirmed it. But...Kao? Could he? There was too much to think on...
"Earth to Dean," said Victoria as she snapped her fingers in front of his vacant gaze.
"Sorry. Spacing out. Got a lot on my mind."
"I can tell. You don't have to stay."
He smiled. "I know. It's just nice to be out with someone I care about." Her smile was sunny as she stepped in for a hug. It felt wrong. It felt...
No, that feeling wasn't her. Dean turned to see Kai and his wolf protector standing there glaring at him. "What's wrong?" Victoria asked.
"I'll be right back," he said and marched over to them. "Back already?" Kai handed him the subpoena. Reading it over, he found it legitimate. "Okay. I will answer only a few questions. I reserve the right for legal counsel at any point."
"You would. It is simple. Did you aide the accused knowing you could or would become infected?"
Dean hated Kai even more. The accused? What a shithead! "I went down to help a person in need. He was bleeding and I did not wear gloves, so I knew that whatever he had I might get. So yes, I went in knowing I could get infected with anything. There is your answer. Now get the hell out of here before I inform Alpha Kirkland your mongrel bitch won't stay off my property."
Kai held out his hand to still any retort from the wolf. "I have my answer. Very well, expect a summons for the trial. Good evening," Kai said with a smirk. They turned on their heels and left the area.
"Shit." Dean pulled out his cell. "Travis, it's Dean. Kai and the stray took my statement with a subpoena. He said there will be a trial."
"Tell me what you said." Dean did as he was asked. "I see." There was a moment of silence as Travis thought. "Then get ready to come back here. I shall send the jet in the morning." Travis' tone was guarded. He knew things would move quickly.
"Send it now. I can be ready to go in an hour."
"There is no need..." Travis began.
"There is if I want any time to talk to Kao before the feathered fucktards take him from you."
The Former Alpha chuckled. "You have such a way with words. I will call the pilot." Travis hung up, knowing Dean would not be insulted.
Dean went back to Victoria. "Listen, I have to go. Those legal matters I told you about are here. I need to pack and be ready for my flight."
"Go. Unless you want me to come along. I am sure Goldie would not begrudge a day or two."
Dean knew the Alpha would not, not if it meant that much to Dean. "No. This isn't your problem, and you don't want to get dragged into this. If I am able to, I will talk about it later, but for now...," he said as he began trailing off.
She squeezed his hand in comfort. "Go. I'll still be here when you get back."
As Dean jogged back to his car, he wondered how much of him would be coming back. If they harmed one feather on Kao's head, he would kill them or die trying.
* * *
Dean and Dyl pulled up to the camp in the wee hours, but everyone was up. Dean saw, for the first time, what Dylan was talking about. Men and women held high powered rifles in case of trouble in the night. Some were even in their Lunar forms. Jon looked tense. Patrick was pacing. Colton and Quintin stood with Kao between them, guns at the ready. Yet none of it meant much when Dean saw Kao. He rushed over and pulled the smaller man into his arms.
"They will have to kill me to get to you."
"Dean...no. If it is done in a legal court, I will not allow you to interfere." Kao's tone was even but firm.
Dean's heart fell. He knew Kao was right, but he would be damned to let his friend die like that. "Travis, you're taking the case, right?" The man nodded. "Good. Jon, what will you be doing?"
"Staying out of it unless called to the stand. I cannot pull rank on someone else's lands. Since it happened here, I will be given voice, but I cannot go against the law." Then Jon's eyes flashed. "But if I feel they are railroading him, you can be damn sure I will not let them take him from you."
Dean's heart soared. Jon was right there, as was all of the Homestead Pack it seemed. He knew without a doubt that if Kao was murdered that all of the Pack would back Dean because Jon would back him.
"Now, go get some sleep. Both of you. No one will be getting near you without authorization. Dylan and Pop will be your guards tonight." The two Solaris nodded. They were arguably the strongest here. No one would dare try to get past Alan, especially with the Little Dude as back-up.
"Thanks. All of you." Dean picked up Kao and walked back to the cabin.
"I can walk," he said with a giggle, poking at Dean's biceps, "although these are nice."
With the door closed, Dean set Kao on the bed. "Can we talk a bit?" Kao nodded. Dean slipped into the bathroom to change into sleeping shorts and came out. Kao just stared at his chest. "You've seen me naked, and this you find attractive?"
"I have a thing for guys in little clothing. More alluring and seductive. Now let's talk before I can't think."
Dean flopped onto the bed next to him and propped himself up on one elbow. "Kao...how do you feel about me?" He watched Kao's eyes get surprised.
"I like you, Dean. I can see us being good friends in the future." It was true, but not the whole truth.
"If I married and mated my girlfriend, how would you feel?"
There was no hiding that shift in emotions. His scent felt cold, lifeless, and he took a deep breath before answering. "I...would be glad you were happy."
"But you would die inside." Dean took his hand as Kao turned away. "Kao...What do I do? I need your mediation. Without bias."
"I can't give that, Dean. Not about this."
"So, in short, you would give up all happiness to make sure I was happy." Kao swallowed hard but nodded. "I love Victoria. She is the only woman I have ever met I wanted to marry. She's smart, talented, smokin' hot, dynamite in the sack, makes me smile like few ever could, knows me inside and out."
"She sounds perfect." Kao's tone was formal.
"She is, just not for me. She's not you." Dean pulled him close and kissed him.
I am so sorry about the long time since my last post. If you want to know, just message me.
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Stories posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
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