The Gamma's Birthright - Book 2

It’s ten in the morning and Toni finds herself outside Layers, it looks a whole lot different in the daylight, more like an abandoned warehouse than a thriving nightclub as she knocks on the door.

The irony isn't wasted on her, that originally she wanted nothing to do with the Vampires when she first came to this place.

She had prejudged them on rumours and their reputation within the werewolf world, pretty much as most wolf packs had done with her, something she needed to stop herself from doing in future.

Now, she's here, not cap in hand, but far more humble than she was the last time she dealt with Leif and realising that if it hadn't been for her friendship with Susan, she wouldn't have this opportunity.

Plus, the more she's thought about it, the more she realises that within the Neutral zone, people are far more open and accepting.

She hammers on the door again, this time she can hear some shuffling inside and quiet cursing, so she stands and waits.

Her hair was now long and dark blonde thanks to a wig, it didn’t suit her but was different enough to the other looks she sported, that it gave her a small feeling of anonymity, knowing that the Iron Claw pack were possibly still out there hunting her.

So the outfit she picked Jeans and a large baggy jumper, with dirty blonde hair makes her look run of the mill ordinary, and nothing like the previous looks unless you get up close.

Listening carefully, she hears nothing, so knocks loudly once more, silently cursing, this time she can hear bolts opening.

Standing before her is a human, he looks pale and she can see bite marks on his neck indicating, he'd been fed on recently. He smells of vampires, but not of Leif, so he isn’t that important, just a random Thrall.

“We don’t open until ten tonight.”

“Do I look like I want to go clubbing?”

She signals to her torn jeans and red sweatshirt, sarcasm leaks through into her words

“I’m here to speak to Leif, I have his blood card.”

The human in front of her takes a long hard look at her

“You are at the wrong door.

Are you a werewolf?”

She stares at him, she's taller than most humans and while he can't see the muscle definition due to her clothing, she is standing at the werewolf entrance door, these are all things that should make it obvious what she is.

“I am…”

“Come back when the club opens, The Masters are sleeping and I don’t wake them for dogs.”

He slams the door closed in her face.

Of all the insults she’s faced, she doesn’t know why, but this human, this servant of the vampires, a mere thrall, is now on her shit list for slamming the door in her face and calling her a dog.

Something inside her wants to see him on his knees apologising for the insults, she’s not sure where the desire came from, but it's increased since the fight.

She dreads that she may be becoming the type of person she despises, the arrogant Alpha.

Turning her back to the building, she closes her eyes and rests the back of her head on the building wall, focusing on the coolness of the brick, letting it seep into her, becoming calmer.

After five minutes she’s relaxed and in control, she just can’t decide if she’s going to try knocking again and risk losing control if the same thrall answers the door, go back in the evening, or, seek answers elsewhere.

Honestly, she doesn’t understand why rudeness now seems like something bigger, except maybe the Alpha status is making her the equivalent of an asshole, as she’s accused, even if only in her mind, of every alpha she’s ever met.

She laughs, deciding that she can blame it on the pregnancy hormones or all the stress of the last few weeks, after all, she faced a fight to the death and, found out she was pregnant at the same time, it's a lot to happen to anyone.

Regardless she needs to get a grip on her emotions, especially before she goes back to the pack and presents herself to the Alpha, she has to be in control and be the meek wolf the Alpha expects her to be in front of him

“Emma?”

Her eyes snap open, all senses alert before she relaxes, a smile lighting up her face

“Cage, nice to see you again, I thought you’d be sleeping, like Leif, working nights and all”

He laughs a deep, honest, laugh, his eyes alight with amusement

“Warriors work one week in five, good training them to read body language, and of course, even better money… I do ad hoc sessions and supervise them"

He winks at her

"I'm only here to update the rota and check on the payroll."

He looks at her closely again

“I think the Blue hair suited you better!”

He watches a smile grace her face.

“So what brings you back here and during the day?”

She pauses for a while, having just decided to go it alone.

“Leif said I could present his blood card and get to see him Day or Night, apparently that wasn’t meant literally.

So after being called a dog and having the door slammed in my face by one of their thralls, I was done and about to head off and leave the neutral zone.

I have a lot of loose ends that need to be resolved and not much time to do it.

It’s been a trying few weeks since I was last here, so I was just calming down when you arrived!”

A small smile spreads across his face

“Let’s go see who is on duty, but, by the Goddess, I bet it was Slug, he thinks he’s a big shot because he's been here a year now and if Leif finds out you were turned away by him….

Follow me, I’ll get you in to see Leif”

He leads her down an alley, unlocking a service entrance

“Want some snacks while you wait?”

Cage’s voice is bubbling over with amusement, he dislikes Slug and doesn’t hide it, so now if he’s fucked up so royally, he’s going to enjoy watching him get his comeuppance.

“Sure, I guess it may take some time for him to wake.”

He leads them through a maze of back corridors to an open-plan common room, except it has no windows, in fact, the whole building, if she thinks about it, has no windows, which makes sense if it’s a vampire owned building.

Cage throws some snack food on the coffee table along with some drinks and ushers her to sit down before he looks at a sheet of paper on the wall.

Picking up a phone from the wall, and dialling, an evil grin hits his face

“Slug, get your ass to the common room now”

He puts the phone down before there can be any reply, taking a seat opposite Toni.

“Want to talk about it?”

“About what?”

“I can tell you’re injured, the smell from your wounds gives you away, which means you aren’t fully healed.

With such a strong wolf that means the injuries were serious, numerous, or both.

You are wearing a wig, I’ve never heard of a Protector Designate that needed to hide….

Plus Leif will be annoyed if it happened in this region of the Neutral zone.”

Cage raises an eyebrow at her

“Nothing to talk about, I won the fight and it wasn’t in the Neutral zone.”

Before he can reply, the human, he calls Slug turns up.

“Ahh Slug, did you slam the door in the face of someone carrying Leif’s card?”

The human’s eyes flick to Toni, looking at her with disgust.

“The nickname is Slugger, and the Masters didn’t want to be disturbed” Slug asserts.

“Naah you are a slug, less helpful than a worm, at least they have a purpose.

Or I can call you by your real name Jessie?"

Cage sniggers slightly at the look of anger on his face

"Go wake up Leif, he will want to see Emma.”

He grins at the frustration visible on Slug’s face.

“You don’t get to order me around” he sneers

“Slug, if you don’t go, I will.

And if I do it, how pissed will he be, at you, that you allowed a non-thrall into his bed chamber.

Any hope you have of being turned would be gone, now be a good thrall and do as you are told, although I am pretty sure turning away Emma has fucked up your last remaining chance.

Remember you fall at the bottom of this food chain until one of the Vampires picks you as their familiar, or Novitius, and I guarantee it won’t be Leif after tonight!”

As Slug leaves the room, Cage grins, turning to talk to Toni

“You don’t know how much I’ve looked forward to this day, Slug is the worst of humankind and the world will be a better place if he is left human, to grow old and die, if he’s not killed before that in some back-alley bar fight.

You get more appealing each time I meet you, Emma, now I have to add helping me piss off Slug to your list of attractions!”

He laughs at the look of shock on her face before he turns back to the previous topic.

“So going to explain why if you won the fight, you are wearing a wig?”

“I wanted a change of look…can a girl not try different hairstyles?”

She stares at him, in an almost challenging way, trying to deflect from the real reasons.

Since Alpha Kieran and the Iron Claw pack had tracked her so easily, she’s closed off a little, no longer sure who she wanted to trust, it was far too coincidental for them to have found her that quickly.

She doesn’t believe it was pure luck they had found her trail off neutral land the only thing she’s sure of is that the Vampire wants her blood, so if he wants something from her, he wouldn't send the Iron Claw after her.

If he had, as Cage mentioned before, placed an edict against people hurting her, which she believed, then if she was going to trust anyone, it was this vampire, he had everything to lose with her demise and nothing to gain.

But then, Leif had a way of breaking down the barriers, as he had a Wolf pack and Coven working with him to keep this club running safely, if nothing, he was an interesting vampire.

“Emma, you are safe in the Neutral zone” he re-iterates

“Part of me wants to believe it, but experience tells me not to put too much trust into that idea.”

Before Cage can reply, Slug walks in smirking

“Leif isn’t happy you wanted him woken up, he’s on his way up but he’s pissed, good luck with that wolf boy!”

Cage laughs

“I bet you didn’t tell him about Emma, and you think you can insult me and get away with it?

Slug, be aware, that you may have the vampire’s protection for now, but you won’t always have it, just remember that, each time you create a new enemy.

None of the powerful Vampires would pick you as their familiar, let alone Novitius, so if you are ever turned, you will be weaker than I am.”

“Are you threatening a Thrall, Cage”

Leif’s voice carries into the room

“No just giving him advice, he continually disrespects Wolves, and it will, if you will excuse the pun, come back to bite him.

Plus, he was rude to Emma as he turned her away when she asked to speak to you.”

Cage answers in a bored tone, but Toni notices his eyes are alight with mischief

“Oh, and she wasn’t going to bother coming back!”

Leif’s face had been impassive until Cage dropped the last comment into the mix when a flash of anger reached his eyes.

“Thrall, did you refuse access to someone with a blood card?”

He turns his focus on the Slug, who cowers in front of him.

“She didn’t show it to me…and you said you were not to be disturbed”

“Did you ask to see it?”

“No Master”

He turns to Toni

“Did you come here for the trade I’d suggested?”

“I came to renegotiate terms, but yes, but maybe not for the information you had originally thought I’d want.”

He cocks his head to one side, a thoughtful look on his face.

“And were you going to come back?”

“No, I have today only, I need to leave the Neutral zone, at least for a while.”

“I see”

He nods while walking over to a table.

“Cage can you call Iris here please”

Leif starts to write on a notepad, as Cage makes another call, the room goes silent until a young woman walks into the room

“You summoned me, Master”

The human woman looks nervous in Leif’s presence, he gets up and walks over touching the collar she wears

“I see you wear Alaric’s collar”

“Yes Master, but he’s made it clear you are also allowed to drink from me”

“I appreciate the honour, but I do not drink from another’s familiar without reason.

That’s not why you were called here.

To be collared after a week, means you must have done well with your training, so tell me, if I said I was not to be disturbed what you would do if someone told you they held my card?”

Iris swallows a little nervously but speaks up.

“I’d ask to see the actual card, if was your card, I check the name against your priority list, if it was on there, I’d ask if it were important as you were sleeping.

If they said yes, I’d invite them in before waking you, if not, I’d ask them to come back after dark.

If it was your blood card, I would invite them in immediately to wait in the VIP area with appropriate refreshments for their species, before waking you, Master.”

She looked on nervously, scared in case she’d missed any part of his processes, each vampire had a slightly different way to deal with their cards.

“I can see why Alaric collared you so soon.

Now look at that she-wolf and tell me what you see."

Iris turns and looks at Toni carefully

"She looks like the person you placed under your protection, I'd ask her for her name and if that was her real hair, to check, but would invite her in."

"Place a glass of AB negative, warmed, in my office, please.

Then wake Willow, give her this note, and then you can go back to your normal duties.”

“Thank you, Master”

She bows and scurries off

"Slug, why is it that Iris, can answer correctly what to do with my visitors after one week and you fail after a year?”

“I… I… I…” Slug cowers slightly

“I think it’s clear, that if after this time, not a single Vampire has collared you as a familiar, marking you as theirs and taking the first step to you becoming a Novitius and your sire.

Then you should question your life choices.

Wait in Willow’s office, she brought you in here, she will deal with you, but your future is not as a Vampire, at least not in any town that is run by my sire’s bloodline, nor his allies.

Leave now and I’ll ignore the fact you insulted a guest and my protected.”

His tone had been cold and severe, an inkling of just how dangerous he was, the predator rising to remove the civilised congenial persona he normally wore.

As he turns to Toni, the mask of civility is back.

“Apologies Emma,

You have me intrigued over wanting to renegotiate terms, so I will hear you out and since I didn’t limit the information it would cover, it seems you have me at your mercy young wolf."

He winks at her

"But I overheard some of the discussion with Cage, something I need to get to the bottom of, so that's what we will discuss first.

Shall we retire to my office, Cage could you join us please?”