Series: Werewolves of Wall Street Series by Renee Rose
Total pages in book: 62
Estimated words: 59360 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59360 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
“It’s hard not to take it personally,” I mutter as Ariadne appears with bowls of Greek yogurt topped with juicy raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries.
“I know. When I mated Brick’s father, it should have heralded an end to the rivalry. It was a golden opportunity for joining the two powerful packs into one. But our seeress saw only doom.”
“Seeress?”
“Oma. She’s not really anyone’s grandmother, though. She’s a virgin, which is necessary to hold her power. During the years of witch hunting and trials, the Adalwulfs saw an opportunity. They offered their protection to a witch coven in exchange for access to their powers. One of theirs was brought into our pack and bred with our kind. The Seeress’ power is interwoven with the alpha’s. Her sight guides his power, but she also draws power from him. Oma has been alive an unnaturally long time. She would have died long ago if she were not sucking the life and sanity from my brother, Odin. I suspect both will die soon.”
A shiver runs across my shoulder blades and down the outside of my arms to my pinky fingers. There’s something creepy and wrong about what Catherine just described.
“You must understand, my brother and nephew will stop at nothing to destroy the Blackthroat pack. They are absolutely brutal. Odin is insane–poisoned by the Seeress. And Aiden is worse.”
“The Blackthroats don’t have a seeress?”
“No. With Brick as alpha, they are far more modern as a pack.”
We finish our breakfast and thank Ariadne when she comes to clear the table.
“Let's take a walk on the beach,” I suggest. Catherine accepts with a gracious nod and leads the way down the stone path to the sand. I study her movements as if I’ll be quizzed later. Not to be weird, but I’d love to have half her elegance and poise.
If Brick and I do marry, she’ll be my mother-in-law. Would we live in the Berkshires?
I can’t think about that now.
A wet breeze blows off the sea. Catherine looks down the endless beach, her expression clear. Her skin is flawless, her makeup perfect, her shoes and jewelry understated in a way that tells me they’re eye-poppingly expensive. She looks fit to grace the cover of a magazine. She always does. And yet, my overall impression of her is that she’s profoundly sad.
“My family used me as a weapon to destroy my own mate. The only reason I didn’t let myself die of grief was because Scarlett was still young. I couldn’t let her lose both her parents.”
I reach out and squeeze Catherine’s hand.
It feels intrusive to ask, but I need to know everything. I need to know how the Adalwulfs work and think. “How did…how did it happen?”
“It was his birthday. I bought him cigars from Cuba, and I came over on my visiting day. After we were intimate, he smoked one of the cigars.” Her voice wobbles. “It was laced with silver powder.”
“Silver kills shifters.” I remember the employee handbook forbidding silver cutlery.
“Yes. You know why they worked so hard to frame me as the poisoner? Murderer? Because they knew Brick wouldn’t take revenge against his own mother.” Her eyes crinkle, fathomless with unimaginable pain. “He hates me for what he thinks I’ve done, but he couldn’t destroy me.”
“If it had been an outsider, Brick would’ve rallied his entire pack and wiped mine off the face of the earth. Even at eighteen, he could’ve done it. He’s ten times the leader his father was.”
I suck in a breath.
“Have you told him that?”
“They wanted to sow turmoil, and that’s exactly what they did.”
“That’s diabolical.”
“It is. I know you’re new to our world, but you’ll learn how ruthless the Adalwulfs are. Odin is dying, but he’s a megalomaniac hell bent on destroying our pack. And Aiden is worse.”
“You hate them,” I realize, hearing the rancor in her voice. “Even though they are your family.”
“Odin killed my mate. I will never forgive him or Oma. When it comes down to it, I don’t belong with the Adalwulfs.”
“And Brick won’t let you join the Blackthroats,” I murmur, comprehending the enormity of the situation.
“My family would kill me before they let me defect. That’s what they told Bruce when we realized we were mates.”
Chills sweep down my arms again.
“What else am I to tell you? Do you know about wolves in the wild?” When I shake my head, she says, “They’re led by an alpha pair. A male and a female, the main breeding pair. For years, biologists thought the male alpha led the pack. It wasn’t until a volunteer reviewed data, that they realized the female alpha made the decisions, and the male fell in behind her. Most of the time, when the pack is moving, the alpha female is out front. She chooses where the pack goes and where to make her den.”