Queen Bitch of the Callowwood Pack (Siren Publishing Classic) (24 page)

To her surprise, Leo, one of the bouncers, peeled off from the others and followed her outside. He didn’t say anything, but his expression was watchful and protective without being oppressive. She didn’t scent any resentment in him, and she thanked him when she got into her car. He nodded, closed her door, and stood back while she drove out of the parking lot. She smiled to herself, both amused and grateful to have someone watching her back.

* * * *

For the next two weeks, things remained quiet at the bar. When the full moon rose into the sky over Callowwood at the end of the first week, Sebrina came and took Julianna out into the mountains north of town. Julianna had wanted to fight her, but the wolf inside her recognized Sebrina’s superiority, and she followed reluctantly behind after calling her mom to let her know she’d be gone. They stayed away from town for three days, running as wolves to continue Julianna’s education, and Julianna learned that all the candidates, not just her, had left town to keep the competition impartial. The call of the Lady Moon was too strong to fight their natural urges, so the candidates were removed from the proximity of the Successor to keep it fair. Julianna agreed it was probably wise, but her Sister wasn’t pleased.

Julianna resumed her morning training with Sebrina before she went to work, alternating mornings with Beth for breakfast. Beth had started to heal from her grief, and her smiles, while still bittersweet, came more frequently. She commented on Julianna’s physique, and Julianna told her she’d been “running” every other day to reduce some of the stress weight she’d gained after Gerry’s death.

“Is that the only reason you’re getting in shape?” Beth had asked, a smug twinkle in her eye.

“What are you talking about, Mom?”

“How did the date with Jeff Lightfoot go?” her mother had countered innocently.

Julianna laughed and said, “It went fine.” Beth looked pleased.

With Sebrina, Julianna learned the protocols on how to deal with the hierarchy of the pack, which alphas came after the Alpha Pair, the order of betas and omegas, and how to know which omega was higher ranked than the others. It was complicated, and Julianna hoped she’d get it right when it counted. It had to do with age, experience, familiarity within the pack, length of residency in the “home range”, and services rendered to the Alpha.

“Dear God, I don’t think I’ll ever keep everyone straight,” she’d remarked with a sinking feeling. Sebrina just smiled faintly and said, “You’ll pick up on it eventually, daughter.”

After the protocols, including who was served first at a “state” dinner and how each visitor was greeted at the door, Sebrina told Julianna the Stories of the Lady Moon and the First Canid. Julianna was intrigued, not just because these were the creation myths of the Moon Singer People, but also because they were great teaching stories, with morals, adventure, love, and deep understanding of how to integrate several kinds of people living together.

Her favorite Story was titled “The First Canid.”

“In the time before we knew our places beneath the sun and stars,” Sebrina began patiently, her hands working a beading loom, “the Lady watched over all the Peoples with Her opalescent eyes, but Her favorites were the Wolf Peoples because, though they were vicious when hunting, they were true to their natures and kept the other Peoples from overpopulation.

“One of the Wolf People was called Ho’a’tote, Thinks Before He Eats, and he was a magnificent wolf. He spent much of his time observing the other Peoples around him, learning from them, discovering new things about them, and trying to understand points of view other than his own. His family and friends thought him odd, but harmless, so they tolerated his presence among them without fuss.

“In those days, the Lady walked among the Peoples, bestowing blessings, healing hurts, and keeping the balance of life. One day, She noticed Ho’a’tote watching the Beavers building their dam to hold back the water in the stream. At first, She thought he was hunting the Beavers, so still did he lie there, so patiently. But when he didn’t move for hours and hours, through many moments when the Beavers would’ve been easy prey, She realized he was doing something else and stopped to ask him.

“‘Ho’a’tote, what are you doing?’

“‘I’m watching the Beavers building this dam,’ he replied in a fascinated voice. ‘I think they will stop up the water to make a pond and it will benefit all the Peoples because it will make it easier to drink the water.’

“‘Why do you watch them so carefully? Are you hunting?’ She asked.

“‘No, I’m trying to learn how they do it so my People may do it in other streams and have enough water when the world becomes too dry in the summer. It also makes a good way to cross the stream without getting wet.’

“The Lady just looked at Ho’a’tote, who’d gone back to watching the Beavers. She only shook Her head and went on Her way. But a few days later, She found Ho’a’tote staring up into a tree, watching a little tiny bird flit in and away.

“‘What are you doing, Ho’a’tote?’ She asked again.

“‘I’m watching a Bushtit making her nest for her little ones,” he replied, his attention never wavering.

“‘Why, Ho’a’tote?’

“‘I’m trying to learn how to construct a safe place for me and my children to stay when the weather turns foul. The Bushtit knows how to build such a protective place.’

“Again, the Lady shook Her head and went away. Sometime later, She found Ho’a’tote on the coast, watching the water most carefully. She followed his gaze and found Sea Otters smashing clams on their chests with rocks.

“‘What are you doing, Ho’a’tote?’

“‘I’m watching Sea Otter using rocks to get to his food,’ the wolf replied. ‘It’s a very smart use of his strength. The rock does his work for him.’

“Later still, the Lady found Ho’a’tote watching Raccoon pick through berries for her meal after washing her hands in the stream.

“‘Tell me, Ho’a’tote, why you want to learn these things?’ She said then. ‘You are a wolf. You have claws and teeth and are able to run fast to catch your dinner. Why do you wish to learn these other skills of the other Peoples?’

“Ho’a’tote left off looking at Raccoon and said simply, ‘I want to learn everything I can. The more I understand about others, the better I can live with them, in balance and harmony. I don’t want to give up my own skills, but I don’t wish to be limited by them.’

“The Lady cocked her head to one side and asked, ‘What would you do if you had such an expanded understanding?’

“‘I would protect my family,’ he answered solemnly. ‘Learning about others, their strengths and weaknesses, protects us all, strengthens us all. It keeps the balance and encourages harmony.’

“The Lady considered. ‘Very well, Ho’a’tote. I shall grant you your wish to be more than just wolf. I will give you a form so you may fit in with the Human People, who have all the skills you seek and share this land with you. However, there’s a price to be paid. You must wear your wolf skin three nights of every month when my Eye is full and watching you. Your People may be born in either form and will keep that form until the change into adulthood. Then they will be free to shift shape at will.’

“Ho’a’tote jumped up and danced in gratitude for the Lady’s great blessing. But the Goddess raised one hand in warning.

“‘You must keep the knowledge of your special abilities within your People, Ho’a’tote. If the others see these gifts, they will not understand and may try to harm your People. Choose your confidantes carefully. Some will understand, others will only fear what you are.’

“The Lady sang a song of Change, and Ho’a’tote shifted from being only Wolf to sharing the shape of the Human Peoples. He was much colder in his human shape, but he had hands with which to manipulate tools to make a new coat and a warm shelter. He harnessed Lightning’s Fire and made friends among the Human People, bringing peace.

“His strength and wisdom pleased the Lady, and She offered his People one more gift, the gift of the mating bond, the knowledge of our True Mates. Ho’a’tote mated with a glorious she-wolf and she became his Luna, the Guardian of the Stories. The children of this Alpha Pair inherited their father’s ability to shift shape as promised, and thus began the Moon Singer People.

“Ho’a’tote is remembered as the First Canid of our People, the First Alpha of all the packs in the World, and we offer our prayers and blessings to Him for His wish to become more than just Wolf.”

There were other stories, of how the hierarchy was established and why, of the Luna and her role in the pack, of the
Stances
and the
Kerstance
, of the reasons for keeping the People hidden from the humans. Julianna learned them all.

“Sebrina, are all the other candidates learning these stories?” she asked one morning as they went for a walk through town.

“I don’t know, daughter,” the older woman confessed. “Each of them should have heard the Stories since they were children, but I don’t know if they know them. Many have forgotten the old ways and the First Canid. His teachings should have been carried down through the generations, but I’ve seen fewer and fewer who remember them or the blessings bestowed upon our People by the Lady Moon.”

“But isn’t it important that the Luna of the pack
knows
the Stories? Didn’t the Alpha say the Luna must be the Guardian?”

“He did, and he may believe that, but it has been a long time since a Luna was here to recite them, and an even longer time since the need for the knowledge has been enforced.” Sebrina shook her head. “I see our pack pulling further and further away from the old ways. Some change is good, like the
Kerstance
between father and son. But forgetting the teaching stories and the beginnings of our People can only bring hardship and despair.”

“Will I be tested for knowledge of the Stories?”

“Not directly. They are teaching Stories, and their value lies in understanding their underlying meanings. Using their examples in your responses to events in your life is the best way to show your knowledge of them.”

“Right,” Julianna grunted, and let it go.

Julianna’s interaction with the women of the Callowwood Pack increased in frequency with her candidacy. Many of the beta females sought her out, grateful for her approachability. Eloise Farkas, a friend of Tawny’s, invited Julianna to her bridal shower with a shy smile. She was engaged to Tommy Scatterstone, a low-level alpha who worked as a building and carpentry contractor.

Eloise had short, straight white-blonde hair cut longer in the front than at the back and her light blue eyes seemed to look through people with unnerving clarity. She had a straight nose and thin lips, small breasts and hips, and long, long legs. She reminded Julianna of a greyhound, ready to sprint away in a moment. Still, Eloise had a ready smile and an easy way with her friends, but Julianna could see sorrow lurking in the back of her eyes and wondered from what it stemmed.

The party was held at Nadine’s Salon and Day Spa in Leland, a small square building with an overhanging sign that provided a covered porch around the front windows and door. The place smelled like shampoo, fried hair, and nail polish, but Julianna also scented feminine satisfaction and contentment.

Tawny, JenniLynn and MaryBeth Grayhound, and Julianna were the only packmembers invited, and Julianna suspected her own invitation had been for political reasons. Not only was she a friend of Tawny’s, but more importantly, she was a candidate for Luna. Nothing brought more prestige than a bigwig’s presence at a party. Julianna didn’t mind. She liked going out with the other women, and the more time she spent with packmembers, the more she’d be accepted.

“Thank you for inviting me,” she said to Eloise as they waited in the foyer of the salon among the potted palms and ferns. “It’s nice to get out with the girls to be pampered every now and again. I haven’t done this in a very long time.”

Eloise smiled widely and chuckled. “I’m very glad you accepted my invitation. We’re happy to have you with us, and, well, Tawny said you were nice. Besides, you’re new to the pack, and I know it’s pretty lonely at first.”

“Haven’t you been in the pack all your life?”

“Yes, but not this one,” she conceded. “My family became part of the Callowwood Pack when our old Alpha died and most of the packmembers moved away. We used to live in a very small town, smaller than Callowwood. The change was really hard at first.”

“Wow. Your old Alpha didn’t have any heirs?”

Eloise shook her head. “I’m glad you’ve come home to Callowwood. I saw you at the dinner a few weeks ago and thought you were the only candidate who looked like she could actually take on leadership of the pack without losing herself to the position.”

“Really?” Julianna smiled, flattered. “This is such a big responsibility, and I wasn’t expecting it so soon after joining the pack. I hope I didn’t look like a complete and utter fool standing there among people who’d been doing this… you know, in this pack, for all their lives.”

“Oh, no, I thought you looked great,” Eloise insisted earnestly. “I know you probably don’t need too much encouragement, but I hope the Successor chooses you.” She shrugged shyly. “The others just don’t feel right for our pack.”

Julianna studied the other woman for a few long moments in surprise.

“They don’t ‘feel’ right? How?”