The Lonely Wolf (17 page)

Downstairs, Ludwig paused before the ER’s entrance and placed his hand over Quintilius’s arm. “Give me a moment.”

Quintilius watched the door close behind the angel and raised his eyes heavenward, praying to the Great Wolf that Ludwig could convince Lupo to meet him. A few minutes passed, and he started pacing back and forth in the big hallway, his anxiety growing at each turn. More minutes passed, and a sense of bleak heaviness blanketed him. When the ER’s door opened and Ludwig came out, Quintilius was about to storm inside.

“So?” he asked Ludwig from several meters away.

Ludwig nodded. “Come in.” He held the door for him, then led him through the whole length of a corridor. “I told Lupo what I gathered from the doctor about his mate, and he’s upset for her, but consented to meet you.” He paused before a room. “Lupo is scared and hurt, but his future isn’t promising at the moment, and he needs a strong male figure in his life. He needs you, even if he doesn’t know it.” After a knock on the door, he motioned for Quintilius to enter. “I’ll wait for you outside.”

His legs all of a sudden became boneless, and Quintilius told himself, “I can do this.”

“Of course you can,” Ludwig said from a few steps away.

Steadying his resolve, and after breathing in and out for a few counts, Quintilius lowered the door handle and entered the room.

On a bed too small for him, a massive werewolf lay with his face turned toward the wall.

“Lupo?” Quintilius walked to the bed, but didn’t sit on the wooden chair by the corner.

Lupo slowly turned, and when their eyes met, Quintilius couldn’t help but weep.

“My son—” he choked.

The cub, barely out of his teenage years, but a man through and through, looked like Quintilius. His hair was cropped and his eyes were a striking shade of blue, but the rest was undeniably Quintilius. A handsome werewolf with a leader aura impossible to ignore and a tempestuous wolf as his animal, this young man was the very image of the son he had dreamed of for as long as he could remember.

Until now, Quintilius had always thought his dream would never become a reality.

“Alpha.” Lupo’s expression was somber, and his voice was unsteady.

“Lupo, I’m so grateful you’re giving me this opportunity—”

Sitting straighter, and grimacing in the process, Lupo frowned. “All these years, you never cared for me. What has changed now?”

Puzzled by his words, Quintilius tried to organize his thoughts for the best way to express his feelings. “I’m sorry for the other day, the last thing I wanted was to bail on you.”

Lupo’s wolf’s low growl echoed in the room. “Bullsh—”

Quintilius raised one hand to stop Lupo. Being disrespected wasn’t something he would allow, and most assuredly, it wouldn’t facilitate conversation, especially if their wolves got involved. He locked eyes with Lupo’s and said, “I wanted to meet you the moment Ludwig told me I had a son.”

Nostrils flaring, Lupo’s demeanor changed, as his eyes never lost contact with Quintilius. If a moment earlier he had been guarded, now he radiated belligerence from all his pores. Once again, Quintilius saw his son’s wolf lurking beneath the surface, and the animal was furious and asking to be released. But beneath all the angst, Lupo’s scent also showed he felt betrayed.

“You are such a disappointment, father.” Lupo spat the last word like a curse. “You send the angel to tell me you’re dying to finally meet with me, and the first thing you do is lie through your teeth. Do me a favor and remove yourself from my sight.”

“Lupo—” Such was the hurtful power of Lupo’s words that Quintilius lost his ground for a moment.

“Don’t worry, I want nothing from you.” Turning toward the wall, he added with a snarl, “Not your money, and not your name.”

Lupo’s wolf was getting more and more aggressive, and it was a testament to Lupo’s strength that he hadn’t let his animal out to challenge Quintilius.

As a father, Quintilius felt immensely proud of his son, and he let Lupo’s disrespect slide. “I don’t know why you think I’ve lied to you, but I have said the truth.”

His back to Quintilius, Lupo waved a hand over his shoulder to dismiss him. “Just stop talking.”

Despite Lupo’s tone, Quintilius saw how he lay hunched over, in a protective stance to hide how hurt he was. A mountain of a man in his prime, his son was about to spill tears he didn’t want to be seen.

It pained Quintilius to see Lupo so wounded, but he had to take control of the situation or he would forever regret it. They might have been estranged, but his paternal instinct had already kicked in. “I won’t go until I say my piece.” To make their respective positions clear, he let his wolf roar at Lupo’s.

Like a rebellious cub, Lupo’s wolf stood his ground and roared back. “The great alpha isn’t used to the word ‘no.’”

Deep inside, Quintilius applauded Lupo. Any other werewolf would have shown submission by now, but Lupo still fought back, trying to assert his dominance, and Quintilius had nothing but respect for this young, mislead cub. “The great alpha isn’t used to having a son, because he’s just learned about him.” Grabbing the chair by the corner, Quintilius dragged it to the bed and sat. His legs stretched before him and his arms folded low, he waited for Lupo to turn. “I’ll be brief,” he said when it was evident Lupo didn’t want to interact with him any longer. “Two days ago, Ludwig came to my house and told me about you. The first thing that crossed my mind was to drive to Drako’s in the middle of the night and meet you.”

Silence welcomed his words, so Quintilius continued, “I resigned myself to wait, only to be detained by the vampire Claudius the whole day. As soon as I was back in Rome, I went to Drako’s, but you were gone. I would’ve started looking for you first thing in the morning—” He saw the light filtering through the small window. “Right now, in fact, if my closest friend hadn’t been attacked by a vampire.”

The tension in the air was tangible, and the two wolves’ volatile moods added to the general strain. Still, Quintilius was the senior alpha, and he would control the situation. Lupo’s back raised and fell in shallow breaths, but he kept silent, which Quintilius liked less than when he had shown open hostility.

Knowing he had to change the balance between them, Quintilius decided to open his heart to Lupo, hoping his confession wouldn’t fall on deaf ears. “Had I known of you before, rest assured that I would’ve sought you out. I have dreamed of having a son for so long, you are a gift to me.”

“Why do you keep lying?” Lupo’s question was barely a whisper, but to Quintilius it sounded like a shout.

So much was the pain and the hurt radiating from Lupo and his wolf that Quintilius felt the urge to hug his son, but he steeled his resolve to get through Lupo. “I’ve said the truth.”

“You’ve known of me since the day I was born and decided I wasn’t worthy of you.”

“That is a lie.”

“The great alpha couldn’t be bothered with a bastard.”

“Why do you think that?”

“I get it. You got to have your fun. A stupid maid was available. I am the unwanted byproduct of a forgettable night.”

“I barely knew your mother, but I would’ve never repudiated you—”

“Lies. Lies. Lies. Please go away.”

“Your mother never came to me to tell me she was pregnant. She stopped working at
Casolare
del Lupo
soon after we…”

“Would you just leave me alone?”

It was as if they were having two parallel conversations, but Quintilius wanted his son to listen and slightly raised his voice. “I asked after her, but she had disappeared.”

By response, Lupo whispered, “This conversation is pointless.” He sounded defeated now.

“Once again, I didn’t know I had a son.” Headache mounting, Quintilius grabbed the edge of his chair. “But you are my son, and I will fight for you.” His knuckles became white.

“Same way you fought a month ago, when I came to your house and I met your bitch—”

“Wait.” Surprised by the revelation, Quintilius sat farther forward. “You came to
Casolare del Lupo
?”

Finally, Lupo shifted on his side and locked his gaze with Quintilius’s. “That’s what I just said.”

“I was never told.” Heart beating faster, Quintilius tried to connect the dots together.

“Your bitch didn’t tell you? How convenient.”

“Do not disrespect Camelia.” The room started spinning around Quintilius. “I don’t understand—” He brought a hand to his temple. “I spoke to her before she was attacked, and she was surprised when I told her about you. She would’ve never kept a secret like that from me. Never.” From the way Lupo was looking at him, Quintilius realized he had spoken out loud.

A knock on the door startled him.

Pushing the door open by a chink, Ludwig peeked inside. “I apologize, but the liaison is here, and he would like to ask Lupo a few questions before talking to the girl’s family.”

“We were done anyway,” Lupo said.

Ludwig entered, followed by the fallen angel, Samuel, whom he had kept busy for the last ten minutes explaining Lupo’s delicate situation, while trying to give Quintilius more time with his son.

Samuel acknowledged Quintilius, then walked to the bed. “Hi, Lupo. My name’s Samuel, and I’ll be discussing your case with the Cannalis Corte family.” He offered his hand to Lupo, and the werewolf took it.

Walking to his side, Ludwig gave Quintilius an interrogative glance, and Quintilius shook his head slightly.

“I’ll check on Camelia,” Quintilius said, leaving the room after one last glance at Lupo.

The young werewolf didn’t seem to notice his father departing, but Ludwig saw how Lupo’s hand clenched the sheets in a tangle.

“How do you feel?” Samuel grabbed the chair Quintilius had vacated, swung it, and sat astride, resting his arms over the backrest. Making himself comfortable, the fallen angel opened his truncated wings and let them fall to the side.

Ludwig sighed, foretelling a long session.

With a shrug, Lupo answered, “I’m fine.” Then he raised his eyes to Samuel. “So, does Jasmine’s family want me dead?” He said it with a mocking tone, but his mouth was set in a firm line and his hand hadn’t stopped fisting the sheets.

Leaning against the wall, Ludwig crossed his booted feet.

Samuel shifted his weight on the chair. “Jasmine’s father has made a formal request to the Immortal Council to have you extradited—”

“They want to try you for kidnapping, rape, and attempted murder,” Ludwig said when Samuel didn’t finish his sentence.

“I’d never—” Lupo jumped on the bed, horror and shock on his face, his breathing ragged.

“I understand she’s your mate, and I know you would never hurt her, but her family is trying to come to terms with what’s happened to their daughter, and it isn’t easy for them,” Samuel said.

“Do you think it’s easy for me?” Lupo roared, letting his pain out.

A sympathetic ache exploded in Ludwig’s chest. “We know it isn’t,” he said with barely concealed emotion, surprising everyone in the room, himself included.

After giving Ludwig a fleeting look, Samuel focused back on the werewolf. “We are here to help you.”

“How?” Lupo scoffed, shaking his head with a grim expression.

“By doing my job,” Samuel answered. “I’ll mediate with her family.”

“So you won’t surrender me to them?” With slow movements attesting to the amount of pain Lupo was experiencing, he straightened against the bedrest.

“Of course we won’t.” Again, Ludwig spoke with more sentiment than his official position required. This time, both the werewolf and the fallen angel turned to stare at him, and he felt compelled to add, “The Immortal Council was created to deal with interspecies matters, and we would never let a tribe deal justice on their own.”

Samuel nodded. “You will be tried by the Immortal Council Court, and we’ll make sure you have a fair hearing.”

Ludwig knew the cub would need all the help he could get, given his previous charges concerning the vampire and the enemies he had made in such a short time.

Lupo let out a mirthless laugh, then started counting on his fingers. “I’m wanted for the attempted murder of a bloodsucker. I’ve fallen in love with a Purist and failed to keep her safe. Her family wants me dead. The Reds are out for my blood too. What else?” He made a show to think about the answer, then said with a mockery of a smile, “But all is good. My prodigal father just decided he wants me in his life. How lucky am I?”

“Everything will be fine.” Ludwig stepped closer to the bed. “It won’t be easy and it won’t be fast, but you’ll make it through and you’ll be stronger because of it.”

“How can you promise me that?” Lupo asked, his hostility gone, showing his frailness and his youth.

Ludwig smiled then. “Because you are not alone. Your father and I will be with you, every step of the way.”

Lupo’s eyes narrowed. “Why?”

Several answers came to Ludwig, but all boiled down to his need to see love triumph. “Because everyone deserves a second chance, and you aren’t the first man to make a mistake.”

With a nod, Samuel added, “Taking into account you just turned eighteen and you have no priors, we’ll plea for a lesser sentence.” He raised his wings to stretch them. “Now, tell me exactly how you ended up in this mess.”

It took Lupo almost two hours to narrate what sounded like an odyssey to Ludwig. They were interrupted twice by the nurses, and Samuel asked a multitude of questions. Per the Cannalis Corte family’s request, the fallen angel recorded the part of the conversation regarding Jasmine. Lupo had to stop several times when he recounted the events that led to the accident.

By the time Samuel declared the interview finished, the room was saturated with the werewolf’s grief.

Saying his goodbye, Samuel took Lupo’s hand in his and gave it a good squeeze. “As the archangel told you, we’ll do our absolute best to help you.”

Once alone, Ludwig asked, “Is there anything you need?”

“Jasmine,” Lupo said her name with reverence, his eyes gone to a place well beyond the hospital’s walls. “Would you let me know if anything has changed with her?”

“Of course.” Ludwig exited the room and went straight to the ICU nurses’ station, where he asked for a word with the doctor treating the girl.

“Doctor Dani is talking to the family,” one of the nurses said, her tone subdued as her eyes darted to the side.

“Is the girl—worse?” Ludwig heard a woman’s wail and he turned on his heel to face the other end of the hallway.

A group of three tall men wearing dark suits and two women clad in black from head to toe stood huddled together. The doctor, the only white splash in a sea of darkness, had a hard time containing the crying woman while he tried to answer a barrage of questions from the men. The second woman was unnaturally still and was staring at Ludwig, her onyx eyes—the only physical detail visible through the opening in her veil—seething with anger.

The woman pointed a finger at him, and the men spun at once. The tallest separated from the group and walked toward Ludwig.

“You,” the man said when mere centimeters from Ludwig. “Release the dog to us.” His whole body exuded anger, and his panther was shimmering in and out of sight.

Inwardly, Ludwig groaned. “Alpha.” He opened his arm to the side. “Let’s talk somewhere else.”

“We have nothing to discuss. Give us the rapist.” The man’s raised voice attracted everyone’s attention.

As the Purist stepped even closer to Ludwig, his stance menacing and his panther roaring, several nurses stopped mid-step in the middle of the hallway, then veered toward Ludwig.

“Archangel?” one of the nurses asked.

Ludwig smiled at the woman. “Everything’s fine.”

The nurses hesitated, but at the sight of the doctor nodding, they walked away.

Ludwig gave the doctor a nod of his own, then addressed the Purist. “We won’t be having this conversation here,” he said, keeping his voice level. Rising to his full height and towering over the alpha, who even if big wasn’t as massive as Ludwig, he marched toward the exit door. A moment later, he was rewarded by angry steps following him.

“Over here.” Ludwig held the door for the Purist, then led him out of the ICU, through a long corridor, and into one of the smaller waiting rooms outside of the ER.

A few visitors were milling around, but as Ludwig strode through they dispersed. A couple who had been talking in hushed tones fled the waiting room as Ludwig entered. The Purist gave him an angry stare and stopped in the middle of the room, standing with his chest rising and falling, his nostrils flaring.

By contrast, Ludwig relaxed his stance and walked to the couch, then eased himself onto the backrest, crossing his ankles. “I won’t release Lupo Solis to you.”

The panther roared so loud, the windows rattled. “That dog raped my Jasmine, and she’s dying because of him.”

“I understand your pain, and I’m sorry for your daughter, but Lupo mated with her.”

“Don’t you dare—” Foam at his mouth, the man could barely talk.

“They are soulmates.”

The Purist lost the small control he had on his panther, and the animal came out. The shifting was fast, expensive shards of suit exploding all around as the panther lunged at Ludwig’s throat. Any other man would have been dead the moment the sharp fangs connected with the jugular, but Ludwig was an angel and felt only a tickle. In truth, he could have stopped the panther before he reached for him, but he let the animal spend some energy.

Standing and grabbing the panther by the ridge on his back, he moved the animal with no more effort than he would have applied to dislodge a kitten. He could have thrown the panther against the wall, but the man and his animal were acting out of grief, and he deposited the fighting beast to the floor.

Ludwig pointed at the tiles. “Stay.” His voice carried the tiniest hint of Wrath, nothing more than a reminder of his power, but enough to still the predator.

The animal didn’t cower, but he didn’t attack a second time either.

“Shift back.” Ludwig witnessed the swift change, then sat on the couch, waiting for the naked man to recompose himself. “Ready to have a civilized conversation?”

The man didn’t answer, but imperceptibly lowered his head.

“The Immortal Council won’t give you permission to assassinate an innocent.” At the low growl from the Purist, Ludwig raised his chin to remind the man to behave.

“My tribe has the right to avenge my daughter.” Tall and elegant, the Purist maintained his dignity even without wearing a stitch of clothing. “I have the right to kill the one who violated Jasmine.”

Ludwig felt the raw ache pouring out from the man in waves, but he also experienced an odd sense of proprietary protectiveness regarding Lupo. “There’s no point in arguing over Solis’s jurisdiction.”

“He must pay,” the man spat.

“He will pay for the crimes he committed.” The room was too small for the two of them, and Ludwig wished he could fly away. “However, he is your daughter’s soulmate, and you must come to your senses. If something happens to him, Jasmine will suffer too.”

“My daughter would’ve never consented to touch the dog. She’s an alpha-panther, the purest of the pure.” The man’s anger crumbled and became visceral pain. “And she might die—”

A knock on the door announced Quintilius, who waved from behind the glass and mouthed, “Clothes,” showing a heap of fabric on his other hand. Relieved, Ludwig made a sign for him to enter.

****

“Mister Cannalis—” Quintilius walked into the room and handed the pants and shirt to the naked were-panther.

Upon entering the hallway, he had noted the commotion of people milling in front of the waiting room, and his wolf hearing had caught bits and pieces of the heated conversation between Ludwig and the Purist. He had retrieved the change of clothes from the trembling hands of a nurse who didn’t dare interrupt the two men.

The Purist snatched his offering from his hands without a thank you. “What do you want, wolf?”

Grief radiated from both the man and his panther, and Quintilius toned down his response, gentling his attitude. “A word with you, panther.”

The man scoffed and shook his head, but it was a tired gesture. “The great alpha wants a word with me—” His eyes took a menacing glint. He gave Ludwig a long stare, then addressed Quintilius, “Whatever you say to save your dog, I won’t change my mind. Even if the Immortal Council says otherwise, my tribe will seek justice against the rapist.” He enunciated each word of the last sentence slowly, never blinking.

Although Quintilius already knew the seriousness of the charges against Lupo, hearing him labeled as a rapist hurt him. “My son surrendered himself to save his soulmate’s life.”

“His son?” The Purist directed his question toward Ludwig, shock on his face.

Ludwig answered with a nod.

“I don’t care whose son the dog who hurt my Jasmine is. I want his head—”

A potent urge of defending Lupo made Quintilius talk over the were-panther. “You won’t do anything to my son. He’s not responsible for following the mating call, and you well know that.”

“I know nothing of the sort, Purists—”

Quintilius felt the pain and sorrow of the man as if they were his own, but the shifter was threatening Lupo, and he and his wolf couldn’t allow it. “You’ll—”

A cell phone rang, startling both of them to silence. The were-panther’s face lit in recognition and leaned over a heap of shredded fabric on the floor. With trembling hands, he took the phone and looked at the screen. Fear passed through his already altered features as he answered.

On the other end of the line, Quintilius heard clipped words summoning the Purist, and in the background the low keening of a woman crying. The sound sent his heart down to his stomach.

The man’s hand fell to the side, the cell phone sliding to the floor, as he sprinted toward the door he tore away with an inhuman cry.

Quintilius found it difficult to breathe, but he gulped air and ran after the were-panther, followed by Ludwig.

In his wake, the Purist bumped against nurses and visitors who weren’t fast enough to move out of his way. Without pausing, he pushed the ICU’s doors open and sent them against the wall. A few meters along the hallway, helped by two men of her tribe who were supporting her, a Purist woman was crying, while another was comforting her. When the bereft she-panther saw the man striding toward her, she sobbed louder and said, “It’s all my fault. I should’ve watched her—” and collapsed.

The were-panther was at the woman’s side in two strides, and the two men gently placed her in his arms.

Quintilius and Ludwig remained at the entrance. The whole place froze, nurses and doctors passing by stopped to give the family a semblance of privacy. The two Purists and the second woman closed around the couple, whispering soothing words.