"Why did you come here to tell me you're leaving for D.C. in an hour?" I looked at Angus incredulously.
"I said we not I, Alex." He sighed, "We are going to D.C. and we are staying in the J.W. Marriott and we will be attending the WWC."
"World Wolf Conference?" I rolled my eyes.
"World Wolf Conference." He agreed.
"Why are we going?" I asked.
"Because I have to and I'm bringing you with me. You've had a decreasing number of panic attacks in the past two months and you deserve to celebrate."
I had a feeling, well...more than a feeling, I could tell he was lying, that he was asking me for an entirely different reason.
Of course, the idiot I am, I said "whatever" and we just landed in D.C. after the most awkward flight I have ever been on. It was so quiet (after my panic attack at having to sit so close to him in an enclosed space), so strange. Did you know the bastard could fucking fly a plane? Who the hell flies planes?
Besides pilots who fly big jets?
We landed on a strip reserved for the week in question because so many planes would be flying in. Why wolves couldn't risk mortal lives on a normal aircraft I would never know.
"Welcome, Emerald City Pack." I looked around because the group of men in front of us were definitely wolves, but we were on national land, not pack land. I shrugged it off.
"Angus," There was a familiar voice and both Angus an dI turned around to see Mercy and Adam Hauptman. I hadn't seen either in...forever. "We should've just flown together. Would've made more sense."
"We should have." He looked at me when he said it. "But this one would have caused problems."
"It is not my fault I'm scared of fucking heights and planes." I muttered under my breath, of course the others all heard it and I could tell they were trying not to laugh.
They were irrational fears.
I tried to figure out what had Mercy so worked up. She was watching me like she was trying to read my mind. I watched her in return and she seemed to find something interesting on her shoes. I frowned, trying to figure out why she had been staring, but I couldn't.
I wasn't listening to what Angus and Adam were talking about, but Mercy finally motioned for me to come over to her. She had moved away from her mate and was standing a few yards away. I dropped my bag and walked over.
"Mercy, what's up?" I asked and she frowned.
"Why are you here?"
I shrugged.
"Huh, I don't know, Angus made me come."
Her frown deepened.
"Mercy, is something wrong?"
"He wouldn't," She whispered, looking up at the two men who had turned to study us. "Angus, she's only eighteen!"
"Can we move this somewhere a little more private?" He growled. My eyes widened when Adam started growling at him to stop growling at Mercy. Of course, Mercy being who she is, went over and stood in front of him anyways.
"You can't force an eighteen year old girl into this!" She hissed.
I was watching, not exactly comprehending what in the world was going on.
"Mercedes, you don't even know half the story!"
"I know what I'm seeing! And you didn't even tell her before she came here! You had to expect someone would figure out!" She was pretty angry and I still remained clueless.
"It wasn't what you think! It just happened! I didn't do anything!" He looked scared which made sense, Mercy was a pretty intimidating coyote.
"It doesn't matter how you came to claim her you should've told her!" She gave him that really calm voice that just screams "I am disappointed in you" "you're a failure" and so on.
Adam kind of fidgeted like the voice was being used on him as well.
And then it dawned on me what was going on.
"YOU WHAT?"
He looked startled.
"Alex, no-"
"Angus Magnusson, is what Mercy is saying true?" I snapped.
He didn't answer.
"You lied to me." I blinked.
"I didn't lie." He protested.
"Then what do you call it?"
"Avoiding the truth."
Mercy snorted, glaring at him. Adam was literally holding her back.
"I can't believe you." I shook my head. "I'm leaving."
His eyes widened and he opened his mouth, but Mercy spoke.
"You can't. The meeting was for alphas and their mates. If you go back, his pack will know something's up and so will pretty much every alpha in the world. It makes Emerald City Pack an easy target and it makes Bran look weaker than what he makes himself out to be if he even has one weak spot." Mercy's eyes were still focused on Angus. "You really screwed up."
I thought for a moment, well...it was probably more than a moment. I just sort of stood there and considered my possibilities. I sighed.
"Fine, I'll stay." Angus let out a sigh of relief. "I'm not happy at all and I am going to have a long chat with you. Not we, Angus, I. Is this understood?"
Adam looked more than amused at Angus' misery before Mercy spun around to face him.
"And I am going to talk to you about who you let steal your stupidest ideas." She growled and he looked really, really scared.
He and Angus looked at each other with the funniest "Dear God, help me" expressions in the entire world and Mercy and I hugged good-bye.
"Alex, you can't just stop talking to me." Angus murmured, we were driving a rental car to our hotel.
Hell yeah I can. I didn't answer.
"Alex, please." He reached to touch me and I bit his arm, it's my best defense against werewolves for your information. "Damn it!" He muttered, pulling his arm back and inspecting it at the red light. It was bleeding profusely. I had bitten pretty hard.
I smiled in satisfaction. We pulled up into the valley parking thingy. I got out my passenger side and grabbed my own bags-I didn't have much. I slung my bag over my shoulder and walked inside. It was nice, it was either granite or marble but it was a peach or a tan color. There were huge crystal chandeliers above the hall that had check-in and check-out desks lining the right side. The left side had seating for waiting people. The rugs were funny colors, red, yellow, and blue. It was kind of tacky, but I suppose they chose them for the fact the geometric designs matched those tiled into the floor.
It smelled like Starbucks, food, and alcohol. There was a bar one floor down along with a restaurant. I could smell the faintest scent of sweat and chlorine so the place definitely had a pool and a work out room. Angus came back towards me.
"Room 702." He told me, handing me a card. I raised an eyebrow. "Yes, one room." He answered my unspoken question. I rolled my eyes and led the way to the elevators.
They were funny, the buttons were on the outside for the floors and it assigned you an elevator, supposedly to save energy. We took F up to the 7th floor. Of course our room was the second furthest from the damn elevators. I led the way to the room, managing not to get lost and have to ask for help from the man...wolf...man...er...the were I was angry at.
I took my bag straight into the bathroom and changed into my bikini and board shorts, deciding to throw a t-shirt over my head as well. I slipped on the flip-flops and came out.
"I'm going to the pool, if you follow me I will drown you myself." I threatened, tossing the bag into the corner. He looked me over and I felt a little self-concious of the fact my board shorts barely covered my butt at all. "If you touch any of my things, you will be murdered in your sleep. If you try anything, I will call Mercy and we'll work on this problem together."
That got him scared.
"Good!" I smiled sweetly, "See ya!" I skipped out the door and down the hall to the elevators. I took one down to the lowest floor and walked calmly to the pool, following the strong smell of chlorine. I had my key card so I got in easily. I was surprised to notice there was no one in the pool, but it was okay. I jumped into five feet and went under-it was the easiest way to get over the cold.
I swam for a little, and floated, before resting in five feet where I started. My arms were stretched back so I used my elbows to keep me up out of the water. I stayed like that for a bit before deciding on getting out and heading back to the room. I didn't bother to put the shirt back on because I had the towel wrapped around me. Instead, I carried it along with my room card and headed back up. I had cleared my head.
I mean...I could give it a try, but if it didn't work I know I wouldn't be able to leave without risking hurting him too badly. My first foster father had committed suicide, and my second foster mother. I had lived with two families before being stuck with Asil in the end. We had been worried he would have committed suicide at one point so when I was told I was going to live with him, I was more than a little worried.
I opened the door and strolled into my problem himself, lost in thought and not paying attention where and into whom I was walking. His eyes were really bright green and I was more than a tiny bit frightened as I tried to control my breathing and heart rate.
"Could you put some clothes on?" He said tightly. I scurried away into the bathroom after grabbing my bag. Pulling on my sleep clothes, I emerged, a little calmer than before.
"There, happy?" I snapped.
He blinked, looking confused and a little hurt.
Like a lost puppy.
A wolf was a very different thing from a lost puppy though, and I knew it. I wasn't entirely sure what to do so I sat on the desk, the chair was a spinning one that moved and I kind of had a habit for sitting on desks when having a serious conversation.
"Angus, you know I'm angry right?" I asked, "And that I'm hurt? And scared?" I wasn't a fan of admitting weakness, but really I felt I had to.
He winced.
"Yeah, and you decided to add confused and troubled and terrified to my list." I continued. "Why did you do that? I mean what exactly were you thinking?"
He didn't answer and I realized the wolf was still in charge.
"Right, okay. You're not exactly Angus, but you'll do. What were you thinking, Mr. Wolf?" I raised an eyebrow. "Really, I'm less than half your age I'd bet, and I don't know you're real name and and and...I don't know what the hell I'm supposed to do!"
"Liam."
"What?" I looked at him, confused.
"My name...it's Liam. Or...his name is." He looked at me carefully.
"Fantastic, that's one problem solved. You're Liam, Mr. Wolf, and Angus is Angus. How about that?" I sighed and rolled my eyes.
He dipped his head.
"Now either you or Angus need to answer my next question. Why?"
"Why what?" He cocked his head to the side.
"Why did you do it?" I simplified.
"To keep you safe...we love you."
I groaned.
"You think you can say that and everything will be okay? That they'll be some sort of fairytale ending for you?"
He shook his head.
"Can I have Angus back?" I finally asked during the silence.
Liam made a face and eventually the scent of wolf and anger and depression and disappointment and blood lust began to fade a little.
"We're supposed to be going to dinner tonight." I reminded Angus when he shook his head to clear it. "The three of us, Anna and Charles, and Mercy and Adam."
"The three of us?" He looked slightly puzzled.
"Yeah, you, Liam, and I." I nodded, pulling out my semi-casual dress and sandals along with the jewelry I had packed. "Go get something to wear, we're going to M&S on F Street."
He nodded and brushed past, I shivered reactively and I could hear the smile in his voice.
"You named my wolf?"
"Well, I had been calling him Mr. Wolf, but it seemed kind of pathetic and uncreative." I called after him when he left out the door to do the Marrok-knows-what.