CHAPTER SEVEN
T roy and Eamon lay together, holding one another for hours. Eamon was glad that Aaron was back on the job and would handle visitors and calls. He needed this time with his mate. The upset over the past few days was causing his wolf to pace in the back of his mind. The beast was unsure of the situation and feared for the safety of their mate, and there was no way to calm the beast except to hold his mate and feel the beat of his heart and the steady pace of his breathing.
The incident at the restaurant made it startlingly clear that he had not made his position and tolerance clear in regard to dissention, respect and pack politics clear. There were still those who thought they had the power to influence, intimidate or control and it was time Eamon stopped assuming everyone was like minded and wanted a steady and functioning pack.
The thirst for power and control still existed within the membership, and he would root it out. Control was his, and he would drive that home with a sledgehammer if necessary.
“I can feel your emotions escalating my love.” Troy stated sleepily still feeling the effects of their lovemaking. “What is troubling you Eamon?”
“This pack.” He answered bluntly. “I thought we were making our way back to normal but there are still those who would prefer chaos and pain. We tore this place to the ground and then rebuilt it but still there are worms among the wood.”
"You tore down the leadership and rebuilt it with trusted, capable individuals, but you did not address the membership with the same scrutiny." Troy offered. While choosing his words carefully, he still made his point clearly. "You spent your life caring for and protecting these people, and you assumed the problem was just a few bad apples within the leadership. You love your people and, therefore, have the bad habit of thinking the best of them."
"Those men today, I watched them grow up in this Pack. I know their families, and before the death of our Alpha, I would have never doubted their loyalty to this Pack. Today, I didn't recognize any of them. They are men I do not know." Eamon worried about how many more like them were still walking among them.
"You love your people, and that is the cornerstone of any strong and successful leader. You must also learn that a leader walks ahead and not beside you. As an enforcer, you were one of them, but as their Alpha, you are, for all intents and purposes, their Master. You must illuminate and illustrate exactly who you are and what you expect along with what you will tolerate." Troy was right, and he agreed with everything he had to say. No wonder Fate had sent him such a man in this time of upheaval and change.
"You're a smart man, Troy Florin. I don't know how I've made it this far without you." Eamon pulled him close and kissed the side of his head.
"Well, you don't have to worry, my love, because I am here to stay."
"Music to my ears, sweetheart." He kissed him again and then rolled onto his back and stared up at the beams in the ceiling. "My enforcers are true, and I have complete faith in the soldiers they have trained. I will start there and do a sweep of the Pack one individual at a time. Each member will receive a personal visit, and I will know who is with me and who is not."
"He's alone with his mate at the Pack House," Bates informed his friends.
"What about Aaron?" One of them asked, and Bates rolled his eyes and laughed.
“Aaron is no one we need to fear.” He said sarcastically and the others nodded their heads.
"How are we going to kill the Alpha? Didn't you hear what he did to those men at the restaurant? We're many, but not enough to end Eamon Coles."
"We don't have to kill the Alpha. Our target is Troy Florin, his mate. We kill him, and the Alpha is as good as dead. He'll kill himself, or Castille Florin will do the honors. Either way, we take down this unlawful leadership." Bates continued to stir them up, making promises he'd never keep.
Once Eamon was finished, Councilman Martindale would take over.Everyone else who participated in the revolution would be purged because there was no room for hotheads in the new leadership, but they didn't need to know that.
"It's time we started making the rules and not leaving it to someone who will be taking their orders from a Coven in Denver." He shouted, and the room erupted in shouts to kill the Alpha. Councilman Martindale stood at the back of the room, impressed and expectant.
These men would bring him what he desired the most, and then they would all be eliminated, including Bates. That man figured he'd be at Martindale's right hand, but truth be told, he wasn't going to survive the night. Brutes had their usefulness, but they could not be trusted. As easily as Bates turned on his Alpha, he would also turn on him.
He'd sent photos of the dust up at the restaurant to Castille Florin letting him see for himself the danger that Eamon has placed around poor helpless Troy. He laid it on thick adding a bit of photoshop to make the scene even more pathetic than it already was. By morning he would be taking over this Pack and the membership would be kneeling to him. Alpha supreme would be his new title and anyone who didn’t like it would be killed.
Eamon was too kind and too fair to ever be a successful Alpha. A leader needed to be feared first and foremost, and Martindale looked forward to spreading his fear throughout the membership. There wasn't anything he wouldn't do to solidify his position, and there wasn't anyone he wouldn't gleefully kill. The reckoning would be glorious.
"We have the blessing of the Council. This is a takeover that is long overdue. Do you want to bow down to a fucking vampire? The Alpha has lost his mind, and we must take the reins before he destroys us completely." Bates delivered the speech just as Martindale had written it. His friends and followers were eating it up, and their anger grew with each word.
There was a total of fifteen counting Bates, and he would have preferred a larger crowd but this number along with Castille and his men should finish the job nicely. At least half of Eamon’s men were off on a wild goose chase up in the mountains. Martindale had sounded the alarm that a border had been breached and pack members in the area needed help. That would lessen the possibility of an assist for Eamon once they made their move on the Pack House.
He didn’t interfere with Bates and his minions choosing instead to quietly back away into the shadows and wait. As he made his way home walking through town he happened upon Sheriff Wellstone standing out front of the Crown Pub. “Drinking on duty now are we?” He chastised the man and waited for an explanation.
"As you are well aware, I'm sure, I was fired earlier this afternoon for insubordination, so when I choose to have a drink is my own damn business." Wellstone looked at him with contempt, something Martindale was not accustomed to tolerating.
“How dare you speak to me in such a tone.” He shot back.
"Fuck off." Wellstone turned to leave, but Martindale stopped him with a word.
“If you want revenge, I can give it to you.” He said and waited. Wellstone looked back at him over his shoulder and he did not look convinced. “Eamon Coles did this to you not me.” He added and Wellstone turned around.
"You and the Council have been working against the Alpha, attempting to siphon off power for yourselves. I'm just collateral damage." Wellstone was a lot smarter than he thought, and Martindale was taken aback for a moment. "I forgot who the leader of this Pack was and allowed you to control me, but that was my biggest mistake. I don't need revenge because I wasn't wronged; I was simply punished for my inappropriate behavior." Wellstone began to turn away once again.
"Either way, we're going to win, and I can give you back what you lost if you agree to stand with me in the end." Martindale offered, but Wellstone started walking.
"I don't stand with snakes." He said as he disappeared around the corner. Martindale was infuriated and swore to make Wellstone the first among those purged at the reconning. He would make him beg and squirm and regret his words. He took several deep breaths and calmed himself. Wellstone didn't matter because before this night was over, he would be the leader of the Salida Pack.
Martindale decided rather than stand back and wait and simply watch the downfall he wanted to be front and center. He wanted people to see him there in the lead and taking control. It was time to go pay the Alpha and his new mate a visit.
Eamon had a bad feeling stirring in his gut and he could not put his finger on exactly what was the matter. He felt so good so settled and complete with his mate and yet there was a shadow that lingered in the back of his mind.
Something had been off with his Pack for a while the peace and security he used to feel among his people had given way to paranoia and distrust. It was something he'd almost grown used to but suddenly now it had taken on a new form and was settling in his heart as clear and present danger.
He turned toward the house and saw that Troy was coming to join him on the deck and he had two beers with him. They’d just finished dinner, and Troy had insisted on helping Aaron clean up and wouldn’t take no for an answer. His mate was a complex man he was sophisticated but wild, privileged although easy and natural and cultured yet coarse. Eamon loved him more every minute he spent with him.
“Thank you for helping Aaron.”
Troy handed him the beer and sat down next to him on the bench. “Aaron would have preferred to do it himself.” Troy chuckled.
"Maybe so, but he still appreciated you." Eamon smiled and pulled Troy close to his side.
“Let’s say he did and leave it at that.” Troy laughed earnestly and took a sip of his beer. “He takes pride in his job, and I will not tread on his territory again.”
“He’s been the caretaker of the Pack House for nearly a century.”
“And yet he doesn’t look any older than forty at the most. I see wolves age like vampires.”
“We will have many years together, sweetheart.”
"Many years." Troy raised his can, as did Eamon, and they toasted the sentiment.
Suddenly out of nowhere that prevailing feeling of danger descended upon him once again and he stood reaching his hand out to his mate. “Let’s go back inside.” He said and Troy took his hand, and he helped him to his feet.
After searching his face, he asked. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know.” He glanced side to side and then held onto Troy and hurried him into the house and closed the door tightly behind them. “Something is wrong I can feel it.”
Sean and Noah, along with four other enforcers, arrived at the location indicated by the caller. "There is no sign of a breach here," Noah stated. "No one has been in this area in months."
“Do you have the name of the member who called?” Sean inquired.
"No, it was passed from person to person, and it was Lee Pearson at the Sheriff's office who gave me the message and just said it came from a local." Noah shook his head, realizing that they'd been had too late. "Why would they want us off on a wild goose chase."
Sean grabbed his phone and called Eamon. "No answer. Fuck! It was a trap." He said with alarm filling his words. They took off speeding through the woods and wilds. Once they reached their Jeep, they tore down the country roads, hoping they reached the Pack House in time.
Sean kept calling the pack house, Eamon, and even Troy but he received only silence, so he called the enforcers still back in Salida and Noah called his soldiers. They could reach the Packhouse before them and hopefully end whatever was taking place.
"Faster, Noah." He yelled, and Noah floored it.
When Eamon and Troy entered the main room, they saw Aaron standing with Councilman Martindale. "The councilman would like to speak with you, Alpha," Aaron stated
"Alone, I wish to speak to you alone," Martindale added and cast his gaze over to Troy.
"Troy can hear whatever it is the councilman has to say," Eamon responded harshly. Troy quickly cut in and attempted to excuse himself, but Eamon asked him to stay.
"It's okay, Eamon. I have a call I need to make, so why don't you meet with the councilman while I make my call." Eamon didn't like anyone thinking they had the power to send his mate out of the room, but he couldn't stand there and argue with Troy, so he nodded, and Troy left for the kitchen with Aaron.
Eamon turned back to Martindale. "Whatever it is, you have to say, do it fast, and don't you ever talk to my mate in that manner again." Eamon advanced on him, and Martindale took a hasty step back.
"Yes, of course, Alpha, I apologize." The apology was false, and the smile was plastic, so Eamon was about to ask him to leave when he suddenly blurted.
“Your Beta had no authority to fire the Sheriff.” He said this and lifted his head in a superior manner.
"He's fired, and he stays fired." Eamon wasn't going to debate this matter.
"The Council set forth the protocol for the department, and he followed that protocol when he denied your Beta access to the files. Sean Brendon had no right to dismiss him." Martindale was getting agitated and kept looking back over his shoulder like he was expecting someone.
“This is none of you concern and I will not discuss it further with you. Learn you place or face the consequences.” Eamon nearly shouted and the councilman cowered and then shook it off with a sneer as if his own reaction had embarrassed him.
“The Council is the supreme rule of this Pack. We make the laws and you and your goons follow them.” That had the effect he should have expected but still he appeared surprised when Eamon rushed him and grabbed him by the throat.
“How dare you.” He shouted and the councilman screamed and clutched at his throat. Just then Aaron rushed from the kitchen and demanded that Eamon release Martindale. Eamon turned to look back over his shoulder and saw Aaron standing there with Troy behind him being restrained by two wolves with two others flanking them.
Eamon hesitated, and the wolves tightened their grip on Troy's throat. "Don't test me, Eamon," Aaron stated in a tone Eamon had never heard before. It was a cross between contempt and arrogance. His trusted houseman, a man he'd known and worked with for decades, was a traitor to the Pack.
Eamon dropped Martindale and let him fall to the floor, but Eamon never took his eyes off Troy. Their communication was clear, and their bond was strong. Troy would follow his lead. He was not as weak as people assumed. Troy was light, graceful and gorgeous but he was also a vampire and brother to the deadliest vampire in Colorado. To underestimate him was their mistake.
Martindale lay there coughing and sputtering for a few minutes before getting to his feet and ran over to the main doors and throwing them open. People burst inside shouting and cursing, led by Bates and his goons.
These were people Eamon knew people like Aaron who he worked with and lived among and now they were ready to kill him and his mate for a modicum of power. Eamon was shocked but quickly realized this was some sort of take over and Martindale, the councilman was leading it. His eyes shifted back to Troy who nodded briefly and made it clear he was up to the challenge however Eamon chose to play it out.
Martindale walked up to Eamon and looked up at him. He was a short weaselly man with eyes like a rat, small and closely set. For a councilman he was not particularly smart, but he was a good manipulator. He had few friends because he used people until they got tired of being used and abandoned him but in this instance it would appear he had plenty of support.
"You're all traitors to your Pack and to your neighbors. I gave you a chance to come together and grow but you would rather spit in my face and try to take what does not belong to you." Eamon turned on them a few visibly trembled at the rebuke from their Alpha their resolve shaking just a bit.
"You have no power, Eamon. We will take this house and take this territory. You and your vampire slut are finished," Martindale shouted, but his voice was small and weak. He signaled for the men holding Troy to bring him forward. "Try anything, and your mate will pay." He spat at Eamon. "Although it doesn't really matter because we intend to kill you both anyway," Martindale said softly so only Eamon could hear.
Eamon snapped and backhanded Martindale wiping the sick smile off his face and suddenly it was on. Troy vamped out and dropped to the floor slipping free of the awkward hold the wolves were using on him.
The crowd advanced on them as Eamon took them on, breaking necks and slashing throats. Troy finished off the two who were restraining him, leaving them a bloody mess on the floor. Eamon wasn't certain if they would survive this, but he was certain that they'd take many with them.
Troy tore out Bates's throat in a fine bit of revenge, a look of shock forever etched on his dead face. Troy moved toward Eamon, who was tearing through the crowd, and then things changed.
Those who'd made a run for it were heard screaming from the porch and yard, and then Eamon saw his men fighting their way toward him. The attackers were losing ground, and now they were trying to escape. They recognized the trap but still tried to fight their way out of the house. Eamon went at them with every bit of force an Alpha can gather, and then he tossed back his head and howled. It was the howl of an enraged Alpha, a howl that brought every shifter to their knees.
Those who still lived fell on their knees and wept, screaming for the pain and the void to stop. No one had experienced the ripping away of the Alpha's influence and had never understood the power the Alpha held over their body and soul. Even the death of their previous Alpha had not caused this kind of devastation. The enforcers had stepped in and held up the spiritual support of the Pack, but that wasn't present.
They were alone and their wolves were frantically searching for their leader their foundation and the connection that tied them together. The faithful soldiers finished off the few remaining traitors having felt the power of the Alpha’s rage but had not been devastated by it. They were loyal and true, and their hearts protected them.
Eamon pulled Troy into his arms and drank in the sweet pure aroma of his mate, and it slowly calmed him. It was going to take a long time and significant change to actually ever completely relax again but this was a start. With his mate by his side, he knew all things were possible.
Sean with Noah close behind came rushing into the main room and stood with their Alpha. “Those that tried to escape were stopped. None survive.” He stated clearly with disgust. “Your men took care of most of them and some locals realized what was happening and came to your defense as well.” Sean patted him on the shoulder.
“What about Aaron and Martindale?” Eamon asked. They were the instigators, and they needed to pay for what they did.
"They tried to run away when things started going south, but they were stopped at the gates to the property." Sean smiled and glanced over at Troy. "Your brother Castille had arrived. Apparently, he was worried about you." Sean smiled.
Castille had made it onto Pack lands without detection by cutting through the forest to the east. He and the two men he brought with him were able to blend into the scents and scenes of the woods using a basic glamour. It was soon discovered that a dark and devious plan lay beneath the quiet stillness of this night.
Castille had the ability to read minds, not in-depth, but he could read intent and decipher plans and purpose. It was a handy skill, and the wolves were powerless to resist. Shifters tended to wear their thoughts on their sleeves, and the thoughts he was reading were disastrous.
He made his way to the Pack House fearing for his brother’s wellbeing but also confident that Troy would not go down without a fight. He also put stock in Eamon's dedication to his mate and determination to keep him safe. Although he did make the pledge that if anything happened to Troy this Pack would be wiped from existence.
He was first confronted with the man from the phone calls the councilman who consistently warned him of Troy’s danger. He’d read the man right and upon meeting him knew instantly where the problem was. “Hello councilman.” He said and grabbed him by the hair jerking him backward and causing him to stare up at him awkwardly. “Where are you off to?”
"It's an attack, and I'm going for help." He tried to explain, but the stench of his lie was thick.
"You organized this attack," Castille said in a tone that was cool and easy. "You sought to deceive me and to destroy my dear brother and his beloved." The councilman was shaking his head frantically, but he had nothing left to say, so Castille broke his neck and removed his head from his shoulders, tossing it into the ditch water.
"We have another, sir." His man came forward with a tall, lean man whose soul was steeped in darkness. Castille wiped his hands on his handkerchief and tucked it back into this pocket before addressing this man.
“Your name is Aaron. You’re Eamon’s house man his loyal and trusted friend and a servant to him and his people.” Aaron’s eyes grew wider with each word, but he did not cry or beg he stood and waited. “Troy described you as quiet and distant but a well regarded member of the pack and a particular friend of the Alpha.” With his final word Castille plunged his fist through Aaron’s chest clutching his heart and pulling it out.
"You had it all, and now you are nothing but a disgrace," Castille stated and tossed the heart into the ditch along with his remains. He and his men approached the main house and marveled at the carnage that lay around them. Alpha Coles was a man to be reckoned with.
"Castille," Troy shouted and ran to his brother. He brought him over to where Eamon stood with Sean. Noah had excused himself to help with the cleanup and disposal. Castille held out his hand to Eamon, who took it, and their bond was set.
“I’m glad to finally meet you.” Castille stated. “Troy has said great things about you.”
"He has said great things about you as well," Eamon responded. "I'm sorry we had to meet under such circumstances, but I thank you for your assistance."
"The Pack has some issues, but nothing a good Alpha and a competent Alpha Mate can't resolve." Castille turned, when his attention was drawn to the archway. A young wolf stood there guarding the room behind him. Eamon followed his line of sight and commented.
“That is Travis Dray he’s guarding the office. He’s a trusted soldier in training. He has proven himself this night as did many others.” Eamon told him and Castille nodded but his eyes continued to stray to the confident yet disheveled young man standing guard.
The Pack underwent a trial that was both brutal and freeing. Those that hoped to take over and crush any that opposed them were themselves crushed. It was eye opening to see those that had joined Martindale and is corrupt ambition. The most devastating was Aaron. Eamon spent many hours searching through his past and trying to decern just where the split had occurred.
"It wasn't you, my love. It was a man who decided his friends and colleagues were worthless to him. He had always been the man you saw that day; he just hid it and was satisfied as long as his life gave him what he required." Troy soothed him.
“What was missing that he would go to such lengths to hurt us?”
"I heard through the grapevine that Aaron had a physical relationship with the previous Alpha. It wasn't love, according to my sources, but it provided him with a sense of superiority and status. With that gone, he was just a houseman, and then when I entered the scene, he was finished. He did not see vampires as worthy or equal." Troy poured Eamon a glass of whiskey and sat down with him on the plush sofa in the sitting room. It had become their private place, a place where they could relax and enjoy one another.
"Well, then, I guess it was appropriate that the last thing he saw was a vampire ripping his heart out." Eamon took a sip of his whiskey.
"Your people love you, Eamon, and they came to your defense when you needed it most. Even the ex-Sheriff showed up." Troy ran his fingers down the inside of Eamon's thigh, causing a sensual moan to escape his lips.
“Sean is rethinking his dismissal. I think he deserves a second chance.” Troy agreed but the decision would be Sean’s since he fired him. Eamon made a decision not to undermine his second in command and allow him the authority worthy of such a position. It helped the citizenry understand the power of position and to respect the Pack leadership.
"Castille would like to visit at the end of the week."
“I think that would be nice.”
"I think he has an ulterior motive, but he's being very cagy."
“I have an ulterior motive as well.” Eamon set his drink aside and pulled Troy into his lap. “I brought you here to the sitting room so I could ravage you.”
“Ravage me.” Troy trailed kisses down Eamon’s cheek. “Ravage me all you want.”
“I want a lot.”
"I'm here for it, baby." Troy joined, and Eamon laughed.
"I don't know how I survived for so long without you in my life," Eamon whispered.
“You needed a little glitz and glamor in your life.”
"I needed you in my life. I love you, Troy."
"And I needed you. I needed my gruff and wild wolf. I love you, Eamon, and always will."