Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 109329 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 547(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109329 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 547(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
“Alpha,” a shifter named Oliver said. He was a squat, burly guy with a bald head and clean-shaven face, and a scar cutting across his right ear. Second generation with a moderate pack. He had room to grow but not necessarily the mental tools to do so. His tone was even and respectful. “We’ve had a run-in with mages. I can attest to a couple of them doing a disproportionate amount of damage. I also know about your past. You have no shortage of power, but I wonder about your leadership. Uniting is a good idea, but the reality, with the wrong leadership, could be just as disastrous, if not more so.”
“You’re exactly right,” Austin said, and more murmurs rose from the crowd. “I was a nightmare in my youth. Kingsley can attest to that. I’m only newly an alpha, by choice. We created this convocation out of necessity. I understand that trust must be earned, and my abilities—and my mate’s abilities—proven. That is why you are all here. I understand your hesitancy, and we’re all prepared to be extremely open. My mate was a Jane—I’m sure you’ve heard. She can’t lie, not if you can read body language. I can, but I have no reason to. I need you as much as you need us. We all need each other.”
“And if we don’t join?” asked a woman, a third-generation alpha who tended to side with Armendale on most things. “That means we’re on our own, I guess, huh? We play by your rules or we fend for ourselves?”
Austin didn’t like her tone. She sounded like an attorney badgering a witness rather than asking a legitimate question. Still, it was relevant.
Before he could answer, Jess cut in, and it was clear she didn’t like the woman’s tone either.
“We’re not the Mafia. We’re not going to ask for money to protect your beat. We’re doing this to help you. All of you. Us. We didn’t demand Kingsley join the convocation. He decided to after the battle. Gerard as well—the gargoyle there. Speaking of, Gerard didn’t even know Kingsley. They certainly aren’t family. He showed up to help. To do the right thing. And that is what the convocation will do—the right thing. If you aren’t in it and you need help, we will help you.
“However”—she put up her finger—“we will help you how we see fit. If you’re too shortsighted to get in early and help mold this thing, then you get no say when we need to show up and kick ass. If we can use your people, great. We’ll tell you how. If not, they need to get out of the way. We’ve been training constantly since day one. We’ve designed a system to integrate new packs and cairns seamlessly so we can work as a team. We have exceptional team leaders, and they have to be because sometimes we need to be effective immediately.
“The worry is Momar hitting us harder. He’s out there, somewhere, planning. Working on magic we don’t know of with ten, twenty, fifty times the staff. We have two mages and a bunch of claws. Big whoop. Right now, we’re not enough to take him on. We won at Kingsley’s only because they underestimated us. Momar didn’t know we’d come to help, or that we had magic. I doubt he’ll make that mistake twice. Mark my words, as we are now, he’ll take down Austin and me, and then he’ll go back to targeting the shifters. If you want to stand around with your dick in your hands, patting yourself on the back for what Daddy gave you and taught you how to use, great. Best of luck. But if you want to actually survive, you’d better shut up and pay attention, because that’s what we’re trying to do here. Fight and win.”
14
Austin
He held his breath to keep from laughing.
His dig hadn’t been very subtle…but Jess had just gone and slapped the generational alphas in the face. What was more, it was clear she wasn’t trying to rile them up. She wasn’t showboating. She was pissed and annoyed and at the end of her tether. All her work with the gargoyles had eaten away her patience, it seemed. At this point, she needed people to get with the times or get out of the way.
If he’d been trying for a traditional way to go about this, she would’ve just blown all that to hell. Good thing he wasn’t.
Judging by the nodding and smiling gargoyles, that had been right in line with what they wanted to hear. She was finally speaking their language.
Austin put out his hands with a smile. “In a nutshell. But please, I’m sure you’re hungry. Let’s finish introductions and head into dinner. Every table has a member of the convocation. You can ask questions. All week you can ask questions. You can get a feel for things. You can see what magic can really do. In the end, if you’re unsure, or simply don’t want to, don’t unite. Simple. And then, yes, if you need us to show up and kick ass, you will need to get out of the way.”