Page 65 of Resurgence of the Pack

‘Huh.’ He sat back in the chair. ‘Well then.’ He tapped his lip thoughtfully.

Oh boy. What was I doing, playing matchmaker in the past? I hoped this was what Victoria had meant; if not, I really was going to screw things up! Why couldn’t seers just beclearer?

‘I’ll take my leave,’ I stood abruptly. ‘Thank you for your hospitality.’ I managed to say it without any sarcasm.

As I went out of the room, Krieg still had a thoughtful expression on his face. The knot in my stomach toldme that I had probably just pushed him and Candice together.

High King Robert Krieg owed me more than he knew: without me, he would never have been born.

Chapter 32

The inn Torrance directed us to was clean but lacking in bells and whistles. Greg and I took one room and Torrance grabbed another. The werewolf who’d joined us, Langston, the ridiculously large one I’d seen in the hall, had said he would remain in the corridor.

Torrance glared at the hulking man before he stalked off. Langston watched him leave, his expression full of loathing. I wasn’t sure if there was an issue between wolves and fire elementals in this day and age or whether the beef between them was personal, but my money was on the latter.

We’d grabbed my clothes from the judgemental maid before we left the Town Hall, and when we got to the inn Greg helped me get out of the monstrosity I’d been thoroughly tied into. Despite the relative comfort of the bed, I tossed and turned relentlessly and sleep remained annoyingly elusive, partly because of the terrible scratchyVictorian bedsheets and partly because of the gargantuan creature loitering at our door. Neither was I certain that Krieg wouldn’t have us killed even when he found he could speak to his horse.

Greg cuddled me close. ‘I’m guarding you, Peaches,’ he promised, giving my bare shoulder a kiss. ‘Sleep. I won’t let anything happen to you.’ He slipped out of the bed, shifted into his wolf form and sat pointedly facing the sole point of ingress and the huge enemy werewolf on the other side of the door.

With him guarding me, something in me eased and I tumbled into a restless sleep filled with dreams where I was constantly running late for a meeting for which I didn’t know the time or place.

When I was dressed again in my Victorian clothes with a modern zip, we set out for the station. People around us were decidedly bleary eyed and hungover, their expressions rueful; they had celebrated New Year in style. My own constant yawns fit right in, though mine weren’t from letting the good times roll. More’s the pity.

Torrance and Langston were still eying each other with open hostility. I was certain that there was history therebut I was too tired to unpick it. Torrance sorted out the tickets, and before long we were boarding a train bound for Staffordshire.

Contained in the train carriage as we were, Greg took the opportunity to have a light snooze. Torrance once again took to juggling fireballs whilst looking pointedly at Langston. The threat was obvious and the tension in the air increased.

Just once, I wanted to be stuck with people who didn’t want to kill each other. With all my heart I wanted people to get along. Was it so much to ask? If we were all kind to each other and let conflicts slide, the world would be a far better place. Live and let live was my philosophy.

Kill and eat it is mine,Esme interjected.

Yeah,I sighed ruefully.I know.Esme and I were truly yin and yang.

The journey took longer than I’d anticipated. I was feeling edgy. What if the thief got there before we did? I’d taken for granted the sheer convenience of cars and although I had factored in ye olde travel time, I’d not allowed enough of it. If I’d gone back into time and missed the damned theft, I’d be beyond annoyed with myself.

Finally the train pulled to a stop. Langston looked out of the window and his broad shoulders relaxed when hespotted something. ‘The boss has arranged a carriage,’ he said. ‘Follow me.’

We disembarked and followed him to a carriage with two horses, hooked up and ready to pull it. ‘We need to go to the Staffordshire Pack,’ I told Langston. ‘But subtly. We mustn’t be seen.’

‘You got it,’ Langston snapped. ‘Get in.’

I climbed in with Greg and Torrance. Langston sat outside to drive us, giving us some privacy. ‘What’s your problem with Langston?’ I asked Torrance since we now had the luxury of time.

Torrance stared out of the window and for a moment I thought that he wasn’t going to answer me. ‘We were friends once,’ he said morosely. ‘Good friends, boyhood friends. It was Langston that pulled me into Timmy’s sphere. Lang took to it like a violent duck to water – like a goose, I guess you could say. He didn’t warn me beforehand that once you’re in Timmy’s gang, you can’t get out.’

‘But youdidget out,’ I pointed out.

He grimaced. ‘I was bought out. The Alessandros paid a king’s ransom to get me out from under Timmy’s thumb. Apparently I was damaging the reputation of fire elementals.’ He gave me a bitter smile.

That surprised me.Without the Connection ruling things, it was up to each faction to sort themselves out; I guessed that my relatives had got wind of a fire-elemental thug and decided to take matters into their own hands. Torrance was lucky they had bought him out rather than just killing him.

He read my thoughts by the expression on my face. ‘I have a powerful family,’ he admitted. ‘They would have retaliated if the Alessandros had given me a cremation.’

‘Yet your own family didn’t rescue you from Krieg’s clutches?’

‘No,’ he said bitterly, ‘they didn’t.’

‘So you’re mad at Langston for pulling you into Krieg’s path? For not warning you there was no exit?’

---