Page 4 of Clash of Kings

“I resemble that remark,” Anthony yelled from across the grounds like the heathen he was, and Bas shook his head.

“See?” Carleigh wrapped her arm through Sebastian’s and led him away from his parents and her dad. “Seriously, though. I’m proud of you, Bas. You’re going to be a wonderful leader.”

“Thanks, but I’m going to be great because I have you and the others helping.” And Bas meant that. He couldn’t do it alone.

As they wound their way through the masses, Bas was surrounded by Clan members once again fisting their hearts and pledging their loyalty. Carleigh remained by his side the entire time. When he had greeted everyone, they fixed a plate and joined several cousins who had saved them seats. The good thing about those he was surrounded with was they didn’t treat him differently now that he was their King. To them, he was still Bas. As the evening wore on, they ate, drank, laughed, and enjoyed being together. A DJ played dance music, keeping the mood joyous. Bas mingled amongst his Clan, talking and joking as he always had, but he sensed the shift in their perception. It was heady. Tangible. Was this how his papa felt for so long? Surrounded by family, yet alone?

Bas excused himself and left the tent, wandering back toward the woods. As he walked without purpose, his skin buzzed. Sebastian wanted to strip out of his shirt and let his wings unfurl. Wanted to soar among the clouds and just fly with no destination in mind. He chalked it up to the full moon. It called to him more than it ever had. A cool breeze ruffled his hair almost as if it were whispering to him. Sebastian stopped and turned his gaze upward. As he stared at the bright orb, he sent out a silent request.

Wherever she is, please keep her safe.

Chapter 3

“Order up,” Kendrickcalled from the kitchen window loud enough to be heard over the jukebox. Even with shifter hearing, the noise level made it hard to hear yourself think. The Depot served basic bar fare, but Kendrick’s wings were the best around. Unlike restaurants that served multiple flavors, Kendrick made one that was both spicy and sweet. Dakota didn’t know what he put in the sauce to make them so delicious, and he wouldn’t divulge his secret.

Jolee slapped a ticket on the bar before grabbing the basket off the window ledge and taking it to table three. Dakota’s friend was in a mood with Wendy, the other waitress, running late, and the best way for Dakota to help her was to fill the drink orders quickly. Vernon didn’t have an electronic ordering system for his employees. They had to do things the old-fashioned way, and that was using paper tickets. Dakota slid the ticket off the bar and filled the three different types of beer for table five. One thing Vernon did well was offer a variety of ales, lagers, porters, stouts, ciders, and sometimes sours. Those were Dakota’s favorite. After placing the filled glasses on the end of the bar for Jolee to pick up, Dakota stabbed the form onto the silver-plated receipt holder. Vernon would retrieve all the tickets at the end of the night to balance against the receipts. He didn’t mind a free drink being offered here and there, but he kept a tight rein on inventory. It was a headache Dakota didn’t want, thus turning down his offer to make her manager.

Instead of asking aloud, Dakota pointed to the empty in front of Tate with an arched brow. He nodded, and she swapped his glass for a frosty one out of the freezer. Dakota was a pro at juggling the various tasks required to keep the bar cleaned and stocked while ensuring the drink orders were handed out in a timely fashion. She was thankful nobody wanted fancy cocktails requiring three or four different ingredients. Whiskey and soda was easy. Vodka and cranberry was easy. And unless the keg had just been tapped, pulling a beer without too much head was a breeze. After placing Tate’s dirty glass in the washer, she flipped the switch, then double-checked all the other glasses and bottles in front of the various patrons seated at the bar. She knew each one of them. Had gone to school with some of them. Was friends with most of them. It wasn’t unusual for mated couples to spend date nights on Dakota’s bar stools.

Sunlight filled the room when the front door opened. Every head turned to see who entered, and Dakota sighed in relief as Wendy rushed in. She tossed her purse to Dakota, then made a beeline for Jolee to figure out where to start. Dakota placed the purse in the cubby under the counter for safekeeping. Dakota didn’t bother bringing a bag to work. Everything she needed fit in the pockets of her jeans. Now that help was there for Jolee, it meant tickets would arrive faster. Dakota didn’t mind, though. She’d been working alone long enough to keep up with the heaviest of rushes.

Dakota was pulling a stout when the door opened again. She didn’t have to look to know who had entered. The energy shifted, talking ceased for the few seconds it took for everyone to acknowledge their Alpha, and then everything went back to as it had been. Dakota opened the freezer for another frosty glass and poured King’s favorite. She placed a fresh stout in front of Sloane and the IPA next to him at the spot he had saved for King. Not only were the two males best friends, but Sloane was King’s second.

“Thanks, Kody.” King took a long pull off the hoppy ale, his eyes on her the whole time. She waited for his usual comment about her looking good, but it never came. Maybe their argument last week after the pack run had been effective.

Dakota inclined her head before walking over to the kitchen window. Kendrick slid a basket filled with wings onto the ledge, and she took them to her Alpha, providing him with a stack of napkins. Dakota usually ignored the male when he and Sloane were chatting, but their conversation caught her attention.

“Dad got a call from an old friend. Apparently, trouble’s brewing, and everyone’s on high alert.”

“What kind of trouble?” Sloane asked.

King picked up a wing and gnawed the meat from the bone before answering. “The kind that could expose us all.” If there were humans in the bar, King would know. It was rare since all members of their community were shifters, but occasionally, humans from the next town over happened up The Depot. Since there weren’t any present, he wasn’t bothering to keep his voice down, so Dakota didn’t pretend she wasn’t trying to listen over the loud music. She continued to fill orders while King told Sloane about the phone call. “Apparently, some type of seer had a vision regarding three dead wolf shifters, which led him to Knox’s territory. One of Knox’s pack had been killed, and when the medical examiner had the female on the examination table, he noticed her strange physiology and called someone at the GIA. Long story short, with the help of this seer and his friends, the pack got the female back and destroyed all evidence, but the agent was already aware something wasn’t normal about the victim.” King ate a few more wings and finished his beer. Dakota replaced the empty with a full glass and disposed of the used napkins. Kendrick’s wings were delicious, but they were messy as fuck.

Sloane tapped his index finger on his glass as he waited on King to divulge more information. When he didn’t, Sloane huffed. “That’s it?”

“No.” King downed half his beer, wiped his mouth on the back of his hand, but before he could say any more, Tinsley sidled up behind them. She made it known to anyone who would listen that she wanted to be Alpha Mate.

“Hi, Alpha.” Tinsley was a beta, which meant she was stronger than most females. Not Dakota. Dakota could kick her ass ten ways to Sunday.

“Tinsley,” King acknowledged without looking at her.

When she didn’t take the hint, Sloane turned on his stool. “We’re in the middle of a conversation, so you’ll need to head on back to your booth.”

Tinsley scowled at Sloane, but she wasn’t foolish enough to argue. After she stomped away, King leaned closer to his second. Whatever he said to Sloane was too low for Dakota to catch. She moved down the bar to fill orders for Jolee and Wendy as well as those sitting in front of her. Dakota carried on with her shift, washing glasses, then placing them in the cooler so they could chill, restocking longnecks, wiping spills, and cashing out tabs. In between, she sipped her reusable tumbler filled with ice water. She only drank on the job if someone bought her a shot, but those were few and far between. The patrons would rather have their own drinks filled timely than have her waste even a few seconds to down a shot.

“Kody,” King called. Dakota held up a finger to let him know she’d heard while she counted change for Wendy’s ticket. Once she’d handed the money over, she strode the few steps to where he waited. As Alpha, Kingston didn’t pay, but he did tip. His hand was covering several bills, but she didn’t reach for them. She wouldn’t risk him grabbing her hand. King crooked his finger for her to lean over. Dakota refrained from rolling her eyes, but just barely. She placed her hands on the edge of the counter and leaned forward.

King’s eyes darted to the edge of her tank top and back up. “If you were my Alpha Mate, I would have had this discussion with you instead of Sloane.” He slid the cash across the bar but didn’t remove his hand.

Dakota kept her expression bored, not taking the bait. “Yeah, well, I’ll find out about it at the pack meeting like everyone else. Have a good night, Alpha.” Dakota turned her back on his growl. Several heads turned to see why their Alpha was miffed, but most everyone knew the reason. Their song and dance was well-known throughout the pack.

Jolee appeared at the end of the bar with a ticket to cash out. “One of these days, you’re going to push him too far.”

Dakota rang up the ticket, slid the credit card through the reader, then handed it back to her friend. “Or maybe he’ll push me too far, and I’ll leave.”

Jolee rolled her eyes as she took the receipt. “You’re like the boy who cried wolf.” Jolee snickered at herself, and Dakota smirked at her silliness, glad to see she was in a better mood. Instead of a rebuttal, Dakota yelled out, “Last call.” That shut her friend up. Everyone knew what time the bar closed, and they also knew as soon as the clock struck one a.m. the doors would be locked. They had twenty minutes to place their last drink order and either finish it or leave it when Malone, their bouncer, said it was time to go. Since Dakota knew who the usual suspects were, she began filling glasses and placing them at the pickup stand for the waitresses. As she was pulling a lager, she glanced at the mirror in the corner long enough to watch King fold her tip and place it beneath his empty glass. She averted her eyes at the last second. It wouldn’t do for him to catch her watching. She didn’t want to give him the wrong impression.

Twenty minutes later, the last patron walked past Malone. He shut and locked the door behind them before pulling the neon sign’s chain, turning it dark. Closing was a synchronized event. Kendrick stopped serving food half an hour earlier, so he had the kitchen closed down. He moved to the dining room and began stacking chairs as soon as Jolee and Wendy had the tables cleared. The two waitresses huddled empty glasses on the bar, and Dakota placed them in the washer. Thankfully, it was a sizeable one, and she only had to run two loads, which took less than ten minutes. She covered the unused fruit and placed it in the cooler, then proceeded to clean and restock so the dayshift bartender didn’t have to. Vernon came out of his office and closed out the cash register. Their tips went into a shared pot and were evenly distributed at the end of the shift.

---