Page 17 of Wolf Roulette

I swallowed. “I beg to differ. I just did.”

“This is where alpha females sit.”

Sascha’s mother was here, but she didn’t interfere.

“I’m a sigma female,” I replied. “Why do you think your rules mean anything to me?”

“A sigma in a pack has to obey pack rules.”

I covered another potato with gravy. Should have poured more on. “Where do your pack rules suggest a female sigma sit?”

“Wherever you can hold a position,” she answered, a slight sneer in her tone.

“I’m holding this one just fine.” I shoved the second potato in my mouth and selected some broccoli.Gross, but green stuff was supposedly good. Did copious amounts of gravy cancel that out?

I watched the other women. Around half of those between me and the door were eating after I did. The others seemed to be holding off in support of Miss Rules here.

The brunette leaned forward to meet my gaze. “I’m telling you that you can’t sit here.”

I held her gaze. “I’m telling you that these potatoes are really good, and I’m not waiting to eat them in whatever queue system your pack has going on. If you’d like me tonotsit here, then I suggest you attempt to move me.”

I felt a very slight pressure on my mind.

Huh,fancy that.

A strong wolf could force their way into the minds of a weaker wolf. Sascha had such power as pack leader, and I’d accidentally done it to Daniil to locate Wade.

What I felt now was a much weaker version of that.

My smile widened. “Are you trying to move me with your mind?”

Her eyes flashed and the pressure in my head mounted.

Feeling blindly, I located another potato on my plate and brought it to my mouth without breaking our stare. A bead of sweat broke out on the woman’s forehead.

“How long does this go for?” I asked after swallowing.

Sascha’s mother answered. “Until one of you backs down.”

Oh, brother.“For the record, I just wanted to eat potatoes and gravy.”

Can I get a hand?I asked my slumbering wolf.

She yawned.What?

It’s a status battle thing. Thought you might like to partake.

Booker was awake in an instant. Establishing hierarchy ranked just below eating hearts.

We’d only used this mental attack thing in the midst of a fight before, so I followed Booker’s lead to locate the power deep in our chest. It usually sat there unnoticed, but from the mind battle with Daniil, I knew this energy could drain away.

That must be why the woman was slowly ramping up her attack. She didn’t want to overcommit.

Let’s just use a little bit of what we used on Daniil.

Got it,my wolf said gleefully.

I felt the energy rising through my chest and throat. It built in my mind, and I felt the rushing moment Booker unleashed it on the woman.

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