Page 19 of Lost and Pound

“Eleven thousand.” Godfrey stared me down, and I nodded. “But I would prefer an alliance.”

“More than reasonable. It’s my understanding that Horace charges sixty thousand for an omega to leave his pack.” I gestured toward Horace, who paled and had Ares sitting up straight. “I have a family here from your pack. Twenty each for a beta couple and sixty for their child, and you graciously allowed them to leave if I guaranteed it.”

Ares uncrossed his legs and planted his feet on the ground in a gesture of interest. “Really? How much have they paid off of it?”

Horace set his jaw but didn’t answer as Godfrey turned his attention to him, feigning interest. He had to have known.

“That’s far beyond what’s allowed for adults unless there’s debt owed on property… And children typically don’t incur fees when they’re leaving… It’s not illegal but highly frowned upon. Answer the question.” Ares tensed his hand on the chain and waited for an explanation.

“I—It’s expensive to run a pack, and members leaving costs us—omegas are rare and—” Horace stuttered as Ares tightened the chain over his knuckles.

“How much have they paid?” Ares’s voice went sharp.

He stammered, unsure of who paid what, but I knew. “Thirty-eight thousand, or a little more, last I checked.”

“And how much did you pay Godfrey for Nico?” Ares took a deep breath and settled himself, the ice in his eyes as arctic as his spirit.

“Nothing. We had an alliance. His firstborn alpha son to my Nico. There are certain business ventures we wished to unite on, but blood doesn’t appear to have won out. It’s a shame.” Godfrey sighed and sagged in his chair. “You own a shipping company. We own significant amounts of land with oil and coal. We could work something out, though.”

I nodded sagely. Oil money was good, but I didn’t have drivers that were hazmat endorsed. “I’ll need some time to get my drivers certified, but I can certainly work closely with your pack. Any idea what that would look like?”

I turned my attention away from an increasingly frustrated Horace. The male had lost from all angles and would leave in council custody unless he was able to make some pretty damn good excuses and accommodations.

“Well, we currently contract with a bear sloth… Sometimes iguanas…” He sighed heavily. “The latter has a problem withlot lizards.”

Wasn’t sure what the last part was, but I nodded. “Well, we may not be the cheapest—we pay our employees very well. Burnout is low and turnover is near zero.”

“We can negotiate at a different time. Now is the time to see that my son is where he needs to be.” Godfrey sat up as the door to my office opened without a knock, one of our women in the way with four stacked paper boxes full of tacos.

I waved to her politely as she dropped off a few bottles of beer with it and left just as quickly. Ares, to no surprise, dug in, while Horace stared at the fare in moderate disgust. Godfrey took a box, sniffed, and decided it was good enough—that or he thought it was rude not to eat.

“So. You’re a very small pack,” Godfrey said between bites, brushing his fingers off on a paper towel stuffed in the box’s side.

“We are. I’m not much for power. We have small resources, but I value strength in happiness.” I didn’t see any reason not to, since Ares and Godfrey were eating, so I ate, too.

“I can tell. And your home—you do not have any other omegas or females?” Godfrey gave me a hard look.

“Not at all. I’m more the sentimental type. I’m not looking to expand, just to thrive. My people can do the expanding.” I took another bite—chicken. Yum.

Godfrey frowned. “How bad off is this pack, financially?

“Well, if he’s not lying on his council taxes—they’re doing about the same as Silvermoon. They’re flush,” Ares said through a mouthful of taco. “And all their pack members are flush, too. Nobody’s in poverty. Not a single member is on government benefits.”

Godfrey sat up, brows raised. “Really?”

“Don’t want the government in pack business,” I said succinctly. While the general public at large didn’t have any idea about shifters—the government had their hands everywhere.

Grunting in approval, Godfrey nodded and took another bite, finishing a taco with a prim brush of his fingers. “That settles that, then. Happy pack. Happy pup. Good resources. Delicious food. Ares, you said they’re honest people, yes?”

Ares nodded, more preoccupied with his taco box. “Yeah. Only pack that’s never had a violation in a generation. Always pay taxes on time, happy members. I only think two members left in the last twenty years…”

“One of them came back. Brought his mate,” I reminded Ares, and he nodded happily. “But it helps that I don’t charge to join or leave the pack. They just have to ask my approval for the release. Everyone knows it.”

“Never expelled a pack member, either,” Ares added.

“Oh, not since my grandfather’s days when he got rid of this old drunk who kept hitting his wife and kids.” I waved my hand dismissively. “We don’t put up with that.”

“And the kids look safe and happy.” Godfrey’s eyes wandered off toward the direction of the communal cafeteria.

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