Page 1 of Claimed for Eternity

Chapter One

Xenos

My alpha always says one out of ten people are an asshole. I used to believe it was a joke but now I have evidence that such things even apply after souls take their journeys through the doors of life and death into the Other World. Unfortunately, most assholes don’t go straight onto their spirit trees or reincarnation. They like to stick around and call it moxie or unfinished business. Unlike animals, who mostly want to know why people ate them, where the door is, or wanted one last snack before they go, people want their way. The spirits of departed shifters, vampires, and the like want one last chance to enforce their will upon others.

“It’s not always like that,”my bear cut into my thoughts as we walked to Mori’s Mementos.

The storefront was one of the few our sleuth voted in favor of in the last few decades. It probably helped that one day, Sigmore, my son, would be their spiritual leader. He’d have my job as soon as I grew so frustrated with a spirit that I ‘atsilv ko’ed spontaneously into a burst of sparks.

My son was a morbid elf-wolf. His little shop, named after himself of course, sold relics of by gone eras. At least that’s what he claimed. Mostly, he sold items that once belonged to dead people. Mori also dabbled in tarot card readings, seances, and casting for money. It wasn’t the way I did things but everyone who sees dead people has to develop their own coping mechanisms. Besides, it was how he became such good friends with Othoni. Sometimes he went by Ni, pronounced like the body part for short, but only sometimes.

“Can we eat spirits?”my bear chimed back into my thoughts.

If we could, Finn would be my first choice to devour. He caused more trouble than he was worth while he was alive. He nearly stabbed me over a political dispute and then, my adopted son, Colton, got shot by his brother to protect him from a gun he brought into the sleuth in the first place.

Finn hadn’t even died in Nightshade Bear Territory. He died playing with an antique war cannon on Hemlock Mountain about ten years ago. Fortunately, his three sons were grown before his cavalier attitude toward things that went ‘BOOM’ offed him. Theodore (never Teddy), Evan, and Barley hadn’t seen their parents in years since the funeral. Somehow, despite the odds their mother and Finn’s true-mate, raised them with some common sense. They lived out where the uncle helped lead the Raven Hollow Wolf Pack now. So did their Mama. Only now their sire was here mucking around in Mori’s Mementos.

“Mate, leave it be. Finn can’t hurt anyone,”Barry chimed into my thoughts.

He was at the clinic double-checking his appointment schedule for the week. As the community expanded beyond the ring of trees, he had more and more house calls to perform. Even with the added help of new healers, sometimes it felt as if I’d have to drag him off by his pointy ears if I ever wanted him to myself for a weekend.

“Shoo!” Mori shouted from inside his shop.

I pushed open the glass door and the little bell chimed. The whole place smelled like incense and lemongrass. Maybe some lavender in there too somewhere. Mori didn’t use sage. He had his reasons and that was a bear I didn’t want to poke again. So, I left it be even if sage was easier to use. Whatever he did use worked most of the time.

“I’m not going anywhere. My house used to be right here! I’m telling you! My house was here!” Finn said, tossing his ethereal arms above his head. “I’m staying here. You can’t just take over someone’s house. Crystal’s gonna be home soon and the boys won’t be at school much longer either.”

“Great,”I thought at Barry over our mating link.“He’s lost his damn senses. I wish Frost would just keep him in the Pit already. Where are the pit hounds when you need them?”

“I don’t think Finn is dangerous,”he said again for the millionth time.

The shit thing was, Barry was right. Finn wasn’t dangerous anymore. He was just annoying now.

“You’re dead, Finn,” Othoni sighed. “Your house is in the Other World.”

“He’s a shaman,” Finn pointed at my son. “What are you?”

“Your worst nightmare!” Othoni said, opening his mouth in a hiss.

Ghost Finn flinched but stood his ground.

“I’m not afraid of a pussycat,” he growled back.

“You should be, Finn,” I said, finally cutting into the conversation. “He might not be that scary, but his parents are. His whole pard is, really. They’d have you treed faster than you could scratchy your ass.”

“Xenos,” Finn turned toward me his eyes lighting up. “Tell them to give me my house back. It’s my house! He keeps saying they voted to take my house away.”

I let out a long, slow breath. I despised Finn while he was alive. Now, I wasn’t so sure how I felt about him. He was still annoying, if a lot less dangerous. Only, I had a soft spot for confused spirits and that’s exactly who he was now.

“Finn, no one voted for your house to be taken away. Your house fell over the year after you died. Big ole storm came through and blew it over. Thankfully, no one was living there.We didn’t build it back because Crystal wasn’t coming home. You died, Finn. Playing with that cannon backfired on you. I’m sorry but your house isn’t here. Your house, if you have one now, is in the Other World.”

Finn rubbed his eyes and blinked at me as if he were a man waking up from a dream. This wasn’t the first time we’d had this conversation. He wasn’t moving on because he was waiting on Crystal. For all his flaws, he loved her. For the love of Juda, he probably loved her more now that he was dead, and all the living bullshit was stripped from him.

“I know, Finn,” I sighed. “It’s hard to remember you’re dead sometimes but you are. I’m very sorry about that. I’m sorry that your new toy blew you up. I’m sorry that your house isn’t here anymore but this store is here now. It’s my son’s store. I don’t think you ever met the twins, Mori and Preston. He’s the tall one – he’s mine. One half of my first-borns. You’ve got to stop harassing him. Your boys are out with the bird wolves still. No mates yet. Yes, Crystal is dating but you agreed that she should. You’ve got to stop this and go home, okay? Go watch her from your house.”

Finn nodded and waved goodbye before he faded away. I rubbed the bridge of my nose for a long time before looking up at the kids. Mori wasn’t a kid anymore but in someways he’d always be that little wolf playing around with nature in ways he shouldn’t and talking to dead people. I was almost positive that it was the same for Ni’s parents. Both of them were too young to have so much weight on their shoulders. Ni would inherit leadership of his pard, if his parents ever moved on.

“They have each other,”Barry said over our mating link, and I almost reminded him the boys weren’t dating but he already knew that. They were both omegas and spent most of their time together because who else would ever understand them.

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