Page 112 of Big Bad Bully
Not Chip and Dale but some other thugs. My father is a bully, but he’s also a coward, and he’s incapable of fighting his battles alone.
When he appears, he keeps his enforcers close. There are six of them I can see and more in the woods out of sight.
“Son?” he asks warily. “What are you doing here?” He sniffs the air, and his eyes light a little, probably because he can’t scent Aubrey on me. “Are you here to atone?”
“For what?” I scoff.
“For defending a human.”
I suppress a growl. I can’t lose control now, it’ll ruin my and my sister’s plan. But I want to hurt him for spitting the word human like a curse. Soon. “Why would I need to atone for that?” I bait him.
My father’s lip curls. “Look at him,” he says to his enforcers. “My son, the human lover. You know, I raised you right. A real son of mine would never consort with a weaker species–”
“Enough.”
He bares his teeth at me, realizing I just gave him an order. As an alpha, he should be able to resist me. But he can’t.
Because I’m stronger.
It’s time I prove to him that I’m not his son any more. I reject him and his toxic worldview, once and for all.
A cold wind blows through me, bringing me to that empty place where I feel nothing. I know what needs to be done, and I’m ready. “Call the pack. All of them. There’s something they need to see.”
His face grows red as he tries to resist the alpha command in my voice. Then he barks the orders to his enforcers. “Call everyone.” He stomps his feet, wanting to make the decision seem like his idea. But we both know what happened: I gave him an order, and he had to obey.
The pack gathers quickly. They’re used to being called to this spot to hear my father’s rants.
“I’m here to pass judgement on William White the Second. My father. You are no longer fit to be alpha.”
My father rocks back on his heels. “What?”
“You heard me. You need to answer for your crimes.”
“My crimes?” My father’s teeth are sharpening and growing too large for his face. His wolf is taking over in his rage. “What about yours? Consorting with a human. I saw you.” He points at me and turns to the pack to accuse me of my so-called crimes. “He picked her up in a limo. She was in a dress, and he was in a tux. He was courting her.” My father spits this like it’s the worst crime imaginable.
My wolf is on high alert. He saw me with Aubrey. The night of the gala, he must have been following me. He’s known I was with Aubrey for longer than I thought. If I missed that, what else did I miss? Something niggles in the back of my mind, a premonition of what’s to come.
“My own flesh and blood,” he rants. “And now he thinks he’ll challenge me? Take over my pack?”
“No,” I interrupt his raving. I need to get us back on track. “This isn’t about me. I have no intention of leading this pack. I’m just here to stop you, once and for all.”
“You want to fight? Prove that you’re stronger? That human has made you weak.”
I almost laugh in his face. Aubrey makes me stronger. I need to be the best version of myself just to deserve to breathe her air. “We’ll see just how weak I am.” I shrug off my jacket and toss it to the ground. We’ll fight as wolves.
My father won’t win.
And he knows it. So does the pack. Everyone’s watching closely, the mated pairs, the greybacks, the enforcers. Mothers hold their pups close, shushing them when they’d make a fuss. There’s an energy in the air. Change is coming.
My father stops ranting and turns to me. His voice turns whiny. He’s trying a different tack. “I tried, you know, son,” he says. “I tried to take care of the problem for you. I thought if the human was gone, you would see reason, but–”
“What are you talking about?” Goosebumps break out on my arms. “What did you do?”
“I did what needed to be done! I did what you’d do if vermin overran your home. I hired an exterminator to take her out!”
The world goes black for a moment. When I come to, I’ve crossed the clearing and am holding my father by the throat. Everyone’s shouting, but all I can see are the whites of my father’s eyes. If I just squeeze a little harder–
“Billy,” my sister’s voice is calling. “Billy! Stop,” her voice takes on a tinge of alpha power. The command rolls down my arms, making them weaker.
