Another voice chimed in. “I can’t believe he bought the mutt for you.”
“Maybe he’s losing his mind. I don’t really care. As long as my trust is intact, I don’t need him. The house is a base, that’s all it is anymore.”
Malin’s voice dripped with scorn.
I hurried to the landing but my footfalls must have been louder than I intended. Malin suddenly shot out of his room and strode toward me.
“Were you fucking eavesdropping on me, mutt?”
I grabbed the banister and turned away from him. “I was just going downstairs.” I kept my voice low and even.
“Yeah, right. You were spying on me. You don't even know the trouble you're in, do you?”
I'd dealt with bullies before. But I was out of my element. This was Tane's house. This was dragon country. “I’m in trouble?”
“I'll tell my dad you're sneaking around. He's not going to keep you, you know. You're just a mistake. He has these little emotional episodes sometimes and does irrational stuff. That's what you are. Irrational stuff.”
Bullies were themselves irrational. They made-up facts in their minds to back up their behaviors. They made light of serious situations and always spoke as if they were the better man.
Boarding school. It was a good teacher both academically and socially. The wolves saw me as a princeling, but after a while I was just another boy at the schools. I’d seen it all.
“If you think I'm doing something wrong you certainly should tell your father,” I said.
“Are you trying to tell me what to do? Stupid mutt.”
“I would never do that.” Remain calm, I told myself. It drove them crazy, the bullies, the assholes. If I let myself become angry or argue they would laugh. They would amplify the situation. It would get out of hand for me, not them, because they always saw themselves as being in charge.
All Malin could do was mimic back my words. “I would never do that. Wanna know a secret? I know everything about you. I looked you up. You’re some sort of royalty or so you think.You're used to telling people what to do. You probably did it all your life. You're a sneak and probably a thief or worse. Just because my dad can't see it doesn't mean it isn't true.”
“Okay then. That's fine that you think you know all that.”
“Think? Are you calling me a liar?”
“Never.” Stay calm.
“Well, I'm calling you one. And you can bet my dad will hear about all of it.”
“Yes, okay.”
I turned away from him and took two steps down before he rushed toward the landing. His lips formed a snarl. He was fast, alpha strong.
I quickened my pace, almost stumbling when I got to the bottom of the stairs and realized only then that he hadn't actually chased me. He stood at the top of the incline, a rigid smile on his face. As he turned away from me, he spoke.
“You better run, mutt.”
I lifted my head and slowly, calmly walked past the big living room and toward the dining room. But inside, I was anything but calm. My heart raced. I could only take shallow breaths.
Tane was already in the dining room when I arrived. He had a Scotch in one hand. He raised the glass.
“Kirion. Right on time. How's the hand?”
I looked down, forgetting for a moment that my right hand was completely bandaged. “It's fine. I barely feel it.”
“You look a little flushed. Are you sure you're not running a fever?”
“I don't feel sick.” That was a partial lie. My encounter with Malin made me feel sick, but what could I say about that?
“Good. We'll check the hand later and make sure there's no infection starting.”
