The metal railing is cold under my hands as I lean against it. In the distance cars speed along FDR Drive, their head and taillights stretching into streaks of color. Manhattan looks kind of small from here, but I know it isn’t. There are over a million people on that island. How many of them are wolves? And how many more wolves are out there—in our pack, the packs at our borders, and beyond? How many rogues?
The moon is a big ball of cheese above me. I wonder if the gods are sitting in their palace looking down on me too. For some reason they’ve seen fit to gift me this power, this connection to all of wolfkind. And for what? So I can be responsible for even more wolves. But how can I do that when I don’t feel up to leading a single pack? And how do I start when my powers feel like more of a burden than anything else, a persistent migraine. Unwieldy, uncontrollable, unbearable.
With a heavy sigh I let my head drop. There are too many thoughts and too many doubts. Even without the noise my head aches.
All I want is to spend time with Jasper and figure out who we are when we’re together. None of the rest of it matters. Not when it’s this hard.
“It’s a beautiful night,” a smooth, male-sounding voice says. I spin to find Walter Bridgers standing a foot away. “Don’t you think?”
“Uh, yeah. I guess.”
“You don’t seem particularly joyful.”
Without asking if I’m in the mood for company Walter steps to my side, placing one calm hand on the railing.
“It’s a nice night,” I concede, wishing he’d leave me alone.
“It’s funny. For someone of your…stature, I would have thought all this would be a little more appealing.”
My stature? What the actual? “Excuse me?”
He shrugs and continues facing out to the water. “You’ve worked hard to get here, Maximilian. After everything you’ve done to reach these lofty heights, I expected you’d be a little more…grateful.”
What is this dude on?
“Thisiswhat you wanted, isn’t it?” He turns to face me, grinning like the devil. “Hmm?” He leans closer. “All of this. The parties, the connections. The alpha’s ear?”
I shake my damn head. “You don’t know anything about me.”
“I know you’re good at what you do.” He actually bumps his shoulders into mine, as if we’re old friends, as if we’re anywhere near being on the same page. “Somehow you’ve managed to claw your way from the soil and the sod into the alpha’s house. You’ve bent his ear. Turned his attention away from what really matters. Swayed him to all your modern, progressive ideals.”
My whole body is quivering—from anger or fear, I’m not sure. “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”
His smile drops, his face suddenly grave. “But I think I do, boy.”
“I need to go. If Jasper finds out you’re—”
Before I can step away his clawed hand grabs my upper arm in a viselike grip. I grunt but am powerless to extricate myself.
“Not so fast,” he says, a violent whisper. “I’ve been at the helm of this pack for a long time, boy. A long time. And I’ve dealt with more than my fair share of weeds like you. You sprout through the gaps in the concrete hoping to weasel your way to notoriety, to prove you’re somebody. But the truth is you’re nothing. You were born nothing and you will remain nothing.”
I tug harder, trying to free myself. “Get your hand off me.”
“You think you can do what you did to my son and get away with it?” he says, his fangs long and lashing. “I’ll stomp you out like I’ve stomped out every upstart who came before you. I’ll take everything you hold dear and destroy it.”
“If the alpha knew you were talking to me like this—”
“The alpha?” he says, almost laughing. “You think the alpha can save you. You have no idea where the real power lies.”
“Max?” Jasper’s voice is music to my ears. In a flash, Walter has released me and is smiling, acting cordially, as if nothing untoward had ever happened. Jasper steps toward us, confused but not the right level of worry considering what Walter just said. He mustn’t’ve caught much of our conversation. “Everything okay?”
“Wonderful,” Walter says with a flick of his hand. “A perfect evening. I was just acquainting myself with your astute young mate.” Jasper glances between us while I rub my arm. Walter has definitely left a bruise. “A wonderful addition to the pack’s royal family.”
“Thank you,” Jasper says curiously, as if he isn’t quite buying Walter’s act.Good.
“The two of you will have a bright, history-making future ahead of you, I’m sure.”
Why did that sound like a threat?
