Page 35 of War Games (Jacky Leon #11)

“ I will make a quick recommendation that future meetings do not need every member of the Tribunal. The moon cursed will handle the moon cursed,” Hasan said quickly as Subira continued to laugh. The others nodded, but Hasan didn’t wait for approval. I watched him come down, passing Heath’s stack of clothing, then come directly to me.

“We’re not having this argument right now,” I growled.

“We’re not having any argument. It will be forever known that Heath Everson, member of the Tribunal, was yelled at by his recovering fiancé, who is also my daughter,” Hasan said quickly, waving a finger at me to follow him up the stairs as he practically tried to run from the room. “Let’s not give the rest of the world any more comedy from our families today. Give him and his son a minute to get him Changed, and we’ll have the family discussions in your territory.”

I almost said no, but when he turned to fully look at me, already closer to Subira than me, an image flashed in my head.

It was odd to reconcile this powerful man with the broken body I had seen in Subira’s memory. A broad chest that had seemed caved in. A trim abdomen that had been unable to hold all the parts in. His perfectly attractive face that once had a mangled, broken jaw.

How he’d been put back together was beyond me. How he survived the toll of it, I would never understand.

He didn’t smell or look angry. He didn’t seem surprised by the events of the day. He didn’t show any indication that he was getting his proverbial teeth pulled to have to do this.

“Okay,” I said, starting back up the stairs.

Heath and Landon didn’t take the time Hasan provided for him. Before Subira could close the door, Heath was limping up the stairs in wolf form, Landon carrying all of his clothing.

“Hey, we still got that witch around here?” Landon asked loudly.

Hasan didn’t seem surprised hearing that, which confused me more. Olivia approached, meek and scared of the large man who was suddenly with us.

“Hello,” Hasan greeted, studying her, a little wary of the timid woman.

“She’s good,” Subira said, patting Hasan’s arm, and he relaxed. “Here, sweetheart. A bit of power to put that one right again.” She pricked her own hand with a nail before holding it out to Olivia.

I stopped watching that and started watching Hasan. There were a dozen werewolves around, and Heath was injured, so there were some getting on edge between that and Hasan’s presence. Niko was pushing through them as they all backed away slowly.

“Father,” Niko greeted, smiling. “How are you?”

They exchanged a hug with all the masculine back-patting involved.

“Good. It’s been an interesting couple of days, sending those two in circles over what was going on,” he said, chuckling afterward.

“Can you explain that?” I asked, frowning.

“You were hurt, which meant all bets were off,” Hasan answered, smiling with gold eyes. “You deserve the full story, though. All of you do. They told me they were going to act, not specifically saying Heath’s name, but also not needing to. They promised you wouldn’t get hurt. My hands were tied because they needed to handle the packs, and Heath was an active problem. To stop them would have been undermining their entire position on the Tribunal and putting all of us at risk of being disorganized with witches running around trying to control us.”

“He warned me of this as well. He wasn’t trying to keep it a secret. He shouldn’t have told me, truthfully,” Subira said, holding a small tissue to her palm now.

“Okay…” I waited for more as Hasan adjusted his sleeves, rolling them up to his elbows.

“I didn’t tell them you were hurt because it pissed me off. I went to Alvina for information.”

“This I knew,” I said.

“Good. Heath reached out to me because I could make a meeting with the Tribunal. I got him to tell me the why of it so I wasn’t in the dark. I intentionally didn’t speak to Callahan and Corissa about why the meeting was going to be called, asking others to pass it along without the full information. It was my petty way of throwing them off guard for Heath’s challenge. It was technically interfering…”

“But I got hurt.”

“But you got hurt,” he repeated, nodding. “And I knew with Heath, if he won, there would be no such worry about you getting hurt again. It was in my best interest for him to win.”

“That’s absolutely interfering,” Landon said, chuckling. We were still waiting as Olivia tended Heath and for him to Change.

“Oh, well. Everson, will you report me?” Hasan asked, turning to Heath, who was letting Olivia set his leg and focus on the healing spell she was trying to use to heal it.

Heath shook his head.

“Though it was interesting to hear that Callahan had intended to step down,” Hasan said, crossing his arms.

“Oh, please explain,” Subira said, leaning on her mate like he was a wall.

“If Heath had gotten through Oberon’s Test, that stupid fae poison Jacky ended up drinking, then Callahan intended to step down for him. Learning that Callahan never wanted to be on the Tribunal for the sake of the power was… less unexpected. He’s always been the weaker of the two politically. Corissa is the powerhouse on the Tribunal out of the two. I don’t know how I never saw it, though.”

“I could perhaps explain that further,” Teagan spoke up softly. He was the oldest wolf, having been in Corissa’s pack at some point. Everyone looked at him, including me, hoping for him to do just that. Explain.

“It’s rather obvious,” Teagan began. “They came from a time when someone like Corissa would have been seen as reaching beyond her place. Pretend to be the good wife, pretend to let the husband be in charge. He loves her for everything she’s ever been, so he let the charade happen to protect her from anyone who would consider killing her and putting a puppet female in place instead. He defended his spot on the Tribunal to defend her on the Tribunal. He was an Alpha in his own right, so he couldn’t actually be her second, but he acted in that way for her, all to stop any potential werewolves who come from different times from trying to get rid of a woman that would offend their delicate sensibilities about a woman’s place.”

“And it would be more of an issue among werewolves than it would be for werecats, where I have never been challenged in my place because we’re too isolated and distant. Even if some werecats may have the problem, we’re isolated and out of each other’s ways often enough. We don’t rely on a rank structure or anything. Versus a werewolf who would have to take orders from a woman they hate.” Subira hummed, nodding. “And how does that mean letting Heath take the position by Callahan stepping down?”

Landon cleared his throat.

“I can put together the rest of their plan. Pa and I will get it out of them, but I bet I’m right. If Callahan had stepped down, Pa wouldn’t have pushed Corissa to bow her head. MY father doesn’t have the inclination to challenge a woman like that, which is what Callahan must have wanted to stop all these years. Or, obviously, killing her and finding a weaker female Alpha to put there to be forced to listen. Avoid the fight, avoid losing a mate, and avoid losing Corissa’s position for all werewolves as the most dominant Alpha. Also, unity over division.” Landon shrugged. “This was a series of war games, shoring up the power in the right places, making sure their positions were correct and stable. Just like a pack before a hunt, anyone having issues might bicker and fight for the right spot in the run, and once everyone feels right, we can run together without problems.”

Heath was Changing now, clearly healed enough by Olivia to feel comfortable going through it. I was just listening to everyone on the outside. I had gone through my own battles and had my own thoughts and experiences over the last few days. Ones that made me keep looking at Subira and Hasan together, looking at ease among the werewolves. Such a radical change from Hasan only a few months ago.

With Heath Changing, we were silent, waiting on him. When he was finished, we let him get dressed.

“I’ll get to all of that later,” he said, buttoning up his blazer. “First…”

My heart skipped a beat as he walked to me, grabbed me, and kissed me in front of everyone. I wrapped my arms around him, letting him spin me.

I was home.

“You want to marry me, huh?” he whispered as he put me down.

“I was thinking late spring or early summer,” I said, smiling.

“I like that,” he agreed, kissing me again.

“I’m going to pay for this wedding,” Hasan whispered. I looked around Heath for a second to see he was whispering to Subira.

“I’m glad you know your place,” Subira replied, smiling. “Even if you don’t want to.”

“I want to pay for this wedding,” Hasan said, his eyes on his mate.

“Really?” I asked.

Hasan looked at me, straightening up.

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because…” Hasan trailed off. “Because he makes you happy,” Hasan finished, looking as if he wanted to say more, but that was the only thing he had.

I couldn’t smell a lie.

“We’ll need to talk about this,” I said, not sure I trusted it yet, this Hasan who accepted Heath.

“We can, certainly, but the man I saw this week, today in the Tribunal… I can’t deny that he loves my daughter, and it’s foolish to keep trying to stop this.” Hasan wrapped an arm around Subira.

“You know, I bet Callahan and Corissa considered that, too,” Subira said, leaning into Hasan. “Allow Heath to step into a Tribunal spot, married to our daughter… Suddenly, the rulers of each of the moon cursed tangled into a single family, and it’s accepted by both sides. We’ll rule both together, in whatever balance we find.”

“Well, we already were bound by a marriage in one way,” I pointed out, looking at Landon, who was now with Dirk.

“I’ll talk to Callahan and Corissa about it once he’s recovered enough to speak. I’m going to need them for a lot in the coming days. She’s the Alpha of the Tribunal pack, and I need to meet all of those werewolves. Beyond that, I only challenged Callahan for the Tribunal position. I need to see if he’ll be willing to keep the LA pack and a figurehead position on the NAWC.”

“Pa, you won all of them,” Landon said. “Taking all three only makes you more powerful.”

“And leave me with less time. I also got something better. By showing mercy to Corissa, I took her position as the most dominant werewolf. I can leave her and Callahan with projects, like his pack being the public face. It will stop the frustrating balance of the Tribunal members being too known to the public. That’s not a dance I want to do if I don’t have to.”

“The world can think you are the quiet, semi-retired Alpha you are right now,” I said, realizing the genius of that but quickly backing away from it. “But can you trust him? Either of them?”

“I think I can, but we’ll play it by ear,” Heath said, kissing my cheek. “Where’s Carey?”

“Inside, playing video games with Arlo and Benjamin,” Teagan answered.

Heath let me go and went to find his daughter, who shrieked in excitement to see him. She would have known he was out here, but I had seen her dip out while he was being healed, unable to look at him torn up by Callahan. Hasan and Subira went to have a conversation privately by the trees; no one, not even Niko and me, could hear it. Heath didn’t come back to me, having to check on his werewolves and explain changes that might happen. Niko helped Dirk and Landon haul my entire bed—frame, mattress, and everything else—out of the house.

“Where am I going to sleep?” I demanded.

“We’ll figure it out,” Heath said loudly, chucking out the pillows that had specks of blood on them.

“Wow.”

“Jacky,” Hasan said softly. I turned quickly, not realizing he had snuck up on me. I was watching so much happening that I hadn’t been paying attention to my magic. His eyes looked sadder than they had when he went to talk to Subira.

“Yeah?”

“I’m so sorry,” he whispered, no longer with gold eyes, but human. “I know we might not be able to repair everything, but I want you to know that I am going to do my best to. If I can’t, I won’t force it, either.”

“Did she tell you about what happened when I was young?” I asked, hugging myself as I looked away from him.

“She said that if you wanted to tell me, you can now, and I know the warning when I hear it. I won’t pry.” Hasan sighed. “She did tell me what you saw from her memories.”

“You were there, so that’s fair,” I said, swallowing. “It was your life, too.”

“Any questions?”

I searched his face, seeing pain and vulnerability. This was a man who did not share everything, nor was it easy for him when he did. I understood the mystery of him and Subira better now.

They had lived through nightmares they didn’t want to hurt their family by sharing.

“Just one,” I admitted, knowing I couldn’t ask everything, not right now. “Are you okay?”

“Are you?” he asked in return.

“I’m doing better now.”

“Me, too.”

Not broken, that was what Subira had yelled at me. The family wasn’t broken, and she wouldn’t let it break. It had been battered and bruised. It was still healing, but I knew too much now to look at Hasan and think he was just an asshole. He knew too much about me to think I was just being petulant and disobedient.

“Want to walk with me?” I asked him. He nodded and followed me as I went toward the trees. Niko and Subira were hanging out on the porch and waved as we passed them. Hasan and I didn’t talk on the walk, but it felt good, a reminder of our earliest days when we would walk around his island together.

When we got back over an hour later, Corissa was there with two of her own werewolves. I had felt the arrival of the three unrecognized werewolves, but their location hadn’t made me fret. Subira and Niko being at the house saved the werewolves from needing to fight if one had broken out.

“Are you waiting on Heath?” Hasan asked Corissa as we passed by her.

“We already spoke for a moment. He told me the theory you all had about Callahan and my plan,” she said, not looking directly at Hasan.

“Oh?” Hasan’s tone reminded me of an older brother. “And?”

“You all were right… except we had been considering Heath to be Callahan’s successor for years now. A stable man, family-oriented, willing to take on larger opponents…” She finally looked at Hasan. “But then he decided to step down from Dallas.”

“Oh, a pity,” Hasan said, chuckling.

“You accused us of sending him to seduce your daughter. What’s stopping me from accusing you of sending her?” Corissa asked, and that made me raise an eyebrow.

“It pisses them off when you start saying that, trust me." Hasan made a face, one that seemed a bit silly with an eyeroll. "Considering Heath is the winner here, maybe you shouldn’t start that line of discussion?—”

“Do you two ever turn it off?” I asked them, wondering why Corissa was even still there. “And can I help you? Do you still need something?”

“She’s waiting on me,” Teagan called out, leaving the house. “Heath wants me to review how her operations in the Tribunal work.” Teagan made a gesture for Corissa to go back into the Tribunal. “Sorry about that,” he whispered to me before following Corissa and her two werewolves inside.

I watched the chaos continue to unfold. New arrangements were being made. The packhouse construction was going to be sped up. Hasan eventually left with Subira. Niko went home just to get some peace. Landon and Dirk left, taking Carey to give me some time in my house by myself and to enjoy an evening with Heath, who I was waiting for.

I was patiently waiting, not wondering how I could waste my time or anything. Just waiting.

It was dark when Heath fell onto the couch beside me, where we were relegated until the bed was replaced, which would take a couple of days.

“Welcome back,” I whispered, leaning my head on him. “Busy day taking over the world?”

“Busy day trying to make sure every werewolf on the planet knows that I will always choose you,” he said, kissing me. “Do you want to train with me tomorrow? I think I want to establish combined werewolf and werecat forces who could work well together. We can do it together. Hasan shrugged when I mentioned it to him, so I think that's okay if I can find the werecats…”

“Yeah. I think I can help with that. Find the werecats, at least.” I smiled. “Can I be on one of these teams or whatever you want to call them?”

“Only if you’re on mine,” he whispered in my ear.

“Obviously. I’m tired of not having you through everything. I think we need to stop letting it happen. Germany, Alaska, investigating the witches, my nightmares.”

“Agreed,” he said, pulling me in for a long kiss.