Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 87502 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 438(@200wpm)___ 350(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87502 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 438(@200wpm)___ 350(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
“And you are?” Father MacKaity continued to probe.
“Oh, I’m Korwyn Jamison,” the stranger said. “But I usually go by Kor.”
He was wearing a hooded raincoat but now he threw back the hood, revealing a tousled head of golden-brown hair that was almost curly. He had large brown eyes, a firm jaw, and a straight nose.
I estimated that he couldn’t be more than twenty-five—twenty-seven on the outside. But was he really the son of Carter’s estranged brother?
The rest of the Pack seemed to have the same doubts.
“What is this bullshit?” Harris Murdoch demanded, swaggering up to the stranger—who was a whole head taller than him, I noted. “Who are you boy and how dare you stake a claim on the Pack leadership?” he growled.
The man’s face changed and suddenly I wondered if he might be closer to thirty. He drew himself up and stared down at Harris grimly.
“I never heard he was the Pack Leader,” he said. “But if he was and he left no other heirs then yes—I’ll take his place.”
“The hell you will!” Harris shouted, going red in the face. “I’m the next Pack Leader!”
Korwyn Jamison arched an eyebrow.
“Oh? So you were related to him?”
“Well, no,” Harris had to admit.
“Then he must have designated you as his heir,” Korwyn said.
“No, he didn’t, but that doesn’t matter!” Harris blustered.
“I’m afraid I don’t understand.” Korwyn smiled politely, though the smile didn’t reach his eyes. “If you’re not related in any way to the late Pack Leader and he didn’t designate you as his heir, then how are you going to take his place?”
“Through the Alpha Challenge, of course!” Harris snarled.
“Now, now, Harris—let’s all just take a breath, shall we?” Father MacKaity said soothingly. “We don’t even know if this stranger is telling the truth about being related to our late Pack Leader.”
“Oh, that’s not hard to prove,” Korwyn said easily. He slipped off his raincoat and began unbuttoning his shirt. A moment later he pulled it open, revealing a broad, muscular chest. And there—on his left pec, directly over his heart—was the Jamison family crest—the Mark that all males of the Jamison line are born with.
I traced it with my eyes—the dark lines on his tan skin—the wolf’s head howling at the crescent moon with a star just above it. Carter’s Mark had been on his back, but it didn’t really matter where the Mark showed up as long as you could see it.
There was a collective gasp as the entire funeral parlor saw the crest on Korwyn’s chest and then—after a shocked moment of silence—people all began talking at once.
“That doesn’t mean anything! It’s a lie—a fake!” Harris shouted angrily.
“Now, now, I think we all need to calm down,” Father MacKaity said.
“It can’t be, can it? Pack Leader Carter didn’t have any relatives, did he?” someone else murmured.
“I dunno—I think I heard he had a younger brother,” another voice answered. “A half-brother.”
“Look!” Korwyn’s voice rose above the babble, and all eyes turned to him. “I’ll prove my Mark is natural,” he said.
And, shedding his shirt and coat completely, he strode over to the casket.
As he neared Carter’s dead body, the mark over his heart began to glow. By the time he reached the casket and was standing directly beside the corpse, it looked as though the wolf’s head, and the moon and star had been outlined by golden fire.
“See?” Korwyn said, turning to face the room. “Blood calls to blood. Even in death, my uncle proclaims me his heir.”
There was a collective gasp and even Harris Murdoch was struck silent.
I knew why the Mark on the young man’s chest glowed—he was right, it was blood calling to blood. It’s one of the reasons that it is forbidden to embalm a Pack Leader. For his blood—no matter how decayed or degraded—is capable of showing the next in his line of succession.
In other words, his true heir.
It was Harris who broke the silence, of course.
“This can’t be!” he shouted. “We can’t let an untried boy take over the Pack Leadership!”
“I’m twenty-nine—hardly a boy,” Korwyn said, frowning slightly.
“Not even thirty yet!” Harris sneered. “And you think you can come in here—a stranger—and lead our Pack? I don’t think so.” He stalked over to glare up at Korwyn. “Maybe I’d better take you out back and teach you a lesson about respect, boy.”
“Now, now, Harris—let the Pack Elders have a moment to think on it,” Father MacKaity begged. “The Council of Wisdom will settle this, I’m sure.”
Indeed, the older men of the Pack were already murmuring amongst themselves. There were four of them on The Council of Wisdom and in the past, they’d only existed to rubber-stamp anything Carter wanted. But now that he was gone, they would have to decide on their own what was best for the Pack.
I saw them huddle together, all of them taking turns peering over their bony shoulders at Harris and Korwyn. I wondered what they would decide. Harris wasn’t much liked in our little community—he was a bully and a blowhard. But he was also the strongest Alpha in the Pack and everyone feared to cross him.