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PM conference, which totally screwed up my routine. By the time I drove back from Syracuse, it was
after seven. I d meant to grab a sandwich at the cafeteria to tide me over to dinner, but was so eager to
get home that I forgot.
I arrived at Stonehaven starving. I parked and bolted for the door, certain dinner would be waiting for
me. Instead I found Jeremy engrossed in a new painting. The frozen Shepherd's Pie he d put into the
oven was still frozen because he d been so distracted by his work that he d forgotten to turn it on. So I
blew up. Accused him of being thoughtless and insensitive to my needs. A shitty thing to say and
laughably untrue but I was hungry.
I stormed to the kitchen, grabbed the makings of a sandwich, then decided it was too much work to
assemble one and wolfed down the components separately. When my stomach was full, I knew I d been
out of line with Jeremy. I also knew that, given my recent mood swings, if I tried to say I was sorry, I
was liable to turn the apology into another fight. So I fixed Jeremy a sandwich and dropped it off outside
his studio door with a note saying I d gone for a walk.
Once outside, I debated working off some energy with a run, but was too edgy to Change, so I
wandered the forest, mentally working through an essay I needed to write this week. I was in the midst of
composing my thesis statement when a movement in the trees ahead made me stop short. It was almost
nine now, and dark. Though I had good night vision, with no moon overhead to help, I could only make
out the shape of a tall, dark-haired man. As proof of my distracted sense of mind, I never thought to
sneak in for a sniff and a closer look. I assumed it was Jeremy and strode forward. When I stepped onto
the path, the man wheeled. It wasn t Jeremy.
"Shit!" he said, jumping as he saw me. "What the hell " He stopped, nostrils flaring, then blinked as he
realized I wasn t some neighborhood kid trespassing in Stonehaven s woods. He squinted in the
darkness. "Shit. You re Malcolm s kid, aren t you?"
"No," I said. "Jeremy s in the house, and he s not coming out so don t bother "
"Nah, not Jeremy. The other one. The boy. The one Malcolm s been bragging about. So his phantom
foster son isn t a phantom after all, huh? I figured it was bullshit, since no one s ever seen you."
"Nah, they see me. They just don t live to tell about it."
The mutt snorted and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, good one," he said, but a flicker of uncertainty in his eyes
said he wasn t completely sure I was bluffing.
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I sized up the mutt. Jeremy s age, decent physical condition. Yeah, he d do. Now I just needed to
persuade him to help me set up the circumstances I required.
"You know Nick Sorrentino?" I asked, circling the mutt and making him turn around to keep his eyes on
me.
Another snort. "What is this? Small talk? I came here to fight, in case you didn t figure that out, kiddo."
"Nick Sorrentino," I repeated. "Do you know who he is?"
"Sure. Antonio s kid."
"He s a friend of mine."
"Bully for you."
I stopped circling and leaned against a tree, arms crossed. The mutt visibly relaxed.
"Nick s got this problem," I said. "Maybe you can help me solve it."
"What do I look like? Dear Abby? I can t solve "
"Yeah, I think you can. See, here s Nick s problem. He s been a full werewolf for nearly a year now,
but he s never fought a mutt. Never even been close to a fight. Antonio and Dominic won t let him."
The mutt sniffed. "Coddling the boy, like they do with Jorge. Figures."
"Well, that s where I m hoping you can help. Nick wants a fight, and I want to give him one. Chance to
fight the Alpha s grandson? A sweet deal for any mutt."
"You want me to fight Nick instead of you?" The mutt shook his head. "Uh-uh. Even if he s a Sorrentino,
he s a pup with no notches on his belt. I m beyond that. But Malcolm s protégé?" He grinned. "Now that
might be a challenge worth winning."
"Sure it would, and I m not trying to take it from you. Here s the deal. You want a shot at me, bring a
friend for Nick. You do have friends, don t you?"
"Sure but "
"I m sure one of those friends isn t as experienced as you. He d be happy for the chance to fight Nick.
And he d owe you one for setting it up."
The mutt paused, then peered at me. "You wouldn t be trying to get out of a fight, would "
I pounced and knocked him to the ground, then jammed my forearm against his throat. "Do I look like
I m trying to blow off a fight?"
The mutt gasped. I eased back, but stayed on his chest.
"You re good," he wheezed.
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For a moment, I wondered whether I d miscalculated and scared him off, but then his eyes gleamed with
the prospect of the bragging rights he d earn by beating me. After all, I was just a kid. A decent fighter
for my age, but an inexperienced, cocky pup nonetheless.
"Okay, sure," he said. "I know a couple of guys. Let s set something up."
So we did.
Legend
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