Page 81 of Bosse
“She is.” Corbin swiped wet brown hair off his face with both hands. He wore it longer on top and short on the sides. Glancing back at Adrian, who stood with his hands on his hips, Corbin commented, “Badger isn’t wired right. He may get what he wants the day he steps over the line and releases his wolf out here, but it will be a short battle.” He returned to Bosse and extended his hand.
Bosse kept his arms folded. “Is this a trick?”
“What? No.” Corbin gave him a confused look. “Other than Adrian introducing you to the group, I hadn’t met you yet. Where do you come from that people don’t shake when they meet?”
“I come from a place where someone would break my arm if I stuck out my hand.”
Corbin grinned. “Okay. Sounds like places I’ve been. I don’t give a shit about shaking. Adrian’s the one pushing us to be civil.”
Bosse gave him a short nod in agreement and opened his arms to prepare for a battle. All of them had pulled off their shirts and hung them on branches, fighting in jeans only.
Corbin’s build topped out around six feet, two inches, just shy of Bosse’s height, but with plenty of muscle. He moved around to one side. Bosse mirrored what Corbin did, watching for his first move.
He understood that every shifter out here would want to test the new guy.
He’d been tested time and again in the past. The best defense was to wait for their first move.
Corbin came in fast, moving in one direction, then slashed back the other way at the last second. Bosse had to be quick on his feet to stay ahead of him. He had an opening and reached out to grab Corbin.
The guy spun in place, whipping away.
Not bad for practice.
Bosse would not be so careful if it were a fight to the death. They moved like that, one taking a shot and the other avoiding back and forth until Corbin lifted a hand. “It would be easier to fight you for real than this pussy footing around.”
“True.”
Jaz called out, “Adrian, the Guardian is here.”
Everyone stopped.
Bosse couldn’t believe he hadn’t realized she’d joined them or that she had another person with her. A man dressed in a fine suit and expensive-looking shoes, even if Bosse had no idea what humans bought to wear. Short gray hair at his temples blended in his groomed cut of black hair. He held his head with confidence befitting a leader. He reeked of power that felt capable of overtaking everyone in sight.
“Who is that?” Bosse asked to confirm this was the leader Jaz had said he could question.
“That’s the head honcho over Adrian, Jaz, and other shifters like them.”
“His eyes are not human,” Bosse pointed out as those eagle-like eyes moved quickly, missing nothing.
“No. He shifts into the biggest sea hawk you’ve ever seen and is more powerful than Jaz or Adrian. We saw him once when he showed up after Jaz killed our alpha, but it was self-defense, and that alpha was a sicko.”
Someone should kill Krol, another sicko.
As Adrian neared Bosse, he said, “I need you to come with me.”
He fell into step with Adrian, who grabbed Bosse’s T-shirt and his own. By the time they both had shirts on, Adrian addressed the eagle shifter. “You’re a little early. Has something happened?”
“Yes. We have a critical situation.” This man’s words were as stiff as the crisp white shirt beneath his dark gray suit.
Adrian turned around and called out, “Corbin, you’re in charge of finishing the training. You’ve got a half hour left before the pack can shift to run, then have everyone get cleaned up for dinner.”
Corbin’s eyebrows rose to his hairline as if he had no idea why he had been handed that task. “Uhm, okay, got it.”
Jaz led the way to the front porch shaded by ancient oak trees. She had a pitcher of cold water on a wicker table with four glasses and four chairs arranged in a circle.
Once everyone else sat, Bosse took the only seat left. Immense power surrounding the eagle shifter remained under control. It rolled and churned, unlike anything Bosse had ever experienced. He had no doubt this man could unleash more to intimidate him, but he didn’t. There sat a man with confidence, someone like Krol would envy and never understand. This eagle shifter had a fit body for the age he displayed, though the hair and face did not fool Bosse.
This man felt old, very old.
