Chapter Six
Part One
Leonardo walked up the sidewalk in the chilly autumn evening. The sun had already set but it was still relatively early in the evening. Looking up at the large house in front of him, he pondered if he’d be received better if he came back tomorrow. He’d worked later than he’d anticipated but he still wanted to talk to the wealthy politician who lived here. Need to; he needed to talk to him. The questions that were weighing heavy on his mind were keeping him awake at night, causing him to look over his shoulder when he walked down the street.
Since the accident while they were moving, he had felt something off. It was there just out of the corner of his eye, lurking and waiting to pounce. He saw it in the way his packmates looked at him. He felt it in the undercurrents of every room he went into. Was he losing his mind, finally succumbing to the Colmillo curse? Was he simply cracking under pressure?
Leonardo wanted to get his life in order again and this was the first step. He refused to fall prey to the Colmillo curse. He was not going to let himself go mad. Gritting his teeth, he squared his shoulders and set his jaw, making the decision. Whether Dhimant Valome would welcome this conversation or not, it was a necessary inconvenience. Onward, then.
It seemed foolish to appeal to a man so high up, an endeavor destined for failure perhaps. Would he listen to him? Would he take his side? Leonardo had neither riches nor fame, he had little power in the pack itself. Still, he couldn’t give up. With a need for allies, powerful allies, what better place to start than at the top, with the only man who could put their Alpha in his place?
Dhimant was the governor. He had political ties all the way to the top and to be honest, in places Leo shuddered to consider. Being a Valome wolf, he outranked all other bloodlines and while he was not the most physically powerful, he was clever. Terribly clever. The kind of man whose intelligence alone made him dangerous, forget being backed up by natural dominance, a sense of entitlement and raw animal physicality.
Leonardo had some cleverness of his own, though. While not on the level of the old heroes he’d been told of from lore, he was a quick thinker and could stay calm under pressure. His mother had once said of him that he could talk the most stubborn merchant into practically giving away his wares. Maybe he just needed to look at this conversation the same way. Dhimant had something of value and Leonardo needed it for a reasonable price.
Trudging up the steps, Leonardo began to realize it was bloody cold out and he should have brought his overcoat. The first hard frost was on the ground and here he was in only a button down and his work blazer, freezing his ass off like a moron. At least they’d had the decency to clean the ice off the steps so he didn’t fall and humiliate himself any worse.
Walking up to the door, he rang the doorbell and waited, trying to shake off the prickly combination of the cold and his nerves. If there was one wolf in the world he did not want to show fear in front of, it was this man. Dhimant had the facade of a jovial Indian man but he was shrewd, hard hearted and when he saw a weakness he would dive for it with jaws like steel and shred a man to get what he wanted.
“Look who haunts my doorbell so late in the evening!” exclaimed a deep voice as a man dressed in a sharp white suit emerged from the house. Everything about his appearance spoke of wealth and affluence, down to the thick ring with a large green stone in it on his hand. Platinum, Leonardo had no doubt. Silver of any kind made a wolf break out in awful hives and white gold would be too cheap for this man. “Leonardo de Colmillo,” Dhimant clapped his hands together. “It has been too long! I believe I have not had the good fortune to run into you in a few years and here you are on my porch.”
“Good evening Mr. Valome-”
“Please, call me Dhimant. The formalities are unnecessary, your family ranks only a little below mine.”
Ah yes, a smooth jab at his low birth. He was still a nobleman and Dhimant couldn’t very well insult him directly without risking himself being drawn into the werewolf version of the old laws. He’d be forced to pay Leonardo a hefty sum of money, the value of Leonardo’s dignity in wolf laws, the atone for his slight. He probably enjoyed the backhanded compliments more, anyway, the sly bastard.
Leonardo set his jaw. He couldn’t let this man get to him, this was too important. “I came to visit you tonight, Mr. Valome, because we need to have a conversation. Would tonight be agreeable or should I return tomorrow afternoon?”
Dhimant’s expression turned serious. “Pack, police or personal?” he asked.
“Depending on your helpfulness, possibly all three,” Leonardo replied, expression somber. He controlled his heart beat, taking even breaths to avoid any detectable sign of nerves. At this point, it wasn’t even certain what he was nervous of. There were too many things involved here and he had too much at stake. He thought of Benita, her smile and her faith in him and felt some of his jitters fade away. “Pack foremost.”
“I’m sure you’re aware of my position in the pack now,” Leonardo added, as Dhimant still seemed to be considering the situation.
“I am, yes,” he mused, but his tone betrayed annoyance. “How did that come to be?”
“That is one thing I’d like to speak to you about.”
“How long is this conversation going to take?” Dhimant seemed to be trying to work out a way to send Leonardo away, politely, so that the necessary conversation could be postponed indefinitely.
“It won’t take much of your time. I’m sure you already know part of the scenario, I only need to ask you some questions and find out where you are in this,” Leonardo said. He decided his best option was simply to make Dhimant too curious about the issue to resist this meeting.
“Is this evening agreeable or shall I return tomorrow?”
Dhimant pursed his lips. “Why didn’t you simply make an appointment to speak to me at the city hall?”
“I would have been turned away,” Leonardo replied evenly. “Or forced to disclose pack secrets to your secretary to get this opportunity. She’s human, I believe.” He added this last part because he could smell the woman on Dhimant. Someone was clearly enjoying the benefits of an extramarital affair. He considered adding that her perfume was an assault on the senses but decided such an obvious remark would be a faux pas.
“Very well,” Dhimant seemed to be taking Leonardo seriously now. “My calendar is full tomorrow, I can make some time for you this evening.” He opened the front door and led Leonardo inside. Leonardo, for his part, was grateful that at least he could get out of the cold evening air.
“Hara! Bring tea to the Library for us,” Dhimant said as he opened the door to the foyer and led his guest indoors. The ladies were standing in the entrance from the dining room, looking as confused and curious as they possibly could. Leonardo took this to mean they didn’t get many visitors this late in the evening.
“That’s hardly necessary-” Leonardo began, but Dhimant cut him off.
“Of course it is, it’s cold outside and you’ve been out there for a while. Or would you prefer something stronger?”
“I- no, tea is acceptable,” Leonardo felt like he’d been reprimanded by a school mum for his bad manners. He certainly didn’t want to drink with Dhimant. Alcohol went to his head and made him a bit loopy, Benita had seen it in person and told him he shouldn’t drink. She suspected he had an allergy to the stuff, or something. Maybe she had an allergy to his shenanigans as a drunk. Regardless, he needed his wits about him right now.
“Who’s that, daddy?” a young woman asked, looking Leonardo up and down. A younger looking girl gave her sister a look of open disdain while a middle aged woman pushed her hair back.
“Shush child,” Hara told her oldest daughter. “Leonardo,” she smiled at him. “To what do we owe the pleasure?”
“I’ll take some pleasure,” muttered the older daughter, only to be elbowed sharply by her sister. They muttered together furiously and the only words Leonardo could distinguish were ‘beefcake’ and ‘stud muffin’. It was rather embarrassing to be hit on by such a young woman and Leonardo hoped he hadn’t turned red.
“Business, I’m afraid,” Leonardo said, clearing his throat and trying not to pay attention to the younger generation’s filthy conversation. In stage whispers, they seemed to be debating his merit as a potential bed partner and the older one kept giving him odd glances. He felt violated. She was definitely mentally undressing him. He made a note to himself to never, under any circumstances, allow himself to be left alone with her. That girl was more trouble than the iceberg that tried to hook up with the Titanic.
“Oh that’s a pity,” Hara said, smiling. “I’ll bring the tea in shortly. If you need anything else, do tell me.”
Nodding to them respectfully, he followed Dhimant through their living room to the library.
Dhimant dropped onto the chaise lounge with an easy grace the confidence of a man with lightning reflexes. “Please,” he gestured to the other chairs. “Have a seat.” He watched Leonardo cross to a chair and added, “You are looking well. Marriage is treating you kindly?”
Leonardo crossed his legs and interlaced his fingers thoughtfully, taking a moment to survey the surroundings. He felt unease in this corner of the library, no doubt as Dhimant had intended. He wanted him on edge and unable to defend himself. Leonardo took a few deep breaths as he nodded. “Yes, Benita is a lovely woman and she’s brought much joy to my life. I didn’t come here to discuss her though.”
“Please, humor me. It has been a very long time since we spoke. I believe you were only a young soldier then. How has life been treating you?”
“I’ve done well for myself,” Leonardo said. “I came back from the war with honors and joined the force. I’ve worked my way up to a very high rank there and I’m currently preparing for my Captain's exam. I’ve got a little daughter now, she’s an angel. My wife is pregnant again and I hold hopes this one will be a son.”
“And you’ve also been made second to the Alpha of the Elba pack,” Dhimant nodded. “Indeed, you have done well for yourself. Far better than any other Colmillo that I can recall. You seem to be in firm possession of your wits, something of an accomplishment in that line. Please, I mean no insult, it is only an observation of fact.”
Leonardo fought the impulse to grind his teeth. It was damn well an insult and he knew it. He just couldn’t do anything about it. As much as he hated people ragging on his family’s reputation as a lot of nutters, he knew there was truth to it and he had to hold his head up and stubbornly remain proof that there were exceptions to the rule. At least he had no obvious outward fault that revealed him as such a nutcase.
“I did not ask for the position,” Leonardo said quietly. “I am still trying to understand how it came to me.”
“No doubt,” chuckled Dhimant in a rare moment of genuine amusement that Leo suspected was more at him than with him. “Your daughter, what is her name?” he changed the subject back to personal things so smoothly, cutting Leo off as he formed a question in his mind.
“Rosalinda,” he replied, stroking his beard. “My wife said there was a character in a book named that and she’d taken a liking to it. I asked about the character and she seemed to be a good, strong and intelligent one so I agreed to it.” Dhimant seemed absolutely set on avoiding any business discussions until tea had arrived and, he suspected, the women had left them alone.
“You must cherish it while they are small,” Dhimant said, oddly serious. “They grow so fast and turn into terrible brats.” He sighed and gestured about vaguely. “My daughters, they give me the worst headaches! One is an insufferable know it all, nose always in a book, she only lifts her head from reading to point out why someone in the room is an idiot. Do you know it’s normally me?” He harrumphed. “My oldest seems set on wrecking the family name in a flamboyant pursuit of whatever man strikes her fancy. I’ve tried to interest her in any number of career paths and do you know what she asked me? ‘Daddy, can I shop for a living?’”
Leonardo actually laughed, he couldn’t help it. “They do become terrors,” he agreed.
“Benita thinks the next child will be a boy. She was right last time, I’ll not argue with her now. I’m thinking I’ll name him Diemitri.”
“That’s a good strong name,” agreed Dhimant. “A wise choice. Ah, Hara!” he said as his wife entered carrying a tea tray.
“Pardon for the delay,” she said. “Would you like anything with your tea, Leonardo?”
“No, tea is quite sufficient, thank you,” he said.
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