The Porch Wolf

I opened the door to my office and drove back in. “Change in plans,” I said. “The meeting with Mrs. Miller is pushed back to six o’clock. I need the two of you to prepare an offer. Write it up, leave the percentage of the company, and the amount of the sale blank for now.”

“You plan to close the deal tonight?”

“If it is to happen, it will be tonight. Sell assets as needed to ensure my portfolio has enough liquid assets to cover up to a $1.8 million purchase price. That should be more than enough to cover whatever the agreement is.”

Jacob Burnwell let out a sigh. “It’s never simple with you, Leo.”

“Think about what kind of indemnity we need to have and how to protect my interests. You’ve got a couple hours, counselor.”

“Thanks.” He stood up and put his papers back in his briefcase.

“It was a pleasure meeting you, Mr. Volkov,” Patricia said. “Here is my card, don’t hesitate to call me if you have any questions.”

“You aren’t returning for the negotiations?”

“No, my part is done. Todd Miller may not be a good businessman, but his wife kept the books properly, and I provided an accurate accounting of the business financials. What you decide to do about that is not my area.” She gave me a smile. “I hope to see you again when you are back on your feet.”

“Thank you,” I said. “Larry, please see them out.” As they went to the driveway, I drove back to use my bathroom and freshen up. I was finishing up when Mike linked me. “The Council members and Luna Susan just turned onto 91 in Miesville,” he said. They were a few minutes out and would pass Jacob and Patricia soon after they left my driveway.

“We’ll do this in my office; I’m not worried about Susan with the Council here. I will link if I need anything.”

“Of course, Alpha.”

I drove around to behind my desk, and Anita came in and placed a tray with coffee, tea, and snacks on the table by the window. “Anita, please arrange the chairs for three people, with one of those chairs close to my desk on the window end for Susan,” I said. “Seat them, offer refreshments, then leave me with them.”

“Are you sure you don’t want Larry or Mike in here to back you up?”

“I’m at enough of a disadvantage being stuck in this scooter; I don’t want to compound it by hiding behind another wolf. The Council will not allow us to harm each other, and Luna McInnis won’t allow anything to get out of hand.” I had been considering my options for dealing with her since I found out she was coming; I had chosen my path and hoped it wouldn’t burn me. Looking out the window, I saw the two cars drive in and park.

Beta Mike met them as they came to a stop, and left the link open for me. “Chairman Wolfe, Luna McInnis, and Luna Miller, welcome to the Miesville Pack. I am Beta Mike Winters, at your service. Alpha Leo sends his apologies for not greeting you in person, but as you will see, his injuries prevented it.”

“Thank you, Beta Winters,” the Chairman responded. They walked into the house, where their coats were taken, and Mike led them to my office. “Leo, it has been a long time,” he said as he walked into my office.

“Indeed it has, Chairman Wolfe. I believe it was the 2014 Alpha Summit in Sun Valley,” I responded. My wolf pushed forward, alerting me to something, but he didn’t say what. A pleasing scent, like cedar and rain, was in the air; it drew me in, but I couldn’t identify its source.

He shook my hand as he inspected my sling and boot. “You will recover?”

“Yes, in eight weeks. The ligaments of my ankle took the brunt of it. The shoulder will be fine in two weeks.” He moved around the desk, and behind him was Luna McInnis. My breath caught in my chest as I saw her; she was tall and elegantly dressed, her midnight-black hair gathered to hang down her back. She was wearing white slacks and heels, a matching blouse with delicate beadwork, and a light grey jacket. “Luna, welcome to the Miesville Pack,” I said as I held my hand out. My wolf felt the dominance of hers and rushed to meet it. When our fingers touched, a tingle shot up my arm. My hand gripped hers a little tighter for a moment, and something passed between our wolves before I let her go again.

“It is my pleasure, Alpha Leo.” She held the look into my eyes a few seconds too long, before shaking her head slightly and stepping back. My wolf was acting weird; I pushed him back and went on with the greetings.

“Luna Susan,” I said with a smile. “Thank you for coming.”

“My apologies for all that has happened between our Packs,” she said as her hand reached for mine. “It should never have been this way.”

“I know.” I waited while they sat and received their drinks from Anita, and the door closed behind her before I started. “Thank you all for coming. I understand the Council’s interest in this, but Luna Susan and I have a long history with each other. You are welcome to observe, but the two of us are not negotiating through the Council. Mediation is neither requested nor required. Instead, I will work through these problems with my friend and former Packmate.”

“That would be wonderful if you can do that, but the Council’s interest is in seeing this settled before any other human entanglements are created. Perhaps if you had involved us earlier, some of this could be avoided,” Luna McInnis said.

“Perhaps. In any case, I will not waste Luna Susan’s valuable time.” I turned my attention to her, reaching out to grasp her hand. “There is one thing we will discuss that is not negotiable,” I told her. “Your mate knocked my vehicle off the road, seriously injuring a fellow Alpha, and three people who are very important to me. In the process, he caused the turn of a human and lost three of your Pack members attempting to kill a four-year-old girl. This was done without a proper challenge, and after I had warned him to stay out of a conflict between my Pack and the Marengo Lake Pack. The penalty for this is death.”

She nodded and started to cry. “I did not know,” she said.

“I believe you. What I need to know right now is whether you accept that your mate’s death. If you want to fight for his life in the human or the werewolf system, we have nothing to talk about.” It was a hard line, but it was the only way. I handed her a Kleenex.

“I love my husband, but I can’t forgive him for this,” Susan said. “Three of my close friends are widows, and he’s facing decades in prison. He left me with this big mess, and I don’t know how I’m going to live and where I will raise my boys now,” she said. “He decided on these actions without me, because he knew what I would say. I will mourn his death, but I understand it must happen.”

I gave her a minute to compose herself. “What were you hoping to achieve tonight, Susan?”

“My Pack is disintegrating around me,” she said. “It’s not just you starting your Pack; people see what is happening with Todd, and with Volkov Construction, and are running away as fast as they can. I’m not worried about someone challenging for my Alpha position, Leo. In a week, there won’t be five wolves left with me.”

I patted her hand. “I have a way to end the human investigations if you are willing to help, and Todd does what we need him to do.”

“How?”

I looked over at the Chairman and Luna McInnis; they were following closely, but giving me room to lead the meeting. “I think we can agree on a few goals we would all want here. Our people have a stable Pack structure, Volkov Construction continues to provide good jobs for many of our members, and you and your children are provided for. Would you agree?”

“Of course. I would add one thing, and that is my status. I’m worried I won’t find a Pack willing to take my family after what my husband did.”

“I will take you in my Pack if you agree to the terms, Susan. As you said, you and your children were not part of the decisions. I will not see you punished for them.”

She looked up, her face showing a little bit of hope. “You would do that? What would your Pack say?”

“They would say I extended mercy to an old friend and her family. I would not allow anyone to retaliate against you,” I said.

“What do you need from me?”

“The original kidnapping attempt on Liv and Vicki was funded by my brother Ivan, as Vicki is his daughter. He got Liv pregnant while she was in college, just after Ivan left here to become the Marengo Lake Alpha. As his eldest child, she got the Alpha Mantle from him, instead of Luna Brenda’s first children. Ivan knew his mate wanted Vicki dead and thought he would be able to get them out of danger. Instead, the wolves he hired killed an innocent human before I killed both of them.”

Susan looked over at the Chairman, who cleared his throat. “The Council is aware of this. What happens with John Petersen and Marengo Lake Pack is not germane to these discussions. We were able to confirm that Luna Brenda offered to pay Todd for killing Vicki, so her eldest would regain the Mantle. We cannot allow the FBI to trace the activity back to another Pack.” Chairman Wolfe turned to me. “The Council has met with your brother and Luna Brenda. Your Pack members, Vicki specifically, are no longer in danger from Marengo Lake. We have a blood oath to that effect.”

My eyes went up; a blood oath was serious business. To violate it, you had to kill your wolf first. “Good. My brother lives?”

“He does,” Chairman Wolfe said.

“Back to the plan,” I said. “Your mate is going down for the hit-and-run, he did that on his own. Ivan framed him for the kidnapping; the FBI has cash and a phone used to arrange the kidnapping with the two Stillwater wolves. It’s enough to charge him, but to convict him? That’s iffy. You are going to convince Todd to confess to both the hit-and-run and to funding the kidnapping.”

“Why would he confess to a Federal crime he didn’t commit,” Susan said.

“To provide for you and your boys. Todd will ask for a plea deal and confess to the crimes; you will link him what he needs to say to make the confession believable. He will sign the plea, and then he will be killed in prison before the plea is accepted in court.”

She looked up. “KILLED?”

“Yes. If Todd kills himself, you don’t get a life insurance payout. The standard policy for Volkov Construction is a half-million-dollars. I can find someone willing to shank him for under ten thousand dollars.” Susan shivered. “It’s better this way. He won’t know it’s coming.”

“Why before the court accepts it?” It was the first time Luna McInnis spoke up.

“The law only allows a guilty plea to be valid after entered in court and filed by the Judge presiding over the case. If a person dies before then, even if they confessed, by rule, they are NOT GUILTY. I will also ensure that your estate is not sued by the victims of the accident. The insurance companies might go after you, but your business insurance will be forced to cover it. After all, your husband was not guilty of attempted murder.”

I waited for them to think about it for a while before I continued. “As far as the FBI and State are concerned, the case dies with Todd. That stops any further investigations into Welch and Marengo, and gets us off the news. Is that satisfactory to the Council?”

“It is, provided the Pack situation here is also resolved peacefully,” the Chairman said.

“You use the life insurance money to pay off the loan against your home, the remainder you invest. If you want to leave, it gives you the money to start over. If you want to stay here, you can remain in your house, join my Pack, and continue your work running the business office.”

“I would like that,” Susan said. “I will do it. I will make Todd understand what he needs to do, so that we are provided for.”

“That’s all I can ask of you,” I said. “As for the business, I will buy back my interest in Volkov Construction and take over management again. Right now, you and Todd own 85% of a company that is months away from bankruptcy. We both know this; your cash flow is negative, and you are tapped out on loans. You could try selling equipment, but then you can’t generate income.”

“I’m very aware of the situation, Leo. Miss Cornwell and I went over the books in detail. It doesn’t take an MBA to know we are running out of money.” She looked down at her hands. “Nobody knew how important you were to the company until you were gone.”

“I will leave you with a five percent stake in the company, the same five percent the other foremen have. When the company rebounds, you will have a stake in it. The eighty percent I purchase will infuse enough cash to make the March balloon payment and pay off the high-interest line of credit. The purchase price will be $1.2 million, leaving loan payments that are within revenues. I will also provide up to a half-million in low-interest loans to the company while we turn things around. In a year, the company will be making money again. The value of your 5% stake will grow quite a bit from the fifty thousand by the time you retire.”

“It’s a generous offer, Leo. Miss Cornwell said we would be lucky to get more than half a million, based on our assets and liabilities.” She looked at me, hope in her eyes. “It’s not a good deal for you.”

“As I will tell my lawyer, I don’t want the company I founded to fail.” I extended my hand to her. “Do we have a deal?”

“We do,” she said.

“Wonderful. As for your Pack, it would be cleanest if you merged with Miesville. I will allow any who do not want to come into Miesville to go elsewhere; we will provide recommendations. The only exceptions are Parker and Thomas.”

“Why them?”

“Because Parker was the one who bit a human, and Thomas tried to take my niece. The rest of those involved may apologize and come in, but those two are dead if they enter our land.”

She laughed. “Both quit the Pack this morning. Good riddance.” She looked over at me. “What is my rank in your Pack?”

“Beta officially, you’ll be in charge of Pack finances and the business. You’ll also be acting Luna.”

She snorted. “Why? You’ll be mated soon.” She glanced quickly at Luna McInnis, who blushed and looked down at her hands.

“My mate is dead,” I said. Adrienne stood up and excused herself, practically running out the door.

My wolf demanded we go after her, but I had work to do.