Bryce Evans (2 page)

“
Damn!  You mean Ralph Cason’s pack,” Mace said shocked.

“
Yep, the bastard himself,” answered Damen.

“
I can’t believe Cason let the girl go,” said Mace.

“
Well he wasn’t until Reece showed up with the law and showed him the last will his parents sent him a week before they were found dead in a car accident.  He told Reece that he wouldn’t forget this.  Take what you want from that threat,” Damen said.

“
I don’t have a problem with them coming into the pack.  I take it you checked Reece out?” asked Mace.

Damen smiled then set down in the chair in front of Mace.
  “Yeah, I checked him out.  Listen, Mace, this guy is top notch.  He was in the SEALs and was with the Phantom Squad,” Damen said with a grin.

“
Wow.  Impressive enough,” Mace responded.  “Anything else?”

Damen couldn
’t understand what was wrong with Mace.  He was a great guy and a great leader.  There were no complaints among the pack, but for the last few months, Mace acted withdrawn and sad.  He never used to give up the women.  Now he didn’t even show up at the Pub for ladies’ night.  He showed no interest at all toward any of the women in their pack or the Viston pack.  This was unusual for Mace because he was a lady’s man and the ladies loved him, too.  “Nothing, except are you going to show up for the Mirage on Saturday?”

“
What for?” asked Mace.

“
You need to be there, Mace.  As Alpha, you need to be seen with your pack, especially with all the new people coming in.  They need to feel like their Alpha wants to be part of the pack.  They need to see you,” said Damen. 

Mace rocked in his chair. 
He wanted to get mad at how Damen was talking to him, but he couldn’t because Damen was right.  He needed to go and show his support to his pack and to the new members.  Unfortunately, Mace was itching for a fight.  “Are you trying to tell me how to do my job now, Second?”

“
If that’s what it takes to get your ass in gear—Alpha!”  Damen got up and slammed the door without giving Mace a chance to respond.  Damen knew Mace was under a lot of pressure, but dammit, he was, too.  So instead of starting a fight, he got up and left the room.

Mace clenched his fists as he turned back around in his chair, looking at the kids playing through his large window.  He knew Damen was a great Second and a good friend to him, but right now he had to go to Adrianna and her mates
’ house for lunch.  No time for self-pity.  He had a pack to run and a question to ask Samson.

***

Amanda watched as John Robert walked into the diner, looking around for her.  As his eyes searched her out, he found her sitting at the back of the restaurant.  “Hey, Amanda?  How are you doing?  It’s been a while since I’ve seen you.” 

Amanda used the fakest smile she had for him.  John wasn
’t a bad looking guy; he just wasn’t very interesting as a person.  The only thing that John Robert had going for him was his lineage.  His family had a lot of magic going from generation to generation.  Cain said his magic would be pure and that was needed if they planned to take over the Twisters Council. 

“
Hey, John.  You look great,” Amanda muttered sweetly.

“
So it was a pleasant surprise to hear from you.  I thought you and Cain would have been married by now.  So where is Cain?” 

Amanda smirked knowing he would see Cain very soon.

***

Wednesday morning, Mace drove down the long driveway to Adrianna
’s house.  He finally had a free moment to visit her, and ask Samson about the Reddens.  The property Adrianna and her mates lived on was surrounded by lots of lush green trees, some of which stood as tall as two hundred feet and were hundreds of years old.  Standing tall, these oak trees provided cover for the heated Georgia ground that played host to hundreds of beautiful wildflowers.  The trees and flowers never seemed to wilt or die on the property.  The trees and wildflowers bent and swayed with a touch of magic singing through the wind.

Mace remembered the day Adrianna and her mates moved into the house.  The property was always beautiful but now that Adrianna had arrived, everything seemed to be more vibrant.  When he pulled up in front of the house, Mace watched in awe as a huge oak tree extended its branch releasing Adrianna back to the ground.  Mace knew that it would never get old watching his sister communicate with the trees.

Adrianna turned around and waved at Mace as he got out of the car.  She walked up to him, throwing herself into his arms as he caught her.

“
Wow!  It never gets boring watching that.”  Adrianna looked back over her shoulders at the trees blowing in the wind. 

“
Yeah, I guess so.  It’s natural to me now.”  Adrianna sighed.  “Oh, Bubba, I love it here.  I guess I never knew how much I missed home.” 

Mace noticed the creature coming around the house watching him. 
“What the fuck is that?” Mace growled, putting Adrianna behind him.  The creature eyed Mace like a wild animal eyed his prey. 

“
Oh that is a Warden and he doesn’t know who you are so I need to introduce you so he knows you're not going to hurt me.”  Adrianna waved the creature over as Mace growled.  “Calm down, brother.  He is magical and can send you to the Nether World.” 

Mace watched as the creature walked up to Adrianna.  The creature was huge with scaly skin.  His eyes were the greenest eyes he had ever seen as he watched Mace with death glooming through those eyes. 

“Mace, this is Brock.  He is a Warden from the Nether World, Joshua Cahill brought him here to protect me.” 

Mace didn
’t smile, as he looked the Warden up and down. 

“
Brock, this is my brother, Mace McDonald.”  Brock stared at Mace, as he appeared to be memorizing Mace’s face in his mind. 

Mace didn
’t know if Wardens were friendly but he stuck his hand out for Brock to shake it.  The Warden looked down at Mace’s hand not knowing what to do.  Adrianna reached and grabbed the Wardens hand and brought it up to Mace’s hand.  Mace showed him how to shake hands with him.  Mace pointed at himself and introduced himself.  “I’m Mace McDonald.” 

The Warden pointed at himself and with perfect English
, he introduced himself.  “I’m Brock Campbell, a Warden from the Nether World.”  Then he smiled at Mace and walked off scanning the area. 

Mace laughed as he
watched the Warden walk off.  “Where is Joshua Cahill at?” 

“
He said he had some problems to take care of and he would be here as soon as he could,” Adrianna answered.

“
So what’s the deal with this Warden?” Mace asked as he watched the Warden scan the area.

“
Well he doesn’t speak much to anyone except me.  It’s strange but I don’t feel any kind of bad vibes from him.  He just scans the area all day and then at night he stays outside, too.  He gets relieved from Samson’s people, then gets up in the morning and does it again,” Adrianna explained.  “Come on let’s go inside and eat.” Adrianna grabbed Mace’s hand and walked with him into the house. 

Cade was walking into the kitchen setting a plate of sandwiches on the table. 
He looked up and smiled.  “Well, well, look what the wolf dragged in.” 

Mace laughed then shook his best friend
’s hand. 

“
Where you been at, buddy?  We have missed you at Friday night dinners.”  Mace half smiled then sat down at the table.  Adrianna and Cade made eye contact with each other noticing Mace’s somber mood.  Cade was Mace’s best friend.  He could tell the difference in Mace, how he changed the subject whenever anyone asked where he had been. 

Samson walked in carrying pasta salad and another dish, setting it on the table. 
“Hey, stranger?  Where have you been?” 

Mace laughed as he took a long drink from his cup trying to think of something to say. 
“Hey, I need to talk to you about some applicants that have applied to the Ashland Pack.” 

Samson sat down beside Adrianna giving Mace his full attention.  

“It’s about Mary and Lexy Redden.  They want to apply to the Ashland Pack and to the Ward Clan,” said Mace.  Samson smiled as he looked down at his plate.  “You don’t look surprised about this,” Mace said when he saw Samson’s smile.

“
Well no.  I guess I’m not.  Mary and Lexy Redden have been with my family’s clan for many years.  I know that Peter always felt like he didn’t fit in with us.  Even though he was and will always be a part of my family.  I think he needs to be part of a pack again.  I think he feels lost,” answered Samson.

“
Well, that I can understand.  I guess you know what I mean, Samson, when I say that I would go crazy if I wasn’t around the pack.  If I told you that you couldn’t be with your clan, you would, too.”  Mace leaned back in his chair, looking at Samson, waiting for him to speak.

“
That’s true, Mace.  Do you have a problem with the Reddens becoming part of both the pack and clan?” asked Samson.  Mace looked over toward the window.  He stayed silent like he was thinking about that question.  Samson looked over at Adrianna wondering what was going on with Mace.  He seemed distance today.

“
Mace?”  Adrianna looked at her brother, worried about his behavior lately.

Mace blinked a couple of times then looked back at his sister. 

“Earth to Mace.  Did you hear Samson?” Cade asked.

“
Umm no.  I’m sorry, what did you say, Samson?” responded Mace.

Adrianna glanced at her mates then back at her brother.  Now she was worried about him.  This wasn
’t Mace or his personality.  “Mace, what is wrong with you?  We have hardly seen you this month and when we do, it’s only for a minute or two.  Then you are distant when you talk to us.  So I want to know what is wrong with my big brother?” asked Adrianna with a worried tone to her voice.

Mace smiled then picked up a sandwich from the plate and started putting food on his plate. 
“Nothing is wrong, Sissy.  Just have a lot on my mind with all the new people moving into town.  So Samson when are your parents moving to town?” 

Adrianna let the conversation die until after lunch then she would take Mace for a walk. 

“They are waiting for everyone to get their affairs settled, plus their house isn’t finished yet.  Jamenson said it would be soon so maybe next month.  Your cousin is fast and with the added people moving into town has helped by giving him more experienced people to help him with the new building,” said Samson. 

Mace liked Roman and Margret Ward.  He
was able to meet them when they came to finalize their plans for their house.  The whole clan is moving to Ashland and houses are being put near the fifty acres of land the Ward Clan purchased. 

Mace sat at the table eating
, trying to be part of the conversation but unable to concentrate.  He needed to leave before he soured everyone’s mood.

“
Dang, I need to come to lunch here more often.  The food was great, guys, but I need to get back to the office to finish up some paperwork.”  Mace started to get up but Cade and Samson already knew what Adrianna had planned for her brother. 

“
Mace, I need to talk to you for a few minutes.  Can you spare your sister a few minutes?” asked Adrianna. 

Mace nodded and followed Adrianna out of the house.  He looked back at Cade and Samson, who gave him the good luck look.

“I thought we would take a walk to Seige Field since the weather is good.” 

Mace didn
’t say anything but walked by his sister toward the field.  Unconsciously, Mace sighed out loud.  Adrianna took her arm and wrapped it around his arm.  As they walked toward Seige Field, Mace had to stop and acknowledge the beauty in the landscape.  The flowers were beautiful with the vibrant colors of summer.  The trees appeared to stretch their limbs high into the sky as if reaching for the clouds.  As the wind blew, the leaves fell slowly to the ground. 
It was magical here
, Mace thought.

“
So, how long are you going to make me wait?” she asked.  Mace looked over at his sister, frowning at her. 

“
Sorry, I was looking at the trees and flowers.  Wait for what?” asked Mace. 

“
Until you tell me what is bothering you,” Adrianna answered. 

Mace sighed then glanced at his sister. 
“I don’t have an answer for you, Sissy.  I don’t know what is wrong with me.  I’m...” 

Adrianna stopped and looked up at her brother. 
“You’re lonely.”  Adrianna waited for Mace to answer.  She could tell he was struggling for an answer.

“
I don’t know what I am.  I can’t even explain it to you.  I don’t know what is wrong, really I don’t,” he replied as Adrianna reached up and caressed his face.  Mace leaned in toward her tender touch.  She soothed him with her kindness.  She always did.  He regretted not sharing all his feelings with his sister, but Adrianna had enough to deal with.