Come Out Swinging (Reach for the Moon Book 2), Sam Hall [leveled readers .TXT] 📗

“What the actual fuck…?” I whispered, my lips feeling numb as they moved.

“I understand that there’s been a deviation from the usual way of doing things,” Nance said, sounding oh, so reasonable. “Paige came back to town in what ended up being tragic circumstances. After being estranged for so long, I’m sure the combined sadness and guilt—”

“Oh fuck, she actually fucking went there,” Lorcan hissed.

“—has made it difficult for her to manage the succession, especially as the true nature of her…affliction became apparent. But I guess going away to the city has filled her head with some…new ideas.”

“That cunning fucking bitch,” Zack whispered.

“Fights for leadership, multiple mates…” I knew my aunt was quite the actor, but the expression of sheer disgust rising and then being smoothed away was probably the most honest thing I’d ever seen on her face. As I turned around, scanning the crowd, I saw an echo of it in at least a few faces. “Well, I don’t know about you, but I was raised to believe in history, in the processes that have always kept this pack strong. I believe in the succession in the hands of a legitimate heir, one that will uphold our traditions and select a strong leader who’s well suited to become alpha of this town. There’s no need for convoluted fights or human voting.” She beamed as she gestured to Selma and Aidan, clutching each other like some kind of couple in a 1950s romance film. “The legacy of the Spehr family will be retained, and along with it, the strength and wellbeing of the town.”

My skin prickled with cold sweat as I heard her dominance twine through her words, not in an overt way, but sinuous and seductive as a siren’s call.

“While the Spehr’s prevail, so does the town. When we are strong, you are strong.”

Fuck, Nance missed her calling, mucking around as spare heir in a small town. There were a lot of human politicians who would’ve loved to have her as a tool in their arsenal.

“You’ve got to do something about this,” Zack growled out low and intense. “You can’t let this stand.”

“How long have they been playing this fucking game?” Lorcan asked in horror. “What kinda Manchurian Candidate bullshit is this?”

I meant to find out.

I jerked myself to my feet, finding my hands slow clapping as I walked forward, and a moment of naked dislike coloured my aunt’s face before she restored her mask. I wanted to make clear what I thought of her, of her fucking machinations, of her little petty games, but the fact that Ms Forest, my year one teacher, always used a staccato clap to get our attention when we were in primary school would surely work just as well here. Nance fell silent, which was a blessing in itself, and Mr Peters eyes glittering with… What was it? What lurked within those amber depths? Something…hungry, desperate. I filed that little titbit away for later, much later.

“Aunt Nancy.” I said her name just as she’d told me to back in Dad’s office, an office I now confirmed she must have raided or sent someone in to do so. Was it Aidan? He didn’t look up at me once, his eyes trained on Selma which, apart from the fact she was fucking gay, was a giveaway in itself. No one just stood there gazing down at their loved one like that. “You speak of tradition, but Selma is your younger daughter. If something untoward happened to me…” I paused, staring into her eyes, making damn clear I knew what the likelihood of that was. “Well, if something else happened apart from someone breaking into the alpha residence and bashing me in the head with a baseball bat.” Gasps all round at that. “If someone managed to kill me this time, then the law of succession means Bridge would be next in line.”

“My eldest daughter is disqualified from the law of succession.” She turned away from me because, after all, I wasn’t her audience, was I? “I spoke to her first, of course, about the need for a more…suitable heir. In light of what was happening, or perhaps it was just time to let me know…” Her smile was the perfect picture of tremulous pride. “My Bridget came out to me as gay. She’s been completing her university qualification by long distance, but due to her recent revelation and of the terrible prejudice our young LBGQT youth face in small towns…”

Nance blathered some utter fucking bullshit as my blood ran ice cold. I was frozen to the spot, unable to lift my hands and wrap them around her creepy fucking throat and choke the life out of her like she deserved. I’d been blundering around, thinking maybe Nance, maybe Selma, maybe… There was no fucking maybe. Something had been in play for some time in this town, and all the cards were starting to fall. Dad’s, Bridge’s… Was she dead too, discarded in some ditch, a pawn that would not be moved so it was swept from the board? My heartbeat thundered in my ears, the beats so fast, they blended together.

That fucking bitch, she was gonna go down screaming for this.

But first, the dumb game I was caught up in. I scanned the crowd, met the eyes of my grandmother, of my aunts, and they all nodded slowly, as if to send me a shot of moral support, no matter what stupid thing I was about to do. And it was indeed, stupid.

“Of course, if you want to stick to the way things were, keep shoring up the Spehrs’ hold over this town, then feel free to support this…interesting choice of a couple. But remember, no matter what someone with the same last name as me tells you, this is your town. The businesses thrive because of you, the streets are quiet and safe because of you. You can leave your car or your front door unlocked, you can walk safely at night, not