JULIUS

 

Donovan dealt with Seth and his gang once before. The incident was over quickly but it was enough to learn all there was to know about them. A violent group of hyenas who treated Pandora like it was the forest. Seth was the kind of man who still viewed himself as a predator living out in the wild and citizens in Dirge were just prey.

He wasn’t the only one. The gangs that roamed the slums wanted to show their dominance.

After what he’d done to Tristan, he’d gotten my attention. Now I was intent on making an example out of him.

It was later in the evening when I headed back to the slums of Pandora. Tristan stayed behind at Donovan’s mansion with his husband Lucas watching over him.

Donovan and I were alone but even if I didn’t have him by my side, I would have gone by myself. He was just along for the ride.

“Are you sure you want to do this?”

Donovan raised an eyebrow at me. He was reserved most of the time, so when I saw the curiosity on his face, I knew his question was sincere.

“You know I do,” I said. “We’ve already been over this.”

“That was when your Omega was near.”

“What difference does it make if Tristan is here or not? My answer is still the same.”

“I thought it was some false bravado you were putting up.”

“False bravado… You know better than to say something like that. What if it was Lucas who was hurt? Would you not do anything to make the person responsible for it pay?”

“There’s no question I would.”

“Then you understand—”

“But… I’m not the mayor of the city. What will the people think when they see a man of your stature at his most primal state, dealing with a bunch of thugs in the slums?”

I considered his question for a moment. I had to be the representative of the city that everybody thought I would be.

“We will get away from who we are on the inside,” I said. “We don’t have to be wild, untamed animals. We are men. That’s who we are more than anything else. When I’m through with Seth and his gang, the other wild packs in Pandora will understand. I will make it clear to everybody.”

Donovan stared forward, not saying a word to me.

“Do you doubt that I’ll do this?” I said.

“No. I don’t doubt you at all. And I think that’s some room for concern.”

“The only one who needs to be concerned about anything is Seth.”

It was later in the day when Donovan and I headed back to the slums. The sky was growing dark and the clouds were forming.

Donovan’s driver brought us to Pandora and to the destination Donovan told me he had been to once before.

The Black Stone was a motorcycle club that Seth was the leader of. They were little different from any wild pack you would find roaming the Timberlands. The only difference was the leather and boots they wore and the bikes they rode.

I stepped out of the car and looked up at the bar in front of me. Just a quick glance at the place was enough to tell me how unsavory it was inside.

“I’ll do all of the talking,” I said.

“You’re the mayor. I wouldn’t expect anything otherwise,” Donovan responded.

He gave me a confident smirk. I turned to the bar and marched through the doors.

As soon as I stepped inside, I was hit with a waft of smoke in the face. The smell of cheap alcohol filled my nostrils. The wood paneling on the walls was falling off. The floorboards creaked with every step. The lights were dimmed by the combination of smoke and dust near the ceiling. There was some music playing in the background but it was drowned out by the loud conversations.

The people were what you would expect out here in the slums. The Alphas were rowdier than usual. Uninhibited, they laughed and joked at each other like they were above the law. The leather vests they wore indicated they were all a part of the same group.

The Black Stone’s numbers were larger than any pack you’d find in the Timberlands. Even if a single man wasn’t formidable, there were enough of them to make any man feel uneasy just being near them.

I moved into the bar and more people started to look in my direction. I suppose it didn’t help that a man in an expensive suit like Donovan was walking behind me. I didn’t care though. None of them were going to stop me from finding the man I was looking for.

I spotted him quickly.

Seth.

The bald-headed punk was leaning up against the wall, smoking a cigarette with a couple of his brethren right next to him. I made a beeline straight to him. As soon as I got within a few steps of him, he took notice of me. His men blocked my path and stopped me from getting any closer.

“Well, well,” Seth said. “Look who we have here. The mayor has graced us with his presence.”

There was a cocky smirk on his face. It was taking everything I could to hold back all of the anger and frustration I had burning inside of me. All I could think about was what he did to Tristan.

“What brings you here?” he asked.

“We have business,” I said.

“You’re right. We do have business to discuss.”

“There’s nothing to discuss. We only have business to settle. Nothing more.”

That smirk still on his face, Seth ordered his men to move aside.

“It’s all right,” he said. “The mayor would never punch a man out. It wouldn’t be very… civilized of him. He knows better…”

Seth’s men moved and he took a step closer to me. I could smell all of the smoke and cheap alcohol on his leather. I looked him right in the eye, my jaw clenched as I continued to restrain myself.

“You can’t change us,” he said. “We came from the Timberlands. Why would you want to turn Dirge into something so… sterile?”

“Dirge was established by our ancestors so that we could all live a better life,” I said. “You’re not a predator. You can’t treat people in this town like they’re your prey. Violent packs are a thing of the past. You’re a relic, Seth. It’s over.”

“It’s not over. It’s never over. Not until I say it is.”

“That’s not your decision to make.”

“And whose decision is it? Yours?”

Seth widened his eyes at me. Despite the smile on his face, his intentions couldn’t have been more obvious.

“I didn’t elect you to be my mayor,” he said. “I’m not interested in following any of your rules.”

“The people in this town deserve to live in peace. Even those living in Pandora should feel safe walking down the streets.”

“It was never safe for us walking through the Timberlands. Now you—”

“We’re not in the Timberlands any longer.”

Seth took a step back from me. He looked around the bar and hollered to gather everybody’s attention.

“You hear that, everybody?” he announced. “The mayor here says that he wants to end our way of life. The Black Stone can do whatever the fuck they want. The mayor here isn’t too happy about it. What do you think?”

The entire bar was silent. Everybody was focused on Seth.

“I’ll tell you what they think,” he said as he turned back to me. “You’re a joke, Mayor. You can’t expect us not to acknowledge the animals in our hearts. You’re living in a fairytale.”

“You want to live like our ancestors did in the Timberlands all those years ago. Fine, then I’ll treat you like they did.”

I looked around the bar. There were more gang members than I could count. But all I could think about was Tristan. That was enough to give me the resolve I needed.

“I challenge you, Seth,” I said. “I challenge you and your entire club.”

Seth’s eyes widened in surprise. He just stared at me. Then he chuckled softly.

“You can’t be serious—”

“I’m serious,” I said. “I’ll put you and your entire club in place. Once that happens, there’ll be nothing left of you or any other gang that thinks about causing problems in this city. I’m the mayor of Dirge. I will do whatever it takes to keep this city safe.”

Seth took another step closer to me. There was no smile on his lips. There was no humor in his eyes. He just stared at me, stone-faced.

“When I’m through with you, Dirge will be my city,” he said. “The Black Stone will roam free like our people were meant to do.”

“When I’m through with you, Dirge will be everybody’s city.”

“You’ll never find the peace you’re looking for, Mayor.”

“It’s already here. I’ll make that clear to you and the rest of your pack soon enough.”

Seth held his index finger up.

“You’ve got one night,” he said. “Make your final arrangements. Enjoy your Dirge while you still can.”

Seth moved away from me and turned his back.

Donovan suddenly put a hand on my shoulder.

“Come on,” he said. “Let’s go.”

Looking back into his eyes calmed the fury that was burning in my heart. I nodded to him and sighed through my nose before stepping out of the bar.

We stood on the sidewalk next to each other. I looked up at the moon beginning to shine brighter in the sky.

“I can’t remember the last time I remember someone issuing a challenge like that,” Donovan said. “At least, not in Dirge.”

“It’ll be the last time it happens. I’ll get through to Seth and everybody else who thinks about challenging the sanctity of the peace in Dirge.”