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The Killing Dance :: Гамильтон Лорел
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"So you're alpha, but you're not pack leader."
"We have about half a dozen alphas, male and female. I was Marcus's second in command, his Freki."
"Freki is the name of one of Odin's wolves. Why would second wolf be named after something out of mythology?"
"The pack is very old, Anita. Among ourselves, we are the lukoi. There can be two seconds, Freki and Geri."
"Why the history lesson and the new vocabulary?"
"To outsiders, we keep it simple. But I want you to know who and what we are."
"Lukoi is Greek, right?"
He smiled. "But do you know where it's from?"
"No."
"King Lykaon of Arcadia was a werewolf. He didn't try and hide it. We call ourselves the lukoi in his memory."
"If you're not Freki anymore, what are you?"
"Fenrir, challenger."
"The giant wolf that kills Odin at Ragnarok."
"I'm impressed, not many people would know that."
"Two semesters of comparative religion," I said. "Can a woman be Ulfric?"
"Yes, but it's rare."
"Why?"
"They'd have to win a knock-down drag-out physical battle. All the power in the world won't stop someone from pounding your face into the ground."
I would have liked to argue, but I didn't. He was right. Not because I was female. Small men get their asses kicked, too. Size matters if both people are equally well trained.
"Why don't the female alphas have to duke it out to win the top spot?"
"Because the Ulfric and his lupa are a mating pair, Anita. He doesn't want to get stuck with a woman he can't stand."
I looked at him. "Wait a minute. You're next in line to lead the pack. If you succeed Marcus, do you have to sleep with your lupa?"
"Technically, yes."
"Technically?" I said.
"I won't choose one. I won't sleep with someone just so the pack can feel secure."
"Glad to hear it," I said, "but does that jeopardize your standing in the pack?"
He took a deep breath, and I heard it sigh outward. "I have a lot of support among the pack, but some of them are bothered by my morals. They think I should pick a mate."
"And you won't, because. . of me?"
He glanced at me. "That's a big part of it. It wouldn't be only one time, Anita. An alpha couple binds for life. It's like a marriage. They usually marry each other in real life, not just in the pack."
"I can see why the pack leader gets to pick his mate."
"I've picked my mate," Richard said.
"But I'm not a werewolf.
"So you're alpha, but you're not pack leader."
"We have about half a dozen alphas, male and female. I was Marcus's second in command, his Freki."
"Freki is the name of one of Odin's wolves. Why would second wolf be named after something out of mythology?"
"The pack is very old, Anita. Among ourselves, we are the lukoi. There can be two seconds, Freki and Geri."
"Why the history lesson and the new vocabulary?"
"To outsiders, we keep it simple. But I want you to know who and what we are."
"Lukoi is Greek, right?"
He smiled. "But do you know where it's from?"
"No."
"King Lykaon of Arcadia was a werewolf. He didn't try and hide it. We call ourselves the lukoi in his memory."
"If you're not Freki anymore, what are you?"
"Fenrir, challenger."
"The giant wolf that kills Odin at Ragnarok."
"I'm impressed, not many people would know that."
"Two semesters of comparative religion," I said. "Can a woman be Ulfric?"
"Yes, but it's rare."
"Why?"
"They'd have to win a knock-down drag-out physical battle. All the power in the world won't stop someone from pounding your face into the ground."
I would have liked to argue, but I didn't. He was right. Not because I was female. Small men get their asses kicked, too. Size matters if both people are equally well trained.
"Why don't the female alphas have to duke it out to win the top spot?"
"Because the Ulfric and his lupa are a mating pair, Anita. He doesn't want to get stuck with a woman he can't stand."
I looked at him. "Wait a minute. You're next in line to lead the pack. If you succeed Marcus, do you have to sleep with your lupa?"
"Technically, yes."
"Technically?" I said.
"I won't choose one. I won't sleep with someone just so the pack can feel secure."
"Glad to hear it," I said, "but does that jeopardize your standing in the pack?"
He took a deep breath, and I heard it sigh outward. "I have a lot of support among the pack, but some of them are bothered by my morals. They think I should pick a mate."
"And you won't, because. . of me?"
He glanced at me. "That's a big part of it. It wouldn't be only one time, Anita. An alpha couple binds for life. It's like a marriage. They usually marry each other in real life, not just in the pack."
"I can see why the pack leader gets to pick his mate."
"I've picked my mate," Richard said.
"But I'm not a werewolf.