“Who is he?” They were standing in the middle of the street, facing each other, and Amelia was lost in Seth’s purple eyes. However, it was the first time she was more interested in what he had to say about her husband, than in his handsome face and smooth voice. A chill ran up her spine when she realized how devoted Seth was to Roman’s son. His posture, his smile, the spark in his eyes, everything showed… Amelia couldn’t quite put her finger on it.
“He’s the man who will restore the order and reunite the clan. He is the Inari who will bring back the good name to the entire fox faction.”
Passion. That was the word. Passion. Only by listening to Seth’s words, Amelia almost felt the same thing for the husband she had yet to meet.
“How… how many tails does he have?” She wasn’t sure it was appropriate to ask something like this. Surely, Blake Sylfur had to have more tails than his father if Seth was so convinced none of the other Alphas could stand up to him.
Seth huffed. “You’ll have to ask him yourself.” He resumed walking, and Amelia had to catch up with him. They were nearing the docks and the smell of fish was stronger here.
“There’s something I don’t understand,” Amelia said. “The fox-shifters are known for buying the greatest number of brides, so how come Roman Sylfur ended up having a single heir?”
“Yeah, it’s ironic, isn’t it?”
Amelia waited for him to continue. Her attention was distracted by two big, white foxes that came running out of the forest which was stretching behind the houses on the left side of the street, up to the mountain. “Oh wow…” she thought. Of course the foxes of Clan Sylfur would be white. They lived near the North Pole, she just hadn’t put two and two together. She stared at Seth’s wide back and wondered what he looked like in his fox form.
“Roman loved one woman only and never took another bride after she died. She was Blake’s mother. His refusal to take other brides was one of the things which made his brothers respect him less. They saw it as a sign of weakness and as a sort of betrayal when they themselves took bride after bride and had many sons and daughters. I guess you could say Clan Sylfur is so numerous thanks to them. They feel any of them or their sons has more rights than Blake to become main Inari.”
Amelia was starting to make sense of the story. She still didn’t understand why it was so important for Blake to get married before taking his position as the Alpha. Maybe it wasn’t as important to him as it was to his father. Now she didn’t know whom she was dying to meet first: Roman or Blake? They sounded so mysterious and fascinating. She would probably meet them both today, however. They reached the shore and stopped to admire the beautiful view. It was the busiest part of town. Men were busy with nets and fishing rods, and children were running along the shore and playing in the water while their mothers kept an eye on them. The two werefoxes Amelia had seen a few minutes ago were tumbling and rolling on the ground, playfully growling and biting each other. She smiled thinking they were probably mates. Yes, she would like it here. The atmosphere was relaxed, and everyone around her chatted lightheartedly. A couple of people approached them, and Seth introduced her as Blake’s bride, which made their eyes grow wide like saucers and their lips form surprised “oh”s. They all seemed very happy to meet her, but Amelia couldn’t help thinking about what Seth had just told her about the silent tension between the earths of Clan Sylfur. Were they really that excited about her presence here, or were they just pretending? She couldn’t tell if they were friends or foes.
Seth watched Amelia shake hands and accept compliments with a pleasant smile on her pretty face. She was doing great. Blake had asked him to walk her through town and observe her behavior, the way she talked and interacted with the members of his clan. He wanted to know if she was cut out to be the Alpha bride he needed, and Seth couldn’t wait to tell him for the second time that she was.
“I’m kind of hungry.”
Her words snapped him out of his thoughts. Amelia had managed to make her way out of the small crowd of people who had gathered to welcome her to Ekviknuna and was now looking at him hopefully.
“Right,” he said. “Right. There’s one more thing I want to show you, and then we can go back to the mansion.”
“What?” She followed him along the shore, past the two werefoxes that were now lying lazily in the sun, then up towards the forest.
“Only Roman, Blake, and their servants live at the mansion. And now you, of course. I’m going to show you where you can find me in case you need me.”
“Oh… And Aaron?”
“His house is right across the street from yours. He lives with the second Ninko and his mate, Elena.”
“His mate is a vixen?”
“Yeah… not all fox-shifters want human brides.?
??
“But I thought…”
“Most of them, but not all.” Seth gave her an indulgent smile. It sucked how the fox-shifters’ habit of taking human brides for all the members of their earths had ruined the reputation of the entire faction in the humans’ eyes. This was one of the things he hoped Blake would take care of. “Anyway, this is it.” He stopped in front of a small cabin strategically placed in the middle of a clearing. The narrow courtyard was surrounded by a hedge, and there was also a shed where Amelia thought Seth kept his tools and fire wood. “It’s not much…”
Amelia heard the reluctance in his voice. “Oh, what are you talking about? It’s so cute and cozy. I love it!” And she did, but she couldn’t understand how or why the Beta of such a powerful fox clan would choose to live in a wooden cabin in the forest when shifters who held lower rankings lived in much bigger and luxurious houses. “Isn’t it… a bit far from your Inari?” Also, the Beta should always stay close to his Alpha.
“It is, and Roman never liked that.” His gaze wandered around the forest and he took a deep breath. He held the air in his lungs, his strong chest swelling up with the pressure and drawing Amelia’s attention. He let it out slowly, then turned to look at her. His handsome features were more relaxed and his eyes were almost warm. “I lived in Ekviknuna for many years and hated it. With so many people around, you rarely get any peace and privacy. But here…” he made a wide gesture towards the cabin. “I have the forest, the river within ten minutes walking distance, no one disturbs me unless it’s really important… what more could I ask for? We’ve got mobile phones and pretty good signal, so Roman and Blake can easily reach me anytime they need me.”
“I guess…”
“By the way, I left your phone on the desk. You have my number, Roman’s and Blake’s.”
Amelia smiled. She doubted she would need it anytime soon. “So, when am I going to meet them?”
“You said you’re hungry.”
Amelia looked up at the sun. “It’s past lunch time.”