Alpha Omega 02 - Hunting Ground

jumped so high . . .
    It was a warrior’s song. A song of triumph.
    And at the end, despite his early words, the old man did a little soft-shoe. His movements were stiff from sore joints and muscles that were less powerful than they used to be. But graceful still, and full of joy.
    He let go a laugh . . . he let go a laugh . . .
    When Anna finished with a little flourish, the old man took his bows, and she did, too.
    â€œThank you,” she told him. “That was really fun.”
    He took her hand in his own worn hands and patted it. “Thank you, my dear. You brought back the good old days—I’m ashamed to say just how old. You made this man happy on his birthday. I hope that when you are eighty-six, someone makes you happy on your birthday, too.”
    And that won him a second round of applause and shouts of “encore.” The old man shook his head, talked to Anna a bit, then smiled when she nodded. “We just figgered out that we both have a liking for oldies,” he said. “ Except for me they’re not oldies.”
    And he started singing “You’re Nobody ’til Somebody Loves You,” a song Charles hadn’t heard for forty years or more. Anna joined in with the piano after a few beats and let the old man’s trained voice lead her in the dance.
    When they were done, the room burst into applause—and Charles caught a waitress’s attention. He handed her his credit card and told her that he’d like to pay for the old man’s meal and those of his family—in appreciation for the music. She smiled, took his card, and trotted off.
    The old man took Anna’s hand and made her take another bow as well. He kissed her hand, then let his grand-son escort him back to his table in triumph. His family rose around him, fussing and loving as they ought, while he sat as a king and took his due.
    Anna pulled the protective cover over the keys and looked up and saw Charles. She hesitated, and it made his heart hurt that he’d made her afraid of him. But she lifted her chin, her eyes still full of the music, and strolled up to him.
    â€œThank you,” he told her, before she could say anything. He wasn’t sure if he was thanking her for leaving the room when he’d asked, for staying in the restaurant instead of leaving him, or for the music—which had reminded him that this whole thing wasn’t just about the werewolves.
    It was about the humans they shared the country with, too.
    The waitress, who was coming back with his card, overheard what he’d said. “From me, too, Hon,” she told Anna. “It was pretty gloomy in here when you started. Like a funeral.” To Charles she said, “All taken care of. You wanna be anonymous, right?”
    â€œYes,” he said. “It’ll work better that way, don’t you think?”
    She smiled at him, then at Anna, before hurrying off on her way.
    â€œI’m sorry,” he told Anna.
    She gave him an odd, wise look. “No worries. Everything okay?”
    He didn’t know. Mostly that depended upon her. But he knew that wasn’t what she meant. She was asking about the wolves in the next room, so he shrugged. “Mostly. Chastel was always going to be a problem. Maybe by making him back down right now, he’ll be forced to play nice. Sometimes it works that way.”
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    THE music helped. Music usually helped. Making people happy helped even more. When she looked up and saw Charles waiting for her with a small smile on his face, that helped the most. It meant that no one had died, that she hadn’t messed things up too badly for him—and that he wasn’t upset with her.
    He escorted her to the other section, where the wolves awaited them. Chastel was gone. Anna hadn’t noticed him leaving, and she should have, even with her back to the outside door and music under her fingers. It was dangerous not to notice things like that.
    The tables had been moved again until there was one long table in the middle of the room. There were three big plates of food, one full and two mostly gone.
    They weren’t suddenly all buddies. Spanish wolves sat on one side of the table, French on the other. The British werewolf took up one end of the table and there were two place settings that hadn’t been used at the head.
    â€œIt seemed a shame to have come all the way here and not try the food,” murmured Charles, one hand