The Porch Wolf Ch. 31-40

"And then she had chocolate cake and ice cream for dessert."

I could sense his amusement over the link. "We need to take Vicki out running again to work off those calories."

"School starts in the morning, she'll burn it off with the others." I was serious about her not returning to public school, and this weekend had solved the problem completely. The wolves of the former Welch Pack homeschooled through fifth grade, and Vicki would slide in with them. Paul and Lois Temple would resume the Pack school, which would move to my basement. Their classroom lessons would be alternated with wolf training that Anita and some of the other ladies would supervise in the woods on my property.

"We're heading home now. Take care of your mate."

"Of course, Alpha." By the time we turned onto Highway 61, Vicki was asleep, and I was drowsy. I updated everyone that Brent and Liv would be back late. "Adrienne, what are your plans for tomorrow?"

"I hadn't thought about it," she said. "What are you doing?"

"I need to go to the construction office and start cleaning up the mess," I said. "I need to let all my subcontractors, suppliers and customers know that I'm back in charge before they move on to someone else."

"You should stay with us," Anita said. "We're setting up the Pack school, and we have a lot of work to do with combining Pack funds and duties. I could really use help from you, Larry and Donna to untangle the mess."

"I've not agreed to be your Luna," Adrienne protested.

"She needs your help, not your signature," I replied.

"Fine." Great, she said FINE, which every male knew meant ANYTHING except that she was fine. Oh well. I would use any means, fair or unfair, to win her over. Groveling? Check. Wining and Dining? Double-check. Flowers? Roses set for morning delivery. Cute kiddos? Sharkbait and a half-dozen more in the basement. She'd be back in my bed tonight, this time without her wolf forcing her there.

Vicki would be there too, I was sure. With her mother and Brent out late, she'd want her Alphas. That bond was forming quickly, as the wolves of my mate and heir got closer. I sought to make it impossible for her to leave when her Council job was done. "Adrienne, do you like your Council job?"

"I'm good at It, and the Council needs my help," she quickly replied.

"I understand that, and I know your reputation. That wasn't my question, though."

That kept her quiet, and she watched the town turn into the Cannon Valley as she thought. "I needed the job as much as it needed me," she finally said. "I had too many memories in my Pack, and my son and his mate needed to make their own way as Alphas. Staying busy helped me to recover from the loss. It gave me a reason to get up in the morning."

"I wish I had your strength," I said. "I couldn't even work, and then when I was alone, I did nothing. I wasted away for years, doing just enough to exist. It's going to be a shock to my system when I show up at work in the morning."

"That's the secret, you wake up and work and hope it gets better," she said.

"You make it better," I said. We made it home and went inside; Anita took Vicki upstairs, waking her to take a shower and get dressed in her Finding Nemo pajamas. Adrienne went to her room to get ready for bed. Mike helped me get into my shower, where I could use the bench built into the limestone surround. He helped me into my bed, letting me scoot into the middle. Vicki backed up to me in her sleep, instinctively looking for the warmth and protection of her Alpha.

I set my phone alarm for seven and placed it on the table, turning out the light. A few minutes later, the door opened, and Adrienne walked in. I opened the covers for her and she slid in, her soft flannel pajamas and skin against mine. "I wasn't going to be able to sleep apart from you, not anymore," she said quietly.

"I don't ever want to sleep apart from you. I love you, Adrienne." I didn't know what to expect from that; I knew she was still upset, but I was doing all I could. She rolled towards me, reaching for my lips with her own. They touched, setting off tingles, then more as her hand cupped my cheek. She deepened the kiss, her hand moving around behind my head to pull me closer. I didn't want it to end, but it did.

"Goodnight, Leo." She settled into my side, and I stroked her back lightly as she dropped off to sleep.

My wolf and I were happy, our mate and our heir next to us and sleeping comfortably. It was too perfect to last, and Monday was coming.

Ch. 38

Susan Miller's POV

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Todd's lawyer had met with him following his arrest. The US Attorney's office charged him with two counts of kidnapping, second-degree murder, and four counts of attempted murder from the hit-and-run. Since the arrest had come late in the week, his arraignment would not be until Monday morning, at the Federal Courthouse in Minneapolis. He was facing life in prison.

Saturday

I met with my mate's lawyer the morning; he was a werewolf in the Afton Pack, so we could talk about the unique problems of werewolf incarceration. He'd gotten Todd to sign over power of attorney to me so I could operate the business and banking while he was in prison. That was what gave me the authority to sell Alpha Leo all but five percent of our stake in Volkov Construction.

The picture Jonathan Turner, Esquire, painted about his chances of beating the charges wasn't encouraging. Todd had admitted the hit and run to him, but vehemently denied anything to do with the kidnapping. "Even with attorney-client privilege, he says he was set up," Jonathan said. "He has no idea where the phone and the money came from. It's going to be difficult for me to prove he was framed since the desk is his, and his office is always locked. Then he went after the targets again with a dump truck."

"Will he be granted bail?"

"It's unlikely given the seriousness of the charges. If the judge grants it, it will be a high amount, five to ten million dollars. You'll have to come up with ten percent in cash to cover the bail bond."

"It wouldn't matter if it was five hundred thousand. I don't have any money, we're almost bankrupt," I told the lawyer. "The house is mortgaged to the hilt, and our credit cards just got maxed out with your retainer."

He nodded. "It's probably best that he remain there for now. Alpha Leo wants his pelt above his fireplace, and the Council can't be happy with him either. Monday morning, the charges are formally entered. He'll give the judge his not guilty plea, and a court date will be set for a few months down the road."

"The construction company will go bankrupt before the trial, and I'll have nothing," I said sadly.

"I'm sorry, Susan. The retainer covers the cost of my services, but a trial is going to be much more expensive. He really should consider a plea bargain when it is time, or he'll never get out."

"What does jail do to a werewolf?" I'd heard stories, but I'd never had to deal with something like this.

"It slowly kills them. With the cameras and the cramped quarters, you can't shift. You're also separated from your Alpha and your Pack. If we don't intervene, his wolf will slowly die over the next few years. We can't allow that to happen, as there is a chance it goes feral and shifts among them. At some point, they have to be taken out if they don't kill themselves first."

I nodded. "That is why we don't imprison our guilty. We kill them quickly and quietly."

"In part. The werewolf society can't incarcerate a wolf long-term and expect to get a functioning member back. If Todd hadn't been arrested, he'd be facing Council trial and execution by tomorrow. He attacked a fellow Alpha without proper notice and challenge, and he caused the forced change of a human. Both of those acts carry the death penalty with the Council."

"So, what do we do?"

"We worry about the arraignment first."

Sunday afternoon

I felt a lot better after my meetings with the Council and Alpha Leo. The deal he offered was beyond generous for my children and me, but the price would be high for Todd. He would have to plead to something he did not do. For once in his life, he would have to sacrifice for the greater good.

I didn't know if he would do it. Todd was my mate, but that didn't blind me to the kind of person he was. He manipulated and schemed to get to where he was, and he was good at it. I parked at Fort Snelling and got on the light rail into Minneapolis, getting out at the Hennepin County Government Center. Moving into the retail buildings nearby, I found a spot on the skyway where I could sit and look at my phone. No one passing by would ever know that I was mentally communicating with my mate and husband, in a jail a few blocks away. "Todd? Can you hear me?"

The answer was immediate. "Susan, FINALLY. Where are you?"

"In the skyway a few blocks away. How are you?"

"Frustrated and pissed off. My lawyer can't get arraignment until tomorrow, so I've been stuck with these lowlifes all weekend. You have to get me out of here."

"I'm not sure I can, Todd. I talked to your lawyer, and he thinks you will be denied bail."

"That's bullshit. Get the money ready."

He was delusional. "WHAT money? Tell me where the hell I'm going to come up with a half-million in cash, maybe more? The company is going bankrupt, and you've already borrowed against all the equity in our home. I don't know how the kids and I are going to live while you are in prison, Todd! The Pack is gone, everyone is leaving, and I'm stuck with the bills. We will be living out of our car before your trial even starts!"

He didn't say anything for a while. "Ungrateful bastards. They should be raising money to get me out."

"They're scared and pissed off at what you did. The Council is here now, and they aren't happy that our conflicts are spilling out into the human world. They want it fixed quickly and quietly. They've already spoken to Alpha Leo."

I could sense his anger as that name went to him. "Fucking has-been Alpha Leo, screwing up everything. Why couldn't he just die after losing his mate like everyone else? It's all his fault, him and his brother." He didn't say anything for a bit. "If Ivan could have kept his dick in his pants after getting mated, there would not have been a problem here. I tried to kill that guy for you, and for the Pack."

"Killing a little girl and her human mother is somehow supposed to be good for the Pack? It's RUINED us, Todd! No Pack will touch us now."

"The money Luna Brenda offered for her death would have kept the business solvent until spring. If the boys had finished the job down in the ravine, we'd have the money already. Alpha Leo hadn't been recognized by the Council formally, so they'd get over that."

I just shook my head. "They aren't 'getting over' anything, Todd. The Chairman is here with his mediator and his guards. They've already interviewed men that were part of the attack, and they know what you did and why. Luna Brenda has confessed to offering you the money to kill an Alpha and his heir. They are going to try you in absentia, Todd. You won't need bail, you're better off where you are. You will have a death sentence on you in our world if you ever get out of jail."

"They can't do that! I'm an Alpha!"

"Not anymore, my mate. You can't be an Alpha without at least five members, and all you have left is your family." I let him think about that for a bit. "What kind of life will we have with you in jail? No Pack will take us, and with the company in bankruptcy, I'll have NOTHING."

"I'll figure something out," he said. "There has to be a way out of this."

It was time to give him the offer. "I was given an offer, via the Council mediator, that would settle the human involvement in this mess and provide for our family. They want you to plead guilty to all charges, including the kidnapping, and take the prison time."

"WHAT?" I could feel his rage over the bond; he was probably hitting or breaking something right now. I waited calmly for almost ten minutes before he came back to me. "I didn't order the kidnapping; that is a setup."

"I know you didn't, and so do they, but if the FBI keeps poking around, it will lead places the Council does not want them going. You're guilty of the four counts of attempted murder, and there's nothing we can do about that. Talk to your attorney and get him to work out a plea deal." I kept talking, telling him that he should say he had become obsessed with Olivia after seeing her at Wiederholt's. He had heard of the kidnappers through some ex-cons he'd met. He'd offered ten grand upfront and ten more after delivery to bring Olivia and Vicki to him; Vicki was taken to ensure Olivia cooperated with his plans for her. He never thought they would be stupid enough to kill the grandmother. The hit and run was a target of opportunity; he'd seen Liv with Leo at Wiederholt's that Tuesday. Leo had saved the two, and now they looked very friendly with each other. If he couldn't have her, Leo wouldn't either, and he could take out all three at once as they went home.

"That's it? All I have to do is confess to enough felonies to keep me behind bars forever, and then what?"

"Then I sell off most of the company before it goes bankrupt. The mortgage on our house gets paid off, and enough debt gets cleared for the company that it has a chance to grow again."

He didn't say anything for a bit. "Who is buying my part of the company?"

"Leo Volkov." If I thought he was mad before, he was worse now. It took fifteen minutes this time before he came back to me. "Most of the Welch Pack is now with him. He agreed to let us stay in the Pack, and I can keep working in the office. With the mortgage paid down, we won't have to sell our home. All we need to do in return is for you to plead guilty."

"No FUCKING way. Not Leo. He doesn't get to win. I'll die before I let that bastard have his company back. Susan, you are FORBIDDEN from having anything to do with Alpha Leo or the Miesville Pack."

That asshole was going to ruin it all. "It's the ONLY WAY, Todd! If we don't grab this lifeline, you're dead, I'm broke, and the kids and I are on the street! Is that what you want?"

"I want you to kill Leo and Vicki, Susan. Finish the job. If they die while I'm in jail, the lawyer can use that to show that I'm innocent." I didn't know how to respond. "It's the only way we can be together again."

Ch. 39

Vicki woke up first, getting up and quietly leaving the room. My alarm went off a few minutes later; it was Monday. For the first time in years, I was going to work.

Adrienne rolled over and grabbed my phone off the side table, turning it off. "Morning," she said.

"Good morning, love," I replied. It had been another restful night, no nightmares or waking up. She helped me sit up, removing the arm immobilizer. I moved my shoulder around, and there was soreness but no pain. "At least I can start using this arm now," I said.

"Keep it in the sling unless you need it out, and it will heal faster," she said as she helped me into my scooter. "When do you change to a walking boot?"

"I have an appointment Wednesday," I said. She went to her room to get ready while I went into the bathroom and did the same. When I got out to the table, Donna was serving pancakes and bacon to Sharkbait, Larry, Mike, and Anita. I ruffled the girl's hair as I drove by. "Excited for the start of school," I asked.

"Pack school!" I pulled into the open spot as Vicki told me about the classroom downstairs that had been put together. "No more bus rides!" I was happy that the new Pack would be doing homeschooling, at least for the younger pups. It was hard to teach all the classes and have all the sports and extracurricular activities in middle and high school, we sent them to public school then.

Liv and Brent came downstairs towards the end of the meal and sat down after both kissed and hugged Vicki. "The meeting with your Mom went well," I asked.

"Better than I thought it would go," Liv said. "Mom wants to be part of our lives again, and the two of us have made up, but it's far from the end of the story. She has to convince Dad, and before that, she has to visit her sister in Duluth. If she doesn't, Dad will be very upset that she lied to him."

"Why haven't you kept in touch with your aunt," Larry said.

"My father has four brothers, my aunt is married to the youngest," Liv said. "When Dad disowned me, he tried to make sure I had no one else in the family to run to. He told them that it was them or me. The only one he couldn't control was Grandmother; she lost touch with both her daughters after taking me in."

"That's messed up," I said.

"Appearances are everything to my father."

"I'm surprised he didn't put you in the stocks, flog you and then make you wear a scarlet A. Does anything change now that media has told everyone you are a single mom?" She shrugged her shoulders. All this because a college girl made a mistake being with a married man, then kept the baby. "I imagine she's not going to have an easy time convincing your father to let you back in."

"She knows. Dad is rigid in his ways. Changing his mind now would be admitting he was wrong."

I just shook my head. I noticed Vicki had been following along with the conversation. "Will she be my Grandma?"

"She wants to see you too. I invited Grandmother to stop by the house on her way up to Duluth," Liv said. "She should be here in an hour or so."

I'd be gone by then. "What are you planning to tell your Mom?"

"None of the werewolf stuff, obviously. I thought I would take Mom up to the apartment and show her where Vicki and I live. Brent doesn't have anything up there, and we won't mention he's living in the house. It's hard enough knowing we're getting married soon."

I nodded. "All the other students will be arriving then, so we'll get them downstairs quickly and let Sharkbait stay upstairs with you. No shifting, obviously. Vicki, you need to be careful with what you say about your school and your life here. No mentioning Packs, wolves, or shifting."

"I know, Unky Leo. Mommy told me."

Liv looked over at me. "What do I say about you? Or my work?"

"Work is on hold until things settle down," I said. "As for me, I'm related through Vicki, and I'm helping you both out. It helps that I've known you for years." We finished up the guys helped me out to the garage. Adrienne's rental car was in my bay; my truck was totaled, but I hadn't picked out a replacement yet. There wasn't much of a point until I could drive. After I got in, they loaded the scooter in the back of the sport-utility, and we started driving towards Red Wing.

As we pulled through the fence into the parking lot of Volkov Construction, I started to get a little emotional. I remembered every aspect of this, from clearing the lot to furnishing the office. I could see a few cars here already as we parked. "Susan is here," I said.

"Good, you have a lot of work to do in there," Adrienne replied. That was true; when I entered the office, three Pack members were waiting with Susan for me. Luis Hernandez, who did drywall and roofing, was sitting in the corner with his McDonald's bag. Rufus Washington was leaning against the wall; he is our plumbing supervisor. Craig Price, our Site Foreman, was at his desk next to mine, with Susan at her reception desk by the door. "Good morning, everyone," Adrienne said as she held the door for me.