Puma Pride, page 31
“It does,” Brady admitted. “We’ll invest in bullet proof vests and other protective equipment.”
“She’ll need both men and women as her bodyguards,” Marcel said. “Other women won’t come talk to her if she’s surrounded by men all the time.”
“True,” Mia agreed.
“Brady, think of who you want in charge of her protection,” Bryan said.
“Why? I’ll…”
“No,” Bryan said. “You don’t make logical plans when it comes to her.”
“True,” Brady admitted.
“We need to bring the council in and break the news to them,” Mia said. “But until we resolve the issues, I don’t want you to traipse off to another compound.”
“Also, we need to remember your safety is a concern,” Bryan said.
“You’re sure this guy wants you,” Marcel asked.
“Because of my ancestry,” Mia said.
“With you being pregnant, he will make more of an effort to get you,” Marcel said. “Pregnant females have a whole different makeup biologically.”
“He’d get her and the children,” Bryan’s hands fisted on the table.
“We need to prep for the interview,” Mia said. “Then we’ll work with Captain Okwaho to figure out the next steps with the suspect.”
14
Chet checked each person in the crew matched their id photos. He scanned their equipment for weapons. Daryl loaned them hounds to help. Willie brought some bears with him. Others from the council provided protection for the Puma Compound. It was unprecedented for so many shifters to come together to protect one group.
Selene arrived looking frail and frightened. She and Willie stayed in a room overlooking the center courtyard. She kept to her room until Jolyn tracked her down and coaxed her out. She sat in the library waiting until they got to her interview.
“We have the agenda,” Martha Graham tried to get Chet’s attention.
“Ms. Graham, you were told about our restrictions,” Chet reviewed all the people and equipment.
“I’m sorry, this is the smallest we could manage,” Martha said. She wore her black hair in a conservative bun.
“You did not have a makeup artist on your list,” Chet said.
“My people sent you an updated list two days ago,” Martha said.
“You’re lying,” Chet’s nose wiggled as he scented her. He reached for his com.
“Caught me,” Martha rolled her eyes. “I heard you could tell if someone lied. I meant to email you two days ago but got tied up in another story.”
“Excuse me,” Chet stepped away and spoke in his link. “Yes, sir.” He was quiet a long time. “I’ll let them through, sir.”
“Get clearance,” Martha asked.
“You may bring her in but she will not have as much access as everyone else until our people can clear her.” Chet watched as they reloaded their van.
“You aren’t very trusting, are you,” Martha smiled as his face tightened. “Have I offended you in some way?”
“I’ll escort you when you are ready. You’ll go to the front door you see there,” Chet pointed out the turquoise door which stood out from the surrounding dark brown finish on the building.
“Are you under orders to keep secrets,” Martha asked.
Chet watched the woman as she attempted to get him to say something revealing to her. “You’re a guest in this house, remember to speak respectfully to the alphas.”
“Or what?” Martha asked. “You’re being particularly unfriendly.”
“It is not my job to be friendly,” Chet snorted.
“Is it your nature to be friendly,” Martha asked.
“All set,” Tomas informed her.
“Mr. Stuffy Cat says we’re to go to the turquoise door,” Martha said as she stepped into the van.
“Martha, be nice,” Tomas scolded.
Chet turned and walked back to the front door. He did not like this human. He understood why they planned this. The bits on the news got worse every day. Scandal and drama seemed to be the norm and each one distressed Jolyn and Mia.
After the announcement about Jolyn being the catalyst, everyone wanted to make sure she was happy. Chet still took her down in security training. He didn’t treat her special. She confided in him she appreciated it. Yesterday in training she asked if he’d let her succeed just once. He took her down again and said no, which made her laugh.
He stood in front of the turquoise door when their van pulled up. Opening the door, he stepped back, “This room to the right is where you can set up all your equipment.”
“When do I get to meet,” Martha interrupted Chet.
“Your people are not to go around unescorted,” Chet cut across her question. “We will not allow shots of our entire layout. This is for the safety of our people.”
“With all the break ins,” Tomas asked.
“Yes, we’ve had some close calls,” Chet admitted. “Once you have your equipment here organized, I’ll take you to the alphas.”
“We want to see the women and talk to them without the men,” Martha demanded.
“You believe we would do what all the gossip says,” Chet growled.
“I believe you have less than nice reasons for being so restrictive,” Martha said.
“Then you should address those questions to the alphas,” Mia growled a warning.
“And you are?” Martha demanded.
Mia stared down her nose at the woman who insulted them. “I am Mia Puma, alpha of the Puma Pride. You are here at my invitation. Perhaps you could be less combative with my people and offer an objective perspective of our family.”
“Where’s your mate,” Martha asked. “Doesn’t he control everything?”
Chet snorted and shook his head. Mia raised an eyebrow, “Bryan is busy at the moment. He has a meeting with our managers.”
“He takes care of the businesses…” Martha drew Mia’s attention back to her.
“Perhaps instead of making insulting comments and covertly filming me, you should look at your agenda and see what is on it. I came out of the meeting to greet you. I have other more important things to do if this is a waste of time,” Mia started to turn away.
“Ma’am,” Chet asked
“Escort them…”
“Forgive me,” Martha stepped closer to Mia. “It’s part of our process to try to…”
“Trash your guests,” Mia said. “No. Actually it isn’t. It’s one of the reasons you were chosen for this. I can only assume you have a bias against shifters. Did you take a ride on the wild side and not keep your lover? How disappointing for you.”
Martha looked offended and then laughed. “I deserved that. I’m sorry. There are a lot of assumptions about shifters in general and you in particular.”
“Mommy! Mommy!” Minnie ran across the reception room. “I got an A! I passed my first biology test!”
Mia turned to kneel for her daughter. “Of course, you did. You worked hard to learn all about biology.”
“I can’t wait to start the next section,” Minnie said. “It will be fun.”
“I’ll bet it will be,” Mia hugged Minnie to her.
“Oh!” Minnie realized strangers were in the house. “Are they gonna try to take me too,” she whispered.
“No one will take you,” Mia hugged her close and held on. “We’ll keep you safe.”
“Cause Jolyn’s here now. No other humans helped me,” Minnie started to melt down.
“I know. They didn’t understand,” Mia said. “Now, I think that A deserves two cookies and some milk while you show your score to Starry.”
Minnie gave her mom a big kiss and patted her belly. “Love you,” she ran off to show Starry her score.
Mia watched Minnie run back towards the kitchens.
“What did she mean no other humans helped her,” Martha asked.
“My eight year old daughter was kidnapped. She managed to get herself away from the kidnappers but none of the humans who saw her helped. Not one,” Mia took a deep breath. “Some boys were kicking her simply because she was a shifter. Jolyn stopped them and rescued her.”
“That seems very traumatic,” Martha said. “If you will forgive my assumptions, I’d like to start over and see if we can clear up some misconceptions.”
They spent the morning being shown the public rooms of the compound. As had been agreed on, they showed the rooms but not the layout. They toured the kitchen and met Starry who was her normal grumpy self while she cooked. She shooed camera operators out of the way as she moved around her kitchen.
“Are you professionally trained,” Martha asked.
“I enjoy cooking,” Starry said as she stirred a pot of sauce. “I know how to upsize the meals for a normal sized family to the large number we have here.”
“What are you making? It smells delicious,” Martha complimented Starry.
“Spaghetti and meatballs,” Starry said. “It’s a favorite.”
“Will you share your recipe,” Martha asked.
“No,” Starry said. “Now out of my way.”
“Perhaps we should step out,” Mia grinned. “We do not want to spoil lunch for the Pride.”
“How does all of this work,” Martha asked as they stepped into the large dining room.
“What do you mean,” Mia motioned for her to sit.
Starry huffed out an exasperated grumble as she set a mug of coffee and one of tea on the table.
“Thank you,” Mia touched Starry’s arm. Starry patted Mia’s hand before grumbling the whole way back to the kitchen.
On the table sat sugar and creamer. “No artificial sugars,” Martha asked.
“Do not say that.” Mia glanced towards the kitchen. “If she hears you ask for one, you will get an earful about how chemicals aren’t good for the body.”
“The real stuff or suck it up,” Martha laughed.
“Pretty much,” Mia said.
“You must pay a pretty penny for her services,” Martha asked. Two cameras were set up on tripods.
“Starry will not take anything from us,” Mia shook her head. “We’ve tried multiple times to pay her. She says she loves the Pride and loves to cook so enjoy the fruits of her labor.”
“That’s a nice benefit for your Pride,” Martha said.
“In return for her services, we don’t charge her for room and the other fees our Pride members pay,” Mia said.
“The compound is run like a business,” Martha asked.
“Shifters take in anyone,” Mia said. “There’s a contract which we’ve updated in the last decade since Bryan and I took over. If the member lives in one of the Pride owned places, they get a discount on the rent. If they work for the Pride, like Brady or Chet or our gardeners, they have certain amenities provided to them.”
“Like housing,” Martha asked. She kept her face neutral as she listened. The camera caught every expression.
“Room and board,” Mia agreed. “We take in human or shifter from any group. We call it a Pride because the original family who started this group were cat shifters. Many of our shifters are in fact cat shifters. However, we have others. Before you ask, I will not give you a run down of all of them because they deserve their privacy.”
“What services do you provide,” Martha asked.
“Traditionally we maintain the home, food, and education,” Mia said. “Our kits, children, study what they want and learn as they experience things.”
“Is this how you learned to be an alpha?”
“No. My mother was not an alpha. She was the healer of the Pride. I was not interested in learning to heal,” Mia said.
“How did you become alpha,” Martha asked.
“In the old days, alpha was determined by how strong the leaders were,” Mia said. “If you didn’t like your alpha, you could challenge them and if you won, you became alpha.”
“Is that how you and Bryan became alphas,” Martha raised her eyebrows and curled her lip.
“No,” Mia laughed. “It’s been more than two hundred years since an alpha has been determined by fighting. Bryan trained with his father. He showed an aptitude for it and studied business and management in college. He has a master’s degree in both. I’ve also studied business and human resources. We met in college.”
“Is it true shifters know their mates,” Martha leaned closer.
“It is,” Mia said. “Bryan and I went through a four day courtship.”
“If you recognized he was your mate, why would you wait,” Martha held out her hands.
“Because Bryan demanded and ordered,” Mia smiled as she remembered. “I don’t like to be told what to do. I said no, as was my right, until he asked rather than demanded.”
“Are the males always domineering,” Martha’s disdain came through despite her bland expression.
“No and Bryan wasn’t that way when we met. To be honest, it took us both by surprise,” Mia smiled. “I don’t think either of us were expecting to walk into a classroom and get hit with our mate. He reacted aggressively. I reacted poorly to his aggression.”
“Is this how it always goes when mates meet,” Martha felt disappointed there was no dirt in the story.
“Oh no,” Mia said. “We have all sorts of stories about mating, you could write a lovely romance series out of how mates come together.”
“Do you publish stories like that,” Martha asked surprised.
“Our publishing branch covers a variety of fiction and non-fiction genres,” Mia said. “Shifter and human authors.”
“Tell me the general set up of the Pride,” Martha asked.
“Bryan and I are the alphas. We handle the higher level things for all our interests from political to security,” Mia said. “We have our managers I guess you’d call them. In the old days, they were lieutenants.”
“What sorts of things do they do,” Martha asked.
“Security, maintenance of our home and other buildings, health, food, and so many more,” Mia said.
“It sounds very much like a large corporation,” Martha said. “Why not be just another corporation?”
“Because if a stray cat shifter showed up on my door, I’d take them in and help. It gives the shifters a safe place to go,” Mia said.
“Surely there are places they could go regardless of species,” Martha asked.
“You ask my people how much humans have helped them,” Mia said. “But that’s part of the problem. We have an us and them attitude between humans and shifters. It shouldn’t be that way. We should all be working together to make our world better for everyone.”
“What are you doing to make things work better,” Martha asked.
“This is under discussion,” Mia said. “You see, I was like everyone when it came to humans and shifters. My experiences with humans have not been good. This is an area I need to improve on and we’re exploring it. We’re actively seeking ways to improve relations.”
“Thank you,” Martha smiled. “I think that’s a wrap for this time with you. It will take a bit to break down our equipment and get it moved to the library.”
“I’ll leave you with Chet. He will show you the way to the library,” Mia rose from her seat.
“Will you be in the library with the others,” Martha asked.
“I will but not for the reasons you think. My people are loyal and I trust anything and everything they will say. I want to make sure they are treated right,” Mia said.
Amanda stood close to Joel. “You don’t have to do this,” Jolyn rubbed her back as Joel comforted her.
“I don’t want my family to know where I am,” Amanda said. “They will cause problems.”
“We know,” Jolyn said. “Opt out of this. Someone else will step in.”
“No. I want to represent the Pride. They have done so much for me,” Amanda said. “If it weren’t for them, I’d be in a horrible place.”
“But that doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice your sense of safety,” Brady said.
“Mia’s counting on me,” Amanda said. “I…”
“You do not have to do this,” Mia said. “Joel, take her back to your rooms and tend to her.”
“It’s her decision,” Joel murmured. “I’m here and I’ll defend you to my last breath.”
“Mia, are you sure,” Amanda asked.
“Positive,” Mia rubbed her stomach as it wiggled.
“You, get off your feet right now,” Verity ordered. “Amanda, I do not like the look of you. You go to your room and rest. Don’t argue. You need to take care of yourself and your baby. Joel, see if Starry has some fresh fruit for her.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Joel grinned. “Come on, my love. You can punish me for my last bit of dickishness.”
“I think you like the punishment,” Amanda smiled as she put her hand on his face.
“I like being with you,” he murmured as he led her out of the library.
“Verity, I thought you weren’t coming,” Jolyn said.
“I’m here,” Verity said. “These people better be nice.”
“Don’t count on it,” Mia leaned back and put her feet up on the coffee table.
“Chet was not happy,” Brady commented. “Someone should warn her to be careful how she talks to a large tiger.”
“Or not,” Jolyn curled on the sofa opposite Mia.
“You’ll be her target,” Mia said. “She grilled me in the dining room. It was all about how we got our roles. Do they think we’re still animalistic and violent?”
“They don’t know,” Jolyn said. “Think of the werewolf stories.”
“Will they want a one on one with Jolyn,” Brady asked pacing back and forth until she put out her hand to him.
“It’s on the agenda,” Mia sighed.
“Are we too late,” Cordele asked as she came in carrying Holly.
“Not yet,” Mia said.
Other women in the Pride wandered in and settled. They sat with their mates and talked quietly while they waited.
“Wonder what’s taking so long,” Mia sat up.
Starry arrived annoyed and distressed at being pulled from her kitchen. “I’m sorry this is upsetting you,” Jolyn leaned closer.
“I’m here to make sure they don’t mess with my Pride,” Starry growled. “We haven’t done anything wrong. We’re not at fault and it’s about damn time people understood that.”
