The Wallflower
Page 22

rosebush. Livia had cuts on her arms and a slash in her right cheek, showing Becky had fought back.
Livia snarled, the warning of one cat to another over prey, and Becky froze.
Emma cocked her hip, hands going to her waist as she tried to still the frantic beating of her heart. She had to hit Livia where she lived, get her to turn on her and get the hell off of Becky before someone died.
“Okay, some of the peroxide must have leaked into your brains to make this seem like a good idea.
What will killing Becky accomplish, other than to piss off Simon and Max and ruin your manicure?” Livia snarled again, but she didn’t tighten her hold on Becky’s throat. Her claws remained poised above Becky’s stomach. Emma racked her brains, trying to think of ways to get Livia’s undivided attention.
“Did you run out of Liversnaps or something? Oh wait, that’s dogs.”
Livia dug her claws into Becky’s stomach, making her gasp. Red beads of blood, black in the night, dribbled down Becky’s sides as Livia released her throat and sat up slowly. Her hand flexed, driving her claws in deeper. “I want the Curana’s ring.”
Emma stared at her, stunned. “A ring does not make you Curana, Livia.”
Livia sneered. “It does to them!” She tossed her head towards the house, indicating all the other Pumas inside. “If they see I took the ring from you, they’ll never acknowledge you as Curana.” She smiled, her fangs glistening in the moonlight. “They’ll see you for the weak, pathetic wallflower you’ve always been.
Max will be mine, like he always should have been; he won’t have a choice. He and I will run the Pride the way it was meant to be run, and you’ll be seen as nothing but the Alpha’s whore.”
Emma nodded thoughtfully. It took everything she had to stay focused on Livia and not her friend.
“Yeah, all of that is true. Except for one thing. Well, two, really.”
“What’s that?”
“One, Max doesn’t want your double-processed skanky ass.”
“Hey! I’m a natural blonde!”
The woman is obviously a few tacos short of a fiesta platter. Emma mentally rolled her eyes. She was so done dealing with Livia. “Two, even without the ring, I am the Curana.” Emma’s power punched out, reaching for the woman in front of her. “Let Becky go. Now.”
Livia whimpered as Emma forced her to do her bidding. Her hand trembled with the force of Emma’s command, her claws slowly, reluctantly withdrawing from Becky’s stomach. She crawled on all fours off of Becky, her shoulders hunched. Emma’s will compelled her away from the bleeding woman.
“Kneel.”
Emma’s command punched out, forcing Livia to her knees. She shook with the need to break free, her breath panting in and out of laboring lungs, but Emma kept her tied to her will.
Out of the corner of her eye, Emma saw Max helping Becky, which left her free to deal with Livia. Or so she thought.
The sound she heard behind her caused the hair on the back of her neck to stand on end. She now knew why pumas had earned the nickname mountain screamer as Simon’s Puma let loose a high-pitched
yowl at the sight of his injured mate. Before Emma could stop him, Simon pounced on Livia, claws extended, and bore her to the ground.
“I should kill you where you lay,” he snarled over her, digging his claws into her stomach in the same exact spot she’d wounded Becky. The scent of blood and fear were thick in the air as Simon leaned down, his canines extending. “I could rip your throat out right now.”
Emma glanced over at Becky and saw her shuddering in fear, held in place only by Max’s arms. “Uh, Simon?” Golden eyes blinded by rage met hers. “You’re scaring the crap out of Becky.”
She watched as he looked over at Becky. The sight of her seemed to calm him somewhat, though his claws never left Livia’s flesh.
“Becky.” Becky jumped at the sound of his voice, moaning as her wounds bled some more. “What would you have me do to her?”
Max’s gasp was audible; in essence, Simon was giving Becky the kill.
“Simon?” It was more of a plea than a question, but for what Emma didn’t know.
“Tell me, Becky. What should Livia’s punishment be for injuring you?”
Becky blinked back tears and stared at Livia. “What is she? What are you?”
“Pumas. Werecats. I’ll explain more later. Right now, you need to decide her punishment.”
Becky looked at Emma, who cringed to see the confusion and hurt on her best friend’s face. “I didn’t know until Max bit me, then I didn’t know if you would believe me or not. But I planned on telling you tomorrow, if Simon didn’t do it first.”
“You’re a…” Becky swallowed hard at Emma’s slow nod. “And they’re…” Emma watched as Becky absorbed the information. When she blew out a hard breath, Emma relaxed. “This is going to cost you a fortune in Tidy Cat.” Becky’s laugh was shaky but Emma knew everything would be all right.
Emma grinned. “What would you like Simon to do with Livia?”
“What can he do with Livia?” Becky asked, staring down at Livia.
“Well, let’s see: she was willing to kill you to get the Curana’s ring, so Simon is well within his rights to rip out her throat.” Emma shrugged. “Wouldn’t be all that big a loss as far as I’m concerned.”
“What the hell is the Curana’s ring?”
“It’s the ring Emma now wears that proclaims she’s my mate and queen,” Max replied, gentling his grip on Becky’s arms as he realized she was reacting to the news far better than he’d expected.
“Whoa. Wait, so I was bait for Emma?”
“Becky, the longer Simon smells the blood, the harder it will be for him to not kill Livia. Decide her fate quickly.”
Becky looked at Livia one last time before staring straight into Simon’s golden eyes. “What is the lowest status a Puma can hold? If Max is king and Emma is queen, is there a lowest of the low?”
“No!” Livia moaned, trying to break free of Simon’s hold. Simon merely dug his claws in deeper while his other hand held her down by her throat.
“Outcast,” he answered. “Someone who’s been made Prideless. She’ll hold no privileges, no responsibilities. She will no longer be welcome at Pride functions or homes. Kits will be taught to avoid her. If she wished for status again she would have to leave, find a Pride willing to take her in and earn it.”