“Bastard,” he growled and punched Burian’s stomach a final time before getting to his feet while Olek’s furry coat rubbed against his leg.
Burian was still catching his breath, and his torn-up arm bled into the snow, but the defeat didn’t manage to cool his head. “You’ll regret this! To fight your own brother over that thing?” He pointed to Ember with his chin. “You know you broke the rules! Again! Has this banishment taught you nothing?”
Yev gritted his teeth, too hot with anger to feel the cold yet. “He’s as much of a thing as you and I, so shut your fucking face before I knock your teeth out,” he said louder, and when he took a step toward Burian the bastard actually leaned back. Wise choice. Burian was scornful about it, but now that the difference in their age no longer mattered like it had when they were still pups, Yev was the stronger wolf, and they both knew it.
“Dad will hear of this,” Burian said coldly, holding his chest.
Had Yev broken some ribs? He sure fucking hoped so.
“Of what?” Yev asked, even though the frost started getting to him at the mention of their Dad. As the leader of the pack, and as their father, he’d always been strict and intolerant of failure. One word from his mouth could keep Yev away from his mom and Olek. Forever.
“Of your secrets! That you didn’t get rid of an outsider who knows about our business, and on top of it, that you haven’t changed at all, and you’re still unnatural! Mom would have been so ashamed to see this!”
An invisible icicle made a hole in Yev’s heart. And then another, but he stayed still, his face slack. In control. But while he could hide his emotions, his true self wanted to change into his wolf form and run home. Bring his mom a little gift—a flower for the table, or a nice-looking stone—the way he used to when he was younger, and when nobody had known of his transgressions.
Yev could sense Radek had shifted back into his human form, when his scent changed, but he hadn’t expected him to speak up.
“He’s not unnatural!” Radek said despite his teeth already chattering from the cold.
“Shut your face,” Burian roared, but Radek continued while Yev’s stomach gradually plummeted, because none of those arguments would matter in the end. The rules were clear. A werewolf male could only form a true bond with a woman. Only a woman could become his mate and permanently change her scent so it was harmonious with her man’s. And only a true mate could be trusted with all pack secrets. End of story. For all Yev knew, there had never been another werewolf like him, and if that wasn’t the case, he’d been killed, forgotten, or lived hiding his true self so deep no one had ever found out.
He’d even sneaked away to speak to the witch about the possibility of making Radek his through her magic, but she’d dismissed him, saying her agreement on werewolf matters was with the pack alpha. Which meant she knew something, but wouldn’t share. Which left Yev at an impasse, since he couldn’t reveal his relationship to Father.
“Lots of animals can be gay. Even wolves!” Radek continued, but Yev shook his head, increasingly frustrated.
“What difference does it make?” he asked before raising his head to look straight into the burning embers Burian had for eyes. “Yeah, I fuck him sometimes. So what? What’s your problem? And don’t even try talking to me about me not being productive to the pack. You’re not like me, and you’re not productive either. I just proved how much of a man I am,” he said, pointing to the bleeding wound on Burian’s arm. “I am an asset to the pack, due to my strength, whether you like it or not!”
“Are you suggesting something’s wrong with my wife?” Burian raised his voice and stepped closer despite the wounds.
Olek shifted this time and pulled on Burian’s other arm, his eyes damp. “He’s not. Let’s go.”
Yev clenched his teeth. There was nothing wrong with Burian’s wife, but werewolves couldn’t always successfully reproduce with humans, and that was that. If Burian was so intent on fathering offspring, he should have chosen a different mate—one who was a were herself. He got to follow his heart, so what gave him the right to push his morals, disguised as pack interest, on others.
“She’s a saint. If I were in her place, I’d have regretted becoming your mate.”
Olek’s bright eyes met his, and this time, Yev’s younger brother seemed angry at him. “Enough! He’s acting like a piece of shit, but you also say one thing and do another, Yev!”
The smell of Radek’s blood only made it harder to focus when all he wanted was to rip apart anything that might threaten his boy.