“What’s your business, fur back?” the man growled, obviously picking up the bear scent from the car.
“My name is Niall McNally. I’d like a meeting with your Alpha.”
“And you think you can just roll up to our club and demand that?” the man said.
“No. I am demanding nothing. I am making a request to have a meeting that would be beneficial to both your clan and mine.”
“Dragons don’t need bears for anything more than a meal,” the man replied.
Niall was having a tough time controlling his temper with being talked down to by a lower-ranking shifter, but it wasn’t in his best interest to start a fight he and Ronan could definitely not win.
“Fair play, but I’d still appreciate the request being made,” he said.
There was a crackle on the radio that sat on his hip and a deep voice spoke from it. Niall took note of the two way video transmitter. It would seem he’d been making his request directly to the Alpha without realizing it.
“Bring them in,” the voice said.
“You heard him. Get out of the car and wait to be patted down,” the guard told him.
“No need, Braxton. I know this bear’s father.”
Niall looked at the radio, a puzzled expression on his face at how he could possibly recognize him from when he was a boy here, then he realized it wasn’t his face, but the fact that he’d given his name.
“Let’s go,” Braxton told him, motioning for he and Ronan to step out of the car and follow.
“This place is beautiful,” Ronan observed aloud as they stepped inside.
“Business is good,” an elderly man replied as he exited a door to one side of the massive lobby and took a few steps toward them. “Step into my office, and we’ll talk.”
The two of them followed him, taking a seat at the long stone table inside. Everything in the room looked as if it had been there for centuries. There were swords, armor, and assorted pieces of silver all about the room.
“The fruits of coming from ancestors who lived beneath castles guarding the wares,” the man said, noting their gaze.
“Of course,” Niall replied.
“I’m Alastair Greyscales, the Alpha of this clan. I know you are Niall, and I assume this is one of your brothers?”
“Yes. My youngest brother, Ronan.”
“You are not the oldest, though. How did you come to be Alpha?”
“It’s a long story, but our Alpha has been passed down to me from my older brothers in order to reclaim our birthright in Ireland and protect our family in America.”
“Ah, yes. I was sorry to hear about your father’s death there. Word on the street is that you are the one who killed Sorley Maguire, so I assume you have come here to finish what you started?”
“I did not personally kill Sorley, but I was there. As for the rest, you assume correctly,” Niall replied.
“One of your brothers then. Which one?” he pressed.
“I don’t see how that has any bearing on my visit here.”
“You’ve come here to ask for my help, yes? In order for me to even consider that, I need full disclosure between us. Which brother killed Sorley?”
“Olcan. He was Alpha when it took place,” Niall replied, garnering a sideways glance from Ronan.
“No Fergus then? Word is that Sorley went there to destroy him and take over your family,” he said.
“He did, but he encountered Olcan instead,” Niall replied.
“I see. Okay. What is it that you think the Silver Scales can do for you?”
“We need backup after I take out Trill as head of the Maguire family,” he said.
“You really believe you can pick off the Alpha of another clan and we’ll stand with you? Why would we do that?”
“You wouldn’t. I’m not here to ask you to help. I’m here to ask for your help in getting dragon clans in the south to help us. Any and all that might be willing.”
“They would only ask you the same. Why would they do such a thing? There has been nothing but peace between their clans and the Maguires for decades. Even when Maguire took out all of the bear clans around him, he never interfered with non-bear factions.”
“Sorley didn’t, but Trill will. He has plans to begin picking off local clans just like his predecessor did the bears before.”
Greyscales laughed and shook his head. “They’ll eat him alive. Literally.”
“I wouldn’t be so quick to underestimate him, Alpha. He doesn’t adhere to the old ways. You’ll find yourself pitted against technology, weaponry. The old edicts requiring hand-to-hand combat mean nothing to him. He makes other clans follow the old ways, but he does whatever he has to in order to come out the victor.”
“Perhaps, but dragons will never cower against even that sort of warfare. Bears are no match for even the smallest among us, weapons, or no weapons. We are not without our own weapons.”