Trials

Dear Readers,

Here is the last installment of Trials. I had to do a rewrite on a portion of it so it took a bit longer than I meant it to.

I'm working on something else. Hope to post something in the near future.

Enjoy,

KemMyst

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The press was, of course, very interested in anything they could find out about the den complex or its occupants.

Questions were yelled over the walls. "Do you have litters?" "Do you turn at full moon?" Come on, that one had already been answered on the Day of Discovery. "What's raw deer like?" "Have you eaten a dog or cat?" Don't answer that one, they were already being sued for missing pets. "How do you sleep?" "Can you be killed by silver bullets?" Again, already answered due to the deaths of some of the Severn pack in the course of their duties in the police department. "Do you all do it doggie style?" Seriously?

A couple of the younger males had heard a buzzing over the east side of the range and eyed a drone moving across one of the meadows and headed for the house.

The information was relayed ahead and everyone was called indoors. Those outside were to hide, in whatever fashion was best available.

Everyone ran, or hunkered down.

The drone operator had obviously caught sight of one of the adolescents crawling under the low branches of a big pine and drew closer. It hovered in front of the young wolf's hiding place when it was suddenly taken down.

Strong jaws crunched through the camera and superstructure of the drone, rendering it useless. Intermittent images may have been captured at wolf-head-height showing a variety of bushes, trees, and grasses. Then, water.

Jeremy swam into the middle of their small lake and let go, watching as it sank into the muck at the bottom.

He swam back out, shaking his head and bleeding as a result of cuts the rotor blades had made on his face and jaw.

-------

The pack and council all kept asking Lyssa when the guilty verdict would come.

And, again, she had to explain that it wasn't a foregone conclusion.

It was that afternoon that the jury asked Mercy to come in again.

Lyssa and Emmett accompanied the lawyer and Mercy back to the courthouse.

They were shepherded into a room about 20 feet square. It smelled of sweat and vomit, at least to wolf noses. There was a video camera set up in one corner with a young man behind it.

On the table between them were three bags holding articles of clothing. The lawyer for the defense came in and closed the door.

"Miss Mercy, the jury wants to see if you can identify which one of these bags holds clothing from Ron Wilson."

"What?"

"You said that you knew Mr. Wilson by his scent. The jury wants to see you do that."

Mercy looked at the Beta pair, who shrugged. "OK."

The defense attorney picked up the first bag, which held an obviously feminine blouse. "Sample A." He spoke to the camera. "Now, what can you tell me?"

Mercy took the bag, opened it, stuck her nose in, and inhaled. And almost immediately began sneezing. It took her a while to clear her nose of the overpowering smell of perfume. A tissue was produced which she shook off. "Are you alright?"

"Too much smell. Humans are stupid, trying to smell like something else."

"Can you continue with that bag?"

She took a more careful smell. "No. Female. In season." She handed the bag back.

"Season?"

"Ready to be bred."

"Ovulating, sir," Lyssa interjected.

"You can tell all that?"

A dip of the head. "Alright, let's try the next one."

Mercy received the bag labeled B and, carefully, took a sniff of the shirt inside. "No. Male, but not him. Sick." They looked at her a bit more carefully.

"Alright. Thank you. And this one?"

"Another male but not him. Why am I doing this? None of these is him."

The lawyers looked at each other and, going to the door, retrieved two more bags from the bailiff.

"Please, just two more."

Mercy glared at him but took one of the bags and opened it. She shoved it back at the lawyer. "That's him."

"You're sure?"

"I said so, didn't I?"

"Alright, Miss Mercy, thank you." Their lawyer spoke to the camera. "Mercy has identified bag E as containing clothing with Ron Wilson, Junior's scent."

The bailiff was called in and they were escorted out to the car.

Mercy sat, brooding, the whole way home. "When is this gonna be over? When is he gonna be punished for killing Jamie? We all know he did it. What's wrong with humans? Why does it take so long?"

Lyssa turned around in the seat and looked at the young wolf. Mercy went quiet, grumbling a little. "Humans don't have the senses we do. Can't track. Can't scent. Can't hear or see as well. They have to rely on tests to figure out what happened. And that's why there's a judge and jury."

They were greeted by Mercy and Jamie's parents when they got back. Wanting to know what happened. Wanting to know what the punishment was.

-------

Lyssa and Emmett went to tell the Alphas what had gone on.

Half a dozen pups pounded by, play growling, tumbling, tripping each other.

The noise of the pups covered any sounds that might have come through the door from their Alphas. A quick knock and Emmett opened the door.

Ariel faced them, perched in her mate's lap. The swelling in her belly showed and dropped back down. Randall's form was mostly blocked by his mate, but his large hands were on her full breasts, squeezing, tweaking the rose-colored nipples. Her hair dangled over both breasts and hands. Her mouth was open, panting. Her hooded eyes dropped to them, briefly, then went off into the distance as Emmett closed the door.

He turned to his mate, smiling and pulled her tightly against him.

Lyssa inhaled as his mouth went to her neck, one hand to a breast and the other started hitching up her skirt.

"Office," she breathed.

The Betas had a small office room next door and the first Beta pair, entwined, sidestepped in that direction.

In front, Lyssa opened the door to more panting and the smell of sex. Madeline was on her hands and knees, small breasts swinging, skirt thrown over her back. Erich was driving into her, growling.

Lyssa pulled the door shut and Emmett twirled her, pulling her knees up. She wrapped her legs around his waist, her arms around his neck. Smelling the heady scent of her arousal, he walked quickly up the stairs, to their suite. The movement, in ascending the stairs, was rubbing her center against his hardened length. One hand cradled her ass, the other slid around her thigh so he could feel her wetness. Stroke her. She was practically writhing against him by the time he kicked the door open.

Striding through the front room, he readied himself to drop her on the bed and follow her down. He stopped dead.

After a few seconds, Lyssa twisted in his hold, looking at the bed. Emmanuel and Emmaline were curled up together atop the covers.

Lyssa chuckled, then started laughing. It was ridiculous, thwarted at every turn. Little Em cracked an eye at the noise and Emmaline yawned and snuggled closer.

[Bathroom?] There was humor in her send.

Emmett groaned, thinking he might explode before he had a chance to relieve the swelling in his pants. He pivoted and walked her to their shower, with Lyssa snickering in his ear.

He walked them both, fully clothed, into the stall and turned on the water. Lyssa squealed as the cold water hit her. [I don't want a cold shower!]

[Easy, sweetheart.] The water began to warm and she began to relax in his arms. [So, what did you have in mind, mate?]

[Put me down.] Emmett dropped her feet to the floor and she stood briefly, looking up at him. Normally a challenge, this look into his eyes was different, her lips quirked. She kept looking at him as her hands began to move on his body.

She pushed the hem of his polo up and he yanked it over his head and dropped it. It hit the floor with a wet splat.

Her hair was plastered to her head, tendrils on her face, as she leaned in and nipped at his nipple. He sucked in a breath at the sensation and choked slightly, as he also sucked in some water.

Lyssa struggled with the fastenings to his pants as they were now soaked. She could feel the hardness of him, under the cloth. There, a twitch.

She growled at the problem and then, frustrated, ripped them down the sides. They dropped, but didn't make it past his knees. His hardened length strained against the blue cotton fabric that now encased it. She cupped him, rubbing lightly, smiling up at him when he twitched under her hand. Growling lightly, she ran her tongue along the edge of his underwear as his hands went into her hair. He sucked in a breath, again, as she closed her teeth on the fabric over the tip of him. She then yanked the boxer briefs down and quickly closed her mouth over him. Emmett's hands lifted off her head and slapped against the sides of the shower, bracing himself.

Lyssa licked, and sucked, and hummed, while bobbing up and down his erection. As she felt him grow firmer, she reached up to cup his sack, squeezing lightly.

Emmett erupted with a roar. Lyssa swallowed convulsively, just catching the sound of the pups' yip as they startled awake.

The water began to cool. Even the hot water system of the pack wasn't limitless. Em's breathing and heartrate began to slow.

Lyssa rose, smiling up at him. He crushed her against him, claiming her mouth.

He reached behind her and turned off the water then slid his hands under her buttocks and picked her up. Never breaking the kiss, he swiveled and walked her over to the counter. He sat her down and sank to his knees, thumbs rubbing along the creases where her legs met her body. He pulled back, slightly, giving her a knowing smile that made her melt.

Emmett lavished attention on her breasts while slowly stroking her. Lyssa sucked her cream off his fingers and began to pant as he slid farther down. Staring at the engorged deep pink folds in front of him, Em took a deep breath, then put his mouth and tongue to good use. He nibbled, suckled, and licked. Her legs started to shake and her moans got louder as her orgasm approached. He quickly slid his thumb into her sopping hole and then briskly rubbed her clit. She broke, gasping, as he slid that thumb inside her to feel the contractions.

He came back up to kiss her again as she tried to catch her breath.

Lyssa put her forehead against her mate's. "What were we doing?"

-------

It happened every year or two to some of the young pups. They egged each other on, most usually the young males, to see who could get closest to a skunk without getting sprayed.

While Troy had won the game by actually picking one up and carrying it around, briefly, it had gotten him full in the face when he dropped it.

Carolyn had gotten some spray since she had figured out what they were up to and tried to warn them off. Emmaline and Tonya had been close enough to be caught by the spray, as well.

The girls had whined and cried at the stench on their fur and, after scrubbing their coats against the grass a bit, headed for the den.

Carolyn dismissed the other pups from their lessons. Wrinkling her nose at the smell, she watched Troy whimper and scrub his face against the ground and weeds. There was nothing out here that would help clean him up. It was unlikely she'd be able to get him to the den. So, she stood by to make sure he didn't get hurt.

Paul smelled them coming in the back door and ordered them back out. They wouldn't be allowed in until they'd been washed. They looked hopefully at Thomas as he strode out, laden with cleaning products. But he went past them, headed for Carolyn and Troy.

It was a few minutes later that Natalie came out, little Hugh trailing behind. "C'mon, girls, over to the spigot."

Although annoyed at being wet, the young females cleaned up pretty quickly.

After an initial scrubbing with dish soap and hydrogen peroxide, Troy was comfortable enough to head back to the den. Two more sessions and the stink was mostly gone. He was, however, now very blond in the front of his body. He was also sent to the bunker to sleep for the next couple of nights and took quite a bit of teasing. It was quite some time before his fur grew back the right color.

-------

Another day went by without word from the jury. And another. Their lawyers worried at the amount of time it was taking since it did not bode well for their side. the longer it took, the more likely was a mistrial. Longer usually meant a deadlocked jury.

-------

A spring storm rolled in and Erich called to Mercy. [C'mon. It's time for you to track in the rain.]

Mercy grumbled. It was cold and wet. The last thing she wanted to do was run around outside in the rain. And, who in the world had he gotten to run around and leave a trail for her to follow?

[Alright, you're following Anna and Jeremy.]

[Together or separate?]

[Let's find out. Circle the den and find the door they left from.]

Mercy halfheartedly put her nose down and worked her way counterclockwise around the building. Coming back to where they started from, she sent, [They didn't come out. they're still inside.]

[No. They went out. Try again.]

[I didn't smell them.]

[You can't always scent track. Try again.]

Her coat damp, she huffed and started circling the den again. As she passed the second side door on the east side of the house he sent again. [Mercy. It doesn't matter the weather or your mood. If the pack needs you to track, you need to track, to the best of your ability.]

A heavy sigh, and she ranged a little further out from the building. On the next round she found Jeremy's print, next to a smaller set of tracks. Jeremy had had an accident during a hunt and a buck had stepped on his right forepaw, the hoof neatly slicing off the edge of one of his pads.

Mercy followed the tracks around the edge of the garden and back to a stand of trees. Just before coming out the other side, the two sets of tracks split. She stopped. [You can only follow one.]

Which one? Obviously one was a better choice.

Another quick look and she took up Jeremy's trail.

[Why his?]

[He's heavier so he'll have a deeper track plus that paw print.] She moved on a bit farther when he didn't respond. [Am I right?]

Erich smiled a wet, wolfish smile as he trotted along with her. [Unless you have a reason to go after one or the other, one is as good as the other.]

-------

In the meantime, Ariel had hauled a half dozen of the females out to spar. While most of them had good rudimentary skills, they had really only worked out under dry conditions. Slippery grass and mud meant a change in tactics.

Madeline tended to fight as wolf because she was a smaller female. Cassie managed to grab her by the tail and slid her against a tree before falling flat on her face in the mud.

Natalie scrabbled atop the rock on the outskirts of the sparring circle, prepared to jump down on Carolyn. She ended up sliding and an advantage turned bad as Carolyn twisted and got her by the throat.

Ariel and Lyssa were rolling off toward the garden, grappling, growling, pulling hair.

Suddenly, a half dozen young males converged on the females, howling and snarling.

The other four broke and started to run.

[HOLD! Stand and fight!] Ariel's command froze them in their tracks.

Ariel and Lyssa faced the males, who were beginning to surround them. Natalie was first to turn back and run towards the males as they darted in, slashing and nipping. It was virtually impossible to defend against three, but Lyssa had four after her. Only two targetted Ariel, because of her condition.

Natalie headed straight for one of Ariel's attackers, managing to bowl him over and take him by the throat and held him there. Ariel then quickly brought the other to heel. She fought dirty and the young male held back.

Madeline then went after one of the four around Lyssa, followed by Carolyn and Cassie. Justin had her on the ground.

After a bit more slipping and sliding, it ended up with three males down and three females.

Ariel called an end to the exercise and everyone got up, some bleeding from small wounds. She didn't lecture, but turned and looked at the four who lost their nerve. Each dropped her eyes and tucked her tail, chastened. She then turned and walked to the side door where Randall waited with a hose. Wade arrived to check on any wounds with little Hugh toddling behind.

The females were hosed off first, before going inside. Madeline felt a bit funny and moved off to the side of the house to throw up. Natalie had already gone inside but the noise caught Wade's attention.

Lyssa went into heat the next day.

-------

Phillip finally convinced his Madam Alpha that she should introduce her pup to his grandsire.

Stephanie requested admittance to their pack lands and was permitted. She promised herself that she would give Trevor something extra as compensation for the stressful drive. Clay whined and fidgeted the whole way. None of them were used to being in a car that long.

Stephanie promised dire consequences if Clayton did not stay with her for the first hour or so so that his grandsire could meet him.

Marcus, the Beta, met them at the door to the den. "I apologize for the absence of my Alpha, Alpha Ross, but he had an urgent meeting with another Alpha."

"I take no offense, Beta. I well understand the duties of Alpha."

"Of course. And this is your pup?"

"Yes. Clayton, say hello to the pack Beta."

"H'lo. Smells funny."

"This is a different pack, Clayton. It will, of course, smell differently."

"Go play?"

"Not yet, pup, your grandsire, aunts, uncles, and cousins first. Then you can find some pups to play with."

"K."

[Marcus, I have failed to adequately teach my pup proper behavior. He is learning but may cause offense and may fail to come when we leave. I ask that he not receive any substantial injury, if possible, and that someone bring him to me if he does not come when called.]

Marcus looked at her, a bit sympathetically. [I understand and will inform the pack of the former. We will determine if someone needs to haul him in should the circumstance arise.]

[Thank you.]

"If you'll come this way?"

They were led to a meeting room and Stephanie was immediately enveloped by her sister, Izzy. "Oh, Livvy, it's so good to see you. Oh, look at him!"

"Clayton, this is your Aunt Izadora. And her pups." There was much sniffing and touching and ruffling of fur since Clay had retreated to wolf form.

"He's a lovely color. How was the birth?"

Stephanie looked behind her sister, to the old wolf sitting near the back wall. Vernon did not look as well as he had at her last visit.

She grabbed her pup and dragged him over. "Clayton Ross, this is your grandsire."

Vernon sniffed and put out a hand. Clay looked up at his mother. [He can't see you, Clay. Please go to him and be careful.]

Clayton Ross was unfamiliar with blind or infirm wolves. Certainly injured but not the very old. He crept up, putting a paw on the old wolf's knee. Vernon reached out and brought the pup to his lap. A couple of tears touched the pup's fur as he rubbed his face in the soft fur. "What color is he, daughter?"

"He's a dark pup, Papa, with silver-tipped fur."

"And the eyes?"

"Blue."

"Sounds a bit like your mother."

"I hadn't thought, but, yes, something like Mama but the dark color really comes from his father."

There were some additional introductions before some food was brought for the visitors. Then, Clay was released to nose around and find some pups to play with.

Marcus sent a message to the pack that the Alpha Ross' pup would be wandering about. He also sent to a couple of the pack guardians to keep an eye on the pup.

-------

She was here. With her pup. The female who had reduced her mate to a shell of a male. He had grown morose, dejected. And, yes, he had been able to service her at her last heat but, she believed it would have been better if he had been killed outright.