The Lonely Wolf by Monica La Porta

sat.
    Raphael immediately followed her, as if he were her shadow. “Me too.”
    “May I have some water, please?” Lupo asked.
    “Of course. Sparkling or still?” Ravenna asked.
    “Regular’s fine.”
    The Enforcer walked to the fridge and filled a tall glass with water, then strolled back to him. The whole time, her third kid remained attached to her leg like a koala, but even on her high heels she didn’t break her stride, as if it was a regular occurrence.
    At home, the rich and famous couple wasn’t what the tabloids described. In the short time he had spent in their company, Lupo hadn’t witnessed any debauchery or extravagancies, but just a family. The family he would have loved to grow up with.
    “What am I doing here?” he finally asked.
    “We thought it would be easier for you if you met with Quintilius in a more relaxed environment than the alpha’s house,” Ravenna answered after exchanging glances with Drako first, and then with the demon.
    “The archangel will talk to him and I’m sure the alpha will want to see you immediately after,” the demon added. The Controller hadn’t moved from his corner since they had entered the kitchen.
    “No, I mean why didn’t you send me to jail?” Lupo had noted the bewildered expressions on the archangel’s face when he had dropped the bomb about the alpha being his father, but he was surprised the three of them had believed him so easily.
    The logical reaction would have been to deliver Lupo into the enforcers’ hands and let them deal with the renegade. Physical similarities aside, everyone could claim to be a famous person’s child, but that didn’t grant them access to luxurious accommodations. Somehow, his words had given him a free pass to Drako’s manor and a private interview with the alpha.
    “We’re trying to save you jail time.” The demon pushed himself off the wall and he too took a seat at the table.
    “Why?” Lupo caressed Serses’s head. The kid had relaxed against him and was playing with one of his curls, stretching the dark strand and bending it around his fingers.
    “Because we don’t believe in sending kids like you to Regina Coeli,” the demon said.
    “They’re the good guys,” Raphael said, pointing a croissant at the demon. “Especially the ugly one. He doesn’t look like it, but he’s a softie.”
    The demon shook his head and laughed. “I should’ve left you where I found you.”
    “You forget you only caught me because I let you.” Raphael ate the pastry in one mouthful.
    Lupo witnessed the banter and wondered if they were acting for his sake. “Why do you think the alpha will want to talk to me?” he asked, his stomach full of butterflies.
    Several sets of eyes stared at him, as if he had sprouted wings from his head.
    “When he hears about you, he’ll run here first thing,” the demon said, his eyes changing from a muted brown to a deep forest-green.
    Lupo saw the demon’s thought mirrored on everyone’s faces. “Well, you’re all in for a big disappointment.”

Chapter Nine
    “Please, Quin, call me back.” Ludwig had already left three messages for Quintilius. One at home, the other two on the wolf’s cell phone. Close to midnight, Ludwig paced back and forth on his terrace roof, while he kept glancing at his phone.
    After briefly talking to him earlier in the day, Ludwig had thought Quintilius sounded disgruntled but he hadn’t hung up on him, which gave him hope they would meet later that night. Waiting on someone else’s whims wasn’t Ludwig’s forte, and he was chomping at the bit, trying his best to give Quintilius his space, but wanting nothing more than to fly over the Appian Way and land outside his wolf’s bedroom.
    No matter what Quintilius had told him, Ludwig would always think of him as his wolf. His sentiments for the alpha transcended the physical realm. Sure, Ludwig could barely keep his hands to himself when they were together, but his passion was fueled by a love that