3. Otis

3

OTIS

I 'm almost done with the dishes from dinner when there's a knock at the door.

"I'll get it," Kade says, abandoning the dish towel he was using to wipe down the table. I watch his ass as he walks away.

It's too bad this meeting is so important to me, because otherwise I'd have a few other ideas for what I could do with my boy after dinner.

He disappears into the living room, and a second later, I hear the door opening, and a high-pitched, "Awwww! She's so cute!"

I'd bet money that's Scooch.

Axe and Cy walk into the dining room and sit down at the table. They both have blood-red handkerchiefs tied around their upper arms and are deep in conversation.

"I'm not saying that I want Brianna locked up. I just can't believe the Guild is letting her go free because they don't want to deal with this," Cy says to Axe.

"I think they were waiting to see how bad the fallout would be. Only four other ragers have walked off since we publicized Otis's escape, and one of them died. I don't think the Guild is afraid anymore."

It's frustrating how little progress we've made helping the other ragers, even though I was hounded by the press and questioned by the police. I thought that would lead to something.

I set the last dish in the dishwasher and walk around the counter. "Does anyone want a drink?"

Axe shakes his head. "I'm on call tonight."

"Vodka," Cy says.

There's another knock at the door, then Tana, Nadia, and Sarah come into the kitchen wearing blood-red handkerchiefs on their arms too.

Sarah was the first walk-off after me, and Nadia reluctantly left with her. After all, the woman she loves and her grandbabies are now in Anchorage. But she's been campaigning for the ragers nonstop since she got back. That's what the red handkerchiefs are for. Rager sympathizers wear them to acknowledge the blood money the Guild gets by selling alpha polar bear shifters to the oil companies like chattel.

Kade and I talked about switching out our handkerchiefs for red ones, or simply wearing a red handkerchief in addition to the ones that signify our bond. But in the end, we decided against it for the same reason we decided to keep the handkerchiefs in the first place.

We met during a time when the world thought I wasn't capable or worthy of a real relationship, but our handkerchiefs express a love that's just as strong as any steel band or polished stone. The moment Kade ties it on my arm each morning is still just as meaningful as it was the first time. And we want to show the world that ragers can form meaningful bonds.

I know that Nadia doesn't like the word "rager." That's fine. She doesn't have to use it. I notice that Kade doesn't either. But I'm going to say it for the rest of my life. I'm going to remind every person I meet of what I am. And when they get to know me —when they see that I'm just as human as they are—maybe they can understand that a rager is just another word for a person who made a mistake.

"Drinks?" I ask the three women as they take a seat.

Tana and Sarah shake their heads.

"Vodka, please," Nadia says.

Cy and Nadia always drink their vodka straight, like the ragers on the Slope.

Just before the meeting is set to start at eight o'clock, Ansel saunters into the dining room. Other than his blood-red handkerchief, he's in all white, with a feather dangling from his ear and a bag on his shoulder. He waves and takes a seat next to Kade at the end of the table. He and Ben are watching Scooch munch on some kale.

Ansel sets the white shoulder bag on the table. "Isn't this a thing of beauty? I've never been sure about the whole purse thing. It always felt like too much. But I'm all about a pretty man bag. Just last week, a client from Manhattan sent this to me as a thank you."

Kade's eyes widen. "Oh, that's a lovely bag."

"You're gonna want to put that away," I warn Ansel.

"There's nothing wrong with a man carrying around a bag?—"

Oh, for Ice's sake. "I know that. But if you don't put it away?—"

Kade snatches the bag right out of Ansel's hands. "This will do nicely."

Ansel scrambles out of his seat and follows Kade as he waddles toward our room. "Do nicely for what?"

"He's collecting bags for his nest," I say.

Ansel stops. "I just got that bag yesterday. It's a Chanel."

"At least it isn't pets," Cy reminds him.

Ben smiles at Cy. "I heard that."

Ansel returns to the table dejectedly. "There's stuff in that bag that I need."

"I'll grab the contents inside after he's found a home for it. He doesn't seem to want anything that's inside, just the bag itself."

Unless the contents include knitting projects, that is. I spent the afternoon trying to smooth over Kade's yarn theft with Taylor from Knots. And that was before I made the mistake of taking Kade to the grocery store. He shamelessly grabbed a woman's purse right out of her hands and wouldn't give it back. Luckily, she was a penguin shifter, so when I told her he was collecting bags for his nest, she patted my shoulder and said he could keep it if he would kindly return her wallet and keys.

At this point, a collection of pets would be a relief.

"Let's get started," Tana says. "We're here, yet again, to fight the practice of selling ragers to the oil companies."

Nadia clears her throat. "You mean alphas who have lost control of their rage. Temporarily."

Sarah scoots closer to Nadia and kisses her cheek. That girl is completely smitten. She can't ever keep her hands off of Nadia during our meetings.

"Fine. Alphas who have lost control of their rage. That's why we're here. How are we going to do this?"

Sarah leans forward. "The problem is bigger than the polar bear shifter Guild. Let's say we release the ragers from the Slope. What about all of the other shifters whose rights are compromised? Fidelity necklaces are still legal. We need to fight this at a national level too."

"We have to take care of our own people first," Tana argues. "If we don't, our magic could fade more with every generation. We can't wait for national law to trump shifter law."

I hand Cy and Nadia their drinks as Kade emerges from our bedroom. We both sit next to Ben at the end of the table.

I have plenty of opinions about what should come next, but they've heard my speeches during the press conferences, and they've read Sam's article about my escape. They know what I think.

Cy, on the other hand, has been mostly silent during these meetings, preferring to weigh in at the end. If I didn't know better, I'd think he was doing it as a form of manipulation. By the time he finally speaks, we're all hanging on his every word.

I appreciate what he did for me on the Slope, but I'm no less afraid of him.

Cy takes a long swallow of his vodka and sets the glass back on the table. "I agree with Sarah. The Guild is afraid of losing core sections of Anchorage to the Gentoo. We have a contract with them that requires us to provide a fidelity necklace for every wooden coin they bring us. We haven't been doing that, and if it wasn't for the safety net the oil companies provide, I'm sure the Gentoo would have already claimed the land that is legally theirs. Unless we make it illegal for the Gentoo to demand those necklaces, this will never be over."

"I agree with Sarah and Cy," Nadia says. "All shifters should have their rights protected. It shouldn't be legal for shifter interest groups to marginalize their own people."

Tana clenches her jaw, but she doesn't say anything more. I know she feels a loyalty to the polar bear shifters that makes her want to zero in on the ragers in a legal fight. But I don't think we'll win that way.

"Part of the reason the ragers have been sold to the oil companies for so long is that our culture is trained to not care about them. Every type of shifter has a marginalized group like that. The penguin shifters let the omega gentoos be controlled to the point of death by their mates. The rabbit shifters exclude infertile omegas from their familial living quarters. If we fight this locally, we have to fight local prejudices too. But if we combine the fight, other communities can see the error of our prejudices. We need a lawsuit that includes marginalized shifters from all of these groups. It's our only chance of winning." I've thought long and hard about how to fight this, and I think that's the only way it will work.

"I know a widowed omega gentoo who will sue with us," Sarah says.

Nadia pulls out a notebook. We're finally doing this. We've waited for the Guild to respond to my escape long enough.

"I have a few rabbit shifter buddies from Cheyenne. I could look into that angle," Ben offers.

Nadia raises her hand. "I have a penguin shifter friend who's a sex worker that we should speak to as well."

"There are penguin shifter sex workers?" Axe asks.

Nadia nods. "There are sex workers in every culture. And the laws that impact penguin shifter sex workers are particularly brutal."

"What about the ice dragon shifter warlocks in New York who do unethical magic that's protected by shifter law? We should find some people who have been impacted by that," Ansel suggests.

"I'll go with you," Cy says. "Those ice dragons are mean. It would be best if no one went after them alone."

"I can help take care of everyone's kids while you travel, and I'll mind the jewelry shop if you need to travel during Pebble Gifting Season," I offer.

That's what I want to do with my life. While everyone works on this problem from their own angle, I'll be their anchor. There's a reason the name of my club appealed to me. I've always believed that when people feel supported and safe, they can find their true potential. It's one of my favorite things about being a Daddy—watching someone blossom when they feel grounded. What if it's the same for a group of people who are trying to change the world? What could they accomplish if they knew someone was back at home to pick up all of the pieces?

The table shifts to the left suddenly. Cy's glass of vodka tips over and spills its contents onto his lap.

Cy stands up. "Where is that damn tortoise?"

Kade grins at me. "Does this mean we get to take care of Scooch too?"

Oh, God. I hope not.