Against the Black

Chapter 6

My mom walked into my suite, already wearing the red dress Martha made for her. The body of the dress was made from a crushed dark red velvet that reached the floor. It had a chameleon effect where when she turned her body, the red changed from a deep red to black and then back. There was a cutout on the left of the dress that started just under her breast, down to the top of her hipbone, and wrapped around to the back of the dress, continuing into a slit on her right thigh. The cutout was held together by a black sheer lace from her left side, wrapping all the way to the floor on her right. She couldn’t wear underwear without it shining like a beacon under the sheer lace, so she didn’t, accentuating her hips in all the best ways. The dress had a sweetheart neckline trimmed in black lace flowers with asymmetrical straps. The left strap was made from the same lace as the rest of the dress, and the right strap was a thin black piece of velvet. She wore a large triangular necklace made of small fine black gems that complimented the dress perfectly.

Babs and Lenny whistled when she walked into the room. She blushed lightly but gave a small spin so we could get the full effect. The dress changed color as she spun and only added to her grandeur. My cheeks hurt from grinning like a goof at how beautiful my mother looked. She deserved this night out as a fully free woman. No responsibilities, no mate, just a good time. Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes and I blinked them away, calling for Vera.

“The dress is beautiful, but we need to finish this look.” I winked at Vera and she squealed in delight. Babs and Lenny gently grabbed Lenore by her arms and led her into the bathroom vanity, sitting her down on a soft stool in front of a large mirror. Vera got to work on her makeup. I styled her hair, Lenny pained her fingers and Babs painted her toes. By the time we were done, she was more stunning than any woman had the right to be. She stood in front of the floor-length mirror, admiring her reflection. Babs and Lenny knelt behind her and bowed, saying,

“We’re not worthy!” Lenore giggled and blushed, then smacked both of them gently with the shoes she carried in her left hand.

“You girls need to go get ready or we’ll be late!” She shooed us off to get ourselves ready. We talked and giggled while dressing in my bathroom, offering help with zippers and buttons where needed. Lenore walked around, helping where she could with each girl’s ensemble until everyone was fully ready except me.

“Vera, I need help!” I called to her as she was putting on her earring. She looked at me while struggling with her earring backing. “I can’t get my hair to do what I want it to.” I let out a huff. “Actually, my hair isn’t the issue, my fingers won’t do what I need them to, in order to get my hair to look how I want it to!” She looked at me with a blank expression for a solid thirty seconds before letting out a loud,

“Huh?”

“Hair look ugly because fingers no work.” I broke it down for her in caveman. She nodded her head in understanding. “Can you fix it?” I asked, holding up the comb I’d been fighting with. She whooped in triumph as she finally got the back on to her earring, then walked over to me to help with my hair. My mom hovered over Vera’s shoulder while she combed my hair into place. We finally had to send her away because she wouldn’t quit pestering Vera with the time.

After far too long, Vera was finished with my hair and I was ready to go. She braided my hair into a viking style mohawk, with one large braid in the middle and smaller braids weaving in and out. She had added small silver rings to some of the braids, adding a chain mail effect. It added an aspect of strength to the elegant dress. It was exactly the look I needed to feel feminine, but dangerous.

Lenny clapped her hands when she saw me and Babs faked a swoon. Vera handed out our masks, simple black eye masks with jewels on the left corner signifying rank. Garnet for Lenore as a pack elder, Sapphire for Babs as the Beta, Diamond for Vera as the Delta, Turquoise for Lenny, and normally it would be a black opal for alpha, but my mask had been made with Obsidian stones mined from our waterfall. It would take someone looking very closely to realize my gems weren’t the same as the other Alphas. I put on the tall black stiletto heels Martha had set aside with my dress, and we made our way toward the car.

Pulling up at the front of the castle, there was a valet waiting for us. The girls and I piled out of the sports car and the man waiting to take my keys just looked at the car in confusion. I had seen the line of cars pulling in ahead of us. Most of them were either nondescript black pack cars or high end sports cars.

“It’s a classic. If you scratch her, I’ll gut you.” I leaned in close to whisper in his ear and lifted my hand to gently close his open mouth. Then I pat him softly on the cheek, offered my mom my elbow and walked inside.

The entry hall was modest and well lit. It had a charming rustic feel to the decor, without having too much of a lumberjack vibe. It spoke to the surrounding human population with a subtle hint of the werewolf community hidden within. There was a red velvet rope lining down into the banquet hall. Like we were some kind of celebrity and this was our red carpet. Only celebrities were celebrated in the open, whereas we were led through a hidden door behind an open bookshelf, down a spiral staircase at least three stories tall, stopping finally on a landing outside two large metal doors. We each placed our masks over our eyes just before the doors opened and we were permitted to enter.

The doors opened onto a large staircase leading down into what looked to be a ballroom. A black rug with gold edges lined the stairs. The ballroom was decorated in black, gold, and emerald; the colors of royals. There were servers in black tuxedos walking through the crowd with flutes of champagne on gold trays. The ballroom looked to be about half full from the guests who had arrived early. Some were stationed at the bottom of the stairs, either “people watching” the arriving packs, or hoping to catch sight of their mate the moment they walked in. Others were standing along the edges at tall tables with drinks in their hands. Some stood in the middle of the floor, mingling with other packs, while others stood near the buffet table. But every single one of them turned to see who was entering every time the door opened.

It was nerve wracking to have the entire room staring at you. Having all of them squinting, trying to decipher who was under the mask. Some wore extravagant masks with feathers, some were simple and covered the full face, some looked like Märdi gras masks, and even others that looked more like plague doctor masks with long curved noses. Each pack had the same base style to their mask, but color coded to their station. Ours were simple and revealing in comparison to the other masks on display. Which was exactly how I wanted it.

Obsidian Falls was a peaceful, neutral pack. We tended to keep to our own for the most part. However, we have always been the topic of gossip among other packs due to our very different leadership style. I requested a simple and minimal mask style so everyone knew who we were at a glance. We were a female run pack, and that made other packs view us as weak. I wanted to be sure that if any in my party found their mate tonight, they wouldn’t be surprised when the mask came off. It also told other packs that we were not ashamed of who we were or where we came from. There was strength in showing ourselves rather than trying to blend into the shadows. Without being rude and disregarding the masquerade etiquette laid out by the king, we made our statement with small and simple face coverings.

I held my mother’s hand and escorted her down the stairs as if she were royalty and I, a loyal servant. People gasped as I led her down the stairs. They weren’t used to seeing an Alpha female. Even more startling was seeing an Alpha putting on such a public display of devotion to someone other than their mate. Most Alphas were hot headed and power hungry with a primal need to assert their dominance. While I fell into that same category on more than one occasion, I was not so arrogant to think myself better than those who came before me. Especially my loving mother.

The murmurs picked up as soon as our shoes touched the glassy floor at the bottom of the stairs. People openly gawked at us as we made our way to a tall table stationed at the center of the room.

“Roxanne, what are you doing?” My mom whispered harshly as I led her to the table I had mentally picked out.

“We are already the center of their gossip. We might as well be in the center of the room as well.” I brought her to the table and placed my hands on top of hers. “Besides, it’s easier to hear what they’re saying if they have to pass us while flapping their lips.” I smiled deviously at her. She seemed a little stunned at first, then let out a soft chuckle. Leaning in to whisper, she said,

“Being so bold is a young woman’s game.” She winked and motioned for Lenny to follow as she made her way to the drink table. I could feel eyes on us from every angle, and I feigned ignorance while keeping my senses open. Babs leaned her back against the table in a relaxed slouch. While Vera looked like she would explode from anticipation and excitement.

“What are you two still doing here?” I asked both of them. They turned to me with questioning eyes.

“Go have a look around. You’re here to find a mate, right? And unless I missed something, I am not mated to either of you. So you won’t find them if you sit here clung to my hip the whole night. Be off with you!” I waved my hands dramatically, trying to shoo them away.

“I’m not in any rush, and I don’t like leaving you here by yourself with all these other Alphas sniffing about.” Babs spat the word Alpha as if it left a foul taste on her tongue.

“Yeah, we just got here. We can wait a while for more packs to show before we wander off. Let’s get a feel for the competition first.” Vera was bright and happy, looking from one pack to the next. She looked as if she was simply admiring the decor and atmosphere, but I could tell she was scanning for threats and strategizing exit routes. Between Babs’ laid back demeanor and Vera’s bubbly personality, we probably looked exactly as the other packs envisioned us. Like weak easy targets.