Cysgodion

By Jo Pilsworth

Casimir Gosselin. If Fane was bad, Casimir was well beyond that. A psychopath and barely leashed by his sire, the Alpha of the Gosselin Pack. If there was one thing on which both the Cwn Annwn and the Anghelescu Hellhounds knew, it was that Casimir Gosselin was their enemy.

You have the picture? I was the personification of psychopathically evil. Strangely enough, the encouragement to write my side of the story has come from my sister, Alix Gosselin, now mated to Bran Cadwgan, Beta of the Cwn Annwn. Now, I could give you some clues. One thing is certain, I am not some sad, misunderstood being. I own what I have done and to whom I have done it. The question is whether you think that what lies in the shadows is justified.

Cysgodion is a novella of 46,000 words, and ideally should be read before the Hellfire Pack series. Either way, you have to decide what makes Casimir Gosselin tick.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jo Pilsworth
• Release date: Apr 1, 2020
• ISBN: 9780463435212

Jo Pilsworth

Too many nights away from home led to my joining an online role-play group based on Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark Hunters universe, giving me an enjoyable hobby whilst in hotels on my own. As a result, I became friends with some of my fellow writers, Tracy Andrews and Donna DeBoard, who joined me when I started what was known in the role-playing world as an ‘own character’ group. Thus The Hunter’s Arrow and the worlds of the Anghelescu Hellhounds and the Negrescu Cŵn Annwn were born.When not concocting fiendish plots, I work as a Store Manager for The Works, a UK-based chain of art and craft supplies. I am supported in my writing endeavours by my wonderful husband of more than 25 years, David, and my son, David Junior.The Diaries of the Cwn Annwn consists of nine books, so far, with at least a couple more in the works. The books available here start with Merysekhmet, then Toho, Medved and Ma'iitsoh. Omega and Gemelli are in the production stage. Dare you walk in our world?

Book preview

CHAPTER 1 – WELCOME TO MY NEW HOME

I was known as the Psycho Gosselin. It was a name I had earned. It was a name which cost me dearly, but in gaining that name others benefited. I am sure that must sound strange. How would it be possible others to benefit from the fact that I was known as a stone-cold-hearted killer? Make no mistake that was the nature of my nickname. The Psycho Gosselin. I was the second born son of my sire at least in terms of his acknowledged offspring but where others considered my elder brother to be my sire’s air in terms of gaining the title of Alpha of the Gosselin Pack, I think it is safe to say that I was the one that they truly feared. As I grew into adult hood, those who knew my sire and his attitudes towards what constituted legitimate business, knew also that if my sire failed to have his way, he would not hesitate to deploy his deterrent. His deterrent. That was what I was seen to be. But therein lies the question. Was that all I was, or was there more? Yes, you say, of course he would try to justify what he has done. That is the mind of a psychopath. All I ask is that you judge me only after you have read my side of the story. That is all I ask.

By the time I was fifteen, I had gained the nickname of Psycho Gosselin. Ten years had passed since I had arrived in my sire’s home. Technically, it was the home of his mate, Janice Gosselin. My dam had told me it was my birth-right that I should be recognised as the get of Pierre Gosselin, which was why she took me to Pierre one morning, told my sire I was his responsibility, spun on her heel and left. When Pierre sent one of his assistants to find her, she had disappeared. No scent trail could be found. My looks made it clear that I was my sire’s get, but it didn’t mean that this was an easy process. Birth-right? That was a term that made no sense to a child, who until then, had lived with his dam. We had lived within the Pack, it was true, but we had been lower ranking members. My dam had been a Canadian Native, who had caught my sire’s eye. No one in their right mind turned down the attentions of Pierre Gosselin and my dam was no fool. I was the result of what had been merely a dalliance for the Alpha Designate and new mate of the incumbent Alpha’s daughter. Why would he risk his position when given time, the whole Pack would be his to command? Unlike Laurent’s dam, my own dam did not draw attention to the identity of my sire, but as I grew, as my features developed, it was clear to any who chose to look at a mere pup.

It was hardly surprising that I held Laurent in low regard. His dam would bruit that he was the only offspring of Pierre Gosselin, that it was time for him to put aside Janice since she had not borne him any live young. She had proven that she could. The incumbent Alpha’s health was faltering. He had accepted Pierre into his family after Pierre avowed that he would honour his mating with Janice Gosselin. As a show of his good intent, he changed his own name to Gosselin, that the name of the Pack would continue. Given the size of the Pack, it was important to have a strong Alpha at the helm and that was what the new Alpha Designate was offering. Stability and strength. For all intents and purposes, the mating between Pierre Gosselin and the former Alpha’s only female offspring, Janice, was a love match. Perhaps it was in the early days, but that was before I was born and before I came to know the truth about that particular mating.

My life would change when Pierre Gosselin acceded to the title of Alpha. He had been mated to Janice for two years by then, but as was so often pointed out by Laurent’s dam, she was yet to produce an heir to her blood-line. Her mate and our new Alpha had decreed that, in the interests of a strong succession for the pack’s benefit, he would recognise his male pups as his heirs. So, Laurent was brought to the house, as was I, and our sibling, Charles, who was younger than me by one month.

Time to wake up. In under a day, I went from being a low-ranking pup whose dam had caught the Alpha’s eye once, to the recognised second son and ‘spare’ heir to the Alpha. My elder brother, Laurent, was of course the heir to the Gosselin Pack, and his training as Alpha Designate would start immediately. Ultimately, he would take on the role of Beta, whilst I would be his loyal and capable assistant so that when he acceded to the rank of Alpha, I would be his loyal Beta. But first things first. We must both be quartered as befitted the sons of Pierre Gosselin and that meant in his mate’s home, under her nose, a constant reminder of her barren state. That was how my sire described it when, in a rare show of spirit, she had expressed her reluctance to grant us the welcome our sire felt appropriate.

You barren bitch! My sire had struck Janice across the face, knocking her into the panelled wall of the hallway. You can’t provide me with heirs, so I am fortunate others don’t have that pathetic disability. He had snarled at her as she crouched against the wall, shielding her bruised face and already blackening eye from further blows. You will make MY sons welcome. He had smiled, and there was real anticipation in that smile. Or, I will have to show you the price of disobedience.

Janice had nodded, pulling herself to her feet. She had looked at the three of us: Laurent stood with his legs braced, his arrogance apparent; I stood strong, as my dam had told me I must; Charles stood slightly behind me, but then, he lacked the arrogance of Laurent or my own ability to mimic confidence.

Welcome to my new home. Yeah, right.

CHAPTER 2 – JUST ANOTHER PUP

There was a time when I was just another pup. For the first six years of my life, I lived with my dam. When I moved in with my sire, it did not occur to me that I never questioned the belief that my dam had died. I knew she had died, otherwise, why would I be living with my sire? But for those first six years of my life, I did have a dam. I lived with my mother.

It was not uncommon for pups to be born to unmated females. We were shifters. We lived with the seasons and when a female was in heat, she was in heat. Simple as that. Even as a pup I knew that. My dam did not seem to be upset if a male wished to run with her. ‘Run’ was understood to be another way of saying ‘mate’ with her.

I was four years old when Pierre Gosselin took over the Alpha position of the Gosselin Pack, with the death of Janice’s sire. Change did not come immediately. To start with, he had to convince the previous Alpha’s advisors and supporters that he intended to fulfil the promises he had made to his predecessor. He had made many promises indeed. There were many who felt that as the previous Alpha had aged, the Gosselin Pack had lost some of its influence in shifter circles. Make no mistake the Gosselin Pack was a large pack, influential not just in terms of financial wealth but in terms of the geography covered by the pack territory. So even a perceived loss of influence was a major issue. Who was Pierre Gosselin? He had the looks, he had the strength of physique and he had undoubted charisma. He wooed Janice Gosselin, the only daughter of the Gosselin Alpha and he had promised her the moon and stars. Of course, I did not know this is a child, but when I was older, Janice admitted to me how easy it had been to be taken in in those early days. It had been so easy her to believe that this charismatic and handsome male wanted her for more than the fact that she was the only living offspring of the Gosselin Alpha. So yes, Pierre Gosselin made a lot of promises, some of them intended to maintain the status quo and some of them intended to bring changes which some of the pack felt were all too necessary.

The easiest to keep had been changing his name to Gosselin. This was the Gosselin Pack. It was a large pack, cash rich and land rich. The pack was influential with the Shifter Council. Pups were educated and trained in how to contribute to the wellbeing of their Pack. This was all very well established, but Pierre Gosselin had to demonstrate that he would keep his word. In a pack as numerous as the Gosselin Pack, it was not sufficient that he satisfied those who want to change. He had to take the rest of the adults with him, or, he had to find a solution to their dissent. He had to promise that he would listen to them, that he would understand their concerns and that he alone would be in a position to effect the changes that were necessary for the Gosselin Pack to both maintain its status and to continue to grow its status. That’s what he told them. That is what they believed.

At least, he kept his word until the ‘accidents’ started to happen. As I have said, we are wolves. We are shifters and we are not weak creatures. But the accidents happened. A moonlit pack run and hunt, and a wolf might slip on a shale slope. The Laurentian Mountains in winter were not a forgiving place, and due care was always needed. My dam always used to keep me towards the rear of the pack during such runs, taking care that I was able to enjoy the run, rather than have to worry about the potential politics. Even at four years old, when in my human form, I had some similarities in looks to my sire, but I also had my dam’s darker hair. Perhaps this meant that I was not noticed so much, not like my half-brother, Laurent.

His dam’s approach was completely different. She made no bones about the fact that her pup was the eldest pup sired by the new Alpha. She had plans and they did not include Janice Gosselin producing a pup of her own bloodline, not when she had borne Pierre a strong and healthy pup in Laurent. So how did this affect Laurent as a pup? It was inevitable, really. Laurent was a matter of months older than me, but his attitude was that he was the get of Pierre Gosselin, and once his sire became the Alpha in truth, he made it clear amongst his age-mates that in time, he would be the next Alpha.

This was bound to have an effect on the informal hierarchy amongst the pups of the Pack. The young of most species learn by copying the behaviour of adults. Laurent’s, and thus by effect, my behaviour would be no different.

CHAPTER 3 - LAURENT

Humans would have seen something similar: the popular kid in a school, the captain of a sports team. There are always situations where there is jostling for ranking and an eye on what was to come. Pick on the weak, follow the strong. That is the nature of pack, surely? Or is it? Watch wild wolves and there is scope for challenge but there is also order. What was Laurent doing? In retrospect, I might give an opinion, but I am not writing this from an adult’s perspective. I am writing this as I recall from my childhood memories.

As a pup, what did I see? I saw a bully. I saw a male pup who was physically bigger than others, because his dam would ensure that he ate well. She made sure that she maintained Pierre Gosselin’s interest in her physically, and that meant that her sturdy male pup was constantly in his sire’s regard. Her voice used to grate on my ears, I recall, making me wince, but it was a reaction that my dam would caution me to hide. A wince, even slightly, could be considered a sign of weakness. My dam may have kept us to the rear of pack runs, but that did not make her weak, and I recall at least one occasion when either one of the other females or a male whom she did not favour tried to force her to their will. Make no mistake, my dam could and did fight to maintain her standing. But returning to the subject of Laurent. No, I didn’t like my sibling, not even then. I had a vague recollection of how the previous Alpha had been, and it seemed wrong. It seemed off