The Alpha 6: Protect. Procreate. Prevail., page 10
“What’s personal?” she asked.
I hesitated for a moment as I realized I was about to be pretty fucking honest with a government agent, but Hazel’s eyes bored into mine in a distinct way. Not like she was some SDD agent, but like she was a curious person who was somewhat concerned.
“How much do you know about my backstory?” I asked. “You know I’m an alpha, and that I own this town, but is that where your research ends?”
“This might surprise you, but when I was in town, I really was just working on Gray Mackenzie,” she replied. “All I know is what you’ve told me. Our department hadn’t heard of you until we received an anonymous tip that Gray Mackenzie’s pack had dissolved into another.”
I tried not to react to this and kept my expression a calm mask.
“Okay…” I nodded my head slowly. “C’mon, let’s sit down, and I’ll tell you everything.”
I wasn’t actually going to tell Hazel Wise everything, at least until I felt safe enough to do so. But I was going to tell her what I needed to in order to make her see how important this information was to me.
Hazel left her empty plate in the sink, and then we both took a seat around the kitchen table where her bag had been left from earlier. She appeared to be interested to hear what I had to say, and I just hoped that worked in my favor.
“My father was an alpha when I was born,” I started to explain as I played with a selection of waffle crumbs with one finger. “My mother was an omega, and my Aunt Eva was my father’s sister. But one day, when I was very young, too young to even remember, my father’s pack was ambushed by a rival pack from the north. From what I’ve been told, my father had been keeping a close watch on this pack, so he told Eva to take me and run if anything was to happen. And then that night, when the fight began, both my parents were killed, and Aunt Eva and I relocated here in Oregon.”
“Oh, Jesse, I’m so sorry to hear that,” Hazel said with genuine sadness on her face. “I knew your parents had died, but I didn’t know how it had happened.”
“I didn’t either until I realized who and what I really was,” I snorted. “Eva and I have been safe here pretty much my entire life. It’s rare for you to come across werewolves in this area, which is why Aunt Eva chose Everleigh in the first place. But that changed literally just yesterday.”
“Okay…” She frowned.
“My pack and I caught on to the presence of some werewolves not too far away,” I continued. “We don’t know why they were near my territory, or how many there are, but due to what happened with my parents, we need to know whether they’re connected to the same pack or not. There’s a pack in Washington, and apparently they’ve been expanding north toward the borders of Canada, but we have a feeling these wolves we caught on to are perhaps fleeing from this rival pack, which is exactly why I need information.”
“So you came to me,” she concluded.
“I came to you because it’s safer,” I replied. “I cannot step a paw inside Washington, especially given who my father was, unless I know it’s safe for me to do so. And you’re literally the only person who can help me here.”
Hazel leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes for a second. Then she rubbed her face with one hand, let out a deep breath, and sat up to look at me.
“I have a question for you Mr. Rafe,” she said in a calm tone, and I nodded for her to continue. “It’s not a… prying one. Don’t worry. But you’re asking a lot of me right now, and while we’re here being open with each other, I am curious and would like to ask something of you.”
“Okay,” I led.
“Your aunt fled with you,” she continued. “Why? From my understanding, your species join with the packs who overtake you. You’ve certainly achieved that here, so why flee what is routine among your kind?”
“Hmm…” I tried not to grimace at her question, but it was a fair one, and I saw no reason not to shed some light on shifter life for her. “Because… there’s a lot of… routines among our kind when that sort of thing happens. And one of them is that the new alpha kills the children of the alpha he just destroyed.”
Hazel Wise’s mouth dropped open, and her eyes were as wide as saucers. She looked genuinely horrified, and I waited for her to recover as I calmly held her gaze.
“But…” she finally spluttered. “They’re children! They’re–”
“Totally innocent,” I agreed. “And for obvious reasons, this is one ‘routine’ that I sure as hell don’t support.”
“Have you… have you been in that sort of situation as an alpha?” the agent asked, and I could see her vision clouding with hostility. “Where children of another alpha were brought into the equation?”
“I have,” I said vaguely. “But those kids have remained as part of my pack. They’re being cared for by their wonderful mothers who were not treated well by their previous alpha. And if the kids have issues with me when they grow up, we can address that once they’re old enough to handle their own battles. I’m not a murderer, Hazel. I’m just an alpha.”
Hazel visibly relaxed, but she was still incredibly pale. She stared at me for what felt like a full minute, and I wondered if she was regretting getting involved in shifter protocol at this point.
It really was a fucking messy life we led.
“What information do you need?” Hazel finally asked.
“I just need to know if the northern werewolf pack has expanded south at all, or if they’re taking up the majority of Washington now,” I replied. “If they’re expanding south and creeping closer toward Oregon, then I need to be prepared to defend myself and my family.”
Hazel went silent again, and then she stood up and grabbed her bag from the other side of the table. I tried to hold back my smile, but I couldn’t help it. I was too relieved to find that Hazel Wise understood how important this was, and that she was willing to help me do what was right.
“Before I do anything, I need you to know that I cannot tell you too much about this pack,” she said as she pulled her silver laptop from the bag. “I cannot give you an exact location of the pack, or any smaller details that could lead you straight to them.”
“Believe me, I just need to know whether or not to secure my territory more,” I said. “If the pack has expanded south, then that might mean the werewolves we came across are fleeing from them, instead of having a direct pack connection to them.”
“Right, so if this northern pack has been known to stay where they are, and only head more north, that means these wolves you saw are safe, correct?” she asked.
“Potentially.” I nodded. “I don’t know who they are or who they’re running from, but I need to find out where this northern pack is in order to work out what to do with my own.”
“And finally, if any of this conversation, and I mean anything, gets back to the SDD, you and I are done,” she said firmly with a pointed finger. “I am risking everything just opening up my laptop, and I don’t want to live to regret this decision.”
“You won’t,” I said honestly. “I have no intention of telling your bosses what you’ve done, just like how you’re not going to link my name to the foxes. You and I are the only ones in this conversation, and it won’t leave these four walls.”
Hazel mumbled something about how she could get fired for doing this, but then she let out a deep sigh as she opened the lid of her laptop. Her fingers flew across the keyboard as she typed away, but then she angled the device slightly to stop me from seeing the screen.
It was probably a smart move for her to make.
“Right,” she said a moment later. “What’s the alpha’s name? The one who leads this northern pack.”
“Theo Finch,” I said, and the words left a bitter taste in my mouth after the nightmare I’d had last night.
I glanced around the room as she continued to search and scroll, and then she closed her laptop and sent me a smile.
“Well?” I asked. “Have they moved south?”
“No,” she replied. “Theo Finch’s pack are still very much in the north of Washington and southern British Columbia, and there’s no sign of any new wolf packs relocating here in Oregon.”
“Oh, okay.” I frowned. “So the wolves we detected must have been wanderers?”
“That’s probably what they were, yes.” Hazel nodded. “They aren’t on our radar for this area or Washington, which means they’re not ones to be watched. And if it makes you feel any better, Theo’s pack has been cleared and marked as fine on our documents.”
“Fine? What does that mean?” I asked.
“Let me put it this way, the werefoxes hadn’t been cleared,” she chuckled.
“Right, so Theo Finch is… nothing to worry about?” I assumed.
“Exactly,” she replied.
I let out a sigh of relief, and a giant weight left my shoulders as I realized we weren’t in danger from my parents’ killers, or from the wolves we heard in the distance.
“Thank you so much.” I smiled. “I know that was a lot to ask, but I really appreciate your help.”
“You’re welcome,” Hazel said sweetly. “Let me know if you need help with anything else.”
“I will, but hopefully I won’t need to,” I replied.
I tried not to think too much about that offer she made me, but it was a sign that Hazel wanted to help, she just needed to think about her job at the same time.
Which surprised the hell out of me. It seemed there was a lot more to her than some government paper-pusher, and I appreciated that she’d heard my dilemma and responded like an actual human being.
We ended our conversation there, and then the two of us headed back to join the others in the living area.
Blair was in the middle of painting her nails jet black, Aunt Eva was reading a new book, and Nikita, Arielle, and Benji were watching the most recent episode of a reality TV show. I had a feeling it was the omegas’ choice, and not his.
“Hey, bro,” Benji said as I took my usual seat, and Hazel sat on an empty chair. “I just received a message from Brenden saying the car’s ready.”
“Amazing,” I replied.
“Really?” Hazel asked. “I thought it was going to take days to fix it.”
“That’s another benefit,” I said with a grin. “They knew it was for me, so they put everything aside to get your car looking as good as new.”
“Oh, okay.” She smiled. “Where do I pick it up from?”
“Brenden’s sorted that out, too,” Benji answered. “He’s picking it up now, so he’ll drop it off for you.”
“Will you be okay to drive?” Aunt Eva asked as she used one finger as a bookmark.
“I think I’ll be fine.” Hazel smiled.
“As long as you don’t black out again,” Nikita added.
“How did you know about that?” Hazel asked, but then she gasped and turned to face me. “You promised not to bring the crash up with anyone!”
“Hey, it’s not my fault they can hear my thoughts.” I shrugged. “But don’t worry, it won’t leave this house.”
“Yeah, we’re not snitches,” Blair said.
Hazel almost smirked at this, and I made a mental note that she didn’t even blink when I mentioned we could hear each other’s thoughts. So apparently the agent knew at least some useful things about shifters.
“And in regards to you driving home, I think you’ll be fine, too.” I nodded. “After all, I have a patrol group in that area, so they can keep an eye out for you.”
“Why do you have them so close to the city?” Hazel frowned. “I thought Monroe and Everleigh were the only towns you owned?”
“Just to… be on the safe side.” I cleared my throat with a single cough. “Nothing more than that.”
And totally not because you now own the city, too, Benji snickered.
No, of course not, I replied.
She’ll find out one day, but today is not the best time, Aunt Eva added as she returned to the fictional world in her book. She’s helped us out, let’s be grateful and leave it at that.
It took no longer than thirty minutes for Brenden to bring the BMW over, and in that time we all relaxed in our seats and mindlessly watched the reality show. I had no idea what the show was about, or what the contestants had to do, but my omegas enjoyed it, and that’s all that mattered.
Hazel changed back into her own clothes as Brenden pulled up in the driveway, and she thanked everyone again for all our help, and I thanked her for the help she gave us.
“No one will know you’ve said anything,” I mentioned as we headed for the front door. “I promise you that.”
“I appreciate that, Jesse, thank you.” Hazel smiled and then walked outside to greet Brenden.
“That’s a sick car,” the beta captain said with a smug smile on his face. “It felt like I was flying instead of driving.”
“That’s why I chose it,” she replied with an equally smug expression.
Once the key fob had been handed over, Brenden shot me a smile and then turned on his feet and ran back down the driveway. I imagined he was going to shift, but he probably didn’t want to do that in front of Hazel.
I waited until Hazel had driven away before I went back inside, and my entire family were looking at me with excited smiles on their faces.
“Fuck, we can finally talk!” Benji cheered.
“I feel like I’ve been holding in everything all evening,” Arielle giggled.
“You know we could have easily spoken about what Hazel said,” I pointed out. “We just couldn’t have done it openly in front of her.”
“Yes, but that would have been so obvious, Jesse,” Blair replied.
“I just cannot tell you how relieved I am to hear that Theo Finch doesn’t appear to be a threat to us,” Aunt Eva sighed.
“And maybe those rogues weren’t actually rogues?” Nikita frowned. “Perhaps they were just a wandering pack after all?”
“That’s what it sounded like,” I agreed. “I mean, it’s a bit strange they’re out there without an alpha, but there’s probably a reasonable explanation for that. Maybe their alpha is just… on vacation?”
“Oooor maybe they’re looking for an alpha.” Arielle smirked.
“I think they could be,” Eva replied. “Those wolves would be missing the strength and power that an alpha brings if they don’t have one currently.”
“And I know exactly where they could find one,” I laughed.
“Do you really want to go back out there and look for them?” Blair asked. “Don’t you think that’s a bit of a risk, Jesse?”
“I think the risk left as soon as Hazel gave me that information,” I said. “Part of me would love to offer them protection if they’re on the run, and obviously I’d love to increase my pack with more werewolves. However, I also just want some answers, and I want to know why they’re near my territory. If it’s by accident, then fine, I can show them a safer way to go, but they could get spotted by one of the patrol groups, and then a fight will start.”
“You’re right.” Aunt Eva nodded. “It could be that they don’t mean us any harm, and they’re just passing through, which is exactly why I think we should track them down again, have a simple conversation, and leave it at that. It’s part of your responsibility as alpha of this area to keep tabs on things like this, too.”
“It’s been, what, twenty-four hours since Caleb heard the howl?” Benji asked. “In which case, they might be miles away from here by now. We might not have anyone to track and follow anyway.”
“But we also know their scent now,” Nikita said. “So it’ll take us no time at all to find them if they’re still around.”
“If Jesse wants to go, then I’m more than happy to come along.” Arielle smiled.
“I am, too,” Blair added.
“And you know I am,” Benji chuckled. “Fucking hell, there’s no better way to burn off loaded chicken wings than a good old-fashioned run in the forests.”
“Then let’s go.” I grinned.
“Yeah, let’s go hunt down their wolfy asses.” Nikita punched her fist into her hand.
I sent off a group message to the rest of my mainland pack and islanders, and I briefly explained what we were going to do. Caleb’s group would have still been in the open field by the time we got there, so I was going to inform them personally. But I also wanted to make sure the rest of the pack kept a close watch on the area while we were away, just in case.
Once the message had been sent, and I received a few replies, we turned off the TV and prepared ourselves to leave. We left one light on in the living area, but we turned the others off, and then we left our clothes in neat piles beside the couch as we exited the house.
A sense of freedom shot through my body as I shifted into my wolf form, and I took in the crisp, evening air as I shook out my coarse fur and scraped my claws across the even tarmac.
I stretched out my limbs and arched my back, and then as soon as the others were ready to go, we took off through the forest as quickly as we could.
The forest floor was damp and sludgy after the storm, and the fallen branches left a few obstacles for us to jump over, but it was nothing we hadn’t faced before. In fact, there was something incredibly calming and serene about racing through a forest only hours after a thunderstorm. The air felt fresher, lighter, and even smoother, and I loved every second of it.
I had a brief conversation with Caleb and his group when we arrived in the field, and he asked if we needed their assistance, but I said I’d let them know. I much preferred having them patrolling the borders of my land, and if they weren’t here, then anyone could have entered without us realizing it.
Okay, Alpha, he said. Just send us a message if you end up needing backup.
I will, thank you. I nodded my wolf head, and then we raced toward the opposite forest.
The wolves’ scent of caramel and peanuts felt much stronger than before, so that was either because I now had them on my radar, or the wolves had stepped further into the forest since we were last here.
The scent was so powerful that it even felt like it created a path through the trees. I knew exactly which way to go, and I didn’t have to stop and think as I ran.
