Alpha Ever After

by Casey Morgan

  I continue to watch them, and the alpha looks confused as well. Like he’s angry and doesn’t know why? He looks ready to question Flint more, but Flint creates this fog. It’s thick. The other man doesn’t notice, but he almost instantly calms down and starts to nod his head. It’s like that fog made Anson more pliable. They aren’t arguing anymore, and the alpha even smiles even though he was just yelling.

  I feel some of the residual energy from the fog and hiss at the feeling it gives me. It makes me feel creepy like it wants to invade my thoughts. I knew Flint was up to no good. I wish I could run back and tell my brother. But given how hard he was pushing back before, I’m not sure I can convince him with my secondhand account. He’ll probably just think I’m lying.

  Maybe if I can’t get my brother to listen, I can talk to this alpha. Obviously, he has to be far away from Flint, or else that evil man will just brew up more fog and work whatever spell he’s been using.

  There has to be a way to separate the two of them.

  I look back inside, and they’re no longer arguing. In fact, it looks like they’re about to come out onto the porch. I can’t let either one of them find me here, or I’ll be in a whole lot of trouble. I don’t doubt for one second that Flint will throw me under the bus. I’m sure he’d kill without remorse to get whatever he’s after.

  I look around the porch and spot a crate. I climb inside of it before the two men get out on the porch. Once they step out, I can clearly hear what they are talking about.

  “After this run, you’ll feel so much better. I promise. We’ve been dealing with all of this battle stuff, sometimes you’ve got to let go. Let go of all of that extra shit.”

  That sounds like Flint. He’s always so greasy when he talks. Even when what he’s saying isn’t particularly threatening, there’s still that underlying slipperiness. Maybe he doesn’t know how to turn it off.

  “Yeah, yeah.” I’m guessing that’s the Stayman alpha. Anson has a gruff low voice. Something also sounds a little hazy about him.

  Maybe it’s that fog Flint conjured. It has to be messing with his brain somehow. A direct hit from it must be mind-numbing. My guess is Flint can’t outright control people, or else he’d probably have what he wants by now. That fog must make this guy and maybe even Beau more likely to agree with him, though.

  I wish I knew more about magic. It would come in handy at a time like this. I'm guessing Flint knows more about the old ways. Magic is looked at with a disapproving eye nowadays. I know some horrible things happened because of dark magic, and so it’s use is mostly banned.

  Shifting in itself is a form of magic, but it’s harmless enough to our people. It’s the foundation of our entire society, so they couldn’t get rid of it.

  Magic is also the reason why many of our pack ignores me. I was imbued with more magic than the rest of them. My empath ways freak most people out.

  I’ve learned to deal with it, though.

  The bigger question is, why is Flint doing this? That's something I can figure that out later. If he really is a lone wolf, I can’t see how destroying the packs will be of any benefit to him. There’s nothing else I can think of that he could want. He’s hidden his motives so well. Knowing the why of his evil might help me out when it comes to stopping him. I need to investigate more, but right now, I'm more worried about getting him away from the pack than anything else.

  I’m able to look out of a small hole in the crate and see the two men shift. I’ve seen Flint’s wolf form many times, and he’s just as shifty as a wolf as he is when he’s human. His fur seems to have a life of its own. The movement is hard to see unless you’ve been looking, and I’ve been paying very close attention to this man. I don’t know why no one else has been raising alarms. I guess things that are super obvious to me are hidden from the others.

  The Stayman alpha is a large black wolf, definitely how an alpha would look. His fur looks like it would be really soft. I kind of want to run my fingers through it, which is surprising.

  I don’t really like to touch others since auras affect me so much. I absorb other people’s energies and emotions easily, and if I’m not careful, stuff like that can really get to me. Having this ability has given me a general aversion to wanting to feel others.

  But, seeing Anson’s wolf form, something in me wants to know how all that fur feels. I want to rub my cheek against him, let my fingers glide up and down his back. He must feel magnificent and silky.

  I snap out of whatever weird fantasy I’m in. I don’t know where that came from. It’s probably nothing, just a bizarre fixation. I watch as Flint and the Stayman alpha run towards the barricade. This looks like the perfect chance to get him alone.

  I pull myself out of the crate and shift. I’m a much smaller wolf, so it’s easy for me to sneak around. I have to make sure Flint doesn’t see me. He’d recognize my wolf form for sure. My bright white coloring is a dead giveaway. I go off into the bushes, making sure to remain hidden. Thankfully, Flint is a bit ahead already, so I get even closer to the big black wolf.

  The plan is to have the alpha catch glimpses of me. Hopefully, he will fall back to investigate. I don’t know if it’ll work, but it’s all I’ve got.

  Chapter Three

  Anson

  I was having some kind of disagreement with Flint. I can’t even remember what it was about, but it’s like I don’t even care about it anymore. My head feels kind of weird, though. Maybe weird is the wrong word. It’s like my thoughts are all so baseline. There’s nothing I really want to think too hard about, or it’s even like I can’t think too carefully about anything. I have no desire to put any deep thought into anything even though there is so much happening right now.

  Seconds ago, I was arguing and worrying, and now, I just want to simply be. It’s so… strange.

  Flint and I leave the kitchen, and we are doing a circuit of the barricades. He suggested a run in wolf form to blow off some steam. He’s probably right. That meeting got me all riled up, and then thinking about Pax and Tamir made me sad, and nothing was making sense before I just went kind of blank before ending up outside. This run should clear my head and get me back to where I need to be. I need to have clear intentions before going back to leading.

  The cold air hitting my face, the rush of wind going past my ears, this is what I needed. Flint has wandered a little ahead of me. I’m about to do a sprint to catch up to him when I see something white pass by in the bushes. It looks like some kind of animal, but I’m not sure. What I do know is that it’s moving rather quickly.

  I dismiss it as nothing, but then I see the flash of white again. I try to get a good look, but every time I turn my eyes in its direction, it’s gone. What is going on? It’s like someone is trying to fuck with me. But who would do that?

  I howl for Flint to stop and take a look. I quickly indicate what’s going on, but when he looks for himself, there’s absolutely nothing. I know that I saw something, but Flint insists that my mind is playing tricks on me. He challenges me to a race and takes off. I start to run but see the white thing again.

  Someone or something is trying to get my attention, and they have it now. I let Flint get ahead of me. There’s no way I’m going to ignore this clear message. When Flint is far away enough, I turn to follow the flash. It stays distant as it leads me away from the bushes, but it doesn’t take too much longer for them to reveal themselves.

  Before me stands a beautiful white wolf. I’ve never seen another like her. Her fur almost sparkles in the moonlight, as if the moonbeams are emanating from her very being. She practically floats on the grass as if she is a spirit. A part of me wonders if she is, in fact, real, or if Flint was right, and she is a figment of my imagination.

  Maybe I am out of my mind, but I follow her into a clearing. I don’t get too close because I’m a little worried about spooking her, but my eyes never leave her form.

  Suddenly, the wolf stops and turns to me. She shifts form into a beautiful woman. Her hair is the s
ame white color as her fur and similarly sparkles under the moon. Her skin is as pale as it comes. Everything about her is ethereal. She looks like an angel, and I must be dreaming because this woman cannot be from this world.

  I change form, so we’re both human. She approaches me when I’m done but doesn’t do anything to cover her nudity. I wouldn’t say werewolves are shy folk, but we usually do a little something to retain modesty. This girl just stands in front of me, nude and oblivious. Unable to help myself, my eyes wander over her curvy figure and full breasts. I don’t think she knows the effect she has, or else I don’t think she’d be so bold.

  I can’t lose control of my faculties now. I look straight into her shining blue eyes, doing my best not to physically show my attraction to her. I need to know what she’s doing here and why she worked so hard to get my attention.

  “Why have you come here?”

  “I came to tell you that you cannot trust Flint.”

  I’m confused. What is this woman talking about? Why is everyone saying the same thing to me when I’ve already proven that Flint should be here, by my side in battle.

  “He’s playing both sides,” she continues. “You don’t know—”

  “Who are you?” I interrupt.

  Her mentioning of Flint has put me off. That strange calm I was feeling has been replaced by a wave of surging anger. I don’t like to repeatedly be told the same thing. I do what I want to do, not falling prey to weird signs and suggestions, and I feel like they have been popping up a lot more lately.

  As she stands up straighter, a bit of her luminescent hair falls over her shoulder. “My name is Luna Mathis. Flint has been doing the same exact stuff with my brother Beau—”

  I stop listening because she is one of them! Of course they would try and send someone to distract me. This is probably all some ploy to get into my head and attack me when I least expect it.

  “You need to leave. Tell your brother I won’t fall for his tricks.” Even if he does send them to me in a pretty package.

  “No, no,” she shakes her head and reaches out a thin hand to me. “My brother didn’t send me. He’d be so mad if he knew I was here. I came to warn you because we’re all in great danger. Something isn’t right about Flint’s aura—”

  “Aura?”

  “Yes! His aura. It’s evil. He’s evil. His smell, too. He’s lying to us all. If we’re not careful, something horrible is going to happen, and I don’t think anyone will survive.”

  I want to laugh. This woman is talking nonsense! Auras, smells? This sounds like something outside the realm of what I think is reasonable. I don’t want to hear it.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I don’t care about his aura or how he smells. I don’t know you. You’re just some girl who wandered onto my land. And the sister of my enemy no less. If you don’t leave, I can make you.” I fold my arms over my chest and look down on her.

  “Please listen to me, Anson. You have to have reason. Maybe you’re having a hard time because Flint is using magic on you. It’s probably making your thoughts hazy, sometimes you have trouble thinking. You’ve probably been confused a lot.”

  That’s ridiculous. The Luna woman is very clearly disturbed. Maybe her brother didn’t send her, but she’s no use to me. I don’t deal with crazy people, not when they’re this far off the deep end. Clearly, there’s no way I’m going to reason with her.

  I laugh, turning away, but she grabs my arm. The second her skin touches mine, there’s a jolt of electricity that passes between us. I feel dizzy, pulling my arm away to hold my head. I see Luna reach out to catch me, but I flinch away from her.

  “Don’t touch me,” I yell.

  She immediately withdraws but looks concerned. “Are you okay? Did you feel that? I’m telling you; something is going on. You have to believe me. You’re my last hope.”

  “Don’t come back here. Ever.”

  I shift and run away from her, confused about what just passed between us. Nothing like this has ever happened to me. I’m confused and hazy, and my whole body can still feel that jolt of electricity that passed between that girl and me. I never should have followed her into that clearing. I’m an alpha who is supposed to think more critically.

  I speed up in order to rush back home. When I get there, Flint is waiting for me on the porch.

  “Where did you go?”

  “Um, I took a detour.” It sounds like I’m hiding something. My voice isn’t doing much of a good job of hiding my anxiety. I’m still shaken up from what just happened and want to process the memory, but I can’t do that here. “Can we talk tomorrow? I need to get some sleep.”

  I don’t wait for his answer because I’m not really asking a question. I brush past him and head upstairs to my room. I need to be alone right now to think about everything that just happened. I could have told Flint about it, but I don’t quite understand it myself yet. Maybe after thinking this all through, I’ll be able to let him know about it. If the Mathis clan is willing to stoop to such methods, we need to be vigilant.

  But before any decisions are made, I need to get some sleep. Maybe all these strange feelings are coming from being stressed. That’s what Flint said anyway. He’s right, a lot has happened in a short amount of time, and there’s been a lot on my plate for a while now.

  Maybe I’m overworking myself. That’s it. That’s the answer. All of these strange feelings and doubts are coming from a place of tiredness. Once I get a good night’s sleep, I’ll be back to leading my pack with the confidence I have always had.

  I’m in my room and get undressed, putting on some boxers to sleep in. I’m usually not this hurried when getting ready for bed, but under the circumstances, I’m just trying to get to sleep as quickly as possible.

  Getting under the covers, I wipe my mind as thoroughly as possible. If I can get the girl out of my thoughts, hopefully, everything will go back to normal. By tomorrow, I’ll be back to my old self.

  Chapter Four

  Anson

  It’s been days since I’ve seen Luna Mathis, and all I have done is think about her. Days, nights, it’s constant. Her face is like a ghost’s in my dreams. Her pale skin, her pale hair, her curves, it’s all intoxicating even if they are just images in my head.

  I really thought she’d be out of my system after one night, but my thoughts and dreams have been plagued with her image. I only spoke with her for a few minutes, but those few minutes have given me nothing but grief for so long. She is the most beautiful creature I have ever seen. Both in and out of wolf form. No one has ever gotten me so enamored before and in such a short amount of time. I don’t know what to make of her.

  And those words she said to me have been turning in my head over and over. I’m actually starting to wonder if maybe she was telling the truth. Could Flint be playing both sides? I don’t believe it. My mind won’t let me believe it, but she’s also not the first person to tell me this. She’s just the first one who got into my head about it. Her voice sounded genuine, but many people deal in lies. Can I trust some random woman over myself? I have been feeling out of sorts lately. Maybe another perspective is needed.

  “What are you thinking about over there?”

  “Oh, nothing,” I shake my head, lying to Flint.

  He’s noticed my changing behavior over these past few days, but I’ve been dodging his questions thus far. I know I said I’d tell him about Luna after that first night, but as time went on, I didn’t want him to know. I can’t say why I want Luna to stay my secret, but something in my gut is preventing me from telling him.

  I’m starting to wonder if that woman bewitched me with her touch. Her beauty astounded me, but this obsession I’m forming goes beyond the usual. I’ve found countless women attractive, I’ve even dated a few, but no one’s face has invaded my thoughts so thoroughly as Luna’s. I’ve also never felt such a fierce loyalty for someone I met so recently.

  I can’t stop thinking about her, and it is starting to dri
ve me crazy. All I want to do is get her out of my head. Without Luna Mathis in my life, I’m sure things would be much more comfortable. I’m sure by now, I would be more ready to fight for my clan, but she’s been giving me restless nights, and I am more tired than ever.

  “You’ve been saying that for days,” Flint oozes.

  I wasn’t expecting him to go in for a follow-up. Every time I’ve avoided his questions these past few days, Flint has coasted by it, but I guess I’ve done it one too many times. Honestly, I don’t want to have this conversation with him at all.

  “I just don’t want to bother you with what I’m thinking about. It’s really so inconsequential.” Which is partially the truth, the part where I don’t want to talk with him about it, but it’s more to benefit myself. Things have been moving quickly. I need them to slow down.

  “If it’s bothering you so much, I would think it’s of consequence. Anyway, I’d like to know. It’s not a bother.”

  “Well,” I start, trying to think of a convenient lie. “I’ve just been having some doubts about our battle plan.” Which is actually a kernel of truth.

  The reason I’m having these doubts is going to remain a secret. Flint doesn’t need to know that Luna Mathis has gotten into my head. And because I’ve been mulling over what she said, now the elders’ objections are starting to pick up traction. They’ve all quieted their grumblings since our meeting, but along with the dreams of Luna, I’ve been thinking about what some of the elders said regarding the cons of leaving our compound so openly unprotected.

  This is something we’ve never done before. Since I’ve been alpha, and even the alphas before me. Widespread attacks have not been the way we do things for a long time. It’s better for staying under the radar of humans well. It’s not just threats from other wolves that can make us itchy. But that’s what we’re dealing with this month.