by Cheree Alsop
“I don’t know about that,” Kaynan replied from her side. He gave Alex a searching look. “You want to get married in a week? Let’s make it happen.”
“Okay,” Meredith agreed. “Let’s plan a wedding.”
“How exciting!” Gem hopped from foot to foot as if she was filled with so much happiness she couldn’t stay in one place. “Dray, we can work on the flowers!”
“And I can help with the catering,” Colleen offered.
“Am I going to have to cook?” Rafe asked, his golden gaze wary.
Colleen laughed, her violet eyes sparkling. “Only if you want to.”
Rafe shook his head. “I think I’ll stay away from the kitchen.”
“I’ll help!” Brock offered.
Professor Mouse shook his head. “You’d eat everything before we got it to the tables.”
“I didn’t say I’d be any good at it,” Brock countered. “Maybe I could be a taste tester. You know; make sure all the food is good before it goes out to people? You don’t want to serve low-quality food to your guests.”
Jaze raised his left hand. His right cradled little Vicki to his chest. She was asleep and gave out a little contented sigh at the sound of her father’s voice. “School’s about to start for the day. I suggest making plans after lessons have been taught. Meredith, can I leave the preparations up to you?”
He appeared relieved when she nodded. “Of course. I’ll take care of all the wedding plans.”
“With lots of help,” Gem shot in.
Meredith smiled. “With lots of help. You have your little ones to manage. Just don’t forget to ask if you need us.”
“I appreciate it,” Jaze replied. He smiled down at the sleeping baby. “I think I have things handled for now.”
The bell rang. Alex and Cassie rose to follow the professors out.
“Alex, stay for just a minute,” Jaze said.
Siale kissed him on the cheek. “Catch you later.”
“See you at lunch,” Alex told her.
He waited until Professor Mouse pulled the door shut, then turned around. The expression on Jaze’s face made a knot tighten in his stomach.
“You want to get married next week?” the dean asked, his eyes searching Alex’s face.
Alex dropped his gaze and ran his fingers across the green and white afghan across the back of the couch Nikki had knitted when she was pregnant with Vicki. The wool yarn caught against the calluses of his hand.
“Why wait?” he asked, hoping he sounded nonchalant. “I love Siale. I don’t see a reason to put it off any longer. Greyton City is on board and the mayor has already given us—”
“You’re setting a trap for Drogan.”
Alex paused and glanced up at Jaze. “I’m what?”
Jaze’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t pretend like I’m stupid, Alex. I know exactly what you’re doing. You don’t think Drogan’s dead, so you’re using the wedding to draw him out.”
Alex watched him just as closely. “Do you think Drogan’s dead?”
Jaze was quiet for a moment. He looked slowly around the room, then at his favorite overstuffed chair. The dean finally took a seat. Vicki stirred and nuzzled underneath Jaze’s chin before she stilled; her breathing fell back into a restful rhythm.
“No, I don’t,” the dean finally admitted.
Grateful for Jaze’s honesty, Alex sat back on the couch. “Me, either. If the Demons are still attacking cities, I think their Alpha must be the one commanding them to do so.”
“You want to cut off the head of the snake.”
Alex nodded. “It’s the only way to stop them.”
Jaze’s voice was quiet when he asked, “And get revenge for Jericho?”
Alex nodded. “He deserves vengeance.”
Jaze’s voice held him when the dean said, “Yes, he does. Just be careful that when you do seek your revenge, you keep the living in mind.”
Alex asked quietly, “Instead of the dead?”
There was steel and determination in his voice when the dean answered, “Along with the dead. We’ll never forget those who gave their lives so we can survive. We live in their memory, instead of dying for it.”
Alex thought about the dean’s words. “I think I under—”
“Alex!”
William flew through the door and tackled Alex. Alex laughed and fell off the couch. William sat on top of him with the proud smile of a three year old.
“I got you!”
“You sure did!” Alex replied with a chuckle. “You got me good.”
William climbed off and offered Alex his small hand. “Need help?”
Alex grinned and took the hand. He pulled William down and tickled the little boy.
“Not fair!” William giggled. “That’s not fair!”
Alex sat back on the couch and patted the seat next to him. William took it happily. The little blond haired boy smiled up at Alex, his blue eyes so like Nikki’s Alex couldn’t help thinking of her.
“Your mom would be proud of how big you’re getting,” he told William.
“She’d say I’m going to be bigger than Daddy,” William replied. “She always told me that.”
“I think it’s true,” Jaze said. He smiled at his son from across the room. “Your mom was always right.”
William nodded. “She was in my dreams last night.”
Jaze smiled at his son with a shadow of longing in his gaze. “What did she say?”
“She told me to listen to the statue.”
Alex stared down at him in surprise. “What statue?”
“The one in the yard,” William replied. “The wolf one.”
Heat ran across Alex’s skin. He could feel Jaze’s rapt attention when he asked the little boy, “Does the statue talk to you?”
“Sometimes,” William answered.
Alex kept his tone light when he asked, “What does the statue say?”
William’s blue eyes reflected the warmth of the lamp next to Alex when he replied, “Jet said the Demons are coming.”
Alex and Jaze looked at each other. Alex could tell the same chill had gone down the dean’s spine.
“We need to evacuate the Academy,” Alex said.
“I agree,” Jaze replied. “But let’s do so quietly. If Drogan hears, he’ll pull his Demons back and attack before the students are clear. The sooner we can get this wedding underway, the better.”
“Will they come back?” Alex asked.
“You mean the students?” At Alex’s nod, Jaze gave a small smile. “For many of them, this is home, but it’s our duty to ensure that it’s safe. Right now, we can’t promise that.”
Vicki stirred and began to cry.
“She’s hungry,” Jaze told Alex. “Spread the word to the professors. I’ll catch up to you.”
Alex stood. William followed Jaze to the backroom, leaving Alex to wonder what had just happened. He found Siale waiting for him when he left Jaze’s quarters.
Siale paused before giving him a hug. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” she said.
“Something like that,” Alex replied. At Siale’s questioning look, he explained, “We’re evacuating the Academy.”
Siale’s eyes widened. “Why?”
Alex said what he knew Jaze would want him to tell the professors. “With the wedding coming up and the Demons loose, we don’t want the Academy to be a target. It’ll be safest to have all of the students gone until Drogan is accounted for.”
Siale nodded. “Okay. I’ll talk to my dad about taking the Lifers. I think he’d be happy to have them at the warehouse until things are under control.”
Alex felt guilty for not telling her the complete truth. He took her hand and led her down the steps to the courtyard. They walked in silence to the big wolf statue in the middle of the grass. Comfort filled Alex when he set his palm against the cool metal. Siale waited near him without question. He appreciated the way she gave him the time he needed to gather his thoughts.
�
�William says Jet’s statue talks to him in his dreams,” he finally told her.
He didn’t know if he wanted it to be possible or not. Jaze was completely willing to make a decision that affected the entire Academy based on the three-year-old’s words. Alex wasn’t sure what to believe.
“He said Jet told him that the Demons were coming to the Academy. Do you think that’s possible?” he asked, careful to keep his tone level.
Siale studied the wolf statue for a few minutes. When she spoke, her eyes were on the seven emblazoned on the wolf’s shoulder. “Maybe it’s instinct.”
“What do you mean?”
Siale set a hand on the seven. “Maybe what William feels is instinct, and he doesn’t know how else to describe it.”
“That’s possible,” Alex acknowledged. “He said his mom told him to listen to Jet. That’s why we’re evacuating the Academy.”
Siale set a hand on his arm. “It’s bothering you, isn’t it?”
Alex nodded. His words were quiet when he said, “I’ve talked to Jet’s statue ever since I got here.” He paused, then continued, “It helps me clear my thoughts, but I’ve never gotten an answer like that.”
“Haven’t you?”
He met Siale’s gray gaze in surprise. “What do you mean?”
She gave a small, warm smile and said, “Isn’t it Jet that tells you to keep fighting? Isn’t he the one that pushes you to try every way possible to defeat Drogan?” She looked at the statue. “Isn’t it your brother you follow to protect those who are weaker and need your help? At first, it seemed to me like you lived in his shadow. But now I know that the same blood flows in your veins. Jet’s been a part of you since you were born.”
Alex felt the truth of her words as soon as she said them. He shook his head and smiled at her. “You always surprise me by how well you really know me.”
She smiled back at him. “That’s love. The more I know you, the deeper I respect you, and that respect is tied with how very much I love you.”
He kissed her in front of the statue. The sun shone down on their shoulders while the scent of turning leaves and frost in the shadows hinted at the fall that would soon embrace the Academy and the forest. Alex walked with Siale hand in hand back to the Academy. They had a lot to do before the wedding, and the first step was going to be the hardest. He wasn’t sure how the professors would take the news that the Academy was to be evacuated, but he trusted his dean and the little boy who looked at him with the eyes of the woman who had once been the only mother in his life.
Chapter Twenty-four
“It’s so empty,” Cassie said as they wandered through the Academy.
“It feels like ghosts roam the halls,” Tennison replied.
Alex trailed behind the pair. The last of the students had left earlier that day so that they could get home long before the full moon rose. The tremors that crawled beneath Alex’s skin intensified the closer it came to nightfall. Only those students who would be attending the wedding remained, and they had sat as long as they could stand it in the library until Trent suggested walking the halls in an effort to stave off the need to phase.
“Maybe they do,” Terith replied. She looked down the halls they passed as if searching for ghosts.
She and her brother seemed a bit lost without Von and Jordan at their sides. Even though Alex had asked Jaze’s permission for both werewolves to attend the wedding, the dean had denied his request. Worry that Drogan and his Demons would surface meant every security measure had to be taken. The fewer werewolves both the team and the GPA had to protect, the better.
“You believe in ghosts?” Siale asked her.
Terith nodded. “Definitely. Don’t you? It’s like memories walk through the halls. Look.” She gestured into Chet’s empty training room. The evening light spilled through the windows to light the empty mats and wrestling ring. “You can almost see Boris and Torin fighting it out. Their Seconds would be cheating, trying to give their Alpha the upper hand. Chet always had to yell at them for interfering with rank duels.”
Alex leaned against the open doorway. “It amazes me that neither ever won. They could fight the entire class period, and Chet would always have to call it off when the bell rang because they were so equally matched.”
“You beat them both.”
Alex looked at Trent. “Not in here.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Trent replied. He nodded at the empty ring. “Here, in the courtyard, in the forest, it’s all the same. You’re the top dog.”
Alex was about to protest when Siale said, “He’s right. They always wondered who was strongest, but it was you.”
Alex remembered the feeling of defeating each Alpha. He hadn’t needed the Demon to come out on top. Something had filled him with strength. He knew that same thing was responsible for his now black fur when he phased, and the way the other students looked at him when he walked into a room.
“Jericho knew.”
The name Cassie spoke settled over everyone. Alex’s sister nodded in certainty. “He knew what you were. That’s why he chose you at his first Choosing Ceremony. He believed you were more than even you knew.”
Alex and Siale exchanged a glance. Alex gave her a small smile. Their conversation with Cherish had let Alex know exactly why Jericho had chosen him. Alex had kept the same thought at the forefront of his mind during the funeral the day before. Jericho’s decision to honor Jet’s sacrifice in saving his family had impacted Alex’s entire life. When he howled with the others, it was in remembrance of the Alpha who had become not only his mentor, but his friend.
“I learned as much from him as he did from me,” Alex replied, his voice soft.
Silence settled over them. Alex’s thoughts were swept away to the first time he had met the tall, skinny Alpha in the courtyard. So much had changed from the time Jericho had called his name in front of the entire Academy. It was the first time a Termer had ever called a Lifer to be a part of his or her pack, let alone be the Second. Alex would never forget the honor Jericho had bestowed on him that day.
Siale slipped her hand into his. “I can’t believe we’re getting married tomorrow. I’m nervous.” She read the concerned look on his face and hurried to say, “Not about marrying you, but about doing it in front of so many people.”
Alex knew she was worried about Drogan and the Demons more than anything else. Keeping up pretenses with their families had been tough on them both. He was ready to have it over with no matter what was going to happen. He forced a smile and pulled her close. “Me, too,” he admitted. “I can’t believe how much Greyton’s putting into this.”
“You have a ballroom and everything,” Terith reminded him. “I can’t believe the Mayor is the one officiating!”
Trent shook his head. “Talk about making a statement. I’ve got to give the man credit for taking a stand.”
Tennison smiled. “Greyton’s already known for having Alex as their protector. They want to be known as the first werewolf-friendly city on the map.”
Cassie leaned against her fiancé. “It’s all a dream come true, but it feels so fast. I can’t believe it’s tomorrow! I don’t think I’m going to sleep tonight even after the full moon.”
“Let’s phase,” Trent suggested. “I can’t stand it anymore. Jordan’s not here. I’ve lost my sense of stability and any reason for control. Let’s go be wolves.”
“I couldn’t have said it better,” Terith replied, throwing her brother a relieved smile. “I feel like I’ve lost my arm or my heart without Von at the Academy. Being a wolf is easier. We don’t have to think about it.”
Everyone looked at Alex. He realized they expected him to make the final decision. With the others gone, he truly was the Alpha.
Alex nodded. “Let’s go.”
His friends rushed up the stairway to phase. Alex walked up more slowly.
“You’re in your mind a lot these days.”
Alex smiled at Siale. She waited at the top of the stairs with a
quizzical expression and her head tipped slightly to one side. Her gray eyes watched him with the knowing look of someone who guessed Alex’s thoughts but waited for him to state them.
“I think I’m starting to realize what it means to be an Alpha,” Alex admitted when he reached her.
“Professor Kaynan would be proud of you,” Siale replied, slipping her arm through his. “Remember his philosophy class? ‘The best Alpha thinks of him or herself last, puts the pack first, and remembers that the pack is only as strong as its weakest member.’”
Alex cracked a smile. “I remember when Torin replied, ‘But if the pack is there to serve the Alpha, what good is it if the Alpha places himself last?’”
Siale grinned. “Kaynan wasn’t thrilled.”
Alex chuckled. “Leave it to Torin to find the self-serving side of being an Alpha.”
Siale pushed open the door to Alex’s quarters. It still amused him to see that the others had chosen his used-to-be lone wolf rooms as their own without so much as asking him. He smiled at the sight of Trent running around in wolf form with Tennison’s shirt in his mouth. Cassie’s fiancé was trying to corner the wolf between the couch and the fireplace without luck while Cassie just watched and laughed.
“You seriously need Jordan here,” she said with a shake of her head.
Trent barked in agreement. Tennison dove at that moment and managed to yank the shirt from the werewolf’s teeth. He held it up with a dismayed expression.
“It’s all slobbery. That’s gross, Trent. Just wait until I phase and chew up your favorite shoe,” Tennison threatened.
Cassie laughed. “Are you a shoe-chewer, Tenn? Are there other bad habits I’m going to have to break you of after we’re married?”
“Just put lemon oil on everything,” Siale replied. “Chewers hate the taste of lemon oil.”
Alex and Cassie both grimaced at the thought.
It was Siale’s turn to laugh. “You two really look like brother and sister when you do that.”
“Alex also screams like a girl,” Tennison replied. “You might have to train him on that.”
Alex threw off his shirt and phased. Before Tennison could escape, Alex snatched the werewolf’s shirt from his grasp and darted out the door.