The Alpha Legacy Boxed Set 1-7

by Holly Hook

  "And don't forget the Health teacher," Ellie adds.

  I'm not in the mood to join in. If I had fur, hackles would rise. My skin feels as if bugs crawl all over it.

  What am I thinking? I can defend myself.

  The carrot cake comes out and Noah cuts his in half, handing me a piece. It tastes dry as I eat. But once we all get done, and Leonora finishes every crumb, Noah lifts his pen and writes, guy near door.

  "He keeps staring at us," Noah whispers.

  "Back way?" Ellie asks.

  "Yes," I say. "Back way. Follow our guts."

  "There's a book written about that," Leonora says. "I forgot what it was called—"

  Noah leaves a tip and we all rise.

  A leather coat squeaks from the front of Teeyah's. The guy with the steel-blond hair shifts, ready to get up. I don't have to look.

  I wave the others in front of me as we head for the back door. Listening, I zero in on the guy as we walk past the bathrooms and to the back door. The guy stays put as if he's trying to look innocent.

  But as we step out into the cold night, he rises, jacket shifting. His boots click against the floor as he pushes open the front door.

  "He's going around," I say.

  Noah gives me a wide-eyed stare. "How do you know?" You can't see the inside of Teeyah's from here.

  "I know. Move." Already, the clicking of his boots—quiet to everyone but me—move along the sidewalk out front and towards the alley that cuts between Teeyah's and the tax place next door. And then the guy turns. He'll intercept us. Does he have a gun? One of those exploding magical herb bags?

  I smell nothing, but I can't be sure about the gun part. The Savages could have hired assassins.

  We have to go around the other way. "Over here," I whisper.

  "Are you sure?" Leonora asks.

  I grab her arm and pull. She follows, biting in any comments about my strength. Leonora knows better. At least I have someone here who knows my secret.

  Noah and Ellie follow. "What are you doing?" Noah asks.

  I shush him.

  We walk around the restaurant just as the creepy guy reaches the back. He pauses and lets out a breath. Frustrated. We burst onto the street, but there's no time to relax. He's coming back around, walking quickly.

  The guy must act alone. He would have stationed a buddy in the back otherwise. Maybe he's one of those dark web hit men.

  And I know who the target is. Me.

  "I'll start the car," Noah says, unlocking it. "Get in and lock the doors."

  We do. I take the back seat with Leonora, trying to stay low. But the creep darts back to the street, stops, and lingers in the darkness of the alley opening. Noah and the others can't see him in the gloom, but his outline hangs there like a shadow in a long, flowing robe.

  I lock the door.

  Shifting and fighting in front of Noah and Ellie isn't an option.

  Noah puts the key in the ignition, turns it, and listens as the car sputters and refuses to start. Then he tries again and looks back at us. "Are you serious? I just got an oil change!"

  "Your battery must be dead," I say. "Ellie, call the cops. Matt could have sent this guy. He's in the alley right now."

  "Now you're going on a limb," Noah says, looking and seeing no one. "This sucks and I'll get a jump, but the guy's gone."

  "He's right there," I blurt, pointing at the alley.

  My eyes adjust more and I spot his dark sunglasses. They're trained on me. He must be only thirty feet away.

  "You can see?" Noah asks.

  "He might run off if the cops show up." I fish out my phone, but once I hit the button to bring it to life, I realize it's showing me a flashing battery. "Okay. Don't tell me we all have dead phones."

  "I don't have a phone," Leonora says.

  Ellie flashes me hers. "Mine's not turning on. What is going on here?"

  "Are you girls pranking me?" Noah asks, looking at his own dead phone. He's still in denial. "What did I ever do to you?"

  Leonora and I look at each other. Our conversation about magic returns to me. Magic uses mundane events to achieve its goals.

  And this fits the bill.

  The creep continues to wait, hidden in the dark with his arms folded over his chest.

  I can escape this guy, but my friends might not. Even Leonora can't whip out magic, make a circle, and protect us. "I'll find someone to jump the car," I say. "And we're not pranking." Getting this guy away from my friends is my first mission.

  "The street's pretty empty," Noah says. "No one's coming out of the restaurant. Suppose that guy really was stalking us. I'm going with you."

  Inside, the waitress draws the blinds, closing Teeyah's off. The happy families and tourists vanish. I can't believe how much things are lining up in favor of this guy. To go inside and ask for a jump, I'll have to go right past the dude.

  But maybe I can deal with him on my own, where no one sees. If he's with the Savages, I have to deal with him before he threatens the pack, too. Maybe he's come to finish whatever the warlock did to Cayden. My mind flashes back to his jolt of pain and for a moment, the animal stirs.

  "I'm going on my own," I say. "Noah, don't leave Ellie and Leonora. I can take care of myself."

  "But you're five foot two."

  "She'll be fine," Leonora says.

  "What is the deal?" Noah asks. "You've been weird these past few months. First you stayed in the school with that wolf and now you'll face some creep alone."

  I don't have time for this. "Stay here," I say, getting out of the car.

  It beats putting my friends in danger. He could hold them hostage and demand something out of me, but something tells me that's not what he wants.

  Without looking back, I head away from Teeyah's, keeping my steps quiet, and listen. I pretend to scan the storefronts for a place still open. Only Teeyah's is open late, taking advantage of the tourists here for the holiday.

  Boots click.

  He's following. And walking right past my friends.

  There's no doubt Noah and the others see him now. I quicken my pace like a normal scared girl and turn the corner ahead, pretending to lose the guy, but he breaks into a run.

  And then the car door to Noah's vehicle opens. He's coming after me.

  It's not what I wanted, but not avoidable. Upping my pace just enough to appear in a hurry, I continue down the side street. A bar's open and people laugh inside. Light filters through colored glass. I walk through it and continue into the dark.

  The guy turns the corner and breaks into a run.

  "Hey!" Noah shouts from far back. But we're losing him.

  Transforming won't be easy in town. I sniff the air. Cayden's forest scent wafts from the woods beyond town, maybe half a mile away. The burning straw smell from the creep mixes in. I wasn't planning on having Cayden intercept the weirdo, but if it stops me from having to blow my cover, then I'll do it. I won't make the same dumb mistake I made with Olivia.

  The wind shifts direction, taking the smell away and pushing it towards the north end of the town. Mine, too. Now Cayden won't detect me unless he gets much closer. Even yelling for him at this distance won't get results.

  "Crap," I mutter.

  Then I glance behind me.

  The guy hangs about a hundred feet back. He walks past the bar, hands in his leather pockets. As he passes, the streetlight in front of the bar goes out.

  Could be a coincidence, but if one more event happens in his favor, I'm planning my attack.

  And his confident gait sends my heart racing.

  I wish I were back in the car with the others. It's a human thought I hate. I should be able to handle this on my own. I'm the beta of the pack. Second in command.

  I walk past the hardware store and a sign saying no one will be back until after the holiday. Then a tourist kiosk made of logs. I duck behind it. No one's around down this way. I could loop around and meet my friends, but that leaves Noah out here with him. And there's the possibi
lity he's a danger to Cayden.

  I reach for the animal within.

  It could be my growing fear, but it responds, growling and ready to fight. With my mental word, it'll rise to the surface.

  Boots click closer. The guy's forty…thirty…twenty feet away.

  Then they stop.

  He's waiting. I stand behind the dumb kiosk, doing the same. It's as if neither of us knows what to do.

  "Don't run."

  His voice rings out in the dark, and it's deep, confident, and more mature than I expect. The burning straw smell hits me.

  "I've been following you since the rite," he says.

  The animal rises to the surface. Pain explodes in my limbs and I kneel as clothing rips away. Fur sprouts as waves of itchiness sweep over my skin, but it's nothing compared to the popping throughout my body. I welcome the agony because I don't have to be that fleeing girl anymore. Now I can fight.

  On all fours, I wiggle from my coat, leaving it on a bed of snow and ice. The cold's far away. Boots click as the man backs off. He's heard the transformation.

  And now I'll make sure he never bothers us again.

  I step onto the sidewalk, claws clicking.

  The creep lowers his sunglasses, revealing deep brown eyes that would be sexy under other circumstances. I step forward and growl. Stay away. It's a signal every living thing knows, a primal language.

  "Don't do that," the guy says, reaching into his pocket. "I came to tell you something." He glares, but metallic fear fills the street.

  My stomach growls. I don't have to kill this guy. I don't want to. He's a regular human. But I'll chase him off and defend this territory. He represents the Savage Wolves.

  I charge him.

  "No," he shouts, turning away.

  Snapping and claws hitting pavement, I keep pace, snapping at his shins and flapping leather as I catch up. I'll scare him off. Biting and infecting him won't do us good. The creep shuffles through his pockets, panting and fumbling with something. The acrid stench of lighter fluid meets my nose, mixing with adrenaline and smoke. Faint wool joins in. Then a storm of herbs. He has a poison bomb ready.

  I prepare to jump on him, to stop him.

  And the guy reaches the corner and turns, smacking into Noah.

  Both go down on the pavement. I skid to a stop. Noah swears and punches the guy who scrambles to get off. His musty scent overpowers me. The creep scrambles off the pavement as I jump over my silent, stunned friend.

  The guy darts across the street, lighting the cloth bag. It erupts into flames as he reaches the other side of the street. I could leap and attack him now, but I won't kill in front of my best friend.

  "What is going on?" Noah blurts.

  "Back!" the creep shouts, holding up the bag. "Get back! I only wanted to talk to you!"

  The guy's rage and the stench hit at the same time. I backpedal as sickness and dizziness wash over me, and I stand next to Noah. He stares and rises, grasping the barber pole of the hairstylist.

  I wipe at my watering eyes and burning nose with a paw. I'm helpless to keep up the chase as the young guy runs off, vanishing between a pair of buildings. For a moment, I don't even care that Noah's standing there, about to wet his pants at the sight of a blond wolf.

  I take a breath of clean air, but my relief is short-lived.

  Noah coughs. "Brie?"

  Chapter Five

  Though I shouldn't, I stare right at Noah.

  His eyes widen with fear and understanding. He refuses to let go of the barber pole as if terrified I'll attack him. And why should he think any different? I wait for him to say something, anything, but he doesn't utter another word.

  And that terrifies me.

  I bolt, running around the corner. I have to get away. He's figured it out. Somehow, he's put the pieces together. Noah's smarter than I am.

  And now another person knows my secret.

  I pant as I run the quarter mile to the log kiosk. Cayden's scent and the creep's smell are long gone, carried away by the wind. Ducking near my coat, I will myself to take my human form, to hide behind it. The fear bonds me with Brie again. Pops sound through my body and my flesh stretches to its breaking point. The world turns and tilts.

  Noah knows.

  With another pained breath, I find myself exposed to the elements. Hugging myself, I reach for my clothes and slip on my undergarments. He's out there and now I'm exposed.

  "Brie," I hiss, dressing. "Why did you run in front of Noah? You could have run in front of that guy and stopped him instead." I had to be the problem solver again. Cayden will freak. And Everly? I don't want to think about her reaction. No matter how much I explain it was an accident, she'll tell me I wasn't careful enough.

  Maybe Noah could have started his car with a few more tries or I should've let him find jumper cables.

  I slip on my jeans. They're ripped at the hip. I wore tight ones as I didn't expect this today. But my sweater's fine—yay sweaters—and my coat will hide the tear. Maybe I can save this situation. I can circle back around and tell Noah a dog chased the stalker off, but will he believe me?

  Like everyone else, he saw the blond wolf and the black wolf running out of the Spooktacular Dance. Our costumes were found lying on the gym floor. I was the only witch as the dance. Cayden was the only evil scientist. Until now, I prayed in silence our lame story worked.

  Nope.

  Now dressed and warming, I lean against the kiosk, rocking on my heels. Can I get the pack into any more trouble? If Noah's figured me out, he's figured out Cayden and his family, too, and maybe even Aunt May.

  "Brie!" he shouts from down the side street.

  My hearing's dulled, but I know he's looking around the corner.

  If I respond now, I'll confirm his suspicion because he saw the wolf run this way. My best chance is to get back to the car, make up some bull, and hope be believes it, but it's a long shot. But I can't leave him. I've kept a major secret from him and that hurts. Perhaps that bothers me most of all.

  But I've made this mess and I have to fix it. I sense trying to dodge it won't work. Maybe that's another instinct of mine.

  Cayden's scent hits me again as I take the longest walk of my life back to Noah. He watches as I walk towards him, but he makes no motion to flee. But the look he gives me—one without a smile—tells me I have a lot of explaining to do.

  "Brie," he breathes when I reach him.

  "You're not scared." My words slip out of my mouth, lifeless and dull. Cayden's scent vanishes again. I need to tell him what's happened, but containing the damage comes first. At least Noah doesn't give off adrenaline. Good sign.

  "Well, I'm weirded out and maybe scared, but, you know what? Never mind. I'll drive you home while I think about this."

  We need to talk drips off his words. I hate that. Noah and I walk back to the car in silence. Ellie and Leonora wait inside. The cold sneaks through the rip in my jeans and seizes my skin. I shiver.

  But my stalker doesn't return. The burning herbs hang in the air, so strong that Noah coughs and waves his hand in front of his face.

  "I'm not sure what happened, either," I say, shattering the silence.

  "You're more sure than I am."

  My stomach turns over. The residual nausea from the burning herbs remains, but now nerves mix in. "I guess I am," I say.

  We get in the car, silent. Leonora gives me a worried look while Ellie tries to turn on her phone again. She's the only one still in the dark.

  "Oh, now it's working," she says. "What happened out there?"

  I tense.

  "Brie led the guy away from us," Noah supplies. He tries to start the car, and this time it turns over. "Huh. I guess we don't need a jump. That guy must have been an alien who messed with our electronics."

  "Maybe," I force.

  "How'd you outrun that guy?" Ellie asks.

  "I stayed in the dark," I say. "I know. Stupid." At least Noah's covering for me. That's another good sign, and it dispels the
growing sickness.

  He drives. I rehearse what I'll tell him. But I can't think of any good, snappy lines.

  "I'll drop you off first," Noah tells Leonora.

  "Can you drop me off at the start of my driveway?" she asks. "I don't want my parents thinking I'm doing things I'm not supposed to."

  Noah does. He pulls up to the woods and the narrow drive that leads up to her cabin. "We can walk with you," he says.

  "I'm good," Leonora says.

  Out there, Remo waits to walk her the half mile up to her house. I smell him in the shadows. He waits out of sight, behind a tree, maybe. And with him hides the hope he can restore his humanity one day and reclaim his life.

  The tension in the car rises again when Noah drops Ellie off. That leaves me and him in this metal box. The rip in the side of my pants makes me shiver again.

  He says nothing at first as he pulls out of her driveway. But once he's on the road:

  "I know we're best buds and supposed to tell each other stuff, but sheesh."

  It's his familiar attempt at humor. I grab onto that and exhale.

  "Sheesh? That's all you can manage?"

  Noah laughs, braking and leaning over the dashboard. He's losing it. And why not? I've given him every reason.

  Checking outside for the creepy guy, I force myself to face him. "Calm down. And how do you think all this makes me feel?"

  Then he swallows, gets serious, and holds me in a questioning gaze. "I connected all the dots right there. It's like the truth's been spinning in my mind for the past couple of months. And I think I know what happened. Matt's a werewolf. I know that but don't want to say it since people will think I'm nuts. And he bit and infected you at the dance. You were trying to hide it these past two months."

  Silence falls. "It wasn't Matt who bit me," I say, letting the flood of words pour out. "It's complicated. There are good werewolves and bad ones. My dad was a good one, and it turns out my family on his side all were, too. Aunt May made me wear that silver pendant to keep me from ever turning, and it worked until I got a bad injury from one of the bad werewolves and she ripped it off—"