The Alpha Legacy Boxed Set 1-7

by Holly Hook

  I look at my mate, and he screws up his face. But he turns away, trying to hide it.

  “Hey,” I say. “You bailed Remo out twice now. He owes you.”

  “I bailed him out twice,” Cayden says, as if those words can save his life.

  Everly gives him a questioning look as she releases Remo's arm. He seethes again, but quieter than before. He's healing. Even the chemical smell wafting off him starts to fade.

  “I think I'll be good, if I lay here for a while,” he says. “Watch your aim next time. Please.” Remo looks at Earl, but he smiles as he does.

  Remo can forgive. I need to do the same.

  I suck in a breath, careful to keep Earl in the corner of my vision. "Okay. Obviously these Hunters made a mistake and I shouldn't have lost my temper. Things happen. I'm sorry."

  “I almost lost mine, too,” Everly says.

  “We know, sis,” Cayden tells her. But he doesn't smile. Worry fills the dark of his eyes. He knows what I just went through and I need to keep it quiet around Hunters, too.

  I face Callie and Earl, who stand close together. Earl diverts his gaze to the closed blinds. “So you keep weapons right in this restaurant? What do you do when someone comes to do inspections?” I have to keep the tone light and keep Romulus away.

  “We pay them off,” Callie says. “Lawrence helps with that. He has a fortune. If he didn't, we'd have to hide our weapons in the Dumpster. Not fun."

  At least she has a sense of humor. "And Lawrence didn't warn you we were coming?" Time to get serious again.

  "Yeah. He should have," Cayden says.

  Earl looks at his wife. "Maybe he didn't expect you to overhear the conversation? He's the most careful guy I've ever met."

  "I hope so," I say.

  “How many towns around here have packs and Hunters, anyway?” I ask. “Sheesh. We came out looking for other Nobles and I'm trying to unite them, since I'm a Noble Royal, but we didn't expect to find Hunters. I thought they were a dead breed. My mother was one, but she got killed by the last pack of Savages that tried to take our territory.”

  Callie's jaw drops.

  I might have made a mistake.

  "Your mother was a Hunter? And you're a Noble Wolf?" she asks.

  Is she going to hurt me? "Well, yeah. I know it's weird—"

  "Don't tell anybody," Callie says, marching straight at me. She stops just a foot away. "Did you tell Lawrence?"

  "No. I didn't." Even with Callie in front of me, I don't miss Everly's warning glare. Awesome. That never bodes well.

  "Why is that a bad thing? Didn't Hunters and Nobles work together for centuries?" Cayden asks. “Sorry if I don't know much about it.”

  "Don't tell them. Whatever you do, don't drop that you came from a Hunter and a Wolf. That's not supposed to happen. The Sterlings have a rule against having children with the Noble Wolves."

  The restaurant grows around me, turning into a ballroom. The air thins and I feel like I'm not getting enough oxygen. I link my hand with Cayden's. Exchange a worried look with Aunt May. Even Remo lifts his head. "I'm forbidden? What happens to me now? And you're a Sterling, too? That was my mother's name and my father took it."

  Callie sucks in a breath. "I don't know why the rule exists, but it's there even though I think it's dumb. I don't know what would happen to you if other Hunters found out. All Hunters come from the Sterling family or marry into it. Heck, maybe we're related." I'm glad to see Callie turn her dead serious expression into a smile.

  So all Hunters are descended from Romulus. Without asking, I know the reason for this rule. Hunters didn't want to taint the Nobles with Romulus. They know it can destroy them. And now Callie and Earl know, too.

  "We could be distant cousins," I force. "I came from Breck and lived there all my life."

  Callie squeals and wraps me in a hug before I can pull away. Despite being forbidden, she doesn't care. "Maybe our grandfathers were brothers. My great uncle lived there and I know he had a daughter. Alexa. I know she died fighting Savages, but I never thought she had a kid. Was your father—"

  "A Noble Royal?" I asked. "He never let himself turn because he was tired of all the fighting and the death. Everyone around us in Breck wanted to keep things hushed up because they were afraid the Savages could come for us."

  Or did they?

  Even as I return Callie's hug, I wonder.

  Maybe the real reason they kept us hidden was that they knew we were forbidden. And that the only threat wasn't the Savages. Why didn't Edwin tell me if that was the case?

  What will our new Wolves do if they find me out?

  "It could be," Callie says. "I don't know. I haven't heard anything out of Breck for years. Really, I thought the Nobles disappeared and there was nothing much left for us Hunters to do. Or for the Noble Order to work together again."

  "So no one knows about me?" I ask.

  "Well, probably not," Callie says.

  “Good,” I say. I look to Cayden, asking him to hold me up. My legs feel as if they're going to go out.

  “This is interesting,” Remo says from the table. "Leonora never said a word about this."

  I'm glad he's feeling better. "She wouldn't have known. Isolated, remember?"

  "I'll get her to ask Edwin about it," Everly says.

  "Maybe we should keep it quiet," Cayden tells her.

  Aunt May nods. "I agree."

  Silence hangs over the whole diner. This woman standing before me is a lost distant relative. A cousin of some sort, but still a relative from the mysterious Sterling side of the family. Because of a few mistakes, we were all abandoned. And I can see why. I'm a freak with two natures inside me. Dangerous. The end of the Nobles, if only Romulus can light the fire.

  "Do you want to know why the Hunters have that marriage rule?" I ask.

  "Why?" Callie lifts an eyebrow and looks at Earl, shrugging.

  “The Sterlings are human descendants of Romulus and must have made the rule to stop that from getting into the Noble Royals,” I explain, dry and distant. Callie deserves the truth. I reach out to Cayden. He knows what I need, and takes my hand and lets me lean on him.

  “What?” Callie asks. “We're descendants of the Savage King?"

  “Unfortunately,” I say. “The Sterlings became Hunters to erase that fact. I came from both twins. Isn't that awesome?"

  "And just a little gross," Callie says.

  "Do you share my sense of humor?" I ask.

  "Don't know. Maybe I do. Wow. Had I known you lived so close to me all this time, I would have armed myself sooner and helped you out. That's what the Hunters are here for. Us, a coven of witches, and the Noble Wolves used to make up the Noble Order." Fire bursts to life in her eyes. In the last hour, Callie's gone from a shell to a real person. "Earl won't say anything, right?"

  Earl shakes his head. It's clear his wife is in charge here. “I won't say a word. And that's on my honor. If you're right about our heritage, we need to talk. Now.”

  Fear blooms in Callie's eyes as we circle back around to the darkness.

  “Right now,” I agree.

  Chapter Six

  “You're saying I could be possessed by Romulus's spirit?” Callie asks. "All the Sterlings by blood can?" She leans over the table and pushes aside the beer mug she's poured herself. Not that I blame her for turning to it.

  “The Sterlings have forgotten about it in recent centuries. I guess no one likes to talk about crappy family secrets," I say. "He can possess anyone descended from him, but he has a harder time with humans, so you have that point in your favor. And lots of people came from him. My poor Drama teacher did, too. Romulus lived like two thousand years ago, right?”

  “Right,” Callie says.

  “But," Cayden says, shifting in the booth beside me, "You have to fall victim to Romulus's cult before he can possess you. So unless that happens, you're fine."

  Callie makes a show of sighing in relief. "So, stay away from cults?"

  "Exactly," Everly s
ays, pacing past our booth.

  I lean back. I wonder what features Callie and my mother shared. Eyebrows, maybe? Aunt May always kept my parents' photos up in the attic. As if she was in too much pain to face them. Anyway, Callie is only like a third cousin, right?

  “How many Hunters are left?” I ask, sitting up straight. Showing strength is what I have to do. “Are there some around here besides you and Earl? I mean, I'm not saying you two aren't enough or aren't tough, because you are—”

  Callie smiles and slaps Earl on the arm. The two clearly love each other. “There are Hunters left in the world. The Sterling family has scattered after the Noble Order broke up, but once they know a Royal is still alive, they'll gladly come back. I know my uncle would. And before you ask, most of these people would only be distantly related to you."

  "If they're willing to fight, it doesn't matter. And do you believe me that I've taken this pack yet? I am a Royal, after all.” Maybe I won't have to put the new Wolves in as much danger as I thought.

  “But you're a different type of Royal,” Callie says.

  “But—” I start, a hollow horror filling me.

  "I know you could have defeated Lawrence. He'll be sour, you know."

  "No kidding." At least she and Earl believe me.

  “Don't tell anyone else about your parents,” Callie says. “Pretend we're not related."

  "But they'll know I'm a Royal. That part is out," I say.

  "Brie, they might not know about your mother," Cayden says.

  Aunt May thinks. "I'll say your mother was a non-Hunter human or another Wolf. Callie, do you know of any good candidates? My parents didn't tell us much about the local Wolves. I didn't know about the Noble Order, either."

  "I'll look around and let you know," she says.

  "Deal." I hold out my pinky, and Callie takes it with hers.

  Cayden slaps his hand on the table. “You're going to call other Hunters to stop Romulus?” His gaze flicks to me for a second. Cayden knows what this means to me.

  “If the Savage King is out there, we need all the help we can get,” Callie says, rising and pushing past her husband. I'm getting the idea that the Sterlings honor the bloodline, male or female. Those who marry in, like Earl, are secondary. "I'll start making calls today. We'll get the Noble Order back together."

  Earl forces a smile at me. I nod at him. “Does she boss you around?” I joke.

  “Well, sometimes,” he says, but I can't tell if he's sincere or not.

  Callie vanishes back into the kitchen. I wonder if she's going to say some more code words into the phone, but I hear a keyboard tapping instead. Every key makes a distinct click and I can even tell which hand she's typing with. But I don't even have the hearing to know which keys she's hitting or what she's typing.

  Cayden pokes me in the side. "Things are in our favor," he says.

  I squeak with shock and stare him in the eye. "Maybe." He smiles, full of relief and joy. This trip has brought us more than I ever imagined.

  Good or bad, I don't know yet.

  “Should we get back to the rest of the pack?” he asks. “They didn't order a hit on us after all."

  He's asking me. The power shift is settling, though the change is still in Cayden's eyes. Emotions storm in the depths. He still struggles with losing his power, as any former alpha would, but the pain is slowly easing.

  “We should tell them what's going on,” I say.

  “Lawrence is very protective of this town and the pack,” Earl says. “He knows the Savages could come back at any moment. Until him, death was a constant threat here, since we neighbored Breckenridge. He always hated that town. But the pack here, the Guardian Wolves, used to work with and protect the Royal Wolves.”

  “They what?” I ask.

  Earl nods. “The Hunters here, too. Lawrence would rather forget that, because his parents were lost doing their duty and trying to keep the Savages out of town. Watch out for him, will you? You might be getting in deep."

  I rise from the booth. “I will."

  Earl frowns while Callie continues to type. Aunt May and Everly gather at the door. Remo joins them, and though he looks much better, the air gets heavy. My own relatives can't know who I am, except for Callie.

  Only when Romulus is gone will things become safe for me.

  "I'm sorry I yelled at you," I say.

  Earl smiles and shrugs. "I deserved it."

  "You were doing your job. I got Callie's number, so we'll keep you updated."

  All of us leave together, leaving Earl and Callie in their small mom and pop restaurant. “We need to discuss how to use the Hunters and the pack,” I say, struggling to keep the swirling thoughts at bay. Once again, we have a treacherous path to navigate just to get help. Awesome. “We take a few pack members back with us and leave Lawrence here to defend Colling. That will keep him a bit happier. Then we hunt for that cult."

  “Pack members will talk to Lawrence,” Everly says.

  “Not if we lie well enough,” I say.

  “But they already know you're a Noble Royal.”

  “My mother was a Noble Wolf, too. Right?"

  Aunt May nods. "Right. And if anyone asks, you don't know much about her. I kept you in the dark."

  "True." I link my hand with Cayden's.

  "That's the story," he says.

  "Hey. We both act, so I think we'll be good," I say.

  As we walk back towards Lawrence's, the town remains dark and empty. I get the sense there aren't many normal people here. Somewhere in the trees, a car starts. The sun peeks out from hazy clouds as it sinks towards the horizon. We've been in Colling for most of the day, trying to work out our place in this new world. “I wouldn't want to stay in a place like this all my life. It's no wonder Callie and Earl want to fight.”

  “Well,” Cayden breathes. “Until Romulus is gone from this world for good and the Savages start fading, we have to live like this. All of us. Small crappy places. That's just the way it goes."

  “Well, Lawrence wanted this. We just broke his little world.”

  “I know I just sounded like Everly,” Cayden says, slapping his forehead to his free palm. “Brie, you deserve better. You deserve to go to college.”

  "I heard that," Everly says from behind us.

  His words sink in as we walk back towards the trail, now minus Hunters waiting in ambush. At least that's settled down and we're established in Colling—for now. The Guardian Wolves and the Royal Nobles have merged. It's hard to believe the surrounding towns hosted packs that worked to protect us.

  Lawrence has turned the lights on in his cabin, which shine through the trees long before we reach it. And Lawrence himself waits on the front porch. Despite the cold, he wears a tank top and jeans. Cayden seethes in jealousy again, but I reassure him with a kiss to the cheek. Wolf or no, Lawrence is too old for me.

  And he glares at us as we approach. Inside the cabin, the rest of the pack speak in low voices. Someone shuffles cards. They've been waiting for us to return.

  “Hello, new alpha,” he says with sarcasm. "Off sightseeing?"

  “Why didn't you tell me about the Noble Order?” I ask. “Callie and Earl were more enlightening than you are.”

  “We're not in the Noble Order anymore,” he says, dry and closed.

  “We need to be because the Nobles are almost done,” I say, thinking of my near miss in the diner. At least Callie and Earl didn't notice. But as I speak, Cayden tightens his grip on my hand and breathing speeds up. “If Romulus wins, you can't protect Colling anymore. And I know that you used to be a pack of Guardian Wolves. It's time to all of us to reunite. Us, the Hunters, and the Russell Coven. It's the best chance we have."

  Lawrence snorts. “The Savages are all about cold nature. And they're right. It really is just survival of the fittest out here. I think we need to take a page from their book. Alpha.”

  I open my mouth, but nothing comes out. Even the Nobles have to bend to that whole strongest survive thing.
I defeated Cayden and became alpha. And then I defeated Lawrence and absorbed his pack into ours. Not accepting that got me into trouble more than once.

  “See?” Lawrence asks, reading my expression. “Since when is nature good? Disease is natural. Wildfires are natural. And so is death. That's what nature is about. It doesn't care about any of us.” As he speaks, Lawrence's eyes darken and he hunches, staring into the trees.

  Ice spreads through me.

  He is right, Romulus whispers. But darkness is strength.

  I suck in a breath and look to Cayden, silently begging him to say something. As if sensing my distress, he speaks. “There are great parts of nature, too. It's up to us Nobles to find it. Ever take a walk during a nice spring day? Or go fishing? What about the fresh air you breathe, man?”

  I snap my gaze to Cayden. He's being positive. He's a flash of light in a sea of dark. I grab onto that, and the voice from the void doesn't dare return.

  “Yeah, but those fish have to die,” Lawrence says. “Take a walk in the woods, and you're surrounded by things eating other things. Even we Wolves hunt and eat."

  “Well, yes, but we have to,” Cayden argues.

  “See my point?” Lawrence asks. “The Noble Order won't change it, either. Life is dark. That's why the Nobles are fading, We're out of tune.”

  And with that, Lawrence storms into the house and slams the door behind him, leaving us in the long afternoon light.

  “Lawrence!” I shout, strengthened by Cayden's light. I march up the steps and open the door, which he can't keep shut. I step into the living room and past people gathered on the couch. “I know you're mad at the world, and I am too, but we have to reunite the Noble Order. We will, and if you don't want to help, stand aside. That's an order.”

  Lawrence stops in the archway between the vast living room and the huge kitchen. His grandmother looks up from the meat she's chopping and frowns at Lawrence. Abigail's on my side. The blond twins watch with interest, but Lawrence's mate, Kaylie, stands back.

  He looks over his shoulder at me. “You haven't seen dark yet,” he says.