by Cheree Alsop
Trent shrugged his small shoulders. “But you’re my Alpha.”
Alex’s heart slowed. He stared at his friend. “Trent, I’m nobody’s Alpha. I’m not even really an Alpha, and with the whole Demon thing, I may not fully even be a werewolf. I don’t know what I am, and that makes me entirely unfit to be in charge of anything, let alone anyone.”
Trent ran a hand across his buzz-cut hair. “I know what you are, Alex.”
“Then you should know that I’m the last person here you should be calling your Alpha,” Alex replied, staring incredulously at his friend.
Trent gave Alex a straight look, the first one he had since hiding the phone. “Alex, you have to understand something. You may not have a completely black coat, but the last time we phased, you were almost there. You may not have it all together as a leader, but I would argue that neither do Boris or Torin. You may morph into a rage mode Demon, but that’s not entirely a point against you.”
“What are you saying?” Alex asked when the little werewolf paused.
Trent crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. “What I’m saying is that you already beat the two strongest Alphas at the Academy. You have pretty-much single-handedly wiped out the biggest threat to werewolves and this nation to date, you take out danger heedless to the harm it might cause yourself, and you always take the time to care about the opinions of small, pretty much invisible werewolves to the rest of the school. You sound like a good Alpha to me.”
Alex rested his head in his hands. He stared at the floor through his fingers. “It’s not that simple.”
Trent sat down on the couch next to him. “It never is.”
Alex glanced at him. “What about Jordan?”
“She’ll be moving her stuff in here tonight.”
Alex stared at him. “What about Jericho? He chose you both. You’re part of his pack.”
“Like I said. Things are changing.” The bell rang. Trent smiled. “Let’s go. Dean Jaze asked all the seniors to meet him in his office before class. We can worry about semantics later.”
“Semantics?” Alex sputtered. “You say I’m your Alpha and call it semantics?”
Trent pulled the door open and said over his shoulder, “Demon, Alpha...who says they’re not the same thing.” He disappeared down the hallway.
“I do!” Alex called after him.
His friend’s footsteps didn’t slow.
Alex shook his head. “Great,” he muttered. “Now I’ve really done it.”
He grabbed a notebook from beside his duffle bag and followed Trent’s path down the stairs.
Students hurried to the classrooms on the ground floor. New first term students followed their Alphas with wide eyes and nervous expressions. Alex couldn’t help smiling. The Academy was a great place to grow up.
He crossed the hall to the wing with the professors’ offices and paused at Jaze’s door. Professor Colleen was addressing the other seniors with the dean looking on.
“Torin and Boris, you’ll be with Professor Vance.”
Both Alphas looked unhappy about their assignment to the gruff football coach.
“Cassie and Siale, I’d like you to be my assistants.”
“Yay!” Cassie said. A blush of red ran across her cheeks as though she hadn’t meant to say it out loud.
Siale gave her a warm smile.
“I appreciate the enthusiasm,” Colleen said with a pleased expression.
“Trent, you’re with Professor Mouse, and Tennison, Professor Dray would appreciate your assistance in the green houses.”
“You get to smell like fertilizer,” Torin said with a laugh.
“At least he’ll have a reason to stink,” Boris replied.
Torin glared at him.
Professor Colleen ignored them. “Jordan and Terith, I’d like you to be with Professor Gem. She’ll be teaching Art History this term.”
“I love art,” Jordan said.
“Me, too!” Terith seconded. “We’ll be the best assistants ever!”
Professor Colleen assigned the rest of the seniors to their professors. At the end, Alex was the only one who hadn’t been given an assignment.
“Head to your teachers for the first class. They’ll let you know what they expect from you and how you can help out in their classes,” Colleen told them. “For you Alphas, there will be some juggling with getting your new first termers settled in, so lean on your Seconds to split tasks.” She smiled at them. “You can go.”
Siale hung back with Alex. “Professor, who is Alex with?” she asked.
Colleen looked at Jaze. Her violet gaze showed a hint of concern.
The dean merely smiled. “I have a special assignment for you. Come with me.”
“Why do I have a feeling this isn’t going to be easy?” Alex asked.
Siale slipped her hand into his and walked beside him down the hall. She gave him a warm smile. “Nothing you do is easy.”
“She’s right,” Jaze said over his shoulder. “If I gave you an easy assignment, you’d find a way to make it difficult.”
“I’m going to take that as a compliment,” Alex muttered.
Siale laughed and squeezed his hand. “I’m sure it is.”
Jaze led them down the second wing of classrooms. With the increase of students at the Academy, the professors had opened the second wing to create enough space for teaching. The dean opened the door to the office at the end.
“Alex Davies, I’d like you to meet Mr. O’Hare. Mr. O’Hare, this is Alex.”
Alex stepped into the office with a smile, but it faded quickly. The look of disdain on the face of the man behind the desk was unmistakable. The man had graying black hair, a goatee, and glasses that he glared through directly at Alex.
Despite the look, Jaze’s smile was warm. “Mr. O’Hare, I feel that having Alex as your assistant would be the best way to give you a true impression of what goes on at our Academy.” The dean turned to Alex. “Alex, Mr. O’Hare was sent by the Board of Education after our announcement of our academy in order to review our practices and procedures here. You are to be his assistant, guide, and informant on anything he needs to know.”
“Uh, okay,” Alex said uncertainly. He was surprised the man had reached the Academy so quickly after the video. He must have been sent out the instant it aired. Concern filled Alex. He glanced back at Siale. His fiancé peered through the door with a matching uncertain expression. Alex steeled himself and crossed to the desk with his hand out. “It’s good to meet you, Mr. O’Hare.”
The man rose from the desk with a huff as though it was a burden to stand for such an event. His scent reached Alex; the werewolf couldn’t help but staring. Mr. O’Hare was human.
He gave Alex’s hand one quick shake before returning to his seat.
“Is there anyone else?” he asked, finally turning his loathing gaze from Alex to the dean.
Jaze shook his head and appeared completely composed as though he had anticipated such a question. “The rest of our seniors have already been assigned to professors. I reassure you that Alex will be a willing and helpful assistant and will do his best to meet your needs.”
“I’m sure he will,” Mr. O’Hare replied dryly.
Chapter Three
“Why did you assign me to him?” Alex asked with confusion as he and Siale followed Jaze back to the dean’s office.
Siale’s expression said she was wondering the same thing. Though she hadn’t spoken a word during Alex’s introduction to Mr. O’Hare, he could tell she was bothered by the situation. It wasn’t every day Alex met someone who flat-out hated him.
He changed his mind at that thought. Boris and Torin had both gone through months of extreme hatred. He should be used to it; yet, he wasn’t accustomed to meeting a human who completely loathed him before he had even spoken a word.
Jaze didn’t speak until they were back in his office with the door shut. He sat behind his desk and let out a sigh that said as much as the weary acceptance in h
is gaze.
“I’ve been bombarded with phone calls from various government agencies since the video of our fight aired,” Jaze said quietly. He looked up and when he saw that they were still standing, he motioned for Alex and Siale to take the seats facing his desk.
“Are they going to bomb the Academy?” Siale asked.
Jaze gave her a half smile. “No; at least, not yet. There are agencies fighting for our rights and motions being put into place to counterbalance the fight. I think Mr. O’Hare is the weapon of choice in this type of dispute.”
The thought filled Alex with discomfort. “What do you mean?”
Jaze motioned to the door. “You saw how much he hates werewolves. If those humans who want werewolves wiped from the earth can’t banish us through war, they’ll do so with a means even more devastating.”
“With politics,” Siale answered.
The dean nodded. “The Board of Education has very strict regulations on primary and secondary academic facilities. Mr. O’Hare has been placed here to find any holes in our system that will enable him to shut us down.”
“Will he?” Alex asked. The thought of losing the Academy through politics was entirely unfamiliar to him. How could he fight something based on the interpretation of laws and rules? The school was his home. He was responsible for bringing its existence into the open. After everything the school and students had survived, he couldn't bear the thought of losing it.
“I don’t think so,” Jaze replied. “At least, I hope not. When we established Vicky Carso’s Preparatory Academy, Mouse and Lyra took charge of ensuring that we adhered very closely to the Board’s guidelines in case something like this happened. While a few of our particularly specialized classes may not be in the standard curriculum, we have maintained a disciplined schedule and our students are on the same track as the humans.” His mouth twisted into a wry grin. “Although, thanks to our werewolf students’ quick learning capabilities, they are far ahead of students their age. I don’t think that’ll be a problem, though.”
“So why Alex?” Siale asked. “Mr. O’Hare obviously hates him.”
“Hate’s a strong word,” Jaze began.
“Oh, he hates me. The room stunk with it,” Alex replied.
Jaze let out a little snort that was part laughter, part acceptance. “Okay, so he hates you. That’s why I assigned you to him.”
“That doesn’t make any sense,” Alex told the dean.
“It does.”
Alex stared at Siale. She was watching Jaze with a small smile of her own.
“If he hates you, you’ll be the one he would want to scrutinize the most.” She looked at Alex. “Dean Jaze just gave you to him.”
“Seems like a bad idea to me,” Alex said.
She shook her head. “It’s the opposite. Would you agree that you are the student most prone to creating trouble?”
Alex rolled his eyes. “I’d rather call it disturbances, but yes, you’re right.”
Siale grinned. “So if you’re right in front of Mr. O’Hare all the time, he’ll be busy watching everyone else because you’ll be right there. It’s like hiding in plain sight.”
The thought both appealed to Alex and troubled him. “What if I mess up?”
Jaze lifted his shoulders in a shrug. “We’ll deal with it if it comes to that. The curriculum from the Board of Education doesn’t give leeway for students caught up in midnight escapades freeing werewolves from the hands of malicious terrorists.”
A pit formed in Alex’s stomach. “I have to give up the team?”
When the dean shook his head, relief rushed through Alex.
“Not at all,” Jaze said. “We couldn’t do it without you.”
Alex decided it wasn’t time to point out that they had managed through the summer just fine without him. The voice in the back of his head argued right back that the key to defeating Drogan’s mutant army had been his idea.
“We’ll just have to be more careful when we leave and make sure you get all of your schoolwork done in a timely manner.” The dean paused, then said, “Without your professors looking the other way.”
“What?” Alex protested in a tone of false surprise. During the time when Siale was injured and several other occasions related to injuries or his determination to defeat his half-brother or the General, which turned out to be quite a few times, Alex knew his studies had slipped. Luckily, with Trent, Siale, and Cassie, along with a few professors like Professor Mouse and Professor Kaynan, he had still managed to squeak by to his senior year. That was apparently the last time it was going to happen.
“Okay, fine,” he said. “I’ll get my studies done without help.”
Siale took his hand next to her chair. “You’ll still have help if you need it,” she promised.
The phone on Jaze’s desk rang.
“I need to answer that,” the dean told them. He gave Alex a frank look. “I would appreciate it if you escorted Mr. O’Hare around the school and grounds, then brought him to lunch in the Great Hall. He can dine with the professors.”
“I’ll do that,” Alex said. He rose to his feet and held out a hand to Siale. She walked with him toward the door.
“Alex?”
He turned at Jaze’s voice. “Yes?”
“Mr. O’Hare is under your protection while he’s here at the Academy,” the dean said.
Alex’s chest tightened. While the dean’s assignment of him to the government official may have been for the reasons he said, Mr. O’Hare’s obvious hatred for werewolves had the potential to make him a target for the other students. Werewolves were nothing if not territorial.
“I’ll make sure he’s safe,” Alex promised.
Jaze nodded and answered the phone.
Alex pulled the door shut behind him just as the bell rang.
“I’ve got to go assist Professor Colleen,” Siale said with an apologetic tone.
“Go ahead,” Alex said. “I’ll be fine.”
“Are you sure?” she asked, throwing a skeptical look down the hallway to where Mr. O’Hare’s makeshift office resided.
“I’m sure,” Alex told her. He knew he shouldn’t, but he couldn’t help the impulse to pull her close and kiss her on the nose. She was just so cute when she worried, and kissing her like that made her giggle.
She stepped back with a smile and a blush that ran across her cheeks. “You be careful, Alex Davies. Don’t start any of your disturbances.”
Alex grinned at her. “I’d rather start some trouble.”
She rolled her eyes with a laugh. “See you at lunch.”
“Bye, love,” he replied.
She paused on her way down the rapidly filling hallway and blew him a kiss. He smiled at the warmth that flooded his chest and watched her dark brown hair sway across her back as she walked toward Colleen’s classroom. He missed her already. Lunch seemed way too far away. He shook his head, amazed that at a second away from her, he was already thinking about when they would be back together.
A chill ran down his spine. He glanced to his left and met Mr. O’Hare’s gaze. The man was watching him over the flood of students rushing to their next class. The disapproval on his face was stark before he turned away and disappeared back into his room. Alex took a steeling breath and followed.
He found the man marking something down in a small notebook.
“What are you writing?” Alex asked.
The human paused and glanced at him. “I don’t have to explain anything to you,” he said cuttingly. “You will do what I ask, and only that. I won’t answer any questions you might have, so you should probably just save your breath. You’re going to need it when I get this place shut down.”
The barb hit Alex like a knife in the ribs. He gritted his teeth. As much as he wanted to shout or tear the man’s tiny notebook apart, he reminded himself with considerable effort that he was the school’s first line of defense against the government that wanted to shut it down. He would try to maintain at least some s
emblance of control, and it was only the first day.
“Are you ready for a tour of the Academy?”
A hint of surprise showed in the man’s gaze before it was smothered in his disdain. “What? No growling or chewing up my homework like a bad little werewolf? I’m a bit disappointed, Alex. Perhaps all the rumors have been misplaced.”
“Perhaps,” Alex replied with a forced smile that felt like plastic on his lips. “Give me time,” he muttered quietly so the man wouldn’t hear him.
“Even though I feel it’s pointless to get familiar with this doomed establishment, it would be a relief to stretch my legs and get some fresh air. It does smell a bit like dog in here,” Mr. O’Hare noted. He brushed past Alex.
When their shoulders touched, Alex felt the man shy away from him. A slight whiff of fear flooded in his wake.
Alex stared after the man. Was it possible that his loathing was a front to hide fear at being in an Academy filled to the brim with students whose race he hated? Alex shook his head. If that was the case, Mr. O’Hare gotten himself into a nightmare.
“Coming, Fido?” Mr. O’Hare asked.
Alex was grateful all of the students had made it to their classrooms. He didn’t know if he would have been able to control himself otherwise. If a student attacked the representative from the Board of Education, Alex knew that would be it for the school. The human had no idea how dangerous Alex was. Or perhaps he did. The thought was unsettling. Would the man put himself in serious danger just to prove a point?
Alex stifled a growl and followed Mr. O’Hare down the hallway.
“Here is where Professor Mouse teaches biology, anatomy, and chemistry,” Alex explained a few classrooms later. A glance inside showed the desks full and students watching the small professor sketch a cell on the whiteboard.
“A werewolf named after a mouse. A bit emasculating, don’t you think?”
Mr. O’Hare walked off down the hallway without waiting for Alex’s reply.
After a moment, the human said, “A bit like using the name Davies. Aren’t you really a Carso, like the General and his son who’s at the top of the nation’s most wanted list?” Mr. O’Hare glanced back over his shoulder to give Alex a dry look. “I suppose hiding out under the name Davies is wise considering your unsavory relations.”
