Being Alpha

by Aileen Erin

  “The spell? You don’t like it? I thought it was divine intervention?”

  “I don’t like any of what we’re talking about. I don’t like using Luciana’s leftovers. I don’t like looking at a book that has her writing in it. The idea of it…” Tears welled, but she quickly blinked them away. “I thought all of this was over. I’d survived against everything Luciana had done. And so had my brother and a few others, but the rest of the coven died. Everyone I knew and loved died. But for whatever reason, we lived. And I ended up with Lucas. And I was done with Luciana and her stupid blood oath and black magic. I could finally live my life. Everything was great. But it’s not over, and I’m not sure it ever will be.” She slouched in her chair, head bowed, silent sobs shaking her.

  I hated that this was happening as much as she did. Even if it wasn’t exactly Luciana messing with us from beyond the grave, it felt like it was. This all started because of her, and we were still dealing with the fallout.

  “I get it.” I really did. “I was on my honeymoon and then everything changed. I’ve almost died a few times over in the last couple days. But you have to let that go or we don’t have any hope of fixing this.”

  “I know. I do.” Claudia squeezed her eyes shut as she swiped her tears away. “I’m mad that this is happening. That Luciana is dead and she’s still messing with my life. And seeing her stuff here? Reading her handwriting? Somehow it makes it worse.”

  I went around the table to Claudia, and leaned down to where she was sitting in her chair, giving her a hug. “We’re going to fix this,” I told her softly. “It will be over. Say it in your head a million times, but don’t you dare let a seed of doubt enter your mind.” I pulled away but held onto her shoulders. I needed her to hear this part. “I can’t have you in this spell if you don’t truly believe it will work.”

  “It will work. I’m just…” She wiped under her eyes again. “I’m frustrated and I’ve been taking it out on you. I’m sorry, prima.”

  “It’s okay.” We were all having a rough time, but this was going to pass. We were going to get through it. Not because we knew how to or had it all figured out. But because that was what we had to do.

  Chris came into the room, and I straightened. “Please tell me you heard from Cosette.”

  “Better.” He moved aside, revealing her.

  A grin spread across my face, and I felt as if I was floating. I ran to her and nearly tackled her to the ground. She wasn’t big on hugging and neither was I, but in that moment, I felt like my plan was coming together.

  Her being here meant everything.

  I had a real shot, and in that moment, that’s all that mattered to me.

  This was so fucking happening.

  Seventeen

  A little while later, I had a pile of notes, some missing ingredients, and a pretty solid idea of what we needed to do. I had a minute to revel in the fact that my shitshow of a plan was coming together before we were put to the test.

  Mr. Dawson stuck his head in the library. “It’s time.”

  “Time?” My immediate worry was that Astaroth was here, but he was way too calm. “For what?”

  “The meeting. The Alphas are waiting.”

  It was like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over my head. The shock that I’d completely forgotten about the stupid meeting was that sharp.

  I couldn’t imagine doing anything other than what I was doing right that second—making sure that we had everything we needed to take down Astaroth. The Seven and other Alphas weren’t going to like that I was about to demolish their whole system of rule. Telling them now was not only going to be a waste of my time, but also extreme drama. And that was all before factoring in the fact that in my visions, Astaroth showed up during the meeting.

  To say that I was unmotivated to show up for the meeting would’ve been an extreme understatement. It was the last thing I wanted to do. “Can we reschedule?”

  “There’s no rescheduling.”

  “You’re joking.” When he started to shake his head, I put down the pen I’d been making notes with. “Why would they care if I was there or not? I’m just some kid. A newbie Were when you think about it. They won’t care if I skip. Let them sit around and argue about the Seven. I’ll get this done in the next day or two, and that meeting will be moot. Tell them I’m having really bad cramps or something.” I honestly didn’t care what excuse he made. Going to the meeting wasn’t a priority.

  Mr. Dawson stepped fully into the room. “You might be new to this life, but you’ve already proven to be a very strong alpha, especially to the group that’s gathered for this meeting. And according to the media, you’re also the unofficial spokesperson for the werewolves. If I could get you out of this by saying you were having cramps, believe me I would, but you’re going to have to trust me that this is something you have to do.”

  Trust him after he kept important information from me?

  He meant well. He was just trying to do his job. Being Alpha.

  By keeping us ignorant of a brewing problem? If he’d come to us two weeks ago, we would’ve had more time.

  I know, but he didn’t. So you have to let that go, and deal with what’s in front of us.

  That’s what I’m trying to do, but now I have to go talk to the Alphas? I glanced around the room, but my friends were just waiting for me to decide. All except for Cosette. “If you go, I’ll go, too,” she said.

  “Thanks.” I appreciated that, but I didn’t want to go at all.

  “Your ultimate goal is to unify the wolves, right?” Mr. Dawson asked.

  I wasn’t sure my goals were that lofty. “I just want to live.”

  “And beyond that?”

  I shrugged. “Honestly, I’ve been living a little day to day since I got bitten. I’m just trying to keep up with everything.” It was weird how I’d gotten accustomed to living crisis to crisis.

  “Well, I’d like to think that you want to keep the peace between werewolves,” Mr. Dawson said.

  That didn’t sound like a bad thing. “Sure.”

  “You skip this, and you won’t. Maybe I could convince them to have the meeting without you and Dastien, but when you do this spell and rework our whole system of governing? They won’t forgive you. You’ll be making very powerful enemies for life.”

  A chair squeaked behind me. “As much as I hate to admit it, he’s right,” Lucas said as he stood from his seat, pulling Claudia with him. “We’re going. I won’t tell you what to do, but I will say it would be stupid if you didn’t at least show up and give them a warning.”

  Cosette started toward the door, too.

  “It seems like a massive waste of time,” I mumbled to myself, but it sounded like I was alone in that thinking. I guess we go?

  Adrian and Raphael can keep digging up the ingredients. We can always walk out, but I think we have to at least warn them. They can’t stop us from what we’re going to do, but we’ll have to deal with the Were community eventually.

  “Alright. Let’s go,” I said, and Mr. Dawson looked a little relieved at my words. “Adrian and Raphael? Do you mind staying to keep working on this?”

  “Sure,” Adrian said.

  “You want me to stay here and help?” Chris asked.

  “Nah. Come with us.” He’d been key to getting Cosette to show up, and I figured that meant he’d earned his spot there.

  His eyebrows rose. “Okay. Sure.”

  Before I left the room, I went over to the pile of discarded stuff and grabbed one thing. The dagger.

  I didn’t know why, but I needed to take it with me. Leaving it behind felt wrong. Especially if this was what Samantha had meant. If I could use it to break the tie, then I needed it with me. Only Raphael and Dastien saw me slide it into the pocket of my hoodie. Raphael shook his head at me and I quickly looked away.

  You sure that’s a good idea, Dastien said.

  No. It was probably a terrible idea to take something this creepy and evil in the first
place, but it could be useful.

  I have to trust my instincts, even if I don’t have my visions right now. But even as I said that, my stomach twisted into an even bigger knot. There were so many ways the fight with Astaroth could go, most of them bad. And I had to stop everything to deal with the Alphas on top of it all?

  No. I didn’t want to go to this meeting. Not even a little bit. Aside from the visions I’d this morning, I’d been in the conference room with this group exactly one other time, and I’d somehow ended up the spokesperson for the Weres. Now I was going to tell them that I was reworking their whole power structure.

  This was going to be loads of fun.

  Drama was brewing already. The power rolling down the hall made my skin itch. My friends all stopped walking to let me and Dastien go first. I looked over at Chris, who was gritting his teeth. If I was having a little bit of trouble with the power, then he was probably barely hanging in.

  The conference room was around the corner from the library. It was large enough to fit a banquet table long enough to seat twenty-four—ten rolling black leather chairs fit comfortably on either side of the table, with two more at each end. The table was a light colored wood, polished until I could see my reflection in it.

  I stood in the doorway for a second, taking in the room. Along one wall was a small buffet table. Usually it had some legal pads, pens and highlighters, some water and that was it. Today, none of that was there. Instead, there were enough donuts and pastries and sandwiches to feed an army, but it was a room of werewolves. We could probably down that between five of us. Maybe less. The scent of the food made my stomach rumble embarrassingly loud. I moved inside the room—Dastien on my heels—and grabbed a couple ham and cheese croissants before doing anything else. Now was not the time to lose control of my wolf.

  I bit into the first one and noticed that Meredith and Donovan were conferenced in via a bank of flatscreen panels that hung on the far wall. “Hey!” I said around my mouthful as Meredith waved. It was the middle of the night their time, but they looked more rested and put together than I did. My hair was twisted into a messy knot and I’d been running around in these clothes for far too long.

  I could hear Chris outside the door whispering to Cosette, and I figured they needed a second. The room was going to go crazy when they saw her.

  I smoothed down my sweater and shoved up the sleeves of my hoodie. I should’ve traded out leggings and Uggs for jeans and boots. Too late to do anything about it now and my clothes didn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things. What I was wearing wasn’t going to soften the blow I was about to deal the room.

  I took a chair at the head of the table opposite the TVs, not because I thought I should have that spot, but because I wanted to be able to see everyone’s face. With the power being tossed around the room, I was surprised it wasn’t already taken.

  As I sat down, I noticed Lisette was at the other head of the table and barely contained my wince. Moving now would look like a retreat but I didn’t love that I was now sitting across from her. She might have been my least favorite of the Seven that I’d met so far. Something about how prim and proper she was and how haughty she seemed with her power rubbed me exactly the wrong way. Her lip curled as I sat across from her. Apparently the feeling was mutual.

  Lisette wore a tasteful pantsuit, her blonde hair twisted up in a perfectly coiffed French twist. Not a hair stood out of place. Her cream, silk blouse and pearls made her seem sophisticated and done up, but I wondered how practical her outfit was. If she were to get into a fight, she’d trash her clothes and those pearls would be scattered all over the floor, but I bet she was thinking all kinds of things about my outfit, too.

  I wasn’t sure what to think of Jackson, who was sitting two chairs down from Lisette. His skin was dark as night, and I wondered if his wolf was the same color. If so, I was sure he’d be an amazing hunter. He’d seemed okay the last time I’d seen him, but that could all change as soon as I told everyone what I was up to. For now, he sat relaxed in the chair, almost looking bored, but I knew he was paying attention. He had to be.

  The leader of the Cazadores, Keeney, gave me a nod without pausing from his conversation with a man I didn’t recognize. He rubbed his hand over his bald head absently as he listened. His crisp black blazer over the typical black-on-black pants and shirt was a fancier version of the look the Cazadores favored, but he was in charge of all of them. That fit in my mind.

  Who’s Keeney talking to? I asked Dastien.

  Blaze.

  Oh! He was the only other member of the Seven that I hadn’t met yet. I took a second to really get a read on him. His skin was a warm brown, and I wasn’t sure where he was from. But chiseled features, his black hair, deep set dark eyes, thick eyebrows, and plump lips made him look like he slid off the cover of a magazine. He was probably the most handsome person in the room, and that was saying something.

  Hey.

  I’m not saying you’re not handsome.

  He’s just more handsome?

  I rolled my eyes. Stop it. He seems nice though. He was smiling as he talked to Keeney about something that they did the last time they were together. Apparently they were good friends. Who knew?

  The Canadian, French, and Eastern European Alphas were also seated at the table. The Canadian Alpha—Albert—hated me because I had power. He wasn’t happy that I was the one who spoke to the news about werewolves, and I was pretty sure that he was going to be the most upset about my new spell. Albert craved fame and power, and I was about to take away his chance at it for a second time.

  Nah, Dastien’s voice came through the bond. I wouldn’t worry about him as much as I would about Lisette. She’ll be the most upset.

  You think?

  Yes. You’re bitten, so you are much less than equal in her eyes, regardless of how much power you have.

  My eyes couldn’t have been wider as I looked at my mate. You’ve got to be kidding.

  Unfortunately, no. We’ll have to be careful with her. She might retaliate.

  Great. Because all I’d wanted to do was save the world, and she was going to get on me because I’d been bitten? That just stank.

  Sebastian gave me a little wave. He might be scary as hell with his powers, but I’d found him to be perfectly nice. It was he and Donovan who’d come to see what was going on when Dastien bit me. For a second I’d been afraid that they’d punish me for it, but turns out both of them had become pretty solid allies. I was glad he was here. I needed every ally I could get.

  Claudia and Lucas had already filed in after me, all taking empty seats around the table. But when Chris and Cosette finally finished their talk and stepped through the door, it was like everyone took a breath at the same time. The room was dead silent.

  She did a little finger wave. “Hello.”

  Meredith leaned forward so close to the camera that only her eye and part of her cheek filled the screen. “You can come out for a werwolf meeting but you can’t come see me?”

  Cosette shrugged. “This was urgent, so I was given a pittance from my mother.”

  “Shopping is urgent, too,” Meredith muttered. “Not to mention my Full Moon Ceremony.”

  Donovan tugged Meredith back. “I think we’re all accounted for. Shall we start?”

  Mr. Dawson had been standing by the door waiting for Chris and Cosette to come in. He closed the door as they found seats. “We’ve got a big problem,” he said as he walked to me. “Tessa? Want to fill them in?”

  Great. He was just throwing me to the wolves. “Sure. Why not.” I stood up from my chair, because it seemed like the thing to do. I started with Muraco’s death and the pain I felt during it. Then told them as briefly as I could about my vision, what I knew about Astaroth, and what happened during our trip to LA. I finished with what happened on the compound.

  I took a breath, and was about to dive into my plan, but all of a sudden, everyone was talking all at once. The noise was deafening. I fought the urge to c
over my ears with my hands.

  Dastien leaned back in his chair. This is going well.

  I nearly laughed. It’s about what I expected. What are they even saying?

  Eh, just some finger pointing really. Nothing that’s helpful.

  I sighed. They’re going to hate what I say next.

  Dastien grabbed my hand. Stay strong. Your plan is the best one.

  It’s also the only one I have.

  That, too. He gave me a wink.

  I didn’t want to use power to shut them up—Lucas had been polite about it, but I was pretty sure no one else in this room would be—so I did the first thing that came to mind.

  I hopped up on the table with one swift jump and walked to the center of it. “If you’re all going to keep yelling at once, then I’m leaving. We’ve got Satan’s second in command coming after us, and I’ve got better things to do than sit here and listen to you bicker.” I could feel the chatter about to rise up again, but I didn’t stop. “The Seven is broken. Done.” There was some pointing of fingers and yelling, but I stomped my foot on the table. “Blaming each other is a waste of time. The Seven was ruined the day Ferdinand was killed. We can’t fix the bond that used to be there because to do that, we’d need an eclipse and the backing of the fey. Both of them. We don’t have either.” That had them all shutting up. “So, we’re doing something new. I know that I’ve only been a werewolf for a little while, but from my perspective, it seems like everything is incredibly divided. And it’s not just the werewolves that are broken and fighting amongst themselves.” I sent a pointed look to the Canadian Alpha and Lisette. “The fey are gone. Each court hiding in their little holes.”

  “I wouldn’t call them holes or little,” Cosette said, and there were a few laughs.

  “Whatever. But you’re hiding. That can’t last, you’ve said it yourself.”

  She nodded.

  I took a breath and dove back in. “The covens are all a mess. The ripples of what Luciana did have hit everyone. And the more I dig, the more I think we’ve all been played. Astaroth found a way to get to us. How long ago did he get to Luciana? When did Ferdinand go rogue? This has been a long time coming, and no one saw it. None of you prevented it. And the fey seem to have divested themselves of everything.”