Being Alpha

by Aileen Erin

  “What he said.”

  Dastien turned to me and I could feel his surprise. “Since when do you speak French?”

  “I didn’t understand the words but I got the sentiment.” I tapped my forehead. “Benefit of being your other half.”

  Dastien bumped his shoulder into mine. “Eat, chérie.”

  I took a bite of pancake and nearly moaned. Mom had put cinnamon into the mix. She was the best.

  Lucas and Blaze started chatting about some fight they had a million years ago—possibly literally—and I focused back in on Shane as I ate.

  He’d been hurt by a demon in Santa Fe. After the battle, we’d left New Mexico, but Adrian stayed behind while Shane was in the hospital. I thought they’d end up together, but Shane left. I never knew why and Adrian didn’t volunteer any reason. He was too hurt.

  But now Shane was here, and if we were going to fight together, I needed to know he was up for it. “Are you okay being here?”

  His eyes grew glassy for a second, and I instantly regretted putting him on the spot. “I’m better,” he said after a bit.

  “I hate to ask, but you stayed away because of the demon injury? Are you okay?”

  “I’m okay. What happened to Raphael was different than me. The wound I had was infected. I’m a witch, so the injury had some human side effects. Nothing supernaturally dangerous, but it was a little scary for a while. And…” He looked around the table, and stopped on Blaze and then again on Lucas. I thought he wasn’t going to keep talking, but after a second, he heaved a big sigh and continued. “For better or worse, la Aquelarre was home for me. I’m not broken like Beth, but what Luciana did made me question everything. The thing that scared me the most was that there could be another Luciana lurking in a different coven.”

  The thought had occurred to me, but I’d had too many other things to deal with before I even thought about connecting with other covens and figuring out who was good or evil. “So that’s what you’ve been doing? Checking out the other covens?”

  “Yes. I wanted assurance that there wasn’t another coven out there hurting like we were. If I could stop this from happening again, then maybe everyone dying wasn’t for nothing.”

  “And what’d you find?” Raphael asked.

  “Most of them didn’t want to talk to me,” Shane said. “We’ve been blacklisted. They wouldn’t give me the time of day.”

  “Shit,” Chris said. “That’s messed up. The packs aren’t like that.”

  I took another bite of pancake as I listened, fascinated. I didn’t have any experience with any other covens. I wondered what they were like.

  “I started making a record of each coven I visited—what I found, who was there, if they seemed good, and how open they were to talking to me. Adrian told me that there was a database with all the Weres and I wanted to replicate that if I could.”

  “Yes,” Mr. Dawson said. “We keep a close watch on everyone, and if there are any major changes in a pack, one of the Seven makes a point of visiting.”

  I didn’t know that about the packs. I knew that the Alphas met every year, but beyond that—I figured everyone kept to themselves.

  “Witches don’t have anything like a council,” Claudia said. “We’re all very isolated and there’s a lot of competition between covens. No one wants to share any secrets about their magic or how a spell is done.”

  That lined up with my first impression of them. “I remember when you gave me your book of shadows. Raphael looked like he wanted to murder you, punch me, and keep the book for himself.”

  Raphael’s cheeks heated a little. “It wasn’t that I didn’t want you to learn about our magic, but that book was ours. In my mind, you hadn’t earned it yet.”

  “That’s the fucking problem,” Shane shouted as he slammed his hand down on the table, rattling the plates. “We’re too secretive. That’s how this shit went unnoticed. And why when Luciana went to New Mexico, the coven there was fucking clueless about how evil she was. They all died in that chapel and they didn’t have to. If that lady had just believed us or even given us more than two seconds to explain, then—” He stopped suddenly, as if he only just realized that he was yelling. After a second, he cleared his throat. “I want to change that,” he said much quieter. “We need more discussion between covens.”

  “We do,” Claudia said as she reached across the table to him. He met her halfway, giving her hand a squeeze. “Did you go to New York?”

  New York? That was where her evil ex-fiancee lived before he died.

  “Yes,” Shane said, but he stayed silent as he gave Claudia’s hand one more squeeze and let go.

  “And?” I asked, hoping that with Matt dead they’d straightened their shit out.

  “If we’re not careful, that coven leader’s going to be Luciana all over again.”

  “Fuck,” I said.

  “Language!” Mom chimed in.

  “Sorry.” I covered my mouth with my hand. “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” I muttered. Blaze chuckled, and my face heated.

  I’d been so happy in my ignorance, but now checking in on all the other covens was just one more thing to add to my massive to do list after I finished dealing with Astaroth.

  There’s nothing we can do about the New York coven right now.

  I guess not, but it’s annoying. You know? People need to get their shit together and stop being evil.

  Dastien gave me a grin that showed both of his dimples. He tapped his finger on my plate and I rolled my eyes at him. Fine.

  I glanced at Chris as I ate a bite of pancake. His hair was one big poofball, which meant he was stressed, but he was here. I wondered if he’d emailed Cosette again after the fight. I was really hoping she’d be coming back soon, along with three other fey. I trusted her. She’d be here in time. I hoped.

  The more immediate question for me was—what other witches were we going to get? Especially if we’ve been blacklisted. “We need two more witches for the spell. Where are we going to find them? Discuss,” I said, before shoving another bite in my mouth.

  “I have a friend coming,” Shane said. “I wasn’t always welcomed at the covens, but I found one more open-minded coven that managed to stay on the light side of things. I met a guy there that—”

  Adrian dropped his fork, cutting Shane off. “Excuse me,” Adrian said as he pushed his chair back to get up.

  “It’s not like that. He’s just a friend.”

  Adrian crossed his arms and I could almost see the fight he was having with himself.

  Shane watched him, waiting for Adrian to say or do anything, but when Adrian stayed staring straight ahead, his shoulders crumpled. “Anyway. I was actually on my way back here. My friend—River—convinced me that running wasn’t doing any good. That I needed to reconnect with Claudia and the friends I’d made here.” He looked down for a second. “I was staying at a hotel in Austin, trying to get up the nerve to come back, when Adrian called.”

  This caught Adrian’s attention, and I grinned. Maybe there was something good coming out of all this drama.

  “You were?” Adrian asked softly.

  “Yes.” There was a moment of quiet as the two stared at each other, before a knock sounded at the door. “This should be him.” Shane got up quickly, retreating from the room.

  Adrian seemed calmer when he heard that Shane was already back in Texas. I didn’t want to assume that it was because Shane wanted to get back together with Adrian, but I was sure it had at least partially to do with their relationship. At last that’s what I was hoping.

  Shane came back in with a guy trailing behind him. He had long hair, tied back in a messy bun. A few pieces had escaped it and he tucked them behind his ear as he checked out each of us. He was short, maybe only a few inches taller than me, and he was a little too thin for me. But then again, Dastien was pretty thick with muscle.

  And that’s a bad thing?

  No. It’s an amazing thing. Have you seen your abs?

  He shook his hea
d at me, and I went back to my assessment of the witch. His heather gray T-shirt had holes along the collar and his jeans had a tear in them at the knee, but it looked like from actual wear and tear, not for style. Maybe it was the height and the lack of visible muscles, but something about him just didn’t scream that he was ready to take on one of the Evil Trinity and his army of demons.

  He shoved the sleeves of his faded black hoodie up around his elbows, revealing some crystals tied on with thin pieces of leather around his wrists. “I hear you’re in need of a witch for some sort of a spell?” He asked.

  “Riverdream?” Claudia said.

  The guy scanned the room, and grinned brighter when he saw my cousin. “Claudia de Santos, right?”

  She nodded.

  “I just go by River now.”

  Her chair screeched as she got up. “It’s been forever.”

  “I know. That whole your-coven-is-evil thing?” He winced. “Not good. Huh?”

  Claudia laughed as she gave him a big hug. “It’s good to see you.” She pulled back, but held on to his hand. “Do you want to sit? Are you hungry? It’s a long drive from Alabama.”

  “Nah. I’m good. Been sitting too long.”

  “Riverdream?” I asked as Claudia went back to her chair.

  “River.” His gaze found mine and he didn’t look away, which I liked. I knew witches didn’t have dominance displays like werewolves did, so it had nothing to do with power. But I actually missed people looking me in the eyes.

  River’s green eyes were bright as he took me in. “Thanks for coming,” I stood from my spot. “I hope we’re not putting you in a bad spot with your coven, though.”

  “No worries on that. My coven is a bit more progressive than others. Our magic is subtle and nature-based, and we don’t mind sharing our stuff with outsiders. Plus, you’ve caused quite the stir in the witch community. It’s nice to meet you, Teresa McCaide.” He held out his hand and I took it.

  “Tessa. Tessa Laurent,” I said, correcting him. The sound of saying my name—my new name—gave me a zing of energy in my soul.

  River’s palm was rough, but he had a firm handshake and his gaze never left mine, which meant he was confident in who he was. A glimmer of light caught my eye. One of the crystals on River’s wrist was glowing.

  “Interesting,” he said.

  “What are those?” My fingers itched to touch them, but I forced myself to keep my hands to myself. If they were part of his magic in some way, I didn’t want to insult him. Especially when we needed him to stick around for the spell. But this was the second time crystals had come up in as many days. I wondered what I was missing out on.

  “Depends on which crystal you mean.”

  I was getting side tracked. I’d have to ask him about them when we didn’t have one of the Evil Trinity primed to kill us all. “How much did Shane tell you?”

  “About what’s happened? Everything.”

  “And you’re okay with fighting demons?” Because I wasn’t sure if hippie, nature-loving witches were also pacifists. This definitely wasn’t going to be a pacifist group. “It’s dangerous and I want to make sure you’re aware of everything we’re up against.”

  “I’ve had some experience fighting demons. I know I might not look it, especially with who’s in the room, but I’ve got power.”

  He was right. The room was pretty loaded in the power department, but I was curious what that meant. What experience did have have fighting demons exactly? I figured that was his to share when he was ready, but I had another question I couldn’t stop myself from asking. “What kind of power?”

  “Do you need a demonstration?”

  I didn’t, but I was extremely curious. Aside from la Aquelarre and Tía Rosa, my knowledge of witchcraft was pretty limited. I hadn’t had time to really explore different kinds, and River’s looked pretty damned different. The crystals on his wrists kept catching my attention. “If you don’t mind? I’m kind of curious.” I tried to tone down my excitement.

  What Shane said was right—the covens are pretty closed to outsiders. But I’ve heard about his coven. They sell jewelry they make out of powered crystals.

  I spun to Dasiten. Really? Do they have a website?

  Yeah. I was thinking of getting something commissioned for you.

  River cleared his throat. “Everything okay?”

  I spun back around. “I was just talking to my mate.”

  “Umm…” He looked between me and Dastien like we were crazy.

  I guessed I probably looked super weird silent-talking to Dastien. “It’s a werewolf mate-bond thing. And rude. Sorry. It’s habit now.”

  “Not a problem. So you talk to each other psychically?”

  “Yup. That’s pretty much what it boils down to.”

  “Huh.” He looked curious, but dropped it. “You ready?

  “Sure.” But for what, I didn’t know.

  He smiled and I noticed that one of his teeth was a little crooked. “On three.”

  I narrowed my gaze. “What’s on three?”

  River just kept grinning. I had a second to wonder what was so funny, before he started counting.

  “One.” He muttered something in another language, one that that had too many guttural sounds and consonants. “Two.” One of the crystals on his wrist started to glow, and then he touched his pointer fingertips together, then his ring fingertips, then his thumbs. For a second, I thought I could see a spark moving around his hands. “Three.” He twisted his wrists at the same time in one quick gesture.

  It was as if something slammed into my stomach, and I flew backwards, slamming into the wall.

  I gasped as I slid to the floor. The room went into chaos, everyone yelling at once. Dastien grabbed River, lifting him up off the ground like he weighed nothing. I didn’t have to be inside my mate’s head to know what he was about to do.

  Power rose within me and I shoved it into the room. “Everyone stop!”

  The Weres in the room froze, expect for Dastien. He hit you.

  No. I told him to prove himself, and he did. He’s in.

  He hit you. He’s out.

  “I’m fine.” I sent him some calm through the bond. I couldn’t let Dastien piss this witch off, especially since I’d asked for him to show me what he could do. We need him. I don’t know what kind of witch he is or what those crystals are, but he has magic. Plus, we’re desperate. He’s in.

  Dastien wasn’t happy about it, but he let River go.

  “That was amazing,” I said as I brushed myself off. “Do the crystals hold magic or was it in the gesture or what you said?”

  River stepped away from Dastien, smoothing his hoodie down. “All of the above. We can talk about it another time, but first, someone mind filling me in on the specifics of the spell? Shane told me that we only have until tonight.”

  He might have looked laid back and unassuming, but River was looking better and better. I liked that he was getting straight down to it. “Yeah. You hungry?”

  “No,” River said. “I ate on the way.”

  “Cool. Sit down.” I’d said it to River, but everyone else seemed to take it as time to clean up.

  Blaze went to Mom, asking for a broom so he could clean up the mess from where I’d slammed into the wall. Dad was still looking pretty pissed off—probably mostly because I’d been thrown across the room, but probably also because there was a Tessa-sized dent in the wall that now needed fixing.

  Mr. Dawson’s phone rang and he stepped into the kitchen to take the call. Chris was bent down, whispering something to Shane, but Adrian’s gaze stayed glued to River. I was watching him carefully, too, as River bent to pick up a chair that had fallen. He didn’t have the smooth way of moving that I’d come to recognize from a fighter, but he held himself confidently. Not an easy thing in a room full of Werewolves.

  I might not know River very well or really at all yet, but I had a good feeling about him. “You didn’t happen to bring any friends with you?” B
ecause if he did, they were in, too.

  River set the chair down. “No. Why?”

  “We need one more witch.”

  His eyes widened. “No good comes from that much magic being harnessed. What kind of spell are you doing exactly?”

  I blew out a breath. “I guess Shane didn’t tell you everything.”

  He shot Shane a less-than happy look. “Apparently not.”

  It took a good twenty minutes to explain it all, especially since he peppered me with questions every step of the way. By the time I was done, he’d pulled out his phone. “Have you talked to anyone in Washington?” He asked Claudia.

  “No. I’ve…I haven’t reached out to anyone.”

  He looked up from his phone for a second before going back to his phone. “This is exactly what’s wrong with witches,” he muttered to himself.

  “That’s what Shane was saying.” I was now realizing how big of a problem this was.

  “It’s true.” Claudia fiddled with her braid. “I meant to do something about it, but after Luciana, I just needed a break, I guess.”

  “I can understand that, but I think taking a break right now is a bad idea. What happened with Luciana shows that covens have to start working together or else risk more covens going dark…” River’s words made Claudia frown. Lucas leaned in to say something, but Claudia grabbed his wrist.

  If I were Claudia, I wouldn’t want to reach out to any witches either. Hell, I wasn’t even in Luciana’s coven and I’d had my fill. It was going to take a lot to make me trust another coven implicitly, and I hadn’t endured the years of abuse that Claudia, Raphael, and Shane had. I was surprised to know that Shane had been visiting other covens, but it was smart.

  “I’m calling Washington and Oregon,” River said. “The California coven is out. There’s a few scattered elsewhere, but there are some I wouldn’t trust. Someone want to call Colorado?”

  Shane nodded. “I can do it.”

  “Wait. That’s where Cosette was?” I asked.

  “Right,” Claudia said. “Her roommate might be the best place to start.”

  “Shit. I don’t have Karen’s number,” Shane said.

  “I do,” Chris said. “Sending you her contact info now.”