Page 6 of Pack Nightmare

“Is there anything else coming up that I should know about? Any other alpha traditions or town festivals?”

“Well, there is this one tradition you should probably know about,” Jared says seriously, and my anxiety revs up slightly. “It happens every year on the last day of October. Everyone goes outside at night and-”

“Let me guess, shifts into wolves and runs in the moonlight?” I interrupt, only half joking. That’s sort of how I imagine the punchline of every joke at this point.

“No.” Jared’s face is solemn, and an irrational tingle of concern crawls over my skin.

“What is it?”

His thick lips split and curve into a bright smile. “It’s Halloween, of course!”

“Oh my god, you jerk,” I swat him on the arm as he doubles over laughing, and the other two cackle like hyenas in the back seat. “Seriously? I thought it was another crazy wolf thing.”

“That was too easy, gorgeous. You’ve got to stop taking everything so seriously.”

“Yeah, well, if you guys stopped surprising me with wolves and alphas and challenges and curses every day, maybe eventually I’ll calm down.”

“Fair enough. But I think you’ve gotten most of them at this point, if I’m honest.”

I regard him with narrowed eyes for a moment, then lift a brow. “Are you sure?”

“Scout’s honor,” he replies, lifting three fingers and crossing his heart with his other hand.

“Jared, you ass. You were never a boy scout.” Landon swats his head from the back seat.

“Hey, I figured it got the point across,” the other boy answers, adjusting his cap. “But let’s not keep my auntie waiting any longer. Miss Layla has some alpha duties to attend to.”

Sighing, I push open the door and hop down. Despite my earlier indignation at being left out, something tells me I don’t really want to know all the little details that need tending in my duties as alpha, at least not yet.

But all the same, I need to learn.

Chapter Four

Layla

The guys escort me up to the office, giving Roxanne their greetings before scuttling away to my suite to play video games. Roxanne was seated behind the desk when I arrived, but as soon as I walk through the door she stands up, grabbing a stack of papers and moving to one of the seats facing the desk instead.

I hesitate, eyeing the intimidatingly large furniture before letting my eyes drift to the chair beside her.

“The desk belongs to the alpha,” Roxanne seems to take pity on my indecision. “But you don’t have to sit there if you don’t want to.” She crosses her legs, one ballet flat wiggling in the air lightly as she waits for me to decide.

Shoring up my nerves, I choose the wing-backed chair beside her and tuck one leg under my body. “I don’t want to seem disrespectful,” I begin. “I know there’s a lot that you manage on my behalf, and I’m very grateful. I just think that if I’m supposed to be taking over as alpha, I should at least have some idea of what’s going on.”

Roxanne’s dark eyes drop to her folded hands, their warm brown a stark contrast against her snowy-white blouse. “No, you’re absolutely right. You should, and I apologize. I was trying to give you space to be a regular kid—it’s hard enough having a full course of college classes. Besides, I’m on autopilot, just managing things as they come up.” Her gaze rises to meet my eyes. “When your uncle was here, I reported to him daily and he would pick which things he’d attend to personally and which he wanted me to handle. We should start having daily meetings as well, although perhaps we can do them after school, to prepare for the following day, instead of in the morning at breakfast? I think that would be better for your schedule. ”

“Yes, I think that’s a great idea.”

“Perhaps it’s a good idea for you to take over a few tasks every week? Just small ones, so people get used to seeing you.”

Dread drops in my stomach like a stone. “Is that really a good idea? I mean, I’m new here, and I’m only eighteen…”

“There have been younger alphas, and the age doesn’t matter so much as the command. Now that you have your command voice, you can compel people to drop their petty differences and get along, if need be. The threat of being forced to comply always seems to help people find a resolution they can live with.”

“Do you have to use compulsion a lot?” My mind drifts back to my uncle, complaining about how much energy he spent keeping the pack together.

Roxanne seems to follow my thoughts. “Your uncle’s time as alpha was… fraught with issues. Most of them were really not his fault, and he did the best he could. But lack of strong leadership puts everyone on edge, and since he didn’t have a fated and wasn’t producing heirs, the fears about the future of the pack were rampant. I’m happy to report now that things have settled quite a bit. Without needing to keep the pack from telling you about us, there’s hardly anything to compel. People are happier than they’ve been for almost two decades.” Roxanne seems genuinely pleased to report this information, and I relax.

“I really appreciate how much you’re handling on my behalf. I just want to get a better understanding of everything that goes into running this pack. Maybe we should start there, and you can make some suggestions on ways I can contribute.”

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