Page 13 of Unexpected Alpha's Claim

I was ready to pounce but her statement gave me pause. Discuss? That was a surprise. The witch’s intent had seemed much worse. She had overpowered all three of us without barely lifting a finger.

“Do it,” she commanded, raising her voice. When none of us obey she rolls her eyes and sighs. “Do not be afraid. I’m not here to harm you.”

She maintained continuous eye contact with me and her milder expression made me think she was being honest. Perhaps it was time for the wolf to hide back under my human suit. Fighting her certainly hadn’t been going well for us. I shifted back, spotting atall bush not far to my left. I took a few, sideways steps to help hide my nudity.

“Ah, Raul…” She laughed, her eyes sparkling with amusement. “Don’t you worry? I’ve seen it all before.”

“You know my name?” I asked as I squinted at her. The witch moved towards me without any apparent concern as to my dangerousness or nudity.

“I know all your names,” she said, glancing over at Sam. “Samuel, you are the second son. Raymond…” She turned her gaze to him, “you are the third.” She looked around with a thoughtful expression before adding. “Where is your sister?”

“She’s out of town,” I answered. “And you still haven’t said who you are or how you know us.”

“It’s Helena, first born. Helena van Zant,” she introduced herself. “And I come to you tonight because your family is in great peril.”

“Elaborate,” I demanded, suppressing a growl in my growing confusion.

“Not out here,” she refused, shaking her head. “Your enemies are swift; you share the same powers as them. Samuel, Raymond, come. We need to leave.”

“Leave? How?” Sam wondered, gazing beyond Helena. “I don’t see any cars around.”

“Cars…” She snorted in amusement. “We do not need an automobile, my dear Samuel. OnlyIcan take you to the place I have in mind. Now…” She held her arms out to the side. “Hold hands. Come on, everybody.”

My brothers and I exchanged cautious glances. We all shared the same concern. Standing alone in the woods with one of the almost mythical creatures we had been brought up to avoid, not to mention that she had overpowered us with relative ease.

What else did she have in store for us? Despite the obvious concerns, however, her words intrigued me. And there was also that after her initial demonstration of power, she hadn’t attempted to kill any of us. Even when we fought, she was pulling punches. I did not think we had seen anywhere near the full strength she could bring to bear.

I made my decision, and reached forward, believing that she was being honest. Sam and Ray followed my example which put a smile of satisfaction on her face. She held her staff in her free hand and struck the bottom end against the ground. I had a strange sense of déjà vu as a red light flashed and then spread around the stick. The light expanded outwards encircling us. Nervous, I looked around, seeing the world beyond cast in an eerie, almost evil glare. The energy swirled around us and then shot up way over my head. The red faded into white, then flashed so bright I had to close my eyes against it.

9

RAUL

“What…?” Ray exclaimed, but the echo of his voice surprised me.

I opened my eyes only a crack and glanced at our new surroundings. The forest was gone. Now we stood in a large, spacious library, with highly polished oak floors that shined under the light of a beautiful, large, old chandelier. I took it all in with one glance. There had to be a thousand books. Maybe more. There were bookcases on all four walls and everyone was full of books.

“I could tell you where we are, but I doubt you’d believe me,” Helena spoke, letting go of our hands. “Go ahead and take a look around. I’ll be waiting for you.”

I didn’t respond because I had no reason to argue with her. I turned around and saw a big, heavy door. I clicked the knob open, wondering what she meant by ‘I doubt you’d believe me.’ It’s not as if we hadn’t already seen too many things that were difficult to believe already. It’s not like she had hesitated to show them to us.

The door opened onto a hallway that was quite a spectacle. Both sides of it were lined with torches in golden cups, their flickering light illuminating the hallway’s sizeable width. Just past the third torch to the right, I spotted a narrow, white door. Ray and Sam turned to the left and I went right alone, intent on exploring that room.

The door was unlocked and swung open on silent hinges. Inside it was every bit as spacious as the library. I peered through the open door, sniffing the air and looking before walking inside. It felt as if I had somehow exited modern-day Dawson and entered a time long before mine.

There was a strong smell of oil in the air, the source of which was on a counter against the right wall where there were three oil lamps. Two of them were intact, while the third lay in pieces. Shards of glass were spread around its base. Under that shelf, rested a pair of gray boots with dirt lining their soles. Their small size was a hint but the poster on the far wall was definitive proof. It depicted Marianne Crawford, my grandmother. What a beautiful woman she had been. Arms folded across her chest, she was wearing a white dress and a radiant smile. Her golden locks were reaching down to her forearms. Below the poster lay a desk. On its dusty surface, were five black-and-white pictures of her and my grandfather. In one of those, Edward and Marianne were engaged in a passionate kiss, the snowy tops of Bear Mountain as the backdrop.

I had seen enough to know. This place was a doorway to the past. My family’s past, to be exact. Heading back outside, suspicion grew within me. That room carried too many private moments to belong to someone else, anyone else, other than Edward Crawford. What I couldn’t grasp, was why nobody in my family had any idea about its existence. I didn’t remember my father ormy mother mentioning anything about it. Striding back into the library, I heard my brother’s footsteps behind me. Together we strode into the library, prepared to confront the witch.

“Helena…” I began. She was sitting on the desk directly across from me. “I’ve got a million questions, but I’ll start with this one. We’re in some sort of sanctuary, aren’t we?”

“Yes,” she confirmed. “This compound was the property of Edward Crawford. And yes, it’s buried deep into the mountainside.”

“It figures,” Sam agreed, halting on my right flank. “I saw his old tractor in some kind of a warehouse. It’s like a mausoleum in there.”

“Hold on a minute,” Ray raised his hand to chest height, palm facing her. “If thiswasgrandpa’s sanctuary, how come our folks had never said a word about it?”

“That’s simple.” Helena shrugged, hopping off the desk. “They didn’t know it existed.”

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