Page 5 of Brutal Alpha Beast
“After all this time, now is when you decide to tell me? Especially since you know that the woman who abandoned me, my mother, was a witch too. How could you say this right now, Danielle?”
My stomach sinks. No. No. This is not how this is supposed to go.
“But we’re mates,” I say. “I thought you should know.”
He shakes his head, pulling on his shorts. “We arenotmates, Danielle.”
Then he pauses. “Don’t tell anyone else about this, you understand? You could be banished or worse, and there’s nothing I’ll be able to do to help you. Not after you’velied.”
I pull on my dress and turn away from him to hide the tears that burn the back of my eyes and my throat. “Don’t worry,” I mutter. “You’ll never have to see me again.”
“Danielle-”
I run. I run as fast as my legs will take me, all the way to my cabin, where Monroe is waiting for me at the door.
Her face is already sour. She could sense that something was wrong.
“Pack your bags,” I tell her, pushing through the cabin.
“Danielle, what happ—”
“You remember when we said that if the time ever comes that we ever need to leave, one of us will say the word, and the other will help pack our bags, no questions asked, and we’ll go?”
She nods. “Yes, but—”
“Well, now is one of those times,” I command, wiping away my stubborn tears. “We’ll leave before sundown. Okay?”
She nods, pulls out the bags from under her bed, and we pack in silence.
Once we’re finished packing, we waste no time; we don’t stop to say goodbye. We go.
Chapter 2 - Ellis
“Isn’t their support by proxy for Sawyer enough?”
One of my guys asks me a very ignorant question in our morning council meeting, and admittedly, I understand why he asks it.
My good friend Sawyer, Alpha of one of the other packs in this valley, made an alliance with a hidden coven when a witch’s curse threatened to destroy the place.
I’m no more a fan of witches than the rest of my men are, but unlike them, I’m in charge of keeping our pack safe. I saw the witches’ strength the last time the valley was threatened, and they’re powerful as hell, almost too powerful. Who wouldn’t want a coven of powerful witches on their side?
Besides, another thing I learned from the wholeeverything we’ve ever known, almost getting destroyedexperience, was that wecanwork together with the witches. It’s possible, and it’s likely the best option when it comes to the curse.
“No,” I say sternly, “We need to form our own alliance with them too. Without an alliance, they’re sworn to help Sawyer’s pack, not ours. Imagine if it were the other way round, would you want to help some random coven you didn’t know?”
That shuts him up.
Everyone looks around uncomfortably, murmuring, shuffling, and avoiding my gaze.
I get it; the idea of allying with witches makes everyone feel insecure and on edge. I think the same, but with the possibility that we face more problems because of this oldwitch’s curse looming over our heads, I’m not taking any chances.
“Anyway,” I continue, “I’m informing you all as an update, not a request for permission. I’ve already set the meeting with their coven leader, Penelope, today.”
My council looks sheepish, and I notice a few of them swallowing as though they have bitter tastes in their mouths.
I crack a smile. “So, boys, who wants to come with me?”
***
