Page 12 of Red and the Alpha
“If the tables were turned, would you have done anything different?” he asked, cutting his beta and best friend off.
Khan grew silent. His gripped the steering wheel tight and continued driving.
Jaco and Royd were in the truck behind them.
“Well, if they wanted your help, that was not the way to do it,” Khan bit out. He was Maxius’s second-in-command and was fiercely loyal to the pack and to Maxius. Their friendship dated back to when they were pups frolicking around on the playground in grade school.
“It’s done and over with. No one was harmed.” Maxius settled back in the leather seat. Thoughts of who would have wanted Hazel dead filled his mind. He was sure a woman of her status had enemies, but what wolf would have the balls to go after the high priestess? “When we return, I want to meet with everyone. Tonight.”
Their plans may have been altered, but meeting with his enforcers was now of the utmost importance.
If Kamila said her grandmother was killed by a wolf, then he believed her. He would need to see Hazel’s body. If a wolf did attack her, then he wanted to view it for himself.
“And you just believed her when she said it was a wolf?”
Maxius stiffened. He had not shared with his friend the connection between him and Kamila.
“I didn’t scent any untruths when she spoke,” he admitted. That was a safe answer. He just wanted Khan to drop it for now. They would get to the bottom of this. Hazel was a trusted friend of his who had been working with him to try to mend the relationship between their people. “We will help, and we will find out who did this.”
The rest of the ride was in tense silence.
Kahn’s wolf was brimming. Maxius left his beta alone because he knew it had to have brought fear to the man, knowing his alpha had been taken.
Kahn would calm down, but it would take time.
Maxius had other issues to address.
How was he going to keep his wolf at bay, and how would he not claim his mate?
Chapter 4
“What happened to you?” Kamila whispered. She stared down at her grandmother who lay in a pristine white dress.
Today was her formal viewing for the coven, and she was made up pretty. She looked as if she were taking a short nap, not one that was eternal. The table she was positioned on was decorated with soft silks and flowers. The throne room had been converted for the viewing. The ceremony for Hazel would be held later that night.
Witches who held the status of Hazel were never buried but burned. It was a ritual that was performed to ensure the person went on to the afterlife. It was believed that once the body was cremated, the person would have no choice but to continue on to their next life.
Some believed the extremely powerful could bring themselves back to life.
It was an urban myth every little witch or warlock was taught.
Kamila reached out and laid a hand on Hazel’s shoulder. She just wished that somehow her grandmother would be able to give her a clue as to who had taken her life.
At the funeral pyre, Kamila would assume her rightful place as the high priestess of Eternal Flame.
“Am I interrupting?” a deep baritone voice asked from behind her.
Kamila whipped her head around to find Maxius standing in the doorway. It had been two days since her cousin had dragged him to her. Today, he was fully clothed, but it didn’t erase the memory of what his chiseled chest looked like naked.
Even in jeans and a dark shirt, it did little to hide his perfect physique.
“How did you get in here?” she asked. The guards should have been securing the perimeter. She blinked and tried to tear her gaze from him, but for some odd reason, she couldn’t. She turned around fully and watched him walk toward her.
His stride was that of a predator. The way his body moved, graceful with the hint of a deadly glint in his eyes…
He would never hurt her.
Kamila’s breath caught in the back of her throat at the words that popped in her head. Confused, she didn’t know what to think of her reaction to him.
