Page 37 of Alpha Geek

It was as inevitable as the moon rising in the sky.

“I love you so much,” Amelia whispered, pulling him close. “I am going to miss you, but I want you to get this done, so you can come back to me, all lovesick and romantic.” Amelia giggled as he pulled her in close by her waist, tilting her head back to kiss her hard and passionately. God, it was so hard to leave her.

He forced himself to let her go and climbed into the car.

“I love you more than you’ll ever know,” he whispered out the window. “Now get back inside before your ass freezes off.”

Her laugh echoed in the dark. He could write a poem about each and every part of her, and it would still be insufficient.

She blew him a kiss and ran inside. He waited until he saw her close the door and lock it before he sped into the night, inspired and crazy in love.

The cabin was only an hour away from his mansion and had been maintained over the months when he wasn’t present by a caretaker he’d hired. It was of higher quality than most secluded cabins, but there was no TV, radio, or anything that could take him off course. He had a small fridge that was stocked, a bed, a fireplace, and his laptop. He and Amelia had agreed to one phone call a day, but he would place it aside for the rest of the time.

Tripp felt more excited about the Everest book than he had about any of the others. Sure, he had loved writing them all, but the Everest adventure had a heightened spring of zest to it. It was because of Amelia; she was all of his reasons for writing something exceptional and was his spectacular reward for finishing.

He got started immediately upon arrival, which wasn’t his usual pattern. He often used the first night to adjust, disconnect, and make sure he had the proper provisions. But this was different; everything was different. Everything was humming with a vibrancy he longed to capture in the bottling of his artistic ambitions.

Tripp worked for a week at a good pace, his newly acquired shifter energy allowing him to go longer on creative bouts. His wrists did not get sore as quickly, and his mind seemed to be constantly firing on all cylinders. He called Amelia just before she went to bed, and the sound of her voice soothed him, suffocating any doubts that might surface in the quiet of the cabin.

He saw her in his head, laying in bed, possibly wearing nothing, or even just in her shorts and a loose T-shirt, her hair cast across the pillow like a painting of Venus. The phone would be pinned to her cheek as she curled up under the sheets, with dreams of their future dancing in her head.

It was just over a week at the cabin when he received a call from his mother. He had his phone on quiet mode most of the time, but he allowed a few contacts to get through because of emergency reasons. Amelia wouldn’t call him unless something dire was happening.

It was the same with his mother. She knew how he worked and wouldn’t ever disturb him for something minor. He was in the middle of writing about the wolf attack, a pivotal and action-packed sequence, when he pressed the green button on the device vibrating next to him.

“Mom, what’s going on …”

“This isn’t mom.”

He stopped typing, then stared down at the phone. He knew the voice, not because of the familiarity but the lack of it. His palms began to sweat when he realized what was going on.

“Craig, what are you doing?” he said, trying to sound calm.

“Cut the shit, big brother,” a craggy, desperate voice said on the phone. “I don’t know how the fuck you survived that fucking mountain, but now, mummy is gonna pay for it.”

Tripp grabbed the phone and seethed into it, not thinking twice.

“What did you do?”

Craig cackled like he had practiced it in front of a mirror.

“She’s fine, you dimwit. I need her signature to sign off on all of the assets, which you will help me with, isn’t that right?”

The rage racing through Tripp was far more palpable than it had ever been in his life. He felt like his body was an oven that had been turned on full-blast.

“Where are you?” Tripp snapped. “Let’s get this shit over with.”

“Don’t you dare bring that woman of yours,” Craig snapped back. “I know she’s one of those shifter things. And if you do anything stupid, like try to plan anything behind my back, she will be dead in seconds.” Craig snapped his finger together on the other end of the phone. The sound was lame and pathetic.

“Keep your shirt on, brother,” Tripp sneered. “Give me your location, and I will be there.”

Craig gave him a place he could get to within the hour. He thought about calling Amelia, but the sheer idea of anything happening to her made him want to gouge his own eyes out.

So he went alone as requested, but when he arrived, it wasn’t Craig who was waiting for him. Nor was his mother.

It was a small shed in the woods. A man who worked for Craig stood there with a look of indignance on his face. Tripp got out of the car cautiously. “What is going on? Where’s my mother? Where’s Craig?”

“Call your bitch and tell her to go away,” the man said firmly. “Do it, and we’ll know you aren’t planning something devious.”

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