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The sight, combined with the various scents and the buzz of the insects’ night song, makes me feel like I’m watching a private show. Like the beauty of the earth culminated in hopes that I’d step outside at this very moment to enjoy it.
But it’s not only for you, my ghost whispers. It’s for all of Goldenrod, and the rest of the world, too.
The rest of the world…
“What’s it like out there?” I whisper aloud softly.
Maybe betas have more freedom out there. They have families. Wear colors other than gray. Have their own bedrooms.
“What’s it like to be so free?” I whisper again, half hoping the sky will answer somehow, but I’m met with the same cacophony of the nighttime sounds.
The hairs on the back of my neck stand up as the seconds tick by. Suddenly, the sky stops looking so pretty but instead, looms above me, scary and dark. I shudder and turn toward the kitchen, stopping when I hear muffled voices.
A few yards from the kitchen door and window, the dining room’s tall glass doors cast a glow over the grass. It was fairly quiet when I first stepped outside, but now, shadows move roughly through the light, the voices becoming more frantic and louder. Noah’s deep rumble is unmistakable, and I feel drawn toward it like a moth to a flame.
What’s going on? Is he okay?
I leave the tree’s protective darkness, my eyes glued to the windows, when a familiar, lyrical voice cuts through the night.
“Well, if it isn’t Hetty, the beta…”
I gasp and turn. It’s Cass—the alpha from the path.
“Fancy seeing you here,” he murmurs softly, stepping toward me.
My throat is suddenly dry and my neck hot as I back under the shadow of the tree again, surprised when I hit the scratchy tree bark.
I can’t see his face very well in the darkness, but his eyes are deep and hollow, and his pale skin glows in the moonlight. I look around, searching for the best escape route.
“Don’t be scared,” he says quietly, stepping between me and the house and leaning a shoulder against the tree. “I’m not gonna hurt you.”
I jump with a start as he inches even closer to me. I can see him better now—his cheeks are covered in scruff and his dark eyes peruse my face curiously.
“I’m not scared,” I whisper as I shrink back against the tree. In reality, I’ve never had a conversation with any alpha whose last name isn’t Sage, so I’m terrified. I clear my throat and ask, “What are you doing here?”
He shrugs. “Keepin’ watch while my boss has his meeting.” He nods at the sky. “You lookin’ at the blood moon?”
“The what?”
He motions upward, and I join him in staring up at the moon. It’s big and low in the sky, hovering slightly above the treetops like a giant, cratered tangerine.
“It’s a blood moon,” he says softly. “Happens a couple times a year. My da used to say it only came out when the devil drank too much sun water and beat his mate bloody.”
I laugh uneasily, glancing at the kitchen light behind me, where a shadow moves back and forth. Is that Nancy? Can she see me?
But despite my nerves, my ghost gnaws at me. Wasn’t I just wondering about the world outside Goldenrod? Who’d know more than him—a new alpha?
“I don’t—I don’t understand anything you just said,” I admit nervously. “What are those things?”
He leans against the tree, casually propping a leg up. “What don’t you understand?”
“What’s your … da?”
“My father.”
“The devil?”
“A mean son of a bitch.” A humorless chuckle bursts from his mouth. “Just like my da.”
