Page 10 of The Alpha’s Heir

But there was a reserved motherly warmth when she smiled at me while Colonel Williams returned my salute.

“Give me a second, George.” Councilwoman Troy patted his arm.

Colonel Williams mumbled something in my direction as he kept walking.

The councilwoman hung back, waiting until the superior officer was out of earshot.

“Is he here yet?” she whispered.

I hated that worried look and the tightness of her lips. My military bearing dropped a bit as I leaned in closer. “You know Justus. But I’ll check if anyone’s seen him again.” I raised the radio.

She placed a hand on my forearm. “Don’t bother. I had a feeling this would happen. You’re not busy, are you?”

It wasn’t as if I could deny her. Even if I could, I wouldn’t. I was going to kill Justus for letting her down yet again.

Colonel Williams gave me a sideways glance as I escorted the councilwoman up the steps. Later, there’d be hell to pay. I knew by the twitch of the colonel’s mustache.

But the councilwoman outranked even the colonel. All the council and board members did. They were the rule makers. The directors of our city. Government officials who controlled the way things worked. The military wasn’t needed much, especially in these times of peace, but we came when called by them.

Councilwoman Troy was the media director and served as ambassador of relations outside of our city, handling communications with other human purists’ cities, and lately taking more of a role in exchanges with the wolf shifters. But she’d earned my respect long before I knew what her political role entailed.

The other government vehicles were arriving now, and security came to meet them. We bypassed the scanners and headed down the side hall that would lead to the raised platform of the auditorium.

Her heeled shoes clicked along the floors beside me. “Don’t worry about what you hear in there today,” she said.

I nodded, knowing I wouldn’t. But if it made her feel better to warn me of that, I wouldn’t stop her.

“The whole thing is absolutely preposterous,” she continued. “But you’ll sit next to me, and we’ll sort it all out.”

Again, I nodded and held open the door.

My gaze swept the empty room, making note of the exit on the other side that we’d secured this morning and checking for any details seemingly out of place.

“You look handsome in this uniform, by the way.” She adjusted my collar device and smoothed her hand over the lapel, drawing my attention back to her. Pure pride shone in her eyes as she grinned up at me. “Are you settling in okay? How are they feeding you?”

The tenderness with which she spoke made me cringe internally, but I knew she only meant well. “It’s been an adjustment, but I’m figuring it out.”

“You belong with the officers.” She patted my shoulder. “And… how is your father?”

The question caught me off guard. “He’s fine.”

“Have you been to see him lately?” she asked. The hint of sadness in her tone wasn’t rehearsed. It’d been many years since my father lived in her house, but there was still a history there.

“He’s doing good,” I said, keeping my answers short. “No change.”

She seemed to pick up on my discomfort. “All right. Well, you just sit next to me and look pretty. I’ll handle the rest.”

The wink she threw my way was supposed to be playful, but I knew better than to disobey a direct order, even if it didn’t seem like one.

“Yes ma’am.” I nodded a final time, leading the councilwoman to her seat.

My earpiece buzzed with the official update from outside the building. “Stand ready. The mutants are here.”

4

Meg

The last few days had flown by in a blur of normality. I cleaned houses and the inn, trained with the rest of the pack warriors, and ran last-minute errands for Kera. All while my mind was racing and my wolf kept up her frantic pacing, and the rest of the pack treated me like I was heading to the slaughtering block.