AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Monte has other tasks to complete, or have you forgotten your late Alpha was murdered? Your lack of empathy is telling Axel.” I cock a brow in question, the accusation clear in my tone. Honestly, Axel is at the top of my suspect list right now. If he is so willing to continually disrespect me, who knows how he felt towards my father?
“Of course. I meant no offense, Alpha,” Axel corrects, inclining his head in a mocking show of respect. I doubt the man has a sincere bone in his body.
“Let’s keep it that way.” I stand from my seat and motion towards the door. “You’re dismissed. And remember, I’ll be watching.”
“Yes, Alpha,” all three of them say in sync before making their way out the door.
“Silas,” I call out just as he’s about to slip out the door. I give him a polite smile, waiting for Walter and Axel to clear the hall. “I need you to put together a team of wolves you trust to accompany me to the meeting tonight.”
“Of course, Alpha.” He gives me a small smile, polite yet sympathetic, conveying the words that aren’t being said right now. I need to focus on the Langley threat for now and trust that Monte can conduct his investigations without me. The fate of this pack and countless families rests on my shoulders, I can’t let myself forget that.
I soften my eyes and incline my head in a wordless thank you, hoping the silent conversation will be enough. My intuition tells me he can be trusted. One of my father’s oldest and dearest friends wouldn’t have had anything to do with this betrayal or his murder. Despite how cold and cunning he could be as an alpha, he kept that part of himself separate most of the time, and his true friendships, those that he would spend time with outside of pack meetings, were loyal and honest wolves.
With that, Silas takes the last few steps from the room, closing the door behind him. I wait a few minutes, listening to his footsteps clear the hall before I slump back in my seat, my hands gripping the arms of my chair. My insides clench and twist, a mix of anxiety and adrenaline rushing through me before a cool wave of reality crashes into me, and I huff out a breath of relief now that I’m alone. I’m the Alpha now and I slipped into that hard edged personality so naturally, but now I feel the weary edge of exhaustion creeping in from using my dominance so liberally.
“You did great.” Monte’s voice breaks through the silence ringing in my ears, shocking me out of my relieved state. With how quiet he’s been, I’d almost forgotten he’s still sitting beside me. His hand slips over my clenched one in an attempt to comfort me, but it feels wrong, especially with the look of caring and devotion he pinned me with earlier.
I’ve only been back a few days, and my life is already spiraling out of control. My mind wars with the memory of how Monte and I used to be and the electricity that sparked between Everett and me, even Zeke and me. But that was just the mate bond, weakening me to them, making me forget momentarily about the heartache and pain the bond can bring.
I clear my throat and straighten in my seat, preparing to slip back into business mode. Glancing over to Monte, I brace myself for the twinge of guilt I know will come along with the dejected look on his face. Instead, Monte’s jaw ticks, his eyes narrowed on me slightly. But the look is gone almost as quickly as I see it, his face smoothing out, the look of annoyance mixed with anger long gone.
“What are your thoughts after meeting with them?” Monte asks, a hint of concern in his tone convincing me I must have imagined the frustrated tick to his jaw.
“Axel’s hiding something,” I say, glancing back towards the door, anxiety and paranoia ratcheting my heart beat higher. Tingles crawl up my spine, the feeling of being watched.
“Hmm, I’m not sure.” Monte leans back in his chair. “Don’t you think if he was hiding something, he would at least try to disguise his disdain for you?”
“Or perhaps he doesn’t care what I think of him since he’s still plotting against the pack,” I say, my suspicions growing. “He seems to hold his status among the pack in high regard, yet he challenged almost every word I said in that meeting. He would only do that if he didn’t think I held his fate in my hands.”
“Fair enough.” Monte nods, giving me an appreciative look. My gut tells me I’m right about Axel. Hell, I would rather be proved wrong than put my trust in someone too soon and be stabbed in the back. “I’ll look into him.”
“That doesn’t mean we should automatically trust the others. Everyone should be treated as a suspect until we find irrefutable proof of the perpetrator.” The solitude presses in on me, cutting me off from those who are supposed to be like family. The brief moment of anger that flashed across Monte’s face resurfaces in my mind.Can I truly trust him, or anyone for that matter?
I shake those thoughts from my head and clear my mind. I can’t allow myself to think like that, otherwise, I’ll sink into the echoing black abyss of suspicion.
“Of course, I’ll still look into everyone. You can trust me, Sky, I hope you know that.” Monte reaches for my hand tentatively, and my chest tightens at the warm press of his fingers against mine. I will my hand to stay still and not flinch from the touch. His shoulders slump in relief, and his eyes soften as his fingers wrap around mine with more confidence.
Internally, I balk at the comment though. It has to be more than a coincidence that he told me I can trust him while I was just questioning that. I smooth out my expression, unsure whether my emotions are playing across my features and betraying my thoughts as clearly as if I’d spoken them aloud. Is there perhaps a reason I shouldn’t trust him? He’s been there for me since the moment I got back in town, but has he been sincere?
“I know Monte.” I squeeze his hand then force myself to keep it still, suppressing the urge to put space between us.
“This will help with my investigation into your father’s murder too,” he says, his eyes creasing with concern. “It will give me a chance to look at everyone closest to him and analyze the information my investigators have already found. I want to find the bastard that did this as much as you do, Sky. Godric took me under his wing after my father died, and I’ll always be grateful for that. He wasn’t just my Alpha, he was my friend.”
“Thank you, Monte.” I grip his hand in earnest this time, my baseless suspicions fleeing with his words. Relaxing into the touch, I remember why I’ve always trusted this man, why it would be so easy and simple to ease back into the relationship we used to have.
But really, too much has happened to me—to us. I’m no longer that teenage girl, I’m the Alpha, and we need to figure out if that dynamic will even work between us, especially with him being my beta. Although we had always imagined this would be the way, there is a massive difference between dreams and reality.
“What did you think of Walter and Silas?” Monte asks, his thumb running over the back of my hand, drawing my attention back to him. Going for honesty, I relay what I observed of the two other betas, and Monte nods. “I agree, they’re proving themselves unintentionally by their actions already. But, I don’t want to miss something because of misplaced trust, so I’ll still look into them,” he adds. My mouth pops closed at his caveat, Monte having stolen the words right from my mouth.
“There are a few changes I’d like to make, though.” I gently pull my hand from his and turn to face him, needing to see his reaction to what I’m about to say. “Even if we keep both Walter and Silas, I’d like to add two more betas to even it out.”
With Monte at my side as an advisor, there would be two beta spots open. Even if Axel isn’t guilty, I can’t have his disrespectful ass anywhere near my inner circle. But there is some truth to keeping your friends close and your enemies closer, despite how badly I want to kick him to the curb. The decision feels right, my intuition is leading me down this path, so it seems I’ll have to put up with this painful thorn in my side a bit longer to discover his true intentions.
“I’d like to interview a few of the top female betas to join the team.”
Monte’s brows raise in surprise, and his lips purse for a moment before responding. “I’m not sure what to say,” Monte huffs out a sigh, scrubbing a hand over his face. “I don’t want you to think I disagree, but I’m just not sure it’s the right time. It’s not right, but a lot of the pack is still adjusting to having a female alpha.”
I raise a brow in question. Although I’m not surprised to hear of the pack’s hesitance at having a female alpha, I won’t back down on this. I can be patient with them on some things, but other changes are way past due, this being one of them.
