AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“They kill themselves, Layla. Without their wolves, they can’t find the will to go on. So if a Harridan is not here protecting the pack, you’d be dooming everyone in this town to mental torture and eventually death.”
I sit with that information for a minute; the anger roiling in my stomach. So the choice is either I uphold this mantle I had no idea existed before tonight, or I doom everyone to die by their own hands.
That is no choice at all.
“Well, if that’s the case, why did my uncle leave? Why did those other people attack me if I’m so important?”
Roxanne runs a hand over her tightly woven braids. “There are some families who have their own interpretation of the spell. They believe that the alpha doesn’t have to be a Harridan, and that if a new family were to take over, the magic would be bound to them. Because all the blood is so intermingled, you understand. We have several hundred families now, all more or less descended from the same four blood lines with traces of the four from the other pack. Technically, everyone in this town is somehow descended from a Harridan. So the argument is that a full-blooded Harridan doesn’t need to be the alpha. Any of her descendants would do… meaning anyone in the pack.
“Because you suddenly became alpha but did not claim your alpha voice, they felt they were in their right to attack you to fight for dominance. However, since all three of them attacked at once, I could declare it an unfair fight and cancel it. I used the beta command to stop them.
“But at the next full moon, they will be prepared to try again.”
My hands fly up in frustration. “This is impossible. So I’m supposed to take over as alpha when I have no idea what to do, and I’m supposed to force people to follow me who don’t want to, all for their own good so they don’t go crazy and kill themselves? Andwhyis this all my problem again?”
“Because you are Lilliana Harridan. I know,” she lifts a hand and stops my angry retort, “your name is Layla. But the first-born female of every Harridan is named Lilliana, and despite what your mother raised you as, your legal name is still Lilliana. We found your actual birth certificate—did you know you were born in Idaho?—and it lists your legal name as Lilliana Harridan. We didn’t know where you went from there. You lived under an assumed name your entire life, but we knew we had reason to hope, and so we kept searching.”
I feel heavy with the weight of responsibility that has been dumped on me. Suffocating under it all.
“I can feel people, if they are near enough. Is that a wolf thing, or an alpha thing? I could always sense the guys, but now it’s everyone.” Even now I knew where exactly in the house all twelve of our household staff are. It’s kind of eerie, feeling people like homing beacons in the back of my mind.
“That’s an alpha thing. Naturally, you were connected to your fated as soon as you crossed onto the pack territory, but sensing everyone is a trait the alpha uses to protect her pack.”
“It’s too much, too many,” the protest comes out a whisper. Those glowing points of warmth are living, breathing people that expect me to protect them. Me, an eighteen-year-old street kid who barely has a GED.
“It’s not just you, Layla,” Roxanne reaches out and sets her hand on my knee. Through the thick blanket, it’s warm, and I feel comforted by the gesture. “I’m here, of course. To help you as much as you want. As is everyone in the house, and I’d say at least eighty percent of the pack is completely loyal to you.”
“Yeah, it’s that other twenty percent I have to win over. Apparently, by a fight, as a wolf?”
“You have us, too.” Milo’s low voice startles me, and I realize I forgot the guys were in my room while Roxanne and I were talking. They file out now, circling my chair with hopeful expressions.
“How much of that did you guys hear?” I don’t know why but I’m suddenly nervous that I said something embarrassing. I got downright petty at one point.
“All of it, but it’s nothing we didn’t already know,” Milo assures me. “We’ve been waiting for you, preparing to help you guide the pack one day.”
“We were literally raised for it,” Jared adds.
Roxanne stands. “I know I’ve dumped a lot on you, and I think it’s enough for tonight. I’m going to head to bed and leave you with your fated. Perhaps they can answer more of your questions. But if you need me, just shoot me a text.” When she leans down to hug me, I accept it stiffly, still not prepared to forgive her. I know she isn’t entirely at fault for the way things have been handled, but my trust is like a raw wound.
After she leaves and closes the suite door gently, I let my gaze travel among the three guys surrounding me. “So… you guys never had a choice, did you?” My voice is sad and small, tears prickling at my eyes.
Milo and Landon share a look.
“A choice about what?” Jared asks.
“A choice aboutme. You were told you’re my ‘fated mates’ or whatever and that’s why we were all suddenly besties the second I arrived. It has nothing to do with who I am.” My chest tightens, heart squeezing at the painful thought.
“No, Layla, it has everything to do with who you are,” Milo assures me. “Yes, the bond spoke to us immediately—we felt it when you crossed into Smoky Falls territory that first night—but it’s not like we don’t like or care about you as a person.”
Landon clears his throat. “Fated mates are… well, to be honest, they’re basically made for each other. We are connected, but the four of us form a perfect unit. We complement each other, bring out the best in each other and make up where the others lack.”
“Yeah, like clearly I have the sense of humor these two lack,” Jared jokes, drawing a small smile from my lips. “And you like my dumb jokes. Landon and I aren’t the best speakers, but Milo always knows how to speak up. And Landon-”
“Plays a mean game of Minecraft?” I supply.
“Ouch, is that all I am to you?” Landon pressed a palm over his chest in mock pain.
“Landon has the biggest heart,” Milo says. “He’s the one who’s always looked out for us, and since you’ve arrived, he’s been especially concerned about your happiness.”
