Chapter 63: Chapter 1

Book 3: Alpha Restored

HALEY

“Glory, trust me. We have to go,” I tell my stubborn sister.

“Haley, we could be killed. This is crazy!” We reach the spigot and she starts filling our bucket with the cool water.

“We’re not going to be killed. We’re just pups. Look around us. Do you like living like this?”

“Are you two at it again?” Virgil, one of the other teenage pups, comments as he takes over pumping the spigot for Glory. I’m not going to lie. I’ve got a thing for him.

He’s cute with the freckles across his nose and round chubby cheeks. I’m sure he’ll grow out of them. He’s only fifteen, but he looks younger.

Despite his age and his looks, there’s something about him that makes everyone want to do as he says. He’s lived in the camp his whole life.

“Virgil, if you had the chance to make life better for yourself and your family, you would, wouldn’t you?” I ask, already knowing the answer.

“My family comes first. If I could, I would.” He gives me his cute lopsided smile.

“So you heard about Alpha Redd getting rejected? The rogue males are challenging him. If they win it’s an automatic place in a pack.”

Okay, so that came out of nowhere, but Virgil has a choice to make, and I have to make sure he chooses the right path. He gets a confused look on his face. “What rogue males?”

“Bob went yesterday, but you and I both know he’s not alpha material, but he took Louis and Paul with him. I don’t think they made it.”

Virgil closes his eyes with a shake of his head. “Bob was a prick. He tried touching Anna, but Martha stopped him. I never liked Paul, but he didn’t deserve to die.”

“Exactly my point,” Glory cuts in. “It’s too dangerous.”

Virgil thinks on it for a minute. “It is, but living here is too. We could just as easily starve or freeze to death. If I have the chance, I’m taking it. Anna and little D are my responsibility. I have to do what I can for them.”

I inwardly smile to myself. That’s one important player in the mix, now to convince Asa and Toby. Maybe I won’t have to. Those punks will do anything for cash and their lifelines are extremely short.

It’s such a shame, but if that’s what fate wants, that’s what fate gets.

Glory shakes her head. “It’s crazy. What if Alpha Redd isn’t weak and wins, then what?”

“Then submit. I’ve heard he’s really good with ladies.” I make a crass joke, but Glory isn’t having it.

“That’s not even close to being funny. Besides, we only just turned fourteen. We’re still pups.”

“All the more reason to submit. If he’s a good alpha, he’s not going to kill a pup, but if he’s not, then it’s a quick death with no suffering. I’m tired of this life. Davey cries every night because he’s hungry and cold. Anna says less and less. Pretty soon she’ll stop talking all together.

“Without us here, Auntie can be with her mate, even if he’s an asshole. If I leave, Auntie will have more on her plate, but I could bring them with me and that’s what would be best for them.”

Virgil grabs the bucket from Glory before she spills it.

“You know Martha would look after them until you come back for them, so it’s not like they’ll be any worse off.” I look over to the boy having a swordfight with his cousin Sammy.

Virgil just hums then grabs his bucket and heads off.

“Glory, we’re getting older and those rogues have their eyes on us. You and I are just game to them. I saw Rowan staring at you last time he was here.” I shudder at the idea of him even coming close to us.

“You have to trust me. We won’t survive the winter. We barely made it through this last one. If it weren’t for Natalie finding those herbs, you would’ve died.”

Glory dips her hair into the bucket and I help her get the muck out of it. “When have I ever been wrong?”

“Never. You’ve never been wrong. What happened to finding our uncle?” I help ring her hair out then I take a turn to dip my hair in the bucket.

“I think if we go, someone can help us find him.” I never quite understood that part, but this is the route we need to go, I’m sure of it.

“It would be so nice to have a hot shower,” she murmurs offhandedly.

“Or a long bath. With bubbles,” Glory practically hums.

There’s a commotion at the front of the camp and Asa and Toby rush forward. I swallow knowing they’re not going to make it, but when Virgil shakes hands with that filthy Roger, my heart speeds up.

“Oh, Goddess.” This is it. Everything is in motion now.

Virgil looks back toward me and my sister. I give him a nod and he turns to leave with Roger, Asa, and Toby.

“Let’s go run a comb through our hair then see if we can find some berries,” Glory suggests. We throw our hair into knots after combing through the tangles, then head to the berry bushes.

Natalie and Jason are already here and picking berries, which is great because whenever Natalie is around there are always more berries. I doubt she’s aware that she does it, but the berries grow after she walks by them.

Her powers are so strong, but she has no idea just how strong she is.

Glory hisses then tosses a berry sending it straight to my cheek. “Damn thorn.”

I grab a berry and toss it at her. “Damn klutzy sister.”

“Hey!” Glory tosses a berry back and an all-out berry war ensues.

“Would you two stop! That’s food you’re throwing on the ground.” Jason grabs both mine and my sister’s arms. He would never hurt us. It’s just enough to stop us.

He’s right; it is precious food that we’re wasting.

“Sorry, Jason. It was an accident.” Glory hangs her head. “We’ll pick ‘em up and wash them off.”

I shake my head at her. She has a crush on Jason but I know he’s not her mate. I’ve even told her so. Her mate is older, about the same age Natalie’s will be.

In fact I think they’re connected somehow…hmm…

I look up at Natalie. She just rolls her bright turquoise eyes and shakes her perfect mane of shimmering hair. What is she, I wonder? If I didn’t know better, I would think she’s a unicorn.

Jason grabs her hand and they leave us to pick up our mess.

“We hardly threw very many berries,” I complain, but still pick them up. We fill our bucket then bring it to Martha. She’s what we refer to as the pack mother, though technically we’re not a pack.

We’re just a bunch of misfit pups, a few human moms, and she-wolves. All the males do their own thing, but every once in a while they come around looking to get some action. It makes me want to barf, but the she-wolves are lonely.

Sometimes those assholes cross the line and go for some unwilling, or underage. That’s when Martha breaks out her shotgun. Wolves are tough, but a shotgun will still do some major damage.

I lay down on my mat and close my eyes, taking in a few deep, slow breaths. With my head resting on my hands, I clear my mind and let my body relax. The stars in the night sky enter my thoughts and one in particular winks at me.

The Starlight Sister begins to tremor then violently begins to shake. She begins to tumble down from the heavens then crashes down to the earth. She gets up and dusts herself off, looking around at the surrounding woods.

“Haley!” My eyes snap open and I turn my head to look at my sister.

“I hate it when you do that. I called your name like four times.” Glory doesn’t know that I have visions. In fact, no one does.

She just thinks I’m meditating. Sometimes they’re very vivid, like just now, other times they’re sparse flashes of images. That one felt like it was from the past, which isn’t the norm. Usually my visions are of the future.

“Martha wants to know if we can run to town. A rogue gave her money and she needs supplies. We’re running out of toiletries and feminine hygiene products.”

“Yeah, we can go. Got nothing better to do.”

Glory and I shift into our wolves because the time it takes to walk is ridiculous. We both have packs strapped to our backs to carry our clothes and the supplies. Martha often asks us because we have a family link to each other.

Anna and Virgil will go sometimes, but no one else has any links. We make good time to the little strip mall and shift in the back where no one can see us.

No-man’s-land is filled with humans, and our camp is technically on no-man’s-land, but we are pretty far away from civilization out there. We make our purchases and I find a stray hair tie a human must’ve dropped. I stash it in my pack then I get Glory’s bag situated.

It’s nightfall by the time we get back. Martha has a pot of rabbit stew and wild vegetables ready. We drop the supplies and grab our bowls. Everyone gets one scoop and no one complains, not even the little pups that get served first.

After supper, we rinse our bowls and lay down for the night. “I haven’t seen Virgil.” Glory shakes out her soft brown hair that matches mine.

I get behind her and start working the comb through it. “He’s fine, but we’re not going to see him for a while.”

“What do you mean?”

I divide Glory’s hair and start braiding. “I mean we’re going to find Uncle Ryan soon.”