Healing The Alpha Collection (4 page)

      
He wasn't much of a biker, but he had ridden motorcycles before and he knew his way around them. It wasn't difficult and soon he was alone on the open road leading into town.

      
The moon stood high in the sky as the trees and darkness moved to envelop him. Fortunately he was made of sterner stuff than a mere human and didn't frighten easily at the sight of a dark and lonely night. Still, he had to admit it was a little eerie to suddenly be roaring down the highway by himself when just seconds ago he had been surrounded by so many enemies.

      
The calm allowed him a chance to clear his mind and catch up on what had just happened. The Oakdale pack had betrayed Bucklin, that much he could figure out. It also appeared they had kidnapped Leena, but in actuality it wasn't a real kidnapping because Abaddon seemed to be in on it. Which led him to his next, most important, question: where the hell was Leena?

      
His heart swelled with the thought of the love of his life being alive and well somewhere within his town. When he had thought the pact could be preserved he had excused himself from the situation and sent Hawk after Leena. He still didn't know the results of Hawk's mission, because he had holed himself up in his mansion ever since Hawk had left, hoping that she could be quietly returned.

      
Even with the pact hanging over his head he would not have been able to hold himself back if he saw Leena. He had let her go once, but he could never do it again. The thought of fighting his friends and sacrificing his people just to hold on to his love caused his stomach to churn with revulsion, but he knew he wouldn't be able to help himself. His wolf still silently howled every night for his lost mate and Aster knew that when his arms were around her again he would never unwrap them.

      
That was why he had to stay in his mansion; he had to be recused from making any decisions in relation to Leena. Hawk had to give her back on his own; it was the only way. Then he would let Aster know the deed was done. However, he hadn't appeared to Aster yet and now his town was under invasion. Something had to have gone wrong. Would Rowan know? He had also excused Rowan, knowing he wouldn't be able to give up his sister again, but maybe he had more self-control than Aster had given him credit for.

      
Rowan, are you out there?
he thought as the motorcycle continued to scream at the dull night air. This machine was well taken care of; he could at least give the gang that much credit.
I should go to Rowan's house. Surely they haven't been able to catch Rowan.

      
If there was one wolf in Bucklin who could stand toe to toe with Aster on the field of battle, it was Rowan. Rowan was just as big as Aster and just as strong. He had seen what Rowan could do in battle, and had seen the results of his rage even as recently as last week. When Rowan wanted you dead you died. There were no ifs, ands or buts about it.

      
Rowan was probably holed up in his house right now, standing guard with a shotgun in one hand and a pistol in the other. Any sad sack of shit who got within thirty yards of his place was probably picking his guts up off the ground. He probably had other members of the Dawnguard with him too, standing watch from other vantage points in the neighborhood.

      
Aster thought hard, trying to establish some kind of a mental link with Rowan. They had practically been brothers and they had always been able to feel the other, much like two mates. It wasn't as strong as a mate bond, but it was always there.

      
Nothing, not even the faintest shimmer of emotion. It was hard to concentrate while trying to keep so much horsepower under control between his legs. Aster chalked it up to that and nothing else. Surely Rowan was okay.

      
Rowan can't be killed,
he thought, putting his friend on a pretty high pedestal. It was why Rowan was the sheriff of their little town and why Aster had always pegged him to be his successor should he ever fall. Crow was the only one who had ever had the raw ambition to take Aster's position and now he was tragically gone.

      
There was another wolf that Aster thought could never be killed, one he held in an esteem so high that only Jesus could live up to it: Luke. And Aster had had to sit back powerless as Abaddon cut his throat and ripped his heart out of his chest, forever changing their lives.

      
Aster could kill Abaddon, he knew he could. The demon was strong and powerful, giving him superhuman speed, strength and healing ability, but the demon also had to live by an ancient code. Aster hadn't spent the last ten years sitting on his ass, running the town and fucking whatever broad wanted a piece of him. No, he had been studying, learning. Once a year he took a trip to France, leaving the council in charge. Many thought it was because he had a girlfriend there, one that he wanted to keep secret. In reality he had been studying at the Order of Apollo's sanctuary, an ancient organization that hunted all things supernatural. Fortunately werewolves were their least concern and after some quick talking, and signing of pacts in blood, he was allowed access to their library and sages.

      
The demon lived by a code that said it could not refuse certain challenges or it would be forced back into the underworld. One of those challenges was a duel of the flesh. The demon's mortal vessel would be forced to fight the challenger with no help from the demon or his hellfire. Essentially Aster could fight Abaddon on an even footing. Not many knew about this and it had taken the oldest sage to tell him about the challenge. The only problem was that the challenge could not be spoken and had to be written in the blood of the challenger at the time of the challenge. The demon was under no obligation to honor the challenge before it was fully written, meaning it could kill Aster the minute he started writing.

      
The alpha's eyes grew wide as he pulled into Bucklin, noting that everyone's lights were out in town. It almost felt like a ghost town. The only thing that would set the scene any more perfectly would be a tumbleweed blowing across the street as Aster slowed the bike down.

      
"What's happened to my town?" he wondered aloud.

      
The people were there, he could feel and smell his people, but they were hiding in their homes like small, scared animals. They were wolves, not rodents, and they should be able to stand up and fight the threat like the savage beasts they were.

      
Aster put his head down as he stopped at a stop light, realizing that he was partly responsible for the situation his people were in. He hadn't stood up like a leader should have and fought ten years ago and he damn sure hadn't fostered the environment a bunch of wolves should live in. He had completely eliminated the wolf from their lives; he had banished the old ways and turned them into domesticated house dogs more than anything else. It was no wonder the only ones who observed the old ways, the Oakdale pack, were now standing strong with Satan's Angels to take his people out.

      
As the light turned green he pulled the bike forward, laughing at himself for even observing the traffic laws in such a bleak and desolate environment. Lawlessness had taken over his town and here he was still following the rules. That was Aster's biggest problem: he followed the law instead of becoming the law. The alpha was king of his domain; he didn’t operate in a set framework, he led with the fiery passion that burned inside. Aster had failed.

      
The fact that his pursuers hadn't caught up to him and nobody else had made a move to stop him began to unsettle Aster. He knew they were out there, probably watching him right now, but no one stepped forward to challenge him.

      
"I'm walking into a trap," he whispered to himself, not even audible over the roar of the motorcycle.

      
* * *

      
Aster's eyes narrowed as he watched the trout swim downstream. Every muscle in his body tensed as he prepared to spring into action. He was the hunter, the fish were the hunted and this was the end of their lives. He could almost taste their raw flesh as he licked his lips and watched. This felt right. He was a wolf and he was going to eat like a wolf.

      
Water splashed him in the face, ruining his concentration and nearly causing him to slip off the rock he had perched on into the water. He looked up and growled as the giant bear pulled the trout off his massive claws and devoured it in two bites. Beorn had known Aster wanted the next shot, but the greedy bear had lost his patience.

      
Laughter from the shore forced him to turn and look. Rowan, Thorn and Leena were all lounging on the beach, watching their two friends attempt to hunt.

      
"You almost had it, buddy!" Rowan called.

      
"Don't get wet, babe!" Leena called. "I don't want to have to clean sand out of your fur again!"

      
Aster gave Beorn one last look before darting across the rock and onto the sandy beach, shifting as his feet hit solid ground. Quickly he moved to slide on a pair of shorts he had brought, covering himself completely.

      
"You're so modest," Thorn said, looking him up and down. The young wolf, and heir apparent to his pack, had no problem lounging completely naked in full view of everyone. Aster turned to look at Beorn, who had arrived on shore and shifted as well. The hulking young adult he transformed into also had little to no shame.

      
However, Luke had raised his kids to be a little more human than wolf. If he knew they were eating raw fish while shifted he would have a cow. They were humans who happened to turn into wolves, he always said, not wolves. Abigail, Rowan and Leena's mother, always told the kids that she cooked them a delicious dinner every night so they had no need to run through the forest like a bunch of heathens.

      
"I think Dad could smell the fish on my breath," Rowan said, trying to hide his laughter. "He gave me a look and I immediately retreated to my room. I know what he was thinking."

      
"So what?" Leena declared. "We're wolves. Shouldn't we be able to hunt and eat when we feel like it?"

      
"We're humans who can turn into wolves," Aster corrected. "At least that's what he says."

      
"Why can't we be wolves who turn into humans?" Thorn asked.

      
Everyone was pondering the kind of deep thinking an eighteen-year-old could have when Beorn spoke up and drew everyone's attention.

      
"Why do we have to be that?" he asked. "Why can't we be human
and
animal? Two sides of the same coin."

      
"Mind blown," Leena said, making an exploding motion around her head with her hands. "Like, completely."

      
Beorn ignored the ribbing and continued his thought. "We're all like this for a reason. It's not like a movie where we were bit by some animal and now we can transform, right?"

      
"Maybe one of our ancestors was bitten by a wolf or bear," Aster said.

      
"I don't think that's it," Beorn said. "We were born this way, with the ability to blur the lines between man and animal. I feel like our lives should blur that line too. I know you've all felt the animal inside wanting to get out, wanting to have its way with your life. It can't be good to keep it cooped up all the time. What happens when you lock a dog in the house all day? It gets angry and tears up the furniture."

      
"Are you saying my wolf is going to tear up the furniture inside of me?" Leena asked before bursting into laughter.

      
"Just forget it," Beorn said, skipping a rock across the river. "Just forget I said anything."

      
Aster looked at the bear for a bit before turning to look at his friends. Rowan had no problem embracing the beast inside of himself—he was one of the more in tune teenagers Aster had ever met—but Leena was all about being a teenage girl. He glanced over at Thorn, who made brief eye contact before looking away. The young alpha understood the same thing Aster did: Beorn was right.

      
"Well, look who it is!" Rowan yelled. Everyone turned and looked up at the tall, gangly teenager with long blonde hair who was sidling up to them with his hands in his pockets and his eyes on the ground.

      
"How goes it, Hawk?" Leena asked.

      
"It's okay," Hawk said, nearly whispering. He was a man of few words.

      
"You sure?" Thorn asked.

      
"Just problems at home," Hawk said. "You guys want to go on a trip or something?"

      
"What kind of trip?" Rowan asked.

      
"I don't know, just a trip. Let's get out of town for a few days. Go explore the surrounding area. We just graduated high school. We should be seeing the world."

      
"Nah," Rowan said. "I've got to help my dad with some things."

      
"I just think it'd be a good idea," Hawk said, staring off into the distance.

      
Aster studied their newest friend for a bit. He was an odd, enigmatic kid, but he always seemed to know what was going on in town. The kid had his beak-like nose in everyone's business. There was something different about him today. Something was definitely bothering him.

      
"You know I'm your friend," Aster said to Hawk, putting a hand on his shoulder.

      
Hawk looked surprised and confused as he glanced at all of them before briefly making eye contact with Aster. "I know."

      
"You can tell me anything," Aster said.