Page 40 of Alphas Never Hide

Thedoc was going to weld a helmet to my head if he found out about this.

Iwould have to make sure he never did.Ofcourse,Imight not get out of here.It’dbe difficult for him to scold me ifIwas dead.

Itouched the bump on my head and pulled my hand away to look.Noblood.Thatwas good.

AllIneeded to do was shift, and everything would be fine.Ireached deep inside myself and pulled on my magic.Iwaited for the shift to come.

Itdidn’t.

Mychest tightened like a vise was squeezing it…Andsqueezing…Tighterand tighter.

Fuck.

Thiscouldn’t be happening.Itried again.Andagain, my magic fizzled away.Afew coarse hairs sprouted alongmy forearms and on the back of my neck before disappearing again.

Andthen nothing.

Yes,I’dused a lot of magic today already and last night too, but what was itXanderhad said about my magic being out of whack?Hiswords sounded more and more like a premonition now.Itlooked like he hadn’t been exaggerating.ToobadIdidn’t know that earlier,Iwould have ordered steak and eggs for breakfast.And, you know, not gone to the woods withRyleytoday.

Istruggled to sit up.Icouldn’t make it to my feet.Notyet.SoIleaned against the wall.Ryleywas pacing on the other side of the bars.Hewas pulling at his hair and muttering to himself.

“Hey,”Isaid. “It’sgoing to be okay.Whydon’t you get out of here?”Ipulled out my phone and the keys to my truck.Ipushed both through the bars. “Driveinto town.Vanshould be at the police station by now.”

Ryley’sface contorted in disbelief at my suggestion. “I’mnot leaving you here.Notlike this.”

Heflapped his hand at me.Couldhe tell how fucked upIwas?Wasthat what was holding him back?Yeah.Icould see it.He’dnever leave if he thoughtIwas vulnerable.WhichmeantIneeded to stand and show himIwas fine.Wrappingmy hands around the bars,Ihauled myself up.Iwas more unsteady on my feet thanIwould ever admit out loud.Ihoped he didn’t notice.

“Comehere,Ry,”Isaid softly.

Assoon as he was close,Ipressed my head against the bars to get closer yet.Ourforeheads touched.Hisfingers wrapped around mine whereIstill gripped the bar.

“Breathewith me,”Isaid.Iinhaled slowly and released it just as slowly.

“Idon’t need a meditation coach,”Ryleygrumbled.

“Quittalking and do asIsay.Inand out.”Ilifted my hand and rested it on his shoulder.Whenhe didn’t bat it away like he had earlier,Islid it over his body at a languid pace untilIhad the back of his head cupped in my palm.Withanyone from my pack,Iwouldn’t have taken so much time, butRyleywasn’t in my pack.Or, uh…Iguess no one was becauseIdidn’t have a pack.

Myhead hurt too much to go down that path.

Mymagic wasn’t responding to my desire to shift, but apparentlyIcould still feel the stir of my alpha energy.Itwas fainter than normal, but it was still there, intuitively responding toRyley’sfear.Ineeded to calm him, and my magic was determined to help, at any cost.

Easinghis panic was the leastIcould do sinceIwas the one who’d gotten us into this mess.

Thiswas just one more shitty decision to heap on a lifetime of shitty decisions.Whyanyone would thinkI’dbe a good alpha was beyond me.Iwas a sorry excuse for a wolf.

I’dputRyleyin danger.Me.I’ddone that.JustlikeIlet someone get away with destroying my dad’s pack.AndifVanwas right, my parents’ murderer had escaped justice too.

Atrue alpha kept people safe.Atrue alpha didn’t hide from difficult confrontations.Atrue alpha stood up for their pack and sought justice.

Iwasn’t an alpha.Inever had been.AndIwould never be worthy of that title.

Nothingwould change that, but my parents and the remnants of their pack deserved better.I’dlet them all down for too long.AndnowI’dletRyleydown too.

Allthose years ago when my life went to shit,Ihadn’t wanted to believeRobbiecapable of instigating so much destruction, but this past summer had shattered any lingering delusionsIhad about him.Andnow, having searched his hidden bunker,Ihad more evidence of how messed up he was.

FuckingRobbie.

Ihated him.Iloved him.Still.Somehow.Iwanted to blame him for everything that’d happened, but that wasn’t fair.SincetheEternalMagichad gifted me with alpha power as a child, everyone had treated me as the next leader of the pack.Ishould have realizedRobbie’schildhood jealousy wasn’t something he would grow out of.Ishould have paid attention and stopped him before it was too late.