Alec eyes went wide as he stepped into his room and found me standing there. I received him with a weak smile. It appeared now that I was here all the things I had planned to say were completely forgotten. Roxie and her gang had helped to sneak me into the Vanderville estate, because according to her, she thought it would stop all my brooding if I could cure my guilty conscience. Everything had run smoothly up to this point, honestly I was a little unnerved with how well this scheme had gone.
Still, a part of me felt relieved to see Alec. He looked good, healthy even, despite the dark circles under his eyes. Also, the surprise that had been written on his face was gone. His gaze was fixed on me with a new kind of intensity, suspicion swirling in his ocean eyes. My heart began to beat wildly in my chest. Maybe I had miscalculated how willing he would be to help, and if that were true this could all end very bad for me.
He shut his bedroom door gently, turning from me for a brief moment and giving me a good view of his tensing muscles. It felt like this was the first time I was looking at him as the predator he truly was, and he looked strong-formidable. A chill rushed through me at the thought of fighting him. He cleared his throat and I shook my head, meeting his gaze again.
"What are you doing here?"
His question was expected but I fumbled through my answer, "You haven't been at school."
Stupid.
"Well my sisters in the hospital or haven't you heard?" His accusing tone made me flinch. It hadn't been my intention to hurt anyone. I didn't want to be some kind of monster, but the rage...I had underestimated how hard it would be to control it.
"Alec, I'm so sorry for what I did." The words were falling from my mouth less like an apology and more like a prayer, a plea. He had to understand what happened and where I was coming from. We were cut from the same cloth after all. If he couldn't forgive me for what I had done, so be it. But I had to get to hear me out.
"I never intended to attack your sister. I was so angry and I lost control, but I never wanted to-"
"You want me to believe this wasn't some part of Cal's plan?" Alec interrupted.
My brows lifted at his accusation. "What are you talked about?"
I watched him clench his jaw, teeth grinding. "My dad told me he announced his claim to Alpha right after it happened."
"And you think that he used me somehow to push his agenda?" This was paranoia speaking. Alec may have been the one talking but these were his father's words.
"It seems awfully convenient don't you think?"
I shook my head. This was ridiculous. "Your mother was practically demanding they put me in front of a firing squad and your father wasn't much more level headed. So, Cal did what he had to, to protect me from your family."
Alec snorted at my words, crossing his arms over his chest. He wasn't being rational and thinking through everything that had happened prior to the fight. A growl of frustration bubbled in the back of my throat. I reached up and ran my fingers through my hair, trying to think of what I could say to make him listen.
"Alec, do you think that cal or I would risk my neck like this if he had some kind of grand plan?" I asked, arching a brow as I threw up a hand.
He searched my face, looking for the deceit but he wasn't going to find any, because I wasn't trying to pull anything over on him. After a long minute his shoulders relaxed and his lips fell into a deep frown. It bothered me that I had caused all of this, but I couldn't change what had already happened. I took a cautious step toward him, deciding to take the small opportunity he was giving me.
"How is Avery doing?" I honestly wanted to know.
His left hand tightened its grip on his arm. "She's healing up. Should be able to come home in the next few days as long as everything goes well."
"That's good."
God, this wasn't helping either. It was just turning into painfully uncomfortable small talk.
"Look," we both said in unison before stopping. Our eyes locked across the room and a familiar feeling seeped into my bones. My lips threatened to lift in a tentative smile as I watched Alec let his arms fall to his side in a less defensive posture. He walked the length of his bed and sat down on the edge, dragging his fingers through his hair before resting his elbows on his knees.
"You really shouldn't be here Mary-Beth. It's not safe." He looked up at me.
I pressed my lips together in a tight line and stared at the empty space beside him on the bed. It called to me. Taking a chance that he wasn't going to hurt me, I walked over and sat down. The warmth of his body radiating into mine was as familiar to me as breathing, it took the edge off and sent goosebumps racing up my arm. I heard his breath hitch and I knew he felt it too, the potency of being in close proximity to each other.
"I know this wasn't smart, but I wanted to...no, I needed to explain myself to you. I meant what I said before, about not wanting to hurt Avery," I said, though my own thoughts were full of doubts. Of course I hadn't set out to hurt Avery, she was far from innocent and completely deserving, but I could have fought harder against my urges. I had let my anger take control. Avery had simply been the straw that broke the camel's back.
"I know that," he replied with a sigh, shoulder tensing.
My brows furrowed and I turned to look at him. "You do?"
He looked at me, searching my face for a long moment. The silence hung heavy in the air between us, making it hard to breathe. Finally, his lips parted and said, "I do. You're nothing like the people in this town, nothing like us at all. You're a good person. And before you ask how do I know that, I'll tell you it's because I've seen a lot of bad to recognize something good."
I blinked slow, there was a lot to dissect from that. "What does that mean?"
He pushed up off the bed, keeping his back to me. "It means you should leave before anyone notices that you're here."
There was no way that I was going to leave things between us like this. I reached out and grabbed hold of his wrist in frustration. His skin was warm against mine, a familiar electrical pulse surged up my arm, keeping time with my increasing heart rate.
He glanced back over his shoulder, eyes full of some unnameable emotion. My breath caught in my chest as his gaze drifted down to my lips. Something was building in the air around us. It was a just a chain reaction that started weeks ago, the moment we had made contact in the hallway. His nostrils flared and he yanked his arm free from my grip like I was on fire. The fog that had begun to cloud my mind lifted.
"Mary-Beth you need to go. I can't handle this right now."
Here I was sneaking around, risking my my safety for him and he couldn't handle it? The hurt pinched at my insides so much that I had to bite into my cheek to keep from making a show of it. It shouldn't matter what Alec thought of me or if we were even friends. It wouldn't have bothered me before, and yet...
Anger rose like the tide, washing over everything else. I stood up from the bed. "You know, I risked a lot coming here tonight cause I thought you deserved that, but maybe I was wrong."
He flinched like I had struck him. "This is all more complicated than you know."
"Then explain it to me," I replied, hoping that he would actually talk to me. "Is this all because of what happened between Avery and I?"
He tilted his head, looking pained. "Yes...and no."
"Well which is it, Alec?" I asked, resting a hand on my hip. "Is it a yes or no?"
He heaved a heavy breath, reaching up he ran his fingers through his hair, pulling at it until it stood on end. I watched him in silence, waiting. He met my gaze with a slight glare. "This problem was here long before we knew each other. Probably long before we were born. The Wolfe's used to run Twin Peaks. Well, until something went rotten in Cal's old man."
"Rotten?"
"He was a bad guy. Real bad." Alec shuddered as if remembering something.
"You knew him?"
He shook his head. "Not really. I was only a kid when he died, but I heard enough stories."
"Well, maybe they were exaggerated."
He let out a humorless chuckle. "Cal ran away from home, from this town to get away from his dad. I don't think they're exaggerations."
A strange unnamed emotion bubbled in my stomach. "Cal never told me any of this."
Alec didn't look surprised to hear that, but he did look worried from the way his gaze kept bouncing between me and his bedroom door. "People have their secrets Mary-Beth. Some are just darker than others."
"And are yours?"
He blinked, looking back to me. "Are mine what?"
"Dark?"
His lips twitched before his expression shifted into a scowl. "I'm not the killer if that's what you're worried about."
"I wasn't worried about that," I said in a soft voice surprised he would think that was what I was trying to say.
"Okay," he replied but he didn't sound all that convinced.
I rolled my eyes. "So what does Cal's dad have to do with what is happening now?"
Alec shrugged a shoulder. "Nothing. Everything. It's hard to say for sure. All I know is Cal gave up his Alpha title when his dad died before disappearing. Then a couple of years ago he showed back up out of the blue and this tension has been hanging over this town ever since. Like everyone has been holding their breath, waiting for this very moment. So your fight with Avery was just the match that ignited the fire."
I nodded my head, feeling no closer to the truth, but at least he had given me some kind of direction. "What are we going to do?"
His brows lifted. "What?"
"Well, we can't leave things the way they are. Cal and your dad will tear each other apart."
"That's kind of the idea," he murmured.
"Alec, be serious." I narrowed my eyes.
"I am," he replied louder than necessary. We both flinched and look to the door. He gave me a long side-glance. If they found us together I had a feeling that I might not be the only one in trouble. Thankfully, no one came, and after a minute or so we both took an easy breath.
"Look, there are things you clearly don't understand about this whole situation." Alec waved a hand between the two of us.
"Then explain them."
"There isn't time."
"Make some," I pressed, stepping closer to him. "People's lives are on the line."
"You don't think I don't know that?" his question came out as a harsh whisper like he was on the edge of yelling. "Even if I explained. Even if we came up with some kind of plan...it wouldn't matter."
"You don't know that," I said.
"Yes I do." He closed the distance between our bodies until our chest were nearly pressed together. He held my narrowed gaze with confidence, never giving an inch. "I don't need to think about all the possibilities because I know my dad. He will never let Cal live in this town and claim the Alpha title. He's already got a plan on how to handle this, Mary-Beth."
My heart slowed until I was afraid that it might actually stop dead in my chest. "What do you mean? What kind of plan?"
Alec squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head, as if realizing what he had let slip. "Just let them sort things out between themselves."
I reached out and grabbed his arms. His eyes slammed opened at my touch. This effect he had on me was startling but it wasn't the most pressing matter. "Please Alec, this is important."
"You don't get it."
"You're right, I don't," I said, letting go of him. My voice shook as I spoke, betraying my inner turmoil. "You might be okay with all of this but I can't be responsible for another person's death. Not when I have the power to do something."
Alec's brow furrowed. "That man in the woods...you couldn't have saved him."
"I'm not talking about him."
"Then who--"
"It's none of your business," I said, interrupting his question. There was no way I was going to share my personal history with something I wasn't even sure I could trust. "Now are you going to tell me this plan?"
He looked truly defeated as he held my gaze. And I knew he wasn't going to say anything more about it, even if some part of him wanted too. He was stuck somewhere between doing what he thought was right and loving his family. There was nothing to be done about that, only for me to finally make a choice about where I was going to stand as this fire burned through the community.
"Bye, Alec." I turned away from him and began walking toward the open window I'd climbed in through.
He grabbed hold of my arm, stopping me. It took all of my strength to meet his gaze. Some part of me was breaking, something deep and foreign. Something I didn't understand. It felt wrong to be standing against each other. But there was no other options. I was going to do everything in my power to keep this feud from claiming any lives, on either side.
"Stay out of this, Mary-Beth. This isn't our battle and I don't want to see you get hurt."
"Maybe not but we're apart of it now. We all have to make a choice, even you," I said, pulling away from him. "But I will say this, don't get in my way...don't try to stop me, cause if you do...well you saw what I'm capable of without my real teeth."
He looked surprised by my promise. They were harsh and they cut at me too. Still, there were more important things at stake than some budding, childish feelings I had begun to develop for Alec. If only I had listened to Roxie when we first met. She warned me to stay away from Alec but I hadn't listened. Blinking away the urge to cry, I crawled back out the window I had snuck in through.