An Alpha’s Duty

EVERETT

I’m woken from sleep by someone knocking on my bedroom door. The bed is cold, only one side slept in. Aurora isn’t back yet. I’d better not actually have to send a search party after her.

If she’s in danger, again, I don’t know what I’ll do. I know I need to trust her—I do trust her. It’s the world I don’t trust. She’s so fragile. I hate seeing her dead.

No matter how many times it happens, I’m terrified that she won’t come back. Part of that is Chaos: my wolf really can’t understand, he only knows that his mate is dead. But part of it is me, too.

She’s my little one, my Aurora. What kind of person could possibly grow comfortable with the death of the person they love, no matter how impermanent?

The knock comes again, jolting me from my morbid thoughts. I shout an acknowledgement, rolling out of bed and pulling on a flannel shirt and some sweats over my tank-top and boxers.

I open the door, still doing up the last button, surprised not to see Ace or Lucius, but Nellie. I’m embarrassed at the state I’m in, but she doesn’t seem to notice. Maybe because she’s not much better.

Her hair isn’t brushed either and she’s wearing a robe over a pajama set. She looks like she’s been crying. I realize it’s only just dawn. Something dire must have driven her here this early.

She’s staring at me mutely, clutching her robe closed with one hand, like she’s not sure what to do with me now that she’s got me. “What is it?” I ask.

My permission unlocks her words and also causes the tears to spill afresh. “It’s the orphanage. Something’s wrong with the children, it’s gotten worse. Please, Alpha, you have to come.”

“Of course, Nellie. Lead the way.” I don’t bother with shoes. My feet can handle it. There’s no time to lose. She must be referring to the mysterious illness. ~Please, say none of them are dead~.

The orphanage is dark and silent, probably normal for this time of day, but I can’t help but find it eerie. Kids should be talking, play fighting, getting into trouble, not hiding in their rooms, terrified.

A shadow is on this place. I sound like Aurora, but I can’t think of a better way to describe it. This sickness has the orphanage cowering like prey from an eagle.

Guilt surges in me. What kind of Alpha am I? How have I not fixed this? I haven’t even visited the orphanage since this started. I resolve to do better.

Nellie leads me up the stairs, pressing her finger to her lips. “The children are still sleeping.”

I nod, moving on tip-toe to avoid making even a little noise. She goes down the hall and opens one of the doors, beckoning me to come inside.

She closes the door behind us and looks over the beds inside, wringing her hands. “This is where the littlest ones sleep. They’re the ones…they…”

Tears overtake her. I put my hand on her shoulder, allowing her a moment. I look around while she gathers herself. There are five children, all asleep. No empty beds, thankfully.

The room has a farmyard theme. Cows and sheep and ducks parade along the walls. ~How will Aurora want to decorate our baby’s room?~ I can’t help but wonder. Hopefully not with cows.

Nellie takes a shuddering breath, pulling me back into the moment. I chastise myself for getting distracted. I want to blame the hour, but the truth is I haven’t been able to focus lately.

My mind is full of thoughts of the baby, of my pregnant mate. Chaos wants to make a nest, drag her off to it, and guard it until the pup is born. I can’t do that, but I can’t stop thinking about it either.

Nellie crosses to one of the little beds, stroking the hair of the boy sleeping in it. He doesn’t stir at all. That can’t be normal.

She looks at me, anguished. “They won’t wake up. They had it worse than the older ones, but they were at least awake. Now, they won’t move no matter what I do.”

I join her by the bed, tentatively touching the boy’s shoulder. He’s so small. He feels cold. Anger surges in me, but I keep it hidden. “How are the older children?”

Nellie dries her eyes on her sleeve. “Still anxious, they still say their wolves are restless, but well otherwise.”

“Good. I’ll have the doctor come and have a look. There might be something he can do.” I doubt it, and I can tell Nellie does too, but at least we’ll know if anything is wrong physically.

I keep my confident Alpha face on, hoping it’ll do the job. “In the meantime, try to keep the other children’s spirits up, and come get me if anything changes.”

Nellie grabs my sleeve. “Please, Rory—Aurora—she said it might be… Nemesis.” She whispers the last word, closing her eyes like she’s afraid the name will make the goddess appear.

Irritation flashes behind my eyes. Why did she tell Nellie that? But there’s nothing to be done now. “It might be. We’re doing everything we can.”

Nellie looks embarrassed and steps away from me. “Of course, Alpha. I’d never think otherwise. I should get the children their breakfast. Thank you for coming so early.”

I don’t feel like I’ve done enough, but there’s also nothing else I can do. So I just give her my best smile and say, “That’s my job. Take care, Nellie.”

I leave a note with the doctor and head home, still worried about Aurora. When I get back to the pack house, I smell her immediately. My mate is back!

I find her in our room and I scoop her into my arms immediately. She smells like forest and dust and looks like she hasn’t slept at all. “Aurora! Where have you been?”

She clings to me, letting me shelter her. Something must have frightened her. “I went to the old pack house. I wanted to sort through my thoughts, see if I could get any advice from the spirit realm.”

That makes sense, but I’m still frustrated that she didn’t return immediately. At least she stayed on pack land. I kiss her head. It’s not worth fighting about. “And? Did you have a vision?”

She nuzzles her face into my chest and pulls away reluctantly. I let her go, just as reluctant, and she sits on our bed. “I got a message from a spirit. They said ‘it won’t be enough’.”

I frown, turning the words over in my mind. Chaos snarls, upset at the assertion that we aren’t strong enough to handle anything. “What does that mean?”

She shrugs. There are dark circles under her green eyes. “I don’t know. They wouldn’t say anything more.”

I sigh. The reticence of spirits isn’t Aurora’s fault, but it’s still irritating. “Not exactly helpful. What about the she-wolf?”

“Not much better, unfortunately,” Aurora tells me all she’d learned from Mariah. She’s right, it isn’t much, but at least we know what we have to do.

I squeeze her hand. “We just have to find a way to trap her. We can do that.” Aurora doesn’t seem convinced. Hopefully, some food and rest will improve her mood.

Our breakfast is interrupted by the return of one of the patrols I’d sent out. I abandon my eggs and sausage, unwilling to wait to learn what they’ve found.

Aurora follows behind me. We meet the patrol in my office. They wait respectfully for Aurora and me to get to my desk. I don’t sit. “Tell me you have good news.”

Lucius steps forward immediately. “I don’t know about ‘good.’ We didn’t find any more portals, Alpha, but we did spot a group of rogues. Only two miles away from our territory.”

Rogues. It’s always rogues. They were possessed before, too. Maybe they hold the answers we need. “Let’s go see what they have to say for themselves.”

The patrol immediately starts getting ready to head back out. I grab some shoes. When I turn to her, Aurora is putting on her coat and tying her hair back. “I’m going, too,” she says, mouth set.

I grit my teeth, irritated at her challenging me, ~again~. And in public this time. I dismiss the patrol with a jerk of my head, leaving us alone in the office. I cross my arms. “Absolutely not.”

She rolls her eyes, like I’m the unreasonable one. “We already settled this! It’s my duty as Luna to protect our pack lands. You can’t wrap me in bubble wrap, Everett. I’m coming.”

It is similar to what I’d agreed to before. But look at what had happened then! She’d almost died. I try to dodge. “That’s not what I’m trying to do.”

She crosses her arms, clearly unconvinced. “Oh, it isn’t? You’re not trying to keep me from coming along because you get unreasonable when I’m even slightly endangered?”

I run my hand through my hair. “All right, it partly is. But you were out all night. You’re exhausted. You need rest, not to go traipsing around the woods. We can handle this.”

This, in fact, is exactly the kind of thing I can handle on my own. And she knows it. I can see her wavering, can see how badly she’d like to go to sleep. My hopes rise.

But instead of agreeing, she sets her jaw. “What if there are shards of Nemesis? You need me. You wouldn’t have even known she was there last time without me!”

That’s a good point. But not good enough for me to give in. “Well, we know what to look for now.”

She pounces on the weak rebuttal. “What if something new happens? What if we need to get one out of someone? What if someone gets hurt? I’m useful!”

The word hits like a slap. I hate how much it matters to her to be useful, like that’s the only way anyone could care about her. I want to hold her, but I can’t get distracted.

I clench my hands to keep from reaching out. “No one’s debating that you’re useful, Aurora! This isn’t about how much use you can be, it’s about keeping you and the baby safe. Rogues are dangerous!”

“Ah-ha! It’s not about me being tired!” She actually points at me, like this is a cheesy mystery show. It’s adorable. She must be exhausted.

I groan and sit at my desk. “Why do you fight me every time I want to take care of you?”

Her face softens, and she gives me an impish grin. “I don’t. I just fight you when you’re being overprotective.”

“I’m not overprotective,” I grumble. I’m the right amount of protective. Chaos rumbles in agreement, which is probably not a point in my favor.

She walks over to me, green eyes sparkling. She puts her hands on my knees. “Oh, yes, you are. You’re going to be a terror of a Papa Wolf.”

I can’t resist any more. I wrap my arms around her waist and breathe in her scent. I can almost smell the baby, too. There’s a goofy smile on my face, but I can’t help it. I’m going to be a father.

I regain control of myself and let her go. “I won’t be a terror. I just want you to be safe, is that so wrong?”

She cups my jaw in her hand, eyes sad. “I wish neither one of us had to go. But we do. Being the Alpha and Luna means doing dangerous things.”

I sigh. She’s right, and we can’t waste any more time debating it now. I’ll just have to keep a close eye on her. “Fine.”

We set out. This time, I’m determined to get to the bottom of the rogue’s connection to Nemesis. I won’t let them threaten my family. Chaos growls in agreement. ~Try me. See what happens.~