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Chapter 34
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In Service of the Alpha Chapter 35
JohnathanMara is tense. Her eyes are focused on the darkness beyond the priest, and she refuses to look at me. She clutching the bouquet of orchids so hard that her knuckles have turned white, and she's taking in little gasps of air.I try not to let it bother me, try to convince myself that it’s just the crowd that’s making her uncomfortable, but I instinctively know that I’m the one making her nervous. What happened? This morning she was fine. Relaxed. Even joyful. Now she’s back to being the same skittish girl Preston brought to me almost a week ago.The insanity of what we’re doing hits me right as the priest starts to say the words. We barely know each other, and I’m about to tie myself to her forever.Maybe I'm the weird one. Anyone in their right minds would be scared right now. When it was still just a business transaction it didn't bother me - I had a way out, but I don't anymore. This is a proper mating.I barely pay attention to the priest who, despite my instructions, is
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 36
MaraIn all the years we were married, I never managed to form a mind link with Lucas, and my father refused to use them - he always said if you can’t say something aloud, it’s best to leave it unsaid. I always thought that was a sound policy until I married Lucas - only then, did I realise the importance of a mind link.I formed one with Haley, and we used it whenever I couldn’t leave the house to see her. Every so often, she’d risk her safety to go to the black market for me so she could buy the birth control I used. It was the only way I could talk to anyone other than Lucas. And by the end, I didn't have much to say to him anyway.Every time I think about Haley, I want to cry. I try to tell myself that she wasn’t a bad friend, that she was always there for me when I needed her, but I can picture her with Lucas, laughing about me, telling him everything I confided in her.And now I know that every seeming act of kindness was for her own benefit. Even going to the black market to ge
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 37
JohnathanThis is our town. Anyone who comes to our home and disrespects us pays a price. Anyone who doesn’t follow our customs or our rules, pays a price. Anyone who questions me and my decisions, pays a price.And now, Elder Liam will pay the price for openly disrespecting me, my home, and the pack’s new Luna.He did not just disrespect me. While I argued with him about the sealing ritual, Preston reported that the Omegas saw Liam snooping around the mansion, going into rooms he had no business entering, and opening drawers he had no right to open.It doesn’t matter. I keep anything secret or sensitive in my office, behind lock and key and in multiple safes. Liam would not have found anything important, but it means he can't be trusted.Nor can I forgive him for disrespecting me and taunting me in front of my pack. If I simply let him go, the pack will see me as weak, and I'll lose their loyalty.I can be a very petty man when the mood takes me. And tonight, the mood has taken me.Ev
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 38
JohnathanWe wake at dawn next to the same lake where I took Mara to wash after she was healed. Dante went to sleep, but Aria is awake, sitting quietly by my side, staring at me with her unsettling green eyes.“Where is Mara?” I ask through the mind link.“You told her to go to sleep and give me control,” Aria answers. "She is still asleep."She sounds reasonable. A few times while we ran through the forest, Dante gave me temporary control. Nothing Aria did seemed out of the ordinary. She’s just a regular she-wolf.I nod at the tiny wolf. Lucas probably took one look at her and deemed her useless. Having such a small wolf as a mate more than likely bruised his fragile little ego. Many wolves make the mistake of underestimating the small wolves. They have hidden talents, deadly ones at times. “Why don’t you trust me, Aria?” I ask.“You are a man,” she says simply. “An Alpha.”“Fair enough,” I reply with a smirk. “But we’re not all the same. Your father strikes me as a good man.”“He so
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 39
MaraI’m so angry at Johnathan that I can spit. I have had enough of men telling me what to do, and I’m convinced he’s only making me see the healer so he can assert his dominance over me.I plant my hands on my hips and straighten my back, jutting out my chin as I do. I must look totally absurd, with Johnathan’s long sleeves dangling to my knees, and the undone buttons just about hiding my shameful places.I haven’t felt this sure of myself in a long time though. It feels foreign to speak my mind and to stand my ground, but at the same time it’s familiar. I used to be a recalcitrant, pain in the ass… and my father fostered my defiance, encouraged it even. He always said that Omegas need to learn how to use their words the right way. Mindfuckery he called it. We can’t fight physically, but we can fight back in other ways. “We have mouths and we have brains,” he always said. “And we will use that to outsmart the stronger wolves. They rely on their strength too much. We will rely on t
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 40
Johnathan While Mara is with the healer, Gregory is with me, playing on the floor of my office. I haven’t looked at my cell phone since Friday and I take it out of my drawer to check my emails and messages. I promised Greg we’d go into town for lunch at the country club if he behaved, and he's doing his best to be a good boy. It also gives me some time to catch up on my work. I plug my phone into the charger and start to go through the dozens of emails and texts I missed, making notes to phone some people back tomorrow and discarding the rest. It’s the last text that catches my attention, though. It was the text I received on Friday, right when I threw my phone aside so I could spend time with Greg. I should have looked at my phone. *They are here. My attorney’s name is Herbert Klein. He’s a vampire. He will be in contact. D.* My blood runs cold. Douglas is not dead yet - if he were Mara wouldn’t have had her premonition, but he has to be close to death or, at the very least, i
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 41
Mara I decide to stay home while Johnathan and Gregory go to the country club for lunch. I’m still sweating non-stop, and no one else needs to see or smell that. I go to my room instead, planning to clean it. I stagger back when I open the door. It smells even worse than it did yesterday. It’s as if the poison fermented, and the place now smells like rotten, pickled herring. I have to do something about the soiled mattress. I don’t know if I can even get it clean, but I have to try or I'll sleep outside tonight. The substance leaking from my pores is like tar. It’s easy enough to wash off, but once it dries, it’s like syrup. I don't even know how Johnathan can stand to look at me, let alone hold me and smell me. As I go around my room, cleaning the place from top to bottom with the strongest antiseptic I could find, I think about that hug we shared. It made me tingle all over, and instead of making me feel unsafe and afraid, Johnathan made me feel secure and at peace. Instead
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 42
Mara "I'll call Kelly," Johnathan says and leave the cleaning closet. "Don't leave before she's here." I’m a little hurt that Johnathan doesn’t want to come with me on a run, but I understand his reasoning. If I go into heat while we’re both in wolf form, it could end badly for me. No, I'm wrong. It will definitely end badly for me. In comparison to Aria, Dante is gigantic and if Johnathan loses control of his wolf, Dante will kill us for sure. Besides, I’ve seen what can happen when the heat haze takes a pair of wolves. It never seemed like a particularly pleasant experience for the she-wolf. I’m afraid that the scent of my heat will attract other males, though they will usually respect a mated wolf - especially the Alpha’s mate - but one can never be too careful. Especially in a place like this. Isolated and packed to the rafters with rogues. I don't want to wait for Kelly. I want to go out by myself. Johnathan promised I'd be safe here, and he also told me that I could come and
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In Service of the Alpha Chapter 70
JohnathanI get up and massage the soft spot below my thumb. Mara’s vision lasted a long time, but I did not expect it to be so detailed. I’ve seen seers go into trances for hours, only to come out of it and give me a useless little vision that couldn't have lasted more than five minutes. Half the time, the biggest challenge for a seer is to come out of the trance.“You did well for your first time,” I say and return to my desk to get my notebook. I tried to write everything down exactly as she told it. I want to keep a record of her visions so I can remind myself from time to time. I used to record seers’ accounts on my cellphone, but I have a tendency to lose my phones. I lock the notebook in the top drawer of my desk, then return to the thick file Douglas sent. I hold the file up for Mara to see. “From your father. Money.”“What?” Mara asks. “The humans didn’t just take it?”“No. Your father was clever. He hid his tracks well. On paper, every penny belongs to a human.”“What huma
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 69
MaraI stop talking. I’ve reached the difficult part. The part where Johnathan dies. I don’t want to talk about it, much less think about it.But the image is there, forever etched into my brain like a brand.“Mara?” Johnathan asks and looks up from his notebook. “Is that it? Are you done?”I shake my head. “Remember? I told you… I told you that I saw you dead.”He nods and picks up his wine glass. He doesn’t look nearly as worried or afraid as he should be. “We can stop for now. Pick it up tomorrow.”I hesitate, gripping the stem of my wine glass like it’s a live preserver. The premonition plays itself out in my head again, vivid and unbearable, but I force myself to forge ahead. "No. I want to get this over and done with.""Okay," my mate agrees. "Go ahead."“After Rick took me-” I clear my throat in an attempt to get rid of the frog that caught there -“he took me into the mansion. To my father. They had him locked up in the wine cellar.” I let out a mirthless little laugh. “You sa
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 68
MaraWhile I spoke, Johnathan wrote everything down. There’s a small frown between his eyes as he reads back. “What did Rose do?”I shrug. “I don’t know.”“But you told Kahn things with her didn’t work out.”“Yes, but I don’t know what she did. I suppose it still has to happen.”He puffs his cheeks up and slowly blows the air out of his lungs. “Fucking premonitions. I now kind of want to kick her out, but I don’t have a reason.”“That’s what you’re worried about?”“Yeah. We can stop Donovan. Now that we know she’s coming, I can go get Haley before she comes here, make sure she’s safe.” He keeps reading, the frown between his eyes deepening. “This doesn't make sense to me... I'm not the kind who'll just discard a pregnant she-wolf like that.”I shrug. “I guess a lot of shit’s gonna happen between now and then.”He nods and pours a glass of the spiced wine for himself. “Can- can the future be changed?” I ask.“Yes, that’s the whole reason the Goddess sends premonitions, so we can alter
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 67
** TRIGGER WARNING: Infant death. **MaraSix months after Donovan joined Haven’s Crest, Haley showed up here alone. I saw her when she entered town, coming over the mountains. She was haggard, her clothes torn, and clearly starving. She was at the end of her pregnancy and could barely walk.I was surprised that she hadn’t given birth yet.My first instinct was to attack her. She had taken my mate. Caused my banishment. But then I saw it for what it really was. My pride. She wasn’t a danger to me. If anything, the tables had turned, and I was now a threat to her. She did me a favour, really, and the least I could do in return was to make sure she was okay.I had forgotten all about the threat Donovan made all those months ago. He had become a part of Haven’s Crest, and Johnathan paired him with a new Alpha called Luther. They were always off in the forests somewhere, training with their new squad. Johnathan wasn’t with me when Haley showed up. Like everyone else, he was preparing for
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 66
Johnathan“You’re probably just having a premonition. Focus on what you're feeling,” I say.Mara shakes her head and starts to hyperventilate while trying to cry at the same time. “Can’t… breathe,” she gasps. "Dying."“No, no, no,” I say and grab her face, forcing her to look at me. “You are having a panic attack.”She violently shakes her head.“Yes. Listen to me. The more you fight it, the worse it will be. It will happen whether you want it to or not. Just let go. It’s like falling asleep.”“No… scared.”“I know, baby,” I say gently. “It is very scary, but I’ll stay right here with you. I won’t let you go. It's just... it's a dream. It can't harm you.”Mara lets out a long sigh. Her eyes roll back in her head and she goes limp, falling forward and into my arms.I pull her off the chair and sit flat on the floor with her on my lap, cradling her like a baby while I wait for her to come out of her trance. As I watch, a tear rolls down her cheek. The warm droplet falls on my hand, sen
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 65
JohnathanGregory's mouth runs like a freight train on our way back to the mansion. The kid barely stops to breathe wihle he excitedly tells me about his week at Zach's house. We popped into one of the many diners in town for a burger and a milkshake, and the kid is in a fantastic mood. God, I missed my boy. I smile and adjust my wristwatch. I promised Mara that I wouldn’t be long, but it turned into a three-hour-long exercise, starting with Kelly who insisted that I stay for coffee and cake.I glance at my chattering son in the rearview mirror. “And I told Zach he can come play at owe house, ‘cause he don’t have a pool o' nothing.”"They have a big pool in town," I say. "Didn't Kelly take you?""No. She doesn't twust the men thewe."Oh-kay. “All right kiddo,” I say as we pull up to the house. “Settle down a little, will you? My ears need a break.”Gregory undoes the buckles on his carseat by himself and patiently waits for me to open the door. Grabbing his backpack, he hops out and
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 64
MaraJohnathan grabs me as I walk past him to the door, curling his long fingers around my upper arm to keep me in place. His grip is strong, firm, but he holds me in such a way that he doesn’t hurt me.“Is that what you think?” he asks. “That I’ll protect you to death?”I falter a little. “Well… yes. I’m sorry, but I kinda do.”“Have I been coddling you like you’re a child?”I quickly shake my head. “But you didn’t want to tell me about my father.”“Yes,” he admits and slides his hand down my arm to take my hand in his. “When I spoke to you dad, we had just met. You had so much going on. You were so… vulnerable. What should I have done? Should I have piled on and made it worse? Would you have done anything different if you were me?”I don’t have to give it much thought. He’s right. When I came here, I was on the brink of death, and so much happened all at once that he didn’t really have the time to sit down and talk to me about my father and everything that’s been going on at Red Rid
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 63
MaraI stare blankly at Johnathan, not sure how to answer him. I knew he’d ask me sooner or later to spend the night with him, but I thought it would be later. What’s more surprising is that I’m not afraid by the prospect of sharing his bed - I’m enraptured by it.“Why do you want me to stay?” I ask nonetheless.He shrugs and steps into his linen trousers. “I missed you.”“You did?”“Of course. You are my mate.”“You barely even know me.”“Didn’t make me miss you any less.”I smile. I’ve been smiling a lot lately. If I'm not careful, I'd go so far as to say that I'm happy. “Okay,” I agree at last, “but I train with Kahn at night.”“Not tonight you don’t.”“He’s not going to like that.”“He can go fuck himself,” Johnathan says with a soft little snarl that sends a weird little rocket of exhilaration down my spine. "I am in charge here, not Kahn."My mate doesn’t bother to put his shirt on. Instead, he sits next to me, but keeps a healthy distance between us. “Why do you trust Kahn?” h
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 62
JohnathanI sigh as I close my bedroom door behind me and drop my pack on the floor. The last leg of our journey was by far the worst. I kept as low a profile as I could with Rose by my side, which meant we had to take a lot of detours so we could dodge the rogues that are always circling Haven’s Crest, searching for a way in, The girl kept running off to find a male she could breed with.Several Alphas are closing in on Haven's Crest. Wolves that had been displaced by humans. These are the good Alphas I’ve been waiting for. I still outrank them by orders of magnitude, so I’m not too worried about their presence. If they can make it into Haven's Crest, they will join my pack, although I’m not quite sure in what capacity yet. Maybe as advisors or some kind of council. Eventually, order will be restored. They’ll be able to go back to their own lives and rebuild their packs.I hope.I handed Rose over to Ally, instructing the Beta’s mate to feed her, bathe her, and to keep her away from
