Total pages in book: 134
Estimated words: 126030 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 630(@200wpm)___ 504(@250wpm)___ 420(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 126030 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 630(@200wpm)___ 504(@250wpm)___ 420(@300wpm)
“I understand completely, including about youth.” He pulled his ankle from his knee and dropped it back to the ground. “Speaking of, that’s part of my explanation. There is a reason we haven’t accepted strong alpha shifters in here, both before and after the mages. I was born to a single mom in a pack where the alpha didn’t believe in mates or monogamy, but he did believe in procreating. I had twelve half-brothers and sisters, none of them with the same mother. Seven of those got his animal, me included, but nine were alpha material. Three were as powerful as him, or more so, also me included. Alpha Steele, I’m sure you know how that worked out.”
“Please, call me Austin. What number were you by age?”
A hollow chuckle escaped him. “Second to last. The alpha—who never acted as any sort of father to any of his kids, and certainly never trained us how to lead—held his position until I was ten. By then, he’d realized his mistake. He’d created a mob of alphas that wanted his title or at least to prove their dominance over him. The fighting was intense. The oldest of his children went after him first. He failed, but the next didn’t. She took over the pack, but by then, the rest were ready to test themselves. Soon, it was war. They killed the enforcers for backing the alpha, or the alpha killed them if they didn’t. No one policed the pack, and so random fights broke out everywhere. Prosperity dwindled, since everyone was worried about power and not the people. Safety eroded. I got challenged as a normal part of my day—people trying to test their mettle against one of the alpha’s brood. I found my beast in a hurry, and I let it take me away as often as I needed to. I could see my mom’s desperation. Even I knew time was running out. Then, at twelve, when I was heavily growing in power, the three remaining siblings noticed me.”
A wave of nervous shivers washed over me.
“I had more power than any of my siblings at that age,” Drex went on. “Not by much, I guess, but enough that the rest of the siblings knew I needed to be taken out before I properly came of age. My mother was saving money to take me away, but it became clear that she wouldn’t get the chance. My siblings didn’t plan to let me leave alive.”
Dan entered the conservatory with a tray of drinks and nibbles. Drex didn’t wait for him to set them down and leave before continuing. His focus was rooted to Austin.
“It was Alpha Barazza that saved me. Us,” he said, and another wave of shivers washed over me. “Kingsley Barazza. I was in a very bad place. I knew I would die and worried about what would happen to my mother. I had seen friends torn apart, been close to death more times than I could count… I will never forget the day that tiger came crashing into the territory with his perfectly synchronized pack and went straight for the first alpha he saw. He didn’t stop to ask questions or even pause. He laid into that alpha with a ferocity that gave me hope. The other two alphas attacked with their band of supporters, but he never balked. He never backed down. He waged a bloody war that day, against powerful shifters, but it was his determination, leadership, and motivation that saw him through and saved us all.”
Dan left us, leaving the door open, as he’d found it. Drex was not worried about people overhearing his story. He wasn’t ashamed of his past, which was reassuring. Hopefully, it meant he had made peace with it.
“The first reason I allowed you in, Austin, is because I owe your brother my life. My mother’s life, probably. Her happiness, certainly. Alpha Barazza tried to help the pack reestablish, but the damage done prior to his arrival had been too great. We didn’t have enough people to cobble together something that would stave off rogue alphas looking for an easy setup. And so, Alpha Barazza gave money to anyone who needed it and offered his pack as a place to live should they want it. That stuck with me. His willingness to help others any way he could stuck with me, and I vowed that I would lead a pack in his image. That I would follow his lead and always provide a safe space for those who needed it.”
Austin had taken my hand. His thumb lightly traced over my skin. “I know something of the debt you feel. It’s funny, but I essentially did the same sort of setup as you, although I was much less noble about it.”
“I don’t know about that.” A smile ghosted Drex’s lips. “Your brother believes in you. You are trying to succeed where he has failed, and I want to help you do that. I want to help him. I just don’t know if I am able.” He reached for a glass of sparkling water.