Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 109329 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 547(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109329 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 547(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
Kingsley had looked him up, too. “He didn’t have any proper alpha training. He didn’t have anyone to learn from.”
“He’s a natural. He could’ve reached…but he didn’t. I think he didn’t have anyone to challenge him. Anyone to push him.”
“True.”
“Now he does. Austin seems to have a real affinity for coaxing the best out of his people. No ego, no bluster, just expectation and a helping hand when it’s needed. He said you taught him everything he knows.”
Kingsley huffed. “I trained him, that’s true enough. The nuts and bolts of being an alpha wasn’t hard to teach him. His struggle was with his beast. I couldn’t help him there. He had to work through that the hard way. Since he has, the student has far surpassed the teacher.”
“I can tell you believe that, but you’re not giving yourself nearly enough credit. The foundations of his knowledge are excellent. His training is rock solid and iron tight. I don’t recall you being this well trained. It’s a testament to how you’ve grown as an alpha, surpassing your own teachers. I commend you. Most generational alphas are stunted by tradition. You’ve continued to grow.”
Kingsley could feel his face heating, a surge of pride infusing him. And now he was being complimented by Yazanth freaking Golden Fang. Seriously, was this real life or had he slipped into a dreamscape?
“Thank you. That means a lot coming from you. I should mention, however, that I followed your career and picked up little hints and tricks along the way.”
“Why reinvent the wheel if someone is already doing it better?”
“True.” Kingsley chuckled.
“I’m still adjusting to the change in dynamics here. I’ve learned that the Ivy House crew is easy to get along with if you exist within the chaos—to trust in the team and give up trying to form any sort of cohesive structure. Also to tune out the various random comments and bickering.”
“They are a different walk of life, yes. I think Jessie is the only one who can properly manage them. I was worried about her seemingly loose hold on the reins, but when she was here, I let her do as she would. I was glad I did.”
“Yes. I can see how the loyalty was created. I, myself, have been sucked into her orbit.” He paused again. “I’m just going to come out and say it. The gargoyles are doing my head in. All of them, the females included. Garhettes, I guess. Their insistence on bumping and jostling, touching—it is fraying my control. The females don’t mean any harm, and I’m trying to acclimate myself to that, but the males do it to get a rise. That…is not as easy to ignore.”
“I assume you haven’t mentioned this to Austin or Brochan.”
“He goes by Sue now.” The comment seemed offhanded, as though randomly changing names seemed normal to him. “No. I should be able to figure out how to exist in a pack, even if I am on the outskirts of it.”
“You’re in the Ivy House crew—you’re in the middle of things. But I hear what you’re saying.”
It was pride preventing him from asking. It was training. To look lost and confused—to show a lack of control—reduced one’s status in a pack, especially as an alpha. It made you look weak, and weakness invited challenges. Aljoe, above everyone, could never afford to let down his guard.
“I know you know this,” Kingsley said in an even tone, “but I need to constantly remind myself, and so I will remind you. That convocation is not a pack. You’re in something new that is constantly evolving. Austin and Sue, more than anyone else—except for maybe Aurora—realize this. If you need a road map, catch them when they are having a beer at the bar, or hanging around Ivy House, and ask them about it.”
Aljoe grunted in acknowledgment, but Kingsley wasn’t sure his words would be enough to override the decades of survival mechanisms now ingrained. He’d probably think he should handle it, and so he’d try, and he’d probably blow up and kill someone. Because yes, those gargoyles could rile up a shifter in the worst ways, and they knew it. They delighted in the ensuing challenge. They wouldn’t know the level of raw, lethal power they’d unleash with Yazanth Golden Fang, not until they were bleeding out.
“Or ask one of the Ivy House crew,” Kingsley persisted. “You probably just need to establish yourself as something dangerous. The gargoyles tend to be too hardheaded to notice the hints we give them. They’ll need a show of strength, but check with the Ivy House crew to see…how large of a show.”
“Noted,” Aljoe said, and his tone suggested his gratitude. After a short time—only a month or two—he clearly trusted the Ivy House crew. More, he was willing to be a shifter’s version of vulnerable around them. He’d found a new home.