Alphy's Challenge (4 page)

The truck bounced and rolled over the dips in
the dirt-based road as he followed the directions he had memorized from the
short note his great-aunt had given him. After a little while, the thick forest
of trees opened up to a green field, about ten acres’ worth. A large three
story, which included the basement, deep red bungalow style house fitted with
solar panels, resided in the middle, surrounded by a huge four-car two story
garage, also fitted with solar panels. A large brown wooden barn, with solar
panels, was about two hundred feet behind and to the right of the home. Not far
from it, and reaching about the same size, was a large grey metal workshop
fixed with solar panels. On the other side of the barn there also seemed to be
some sort of long greenhouse and a long chicken coop with many different kinds
of clucking and pecking chickens spread out around it. Standing above it all
were two Whisper H80 wind turbines, which moderately spun.

Alphy stopped at the edge of the forest,
taking in everything he saw.
What on
Earth does she have going on that needs that much electricity?
Alphy let up
off the brake and let the truck pull them forward at an idling speed. He had to
admit to himself this was much nicer than he thought it would be.

 
The
truck’s engine droned as they followed the vehicular dirt path across the field
toward the garage where an old, beat-up Ford pickup truck sat parked.
Huh, why park it outside the garage? What’s
inside the garage?
Alphy queried to himself.

 
In
front of the house he watched as a short, stocky mid-thirties looking woman
stepped out onto the wraparound porch. She wore jean shorts, a pink shirt, and
a smudged apron tied around her waist.

Finally pulling up next to the other vehicle,
he put his truck in park, but the teens were out of the truck before he could
turn off the engine. He chuckled at that.
Guess
I’m not the only one eager to get out of the truck
.

Alphy felt the tickly ache in his legs,
tensing his muscles to stretch as he stepped from the truck. It felt so good to
stretch the aches out, and he finished with a great big yawn.

Oh
that feels good,
he hummed
to himself. The sun was warm, the colors bright, and the air was cleaner than
he’d smelled in a long time and was filled with the scent of cooked and baked
foods, which suddenly filled his mouth with saliva. His ears perked at the
sounds of critters flying or scurrying around them. His heart suddenly felt
light, and the tingle of excitement pulled at his growling stomach.

Turning his attention to the sound of a
friendly voice greeting his brother and sister, Alphy slowly made his way to
the porch.

“…and I made everyone lunch.” The teens
disappeared through the door with an excited whoop, letting the screen door
flap shut. His great-aunt’s sight fell on him as he neared.

“There you are, Ralph. Come give me a proper
hug.”

He leaned down to her taller than average
five foot ten, and took care not to squeeze too tight. Pulling apart, she
cupped her hands on either side of his face, “You have your mother’s eyes but,
my-oh-my, aren’t you the spitting image of your father.” She kept one arm
around him as she walked him inside. “I bet you get tired of all the girls
throwing themselves at you.” She chortled.

Alphy grunted his confirmation and grimaced. Stepping
inside, he let his eyes readjust. The inside was mostly open with warm browns
and creams throughout. The furniture was pretty new and looked very soft and
comfortable. Statues of various animals made from black rod iron or wood were
placed around, and the hardwood floors were well maintained with wood inlay in
the entryway. A large decorative cast-iron wood stove sat on a multicolored, foot
tall, slate rise. This was nothing like he’d expected. He would have thought
she would have a shack with a leaky tin roof and threadbare furniture. Instead,
as he looked around a vast open space that was warm and inviting, it appealed
to him and his bear on every level.

Home
, his bear asserted.

After a hearty and savory lunch, everyone
helped do the dishes, and then Betty offered to show them some of the property.
Alphy hadn’t been able to let his bear out in a little while, other than to
heal in a hospital bed, so he was eager to shake out his fur and stretch.
Shifters weren’t big on modesty because they constantly had to undress to
shift, so it was no big deal for all of them to gather on the deck and strip.
They immediately took to their bear forms and explored a bit of the surrounding
woods together.

Rivers, streams, and creeks veined through
the property feeding the lush trees and shrubs that colored the forest. His
siblings romped and sparred through the foliage while he and Betty sauntered
around nearby. The teens were so tired when they returned that they had no
trouble falling asleep in their own queen sized beds.

Alphy stood on the deck looking out towards
the barn and up into the clear, darkened sky crowded with sparkling stars. His
shoulder was against a wooden column as he contemplated their future. Because his
bear was being stubborn, it had claimed the territory, but he wasn’t sure if he
and his siblings would be welcome to stay. Betty came out and joined him.

“Couple of good kids, they are.”

Alphy only nodded. He loved his brother and
sister but didn’t know what to say to add to her comment.

 
“You
know you’re welcome to stay here. I’ve got plenty
a’room
.”

Alphy looked slightly sideways at her. “Why
didn’t you ever come to visit us, or Mom bring us up here to visit? Mom didn’t
tell me about you until I moved out.”

Betty moved to a soft bench and sat down in
it. “It wasn’t like we were terribly close. I wasn’t even that close to your
grandfather, and he was my brother. This is where I, your grandfather, and five
other siblings were raised.”

Alphy raised his brows. “Seven kids, wow,
that’s a big number. What happened to them?”

“War,” she bluntly answered. “There were so
many wars. By the end of World War Two, your grandfather and I were the last
two survivors. We used to have a pretty good sized sleuth, which your
great-grandfather was alpha of.”

Alphy fully turned to face Betty. He was
fascinated by the story that had been kept from him, of his ancestors. He
didn’t understand why he had never been told, and probably now he never would
understand. Funny how until now he hadn’t really given it much thought.

“Most of the males went to one war or the
other,” she continued, “and they were all starting to get killed off. Our
sleuth was blessed with true
matings
. Just about
every couple was a true mate match. When their men died, so did they. Those who
didn’t die off moved away. They’re old shacks are still scattered around the
property in places, though they aren’t anything like this.” She lightly waved
her hand around. “It was an age old time ago. They’re just rundown shacks now. Your
grandfather wasn’t an alpha, nor did he want to be. I suppose he couldn’t take
the memories any more, so he packed up his mate and your mother, who was about five
at the time, and left. He kept me apprised of what was happening with him. It’s
tragic what happened to them.”

Alphy grunted and nodded. His grandparents had
been killed in a house fire when he was about one. He had never actually known them,
and his mother hadn’t ever wanted to talk about it. He hadn’t pushed either. He
could tell it was an emotional difficulty to think about. He closed his eyes
and leaned his head back. Now losing his own parents, he could better
appreciate what she’d felt.

Betty went on. “As for your mother, she never
really knew me. I don’t know what my brother told her, or how much, but she
continued to keep in touch, sending pictures of you and those other two. I sent
letters and gifts, but I wasn’t sure how welcome I would be, and, to tell you
the truth, I haven’t been out of these forests for so long, I don’t think I
could handle the culture shock. I can barely keep up with what’s going on.”

Alphy gave an amused snort. “I told Reese and
Havana that you didn’t have a phone, and the look on Reese’s face was
priceless.”

Betty lightly cackled. “I bet it was. The
price they wanted for me to run a line way out here was outrageous. Don’t get
me wrong. I can easily afford it, but it would have marred the beauty of this
place with all those lines, and for what? I didn’t know anyone other than my
brother, so I would only have been harassed by those telemarketers.
Wasn’t worth it.
I did allow a cell tower to be put up. Those
companies pay good money for that.”

Alphy started to nod his head in response but
stopped when he suddenly thought of something. “You know, I don’t think I have
seen either of them take a peek at their cells since we got here.”

“Good, too much technology rots your
thinkin
’.”

Alphy was quiet for a moment. “It feels right
being here. Are you serious about letting us
stay
here?”

“Yes. I know you’re an alpha. Your mother
couldn’t stop
yammerin
’ on about you. She even wrote
to me about you in the military. I tell you, that brought back memories, but
you did well for yourself. Every one of your uncles died in a war, serving
their country. It may not have been the same country, but it was no less of a
cause. You’ve done your family proud.” She sounded like she was getting a
little bit choked up about it. She truly was proud of him.

Alphy had never thought about how his serving
would affect his family. Now that he was home with his family, to hear her pride
made him feel proud as well.

“We’ll call the council tomorrow and place
your claim on the territory. I’ve kept paying dues but convinced the council
members to keep the territory off the books. I didn’t want some other alpha
coming and placing a claim, because I couldn’t fight him off. No doubt they’ll
send you a heavy load of paperwork, but every alpha, no matter what sect, has
paperwork. I can help you through it, because you don’t know the area enough
yet to answer some of the questions. It would feel good to have a sleuth again.”
She sighed. “Although, having an alpha would take some getting used to again.
I’m used to doing everything my way, but that is minor. The pros far outweigh
the cons.”

Alphy was giving it serious thought. His bear
none-too-gently nudged his mind. If he could have been head-smacked by his
bear, he’d be nursing a lump. His bear wanted to stay, and the truth of it was,
he wanted to, too.

“Ok, we stay.”

Betty gave a hoot. She jumped up and slapped
him on the back of his shoulder. “Welcome to Bancroft. So what are
ya
gonna
call the sleuth? I can
list several rivers and creeks, lakes and other spots well named.”

Alphy shook his head. “It wouldn’t be smart
to name it while I’m this tired.”

“So your first order as alpha is to order us
to bed?” Betty puffed out. They stood up and started to head inside. “Fine, but
you get to do the shopping tomorrow.”

“Hey, I thought I was the alpha. Why don’t
you do it?”

“Well, I could go to town, all by myself,
while you stay here with the two high wired over-emotional teens,
or
I can stay here and put them to work
while you get to go to town and…”

“I’ll go,” he interrupted.

Betty laughed.
“Thought you’d
see it my way.”

Alphy smiled down at the older woman. “I have
a feeling your issue with not getting your own way is unfounded.”

Laughing again, she slipped away to her room,
which was on the main floor down the hall from the kitchen. Alphy made a sweep
around the house, securing windows and doors. Some habits were just too hard to
break. Then he headed up to his master suite. Betty had turned one of the guest
rooms downstairs into her master suite, leaving this one open to take.

He woke early the next morning, bright and
early, which was another habit he didn’t think he would be able to break. He took
a quick shower and headed downstairs. The boards on the stairs hardly squeaked
as he descended them. He knew someone was up with the smell that tantalized his
recovered senses and lured him into the large rustic kitchen. It was no
surprise it was Betty he saw. The smell was too good. With the smells waking
his appetite, he guessed she was making biscuits and gravy, bacon, and a small
bowl of yogurt and fruit he could see that sat in a small serving cup, which
was placed by an empty plate. He walked over to the coffee pot and poured
himself a cup of the freshly made black brew.

“I see I’m not the only early riser.” He gave
her a slight smile.

“Figured you’d like to get
outta here before your brother and sister wake.
They may actually
wanna
go with you to shop or find some internet connection.”

Taking a sip of the hot black brew, Alphy
grunted and took a seat at the breakfast bar that spanned around the outside of
the kitchen island. Betty set a now full plate down in front of him. After so
many years of military food, and these last few days, fast food, he didn’t
waste time to let it cool before he scarfed it down. In spite of the speed, the
flavors weren’t unappreciated. He groaned several times as the rich flavors
curled his toes. He would gladly get used to this.