Read fate of the alpha - episode 1 Online
Authors: tasha black
fate of the alpha - episode 1 (17 page)
“No one of consequence.”
“What about the cop?” the deep voice demanded.
“She’s nothing but a two-bit palm reader. Trust me. I’ve fooled her every time we’ve met.”
Son of a bitch.
She’d like to see him trying to magic his way out of prison for that comment alone - let alone what he’d done to Sadie.
“Well, tonight’s the night. Let’s go deal with the alpha.”
Footsteps told her that one of them was heading her way.
No, no, no. They must be planning to leave through the door she was crouching in front of.
Grace craned her neck, looking for anyplace to hide. But she was literally backed into a corner.
Her hand moved to the holster on her back. She had heard enough to make an arrest, but what if they didn’t come peacefully?
She took a deep breath and wrapped her fingers around the cool plastic of her taser. At least she still had the element of surprise.
A familiar sound accompanied the footsteps.
Tap, tap, tap.
What
was
that?
Before Grace could put the pieces together, a blanket of darkness enveloped her and a firm hand locked onto her mouth from behind, pulling her silently through the door and into the night.
CHAPTER 22
A
insley stepped out of the hot shower, feeling decidedly less invigorated than she normally would after letting the steaming water pound away at her.
She slipped into her favorite night shirt and a pair of boy shorts with lace edges, then wrapped her fluffy robe around herself and made her way down to the kitchen.
When the kettle was boiling away merrily, she reached for her phone on the table. She had a message.
Erik.
Ainsley, whatever you do, don’t leave the house alone. Don’t forget that someone wanted to take your wolf. Call Julian, call Grace, call someone, but don’t leave the house alone.
Good god, with everything else going on she had almost forgotten.
I won’t. How did it go with MacGregor?
she replied.
She waited a moment but there was no response. He must still be with MacGregor now. That was a good sign.
But why did everything feel so wrong?
She pulled the mug she’d made in senior pottery class out of the cupboard and stuck a peppermint tea bag in it.
When the boiling water hit the cup and steam rose to greet her nose, she felt a tiny bit more like Ainsley. Determined not to sit around feeling sorry for herself, she sat down at the table and slid a piece of paper and pen in front of her.
Placing the mug on the ring that had formed on the table after many other cups of tea, Ainsley exhaled with purpose and began to write.
I am grateful for a mate who loves me even in trying times.
I am grateful for a best friend who helps me without worrying about what it will cost her.
I am grateful that the Federation sent Ophelia and didn’t just take my pack from me.
I am grateful for my abilities, even if I can’t fucking figure them out.
The phone buzzed again before she could think of another item for her list. She dropped the pen.
Erik.
But it wasn’t Erik. It was Charley Coslaw.
Hey Ainsley, I’m out front, are you home? I have that termination for you.
Shit.
Ainsley walked to the door. Through the glass panes of the vestibule she could see Charley’s trademark green convertible. Though it was a chilly night, he had the top down.
She went through the vestibule and opened the front door, but remembering her promise to Erik, she didn’t step through.
Charley was blasting classic rock. He flashed her a friendly smile and waved. Camilla Parker Bowles stood on his lap, grinning with her tongue hanging out.
“Hey Ainsley, I’ve got your papers here, but I don’t want to leave the dog in the car. Do you mind grabbing them?”
Camilla Parker Bowles barked happily at Ainsley.
“Hey Charley, just bring her in! I’d be glad to find her a snack.”
“I don’t think she’s feeling well,” Charley shouted back. “Besides, I don’t want to keep you.” He waved the manilla envelope at her. “Never been happier to terminate a listing contract, by the way! Glad you finally came to your senses and decided to stay!”
Ainsley took a step out of the door and felt the tingle of the magic from the ward as she passed through it.
She paused.
Ainsley knew she was in some danger in general, but for heaven’s sake, it was only Charley. She had known him all her life. She couldn’t be paranoid all the time, she was the alpha. She would just grab the envelope and head back in - problem solved.
Ainsley took a few more steps across the porch toward the car.
She couldn’t hear Charley’s heartbeat with the loud music on and the engine running. But she would smell a trap.
And she didn’t smell anything.
Shit!
Ainsley wheeled around just in time to catch a lightning bolt to the chest that took her off her feet.
She landed hard, her back slamming into the porch floor. Instantly, she was hit with the sensation of being drenched with a bucket of ice water. It was a familiar feeling. Because Julian had used it on her to stop her from shifting only a month ago.
Her wolf threw itself heedlessly at the bars but couldn’t come out. And Ainsley threw her head back and howled in rage and pain.
R
EAD
E
PISODE
2 on your Kindle NOW!
AFTERWORD
D
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-Tasha
ALSO BY TASHA BLACK
Something wicked is coming to Tarker’s Hollow…
Ainsley Connor is faced with her toughest challenge as alpha. Her mate is gone, leaving her alone to defend her territory from rival wolves, dark magic, and worst of all, the threat of losing her pack if she doesn’t impress her superiors.
Erik Jensen, torn from his place at Ainsley’s side by pack politics, finds himself at the center of a mystery that might just hold the key to saving Tarker’s Hollow. The real challenge might be surviving long enough to share his revelation.
Grace Kwan-Cortez knows how tough it is being a cop in a town full of shifters, magic and who knows what else. What she isn’t prepared for are the feelings she can’t seem to shake since meeting Julian. And she can’t decide which option she dreads more, that he ensnared her in some sort of spell, or that the feelings might actually be real.
Julian Magie has a secret. A secret that could change Tarker’s Hollow, and the world, forever. Torn between his sworn duty and his allegiance to his friends, Julian must decide who to trust, and where is true loyalties lie.
Set in Bella Andre’s Game for Love world, Winter Heat is the story of a young artist that falls for a bad-boy snowboarder with a dark secret. If think you know enough about me by now to take a guess at the secret, you might be surprised!
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