Werewolf Academy Book 4: Taken (24 page)

Chapter Twenty-nine

When the jet touched down, the Academy’s SUV was waiting. As soon as Alex appeared, the vehicle door flew open.

The sight of Siale nearly undid him completely. Alex climbed down the steps on legs that felt like they were made of jelly. He took two steps, then she was in his arms, holding him with tears streaming down her cheeks.

“Oh, Alex, I’m so sorry,” she said. She hugged him tight. “I’m so, so sorry about Kalia. It’s too much.”

Alex held her, the smell of her sage and lavender scent surrounding him, clearing his thoughts and chasing away some of the tightness in his chest.

When Jaze walked past them, Alex met the dean’s gaze. “Thank you,” he mouthed.

Jaze nodded with a smile.

Before, Alex hadn’t known how he was going to face the Academy without Kalia. With Siale’s fingers linked in his, he was able to cross to the SUV without feeling like every step closer to the school meant accepting the fact that Kalia was gone. At least with Siale at his side, he felt like he didn’t have to hold up completely by himself. If he fell apart, she would be there to pick up the pieces, and she would never judge him, because she knew his darkest flaws and loved him anyway.

They climbed inside the SUV and took the back seat. Alex was surprised to find Trent driving.

“I told them I needed my license,” Trent explained. “They said I needed the practice, so here I am.”

“I’m not sure logging hours chauffeuring people is legal,” Alex said, grateful for the werewolf’s presence.

“Another minor detail I convinced them to overlook,” Trent answered.

Kaynan shook his head from the passenger seat. “It’s a good thing your friend isn’t going into politics, or we’d all be in trouble.”

Trent chuckled. “Don’t worry, Professor. If politics were like engines and could be tweaked to run better, I’d love it. As it is, though, free will just poses too much interference.”

“Who let the kid behind the wheel?” Mouse asked as he climbed into the middle seat with Jaze. “Haven’t you seen him fly a helicopter?”

“Another license I’m working on,” Trent said, winking at Alex and Siale in the rearview mirror.

Siale smiled and slipped her hand into Alex’s. “You have good friends,” she whispered.

Alex nodded. “The best.” He stared out the window at the setting sun. Red and gold reflected off the snow, filling it with a million diamonds of light.

Jaze’s voice broke through the silence. “Mr. Dickson wants to fly you to his estate for the funeral, Alex. He said Siale is welcome to come as well.”

Alex let out a slow breath. “Are any of the other students coming?”

“Her brother Boris, of course, and Torin is insisting that he be there. Cassie and Tennison will join you along with the other members of Pack Kalia.”

“Me, too,” Trent said. “And Terith. She’d be furious if you left her out.”

“Anyone who would like to go is welcome,” Jaze replied.

“You don’t want to mess with an angry Terith,” Trent muttered, staring out the window. “Nobody wants to deal with that.”

“I’m so glad you’re here,” Alex said quietly to Siale. “I don’t think I could do it without you.”

Siale leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. Alex put his arm around her and held her close through the drive home. When they reached the winding road through the forest, Alex’s heart began to skip beats. He tried to breath slowly to force it to calm, but it worsened as they neared the gates. Alex could see werewolves waiting for them inside the Academy. Boris’ thick shoulders and Torin’s hulking forms were hard to miss.

“Alex, are you alright?” Siale asked.

Alex shook his head.

She put a hand on his chest. “Alex, you need to calm down.”

“I can’t control it,” he said, trying to breathe as each stutter stole the breath from his lungs.

Trent stopped the vehicle.

Jaze turned to look at him. “What’s going on?”

“His heart keeps stuttering. He can’t stop it.”

“I can’t go in there,” Alex said. Panic filled him at the thought of being within the walls. “I can’t face them.”

“You don’t have to,” the dean said. “We can go back to Haroldsburg and—”

Alex opened the door and climbed out.

“Alex!” Trent called.

He tore off his clothes behind a tree and phased. A moment later, Siale was at his side in wolf form. She nudged his shoulder, her gray eyes filled with understanding.

“Go ahead,” Alex heard Jaze say to Trent. “He needs some time.”

The vehicle door was pulled shut and the SUV continued through the gates.

Alex watched the black iron bars close slowly. Something about the way they locked him out calmed his ragged heartbeat.

He took off across the snow, grateful for the way his wide wolven feet allowed him to run on top of the drifts without sinking in. Siale loped at his side, her lithe, graceful form a gray shadow that leaped logs and bushes with ease.

They took a long loop around the Academy, reaching the forest that Alex knew better than the house he had been raised in. He pushed himself harder and harder, willing his heartbeat to return to normal as he stretched out his legs and covered the ground in a mile-eating run.

When Alex reached the top of the cliff that overlooked the lake, he was half-tempted to jump off. The water below was covered in a layer of ice. The fall would be painful at the very least. He longed for pain, physical pain, that would chase away the ache in his chest.

Siale touched her nose to his shoulder. When he looked at her, the softness of her gaze stole through his chaotic thoughts. Her touch calmed him as no words ever could. He rested his chin on her back and closed his eyes, finding the peace in the center of the whirlwind inside him.

Siale was the first to lift her muzzle to the moon. The notes of her mournful howl filled the hole in Alex’s heart, giving him the strength to release his pain.

Alex lifted his muzzle. His howl mingled with hers, the notes interweaving and blanketing the night in a soulful, heartbreaking song of sorrow for Kalia’s death. After a few moments, other voices lifted. First, Rafe and Colleen’s howls rose from the forest near their cave, and with them, the calls of the pack Alex had fought to save from the General’s hounds. Shortly after, voices began to rise from the school as werewolves phased into their wolf forms. Alex could see them massing behind the school, the clouds their breath formed in the cold night billowing over the growing crowd.

Deeper voices joined them as the professors phased as well. Alex could hear Jaze and Nikki along with Kaynan, Grace, and Vance. Mouse and Lyra lifted their voices, mingling with Gem and Dray.

The howls filled the air, echoing across the mountains and returning to complete the song of sadness for the loss of one of their own.

Alex let his howl die away. He listened to the voices that expressed their love and heartache for Kalia. The sound surrounded him, helping him build walls around his heart to keep his pain at bay, if only for a little while. It reminded him that even though there were struggles between werewolves at the school, they were all one. Mourning Kalia brought them together, and they would be there for each other in whatever way they could.

He led Siale back down the cliff as the last of the howls faded. The forest was silent during their walk back to the Academy. It felt as though even the animals gave tribute to Kalia’s passing by maintaining the reverence of the night that still carried the ghost of the wolves’ song.

***

Alex and Siale sat in Pack Kalia’s common room. Everyone else had gone to bed, but Alex couldn’t sleep. Siale sat on the couch with his head pillowed in her lap. She ran her fingers softly through his hair as she quietly sang songs she said her mother used to sing to her when she was little.

Alex closed his eyes and allowed himself to just be. The flames that danced in the fireplace more for comfort than heat played against his eyelids, throwing shadows and light in forms that flickered and twisted in reaching shapes.

Familiar footsteps caught Alex’s ears. He turned his head slightly. A door opened, then closed. Another opened, and closed again. The door to Pack Kalia’s quarters burst open.

Alex looked up to see Trent standing wide-eyed in the doorway.

“Alex, I’ve been looking everywhere for you!” Trent exclaimed breathlessly as he hurried across the room.

Alex sat up. “Why? What’s wrong?”

Trent waved his arm toward the front of the school. “I, well, uh...” He bent over with his hands on his knees, gasping for air. It took a moment for him to stand up again.

By that time, Alex was on his feet, alarmed at his friend’s disheveled state.

Trent waved his hand. “There’s someone at the gate asking for you.” Trent sucked in a breath. “And he’s human.”

About the Author

Cheree Alsop has published over 25 books, including two series through Stonehouse Ink. She is the mother of a beautiful, talented daughter and amazing twin sons who fill every day with joy and laughter. She is married to her best friend, Michael, the light of her life and her soulmate who shares her dreams and inspires her by reading the first drafts and giving much appreciated critiques. Cheree is currently working as an independent author and mother. She enjoys reading, riding her motorcycle on warm nights, playing with her twin boys while planning her next book, and rocking out as the bass player of her husband’s band.

Cheree and Michael live in Utah where they rock out, enjoy the outdoors, plan great adventures, and never stop dreaming.

You can find Cheree’s other books at

www.chereealsop.com

If you like this book, check out

Werewolf Academy Book 5: Lost