Discovering the Hidden Alpha

The crisp chime of the front door bell rang through the quiet antique shop. Emerging from the back office, Dani met Mrs. Addison, a client who regularly bought pieces for her interior design plans. She was quite the interesting person. Always known for her eclectic design and fabulous style that matched her moods. Today she was in a bold printed tracksuit with gold sneakers and a short crisp dark wig. “Danika darling! I feel like it’s been ages!” Mrs. Addison exclaimed, kissing both of her cheeks affectionately. “You were in on Tuesday placing your order. I think I see you more than any other person I know.” Dani laughed. “That’s only because everyone else is just a tumbleweed in the wind. Here today and gone tomorrow.” She dabbed at invisible tears bitterly. “Much like my Eustace. That sniveling excuse of a cheating hound.” “Sometimes people just have bad taste and no sense, Mrs. Addison. It just seems to be worse in smaller towns.” Stories were true about small town drama, but most of theirs came and went quickly. Probably because most people only stay a season at most. The town they lived in was just a quick tourist stop along an old mountain highway. Deep, lush forests and a trout-rich river provided enough of a draw for a mid-sized town to develop. There were mostly shops filled with small knick-knacks meant to be given as souvenirs. Throw in a couple of decent restaurants and a few heavily themed motels and it was enough to keep the locals and visitors alike happy. Dani lived there contently for the last 10 years and had started at the store unpacking boxes for the owner. It quickly became evident that she had a good eye for antiques and a knack of finding just the right piece for every client. Now she acquired pieces for the shop and hunted down items as a freelance job. Collecting the packing box, Dani was in the process of finishing Mrs. Addison’s order when she slid a paper across the desk. Unfolding the scrap, it had three sets of locations and dates scrawled in her loopy script. “I found out about some estate sales from my clients. If you go and scope them out, I’ll give you a premium on anything I like. Plus you might find some things for the shop.” It was a temptation for sure. There hadn’t been any customers that day due to the drizzle going on in the mid-spring temperatures. “That would definitely give me something to do today. Is there anything in particular you’re looking for?” she asked. “You know, I’d love to find a rug to match the chair you found me last month. So I’m trusting your judgment. You’ve got my number. Text me pictures.” As quickly as she came, Mrs. Addison was gone with a swish of her windbreaker and the soft sound of the door latching behind her. Checking over the paper, it already looked like she was going to be cutting it close with one of them. Grabbing the keys to her old jeep and worn leather bomber jacket, she put up the ‘Closed’ sign on the front door. Now it was time for an adventure. The first sale ended up being a bust. But that was the name of the game. Sometimes you could be searching all day for the perfect item and then, at times, the first stop ends up being the winner. The hunt was a large part of the enjoyment. Finding the perfect piece to give someone joy was rewarding. The drive to the second sale took her along some winding roads towards the old money homes that sat overlooking the town on the mountainside. One of her favorite things about this area was the forest. The ancient trees whispered here. Massive canopies stretched for miles, making for a beautiful lace-like web of leaves. Patches of moss covered large swaths of the forest in a green calico carpet, soft and lush. Wildlife could often be seen roaming about their day, unfazed in the relatively untouched landscape. Light rain has a tendency to fall every day, but it generally only lasted a couple of hours. All around were plenty of hidden places to explore and enjoy. Time just seemed to meander about instead of the hustling to and fro of the city life that was an hour away from their borders. It was what made Dani feel safe here. It was like being blanketed by the earth, a feeling of only a hushed calm could exist here. Pulling up to the old home, it was clear that this might be a goldmine of treasure. Mid-Century modern design with a beautiful wall of windows along the front of the home. The dark black edging around the windows complimented the A-frame-inspired building. In contrast, the cedar wood that made up the log cabin-style exterior brought back the warmth wanted in a house. Even with the sharpness of the design, it managed to mesh with the wild lush landscape around it. A dozen cars were lined up in the driveway already. In this instance, with this much competition, confidence was key. There were only a few items she was looking for and they weren't in high demand with current trends. It gave her an edge. She always had this deep gut instinct about things. Right now, her instinct told her one thing ‘This is gonna be intense.’. Immediately upon entering the home, the exquisite craftsmanship was noticeable on almost every surface. The previous owner had great taste and the architect was even better. Everything from the lighting, the windows, the flooring, to even the finishes on the hardware was coordinated beautifully. Wandering around the large living room, she gazed at the large stone fireplace radiating with warmth.There were a few other buyers walking around and some of the larger pieces of furniture had already been purchased. All it did was give more room to look at the amazing detail on the parquet floor. A splash of turquoise caught her attention behind a console table. It was a perfectly worn vintage rug with the most beautiful patterns woven into it in cream. It was too small for what she was looking for, but might be a good item for the shop. The good news was that if there was one rug, there was probably more and this designer had an eye for detail. Moving into the kitchen was lovely with its antique cast iron stove and rustic live edge shelving made of the same local cedar. Intriguing old kitchen goods were scattered about on countertops. Picking up an ornate wooden spoon, Dani fondly recalled cooking with her siblings on weekends so many years ago. Giving a little sigh, she reminded herself that she was there on a mission. Following a spacious hallway, she entered into a wood-paneled study. Rows of aged leather books lined the built-in shelves. Candalabra inspired sconces made the aged gold of titles on the old spines shimmer whimsically. A grand wall of windows was the perfect accompaniment to the impressively large desk of some type of dark, richly colored wood. Once again, the floor was the most gorgeous parquet pattern. The fireplace crackled away, throwing a warm glow. Taking a deep breath, she let herself enjoy the atmosphere. As she fantasized about lounging around reading a book and drinking hot chocolate, a comforting sensation spread over her. This was not just a house, it was definitely a home. She envied the next owners. “Princess Danika DuPrea, is that you?” The smooth, rich voice covered her like honey, but sank into her bones like ice. Her heart in her throat, the urge to vomit suddenly struck her as a completely valid reaction. It had been over a decade since anyone had used her full name. When she had come to this town, it was in the implicit hope that she’d never run into anyone she knew ever again. Nervously spinning her thumb ring, she turned to meet the owner of the surprised voice. His intense golden amber eyes took her aback. She realized at that moment she had the most unfortunate luck of running into one of the only people who could possibly ruin her entire life. Here in front of her was Feran Bellevue: Secondborn Prince of the Redwood Pack, a royal of the werewolf world. Time froze for what seemed an eternity. Suddenly, the last decade disappeared and she was taken back to their last encounter. The last time they had seen each other was at his brothers’ coronation when he took over as the King of the lycanthropic world. It had been quite a production. Dani had snuck off to avoid having to be introduced to all the envoys and representatives her father had planned for the evening. She was looking around in the gardens when she heard talking. “What do you mean?! This can’t be right!” sobbed a petite redhead. She had clearly been crying for a while. The golden-haired prince couldn’t quite meet her gaze. He seemed to be more interested in the tip of his shoe. “I don’t know what else to say. We’ve both turned 18 and I think it’s obvious that we aren’t Mates.” Came the sullen reply. Dani clamped a hand over her mouth to keep from gasping. She wasn’t involved in the court drama, but the matter of Mates was a big deal. Especially for the royals. When a royal found their Mate, they had their full power available to them. Not to say that they were weak without them. They naturally were larger, stronger, and faster than other wolves. But a royal pair were a force to be reckoned with within their world. A completed set of energy that would receive a blessing from the Goddess. It sounded like the she-wolf tried to put together a sentence once or twice before becoming overwhelmed with sobs. The sounds of her shoes on the ground gradually lessened as she ran away after a painfully long moment of awkward silence. Dani decided that she wanted no part in any of this and turned around to find another part of the castle to disappear into. Unfortunately, she turned and ran directly into none other than Prince Feran himself. He too looked like he had been crying and his shaggy flaxen hair fell in disarray as if it had been pushed around one too many times. He briefly met her gaze for a moment before gruffly barking out “Watch where you’re going when you’re in other people’s homes, Princess.” Brushing past her abruptly, he almost sent her toppling into the hedge she stood next to. Before she could yell anything rude after him, the familiar call of her father brought her back to the rest of her evening. It had been such an intense moment of vulnerability to see him in those many long years ago. If that was the last memory he had of her as well, there was no telling how exactly this was going to go. Regrettably, her appearance hadn’t changed so much as to make her unrecognizable. Her wolf abilities were masked, including her smell. But it wouldn’t help against someone who knew her from before and this wasn’t just ANY person from her past. It would be stupid to lie to him. However, it was possible he could be reasoned with. “Please, Prince Feran. Forget that you’ve seen me and let me disappear.” The shock in his eyes cleared momentarily from her words and their implications. His eyebrows furrowed and he cleared his throat in composure. “I don’t believe you understand the situation at hand. We need to have a discussion. Now. Let me escort you to my car.” He replied, gesturing to the door. It was pretty clear that she could either go on her own accord or the two dark-suited behemoths lingering around the door would be more than happy to help her to the destination. Sighing in temporary defeat, Dani straightened herself and strode out of the house. She couldn’t lie to the Prince. Her cloaking enchantment didn’t make her immune to her species' compulsive hierarchy. All she had wanted was to live her life quietly. Once in the Prince’s backseat, Dani looked down at her hands. She waited for the barrage of questions to begin. She could only imagine the accusations that were about to be hurtled her way. A minute passed. Then two. After five minutes of awkward silence, Dani finally gained the nerve to look up. The intense stare that met her wasn’t at all what she had been expecting. It was confused and looked….conflicted. She had to break this strange tense silence. “Look….if yo-” “Did you know you’re dead?” He asked her bluntly.