Creating The Perfect Alpha

Chapter 10

“Isn’t this nice?” I glanced at Elijah.

However, my joy faded instantly when I noticed how he was standing. His arms were crossed over his chest, his shoulders drawn up toward his ears. He was looking at the ground more than ahead.

As we passed two young female wolves, I noticed them glance at us before running off, giggling. Yet I couldn’t tell if only one of us was the subject of their gossip or if we were both their targets.

Still, Elijah seemed to take it personally.

“I think we should go back.”

Elijah stopped only to spin on his heel. I reacted before thinking, grasping his arm. He tensed, his entire body going rigid before my eyes. He looked down at where I was holding him, then back up at me. I had never seen such an expression before.

Slowly, I let go, hoping he wouldn’t bolt. He didn’t. He just kept staring.

“Sorry,” I whispered.

Is he scared of being touched?

He doesn’t like it very much, no.

It made me wonder... did he associate touch with something bad? Once more, I couldn’t help but draw parallels between us. Touch had become something that often meant pain for me as well.

“Don’t go,” I said.

“Why?”

“Because it’s nice out here, don’t you think?”

“I like it inside.”

Once more, I couldn’t help but think, how is he an alpha?

That’s a mystery even to his family, Sofia added.

I wanted to ask more, but I couldn’t remain distracted by that conversation. Taking a careful step closer, I noticed Elijah draw even further into himself, clearly expecting something bad.

“But we need sunlight too,” I pointed out. “And don’t you feel the energy that flows through you when you’re out in nature?”

Sadness instantly washed over him, his eyes dropping to the ground. For a moment, I couldn’t understand why, only for something to click.

Shock filled me.

“You... don’t,” I whispered.

His gaze lifted, and I noticed the glassy look in his eyes, as if he were on the verge of... crying. With a snarl, he spun around and walked away. This time I let him, simply staring after him. I had never heard of a wolf who didn’t feel connected to the outdoors. Even omegas, despite being weaker than other wolves, enjoyed being outside.

What on earth had happened to Elijah?

No one knows, Sofia said.

“What do you mean? I’m sure doctors have examined him.”

Yes, they have.

“And?”

No one has an answer. He was just born... wrong.

I hated how she used that word.

“He isn’t wrong. Just... different.”

A feeling of joy spread through me.

“What?” I asked.

I thought very much the same, Sofia said.

“And the old Sofia? I remember her feeling disgust toward him.”

She did. She was... not happy about the arrangement, and when she learned of Elijah’s... condition, she knew things would be even harder for her. Not only had she been given to a stranger, but that stranger was also too weak to keep her safe.

“But he has covered for her,” I remarked. “Regarding producing pups.”

Yes, but that didn’t take away the loneliness or the pressure. The old Sofia had no one here, and she blamed... blamed Elijah for all of it.

“I don’t think that’s quite fair. It’s not like he asked to be this way,” I pointed out.

If she could just hear that from you, Sofia said, and I sensed the joy she felt at hearing it.

I couldn’t help but smile before turning and looking up at the sun, feeling the warmth on my skin. I took a moment, just standing there before composing myself.

“Okay, time for a new plan,” I said.

What do you have in mind?

“I’m going to give Elijah some space to think. We eat together in the evening, right?”

Yes, the whole family.

“Remind me who that is again,” I said as I walked back to the house.

There is Elijah, his younger brother Brian, and his father. A few members of the inner circle often eat with them as well, along with their families.

That isn’t unusual, I thought, much like the way it had been in my old life.

“His mother?”

She died when Brian was born.

“I see.”

Not unusual either. Except for omegas, most female wolves didn’t produce many pups, exactly because of the high death rate. Everything needed a balance.

I stepped inside, but instead of going back to my room, I spent some time exploring. The place was less grand than my old home, but fitting for a smaller pack.

“What are we called?” I inquired.

The Red Hunters Pack, Sofia replied.

I tried recalling what I knew about them, but I couldn’t remember having spent any time with a member of that pack, not even at parties. It hinted at their lower status.

“Brian will be part of the Alpha Games, no?”

Yes.

I thought back to the powerful alpha I had met. He would certainly do well in the physical competition, yet I couldn’t say how he would fare in the other contests.

“Is it the alpha’s hope that he might bring status to the pack, not just a good mate?”

Yes, that is the hope.

“Is Elijah competing?”

Instantly, laughter filled my head, Sofia bursting into laughter. I paused, stunned, standing in the middle of the hallway while she kept chuckling. I waited until she calmed down before she finally cleared her throat.

Sorry.

“Was that really so unbelievable?” I inquired, crossing my arms, feeling a bit irritated.

Well... yes!

“Why?”

Come on, she said.

I knew it was a long shot, but Elijah had other qualities. As Darren had pointed out to me, it wasn’t just about brute force. It was about image, how you conducted yourself, and getting people to like you. Elijah had that.

People avoid Elijah because he doesn’t fit what society thinks he should be, Sofia reminded me.

“Right,” I murmured.

They wouldn’t even give him a chance to show the other sides of himself.

She had a point.

So yes, it’s very unbelievable.

“Perhaps,” I whispered, leaning against the wall, feeling quite bad for Elijah.

He had been judged before he was ever given a chance to prove himself.

And don’t mention this at dinner, Sofia added.

“What?”

Asking if Elijah is going to participate. You’ll get even more laughter.

I hadn’t planned to. Sofia’s reaction was enough for me, and I bet it wouldn’t put Elijah in a good light.

“Don’t worry. I’m saying nothing.”

I continued on, taking in some of the large, old portraits showing the former alphas of the pack. It was clear that despite its smaller size, it was an old pack. That in itself brought status.

Also, Sofia added.

“What?”

Remember, you and Elijah have only one duty.

“Right, producing. No time for games then.”

Exactly.

“Perhaps it’s for the best, though,” I said.

What do you mean?

I shrugged, a sense of longing filling me.

“I have always wanted a mate who was more focused on me than on status. I thought I had found that in Darren, though he tricked me,” I said.

I’m very sorry. Elijah might not have been the best mate for us either, but at least he didn’t betray us the way Darren betrayed you.

I knew Sofia was reading my memories. I wanted to tell her not to again, only to remind myself that it wasn’t really something she could control.

Did you not know your sister had any plans with your mate?

“No, I didn’t. She didn’t visit very often. None of my family members did,” I admitted, stopping in front of a very stern-looking alpha standing tall, his arms so big they didn’t even fit within the portrait.

“I guess we have that in common too,” I said.

What?

“Me and Sofia, not being that close to our families,” I explained. “My parents weren’t exactly affectionate either. To them, status was paramount.”

Is that why you never left Darren?

“Yes. I didn’t know where else to go. It had been drilled into me that you survived these hardships with your chin held high. It’s why, when my sister actually gave me a chance to run, I took it rather than ripping out her hair and smashing her face in.”

I felt that old... new... anger spread through me, my hands clenching into fists at my sides. For a moment, it didn’t feel like I was an omega. This power, this anger, felt very much like the luna I had once been.

“Funny,” I murmured as I noticed it.

What?

“It seems I carry some luna traits after my death... rebirth,” I whispered, not quite sure how to define it myself.

I continued on, reaching the other end of the house. I began looking into a few rooms. The pack house contained mostly bedrooms for those who desired to live there, but I knew there were houses throughout the territory for those who wished for more privacy.

“What are the dinners like?” I inquired, trying to prepare myself mentally.

They are... lively.

“You hesitated,” I remarked.

Well... I just didn’t know if I should describe them from Sofia’s experience or everyone else’s.

“What do you mean?”

I mean, everyone is having fun except the former Sofia and Elijah. They mostly sit quietly side by side.

“Do they not participate in the conversations?”

Most people won’t even speak to them, Sofia explained. So even if they wanted to, it wouldn’t matter.

I nodded in deep contemplation, wondering how to play my role at dinner.

Should I try to engage? Would it help my position or worsen it?

Elijah had seemed deeply disturbed by my change, but I had already lived one life where I kept my head down and was ignored because of the way my alpha treated me. I didn’t want to continue living like that. But at the same time, how did I assert myself without causing an uproar or risking punishment?

The mental calculations were enough to make my head spin. It would have been far easier if Elijah had been the next heir, an alpha who could assert our place.

“Perhaps I will need to be the alpha,” I murmured jokingly.

Excuse me?

“Well, if Elijah can’t stand up to his family for us, then maybe I should? We need to improve our position here.”

You do that by making pups.

I groaned, shaking my head.

You’re an omega!

“I know very well what omegas are good for. I had a sister,” I reminded her.

Yes, and now you share that status.

“But I don’t know Elijah very well, and he doesn’t seem very keen on me touching him.”

Well, weren’t you trying to get close to him?

“To keep us safe. I’m not interested in being shot again or locked in a shed to be bred.”

Sorry?

“Check my memories if you want to,” I whispered, feeling a shiver run through me just imagining being locked away there.

Though I hadn’t wanted to die, perhaps it had been the escape I had longed for for so long. Perhaps this was truly my chance at something better.

Oh... Sofia murmured.

“It seems he caught on eventually,” I whispered.

Caught on?

“After my miscarriage, I started preventing pregnancy,” I explained. “After each heat I had once a year, I would take a pill.”

Wait, you didn’t want to get pregnant again?

“Not by him,” I hissed, taking the stairs up to my room. “He had betrayed me by then. I would not reward him with that.”

Sofia nodded in understanding as I made my way back to the bedroom. Going inside, I threw myself onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling. It was blue, like the sky.

“He wanted me locked in that shed so I could carry his heirs and pretend they were my sister’s,” I whispered.

Goddess, Sofia groaned.

“It’s not the first time he did that.”

What?

“Locked me up in the shed. I was treated more like a prisoner than a luna or a mate.”

I felt Sofia’s deep sadness before a warm sensation spread through me, as though she were offering me a hug. It made me smile.

“Thank you, but this is exactly why I’m not just going to become pregnant and start having pups with Elijah. Who knows if I can even trust him?” I whispered.

Elijah isn’t like that.

“Maybe because he doesn’t have the opportunity or the confidence. That could change.”

You think?

“What would happen if suddenly we had lots of children and had s*x often?”

Sofia remained confused.

“Other female wolves would see his virility, and maybe he would have more options.”