Alpha of the Dead

Chapter 26

(Tiernan’s P.O.V)

Fuck my life. Like seriously, of course, Artemis would show up while I’m trying to woo my mate.

Your grandfather wants to speak with you, Tiernan. I hear Artemis say in my head.

If you couldn’t tell, I’m trying to woo my mate. Grandpa can wait another hour. Please, Artemis, just tell him to give me an hour.

Pulling me in would cause unwanted attention right now. I beg my familiar.

I will tell him, but he will only give you an hour. Not a second longer. He states, before flying off.

“That was so weird. That bird was just sitting there staring at us not moving an inch!” Siobhan states creeped out by Artemis’s behavior.

I think it’s time that we tell her. Steele whispers.

I think so too, but not in the middle of the restaurant. When we are driving home, I will.

“Kitten, I’m sorry to cut dinner short but we need to head back to the hotel. Patrick texted me and said he needed my opinion on something that couldn’t wait.” I lie.

It made me feel gross, lying to my mate, but I needed to get her out of here as soon as I could.

“Oh. Okay. I was finished eating anyway, and I have absolutely no room for dessert.” She says, but I could hear the disappointment in her voice.

“I’m sorry, baby. If it wasn’t absolutely necessary for us to get back, we would have had longer.” I tell her.

I wave over our waiter and hand over my card telling him that we are ready to leave. After getting my receipt and card back, we headed back to the car and started our drive back to town.

“Si, there’s something I need to tell you. It’s nothing bad, I promise, you can talk to your dad and brother about this. You can also go to my dad or my siblings. Okay?”

“Okay.?” She says, sounding confused.

“Remember this afternoon and Preston talking about the God Arawn?”

“Yes, the God of the dead, who rules Annwn.” She says, again sounding confused.

“Well, before he solidified his bind to Annwn, he came to the Human Realm and found his mate. To him, she was the most beautiful woman that could walk any of the Realms. They mated and marked one another, and she ended up pregnant with his pup. He was ecstatic but he knew that he couldn’t remain in the Human Realm with her, he had a job to uphold. It was his duty as the God of Annwn to see to the protection of the Pure and Innocent. He left his mate, breaking their bond but he begged the other Gods and Goddesses to have mercy on his mate. They helped her live through the breaking of the bond and found her a second chance mate who would honor his son as the heir to his pack. That woman was my grandmother.”

Siobhan is quiet, her brows are furrowed not understanding what this means so I continue my explanation.

“Her second chance mate loved her unconditionally and was ecstatic to be a father, even though the firstborn wouldn’t be his biological child. That raven you saw tonight at dinner? That was Artemis, and he’s my familiar. He helps me get into contact with my grandfather, Arawn, and helps me with the magic that has been passed down.”

“Magic? Like spell caster, or elf, or Fae magic?” She asks.

“Nope, Celestial magic. Greater than just plain old supernatural magic.”

“How do you use your magic?”

“Well, I’ve never really gotten a handle on it because I just haven’t had the time. But it usually comes out when I’m having a really intense emotion.”

“Wait, is that why the old packhouse burnt down?”

I nod my head, keeping my eyes on the road so she can’t see my shame.

“No one was hurt, I was the only one in the packhouse at the time,” I whisper.

Siobhan puts her hand on my thigh, brushing her thumb against my thigh trying to soothe my guilt.

“So, what does it mean? Being the grandchild of the God of Death.”

“Well, since my father is retired, he took back over ferrying the souls of the Pure and Innocent to Annwn. I used to do it when I was a child, and my father was acting Alpha. So, he works with his dad.” I chuckle.

“What happens when you need to meet him?”

“I’ll be in a deep sleep, but my body will be stiff, like a corpse. So, Artemis was there to tell me that grandfather wanted to talk to me, and if it has anything to do with the kidnappings, my father will be there.”

“What about Jacob and Lena? Do they have this gift and connection?”

“No, they don’t. They know who our grandfather is and they know what happens when we are called, but it only goes to the firstborn son of the line.”

Siobhan is quiet for a while, and I let her be. She needs time to process all of this information and, to be honest, I wouldn’t blame her if she outright rejected me. This is a lot to deal with, Gods and Goddesses, Celestial magic, familiars. We arrive back at the hotel, and I have about 20 minutes to spare before grandpa calls me to him, so we quickly head up to the suite where I get changed into comfortable clothes so that when I come back to my body, I’m comfortable. Siobhan comes out of the bathroom in her pajamas, brushing her hair, her make-up has been removed and she looks stunning.

“What do I need to do for you while you are gone from your body?” She whispers.

“Just leave me alone, honestly. There isn’t anything you can do, just DON’T move my body, or I may have problems coming back.”

She nods before turning around and heading back to the bathroom to finish getting ready for bed. I begin to feel the tingle at the base of my skull and the darkness wrapping around my body, I close my eyes, ready for seeing grandpa.