The Alpha's Choice

Chapter Four

“Circus freaks?” I whispered. “Who are they?”

“They are from the Crimson Claws pack, have you not heard of them?” Allison asked. She was downing yet another cup now. I felt tempted to do the same, but I had already walked down that road. I still got shakes from time to time because of it.

By the looks of it, a lot of the people here seemed to know who they were. I tried to scan my brain for that name. ‘Crimson Claws pack’ I thought, ‘why doesn’t it ring a bell?’

“I have never heard of them,” I finally admitted. “I don’t know why. I am pretty sure I’ve studied every pack in the region.”

“They tend to be overlooked. They are a weak, dying pack. That man right there with her is the alpha, his name is Kieran.” As she mentioned him, the guy looked up. Allison didn’t look away even as he held eye contact with her. “He is a useless leader who leeches off his pack members. His pack will die out soon enough, so there is no need to know about it.”

I blinked. Allison hadn’t lowered her voice when she said this, and given how the man was walking in our direction, I could tell he had heard her.

“Do you enjoy provoking others?” I hissed.

Allison smiled. “Yes.”

“I see you have no brother at your side this year.” This alpha, Kieran, looked even bigger up close. He had a scar that ran down the left side of his face. “And yet, you didn’t lose your tongue.”

“You speak as if Landon was the only thing keeping you from approaching me before,” Allison said. She took a step forward and ran a finger through his scar. “I could list another reason for you.”

I took a step back. Fights between alphas weren’t something anyone should get involved in. Even other alphas. I didn’t come here to fight. I looked around the room for Ashley, but she seemed to have found company far away from here.

“You twins sure know how to piss on someone’s mood,” Kieran muttered, slapping Allison’s hand away. “Who is this at your side? Another reject?”

I turned to him. “My name is Jake.”

“Jake. Alpha of the New Moon Pack.” He extended his hand. “I’ve heard a lot about you. I am sorry about your parents.”

I furrowed my brows. His demeanor had shifted somehow as soon as he heard my name. I gave him my hand. “Thank you.”

“Don’t fall for his act, Jake,” Allison warned me. “He is a snake at heart.”

“Are you not as well, sweetheart?” He asked. “Caine fell because of you, didn’t he?”

Allison didn’t rise to the bait. She seemed calm, despite the drinks I’d seen her down. “Caine fell because of his own pride and stupidity. Just like how you are about to fall.”

“I am not going down,” Kieran said, a smile on his face. “Only up.” He turned to me again. “It was wonderful to meet you. I hope we get to talk again.”

“Likewise,” I replied. “Don’t be a stranger.”

He nodded then slipped into the crowd again. Allison looked at me with a raised brow. “I told you not to talk to him.”

“He talked to me,” I corrected. “And he doesn’t seem so bad.”

“He never does.” Allison sighed. “Just don’t get too close. He is always looking for fresh blood.”

I looked at her. “Were you fresh blood before?”

Allison shook her head. “He didn’t approach me because of Landon. But he got to a girl I knew. I had to drag her out with my teeth.”

I waited for her to smile and laugh it off as if it was a joke. However, that moment never came. “I see.”

The twins were weird. I had already known that, but they continued to impress. Maybe that’s why Claire liked them so much.

“Would you be interested in some punch?” A random male wolf approached Allison, extending a hand towards her. He was shorter than me by about three inches, and his posture indicated a lower status.

Allison smiled at him. It was a dazzling smile for sure. The male wolf appeared flustered by it. “You are just offering the punch?” She asked, leaning in closer. “I wouldn’t mind if you were offering something else.”

The male wolf turned a deep red. “Well, I, you see-“

I took that as my cue to leave. I had no interest in watching Allison tear another wolf down. It didn’t take a genius to know she was more than what that wolf could handle.

A she wolf approached me with a drink as I walked. She was short, but her face was lovely. I took the drink from her hand, though I didn’t take a sip. “Hello, my name is Jake.”

“Hi,” she said, voice small. “I am Opal. A pleasure to meet you.”

“It is lovely to meet you too,” I replied. “Is it your first time here?”

Opal shook her head. “It’s my third year, actually. My mate passed away during battle.”

“I am sorry to hear that.” I looked around for a bit. People were no longer looking at me. It seemed as if the novelty had died down. However, this only applied to me. Allison and the others seemed to be keeping their attention. “Is it always like this?”

“Excuse me?”

“I mean,” I began, “is everyone usually so focused on someone else’s business?”

Opal snorted. “Ah, you mean to ask if everyone is always gossiping?” I nodded. “Well, the twins from the Lycan Blood Pack have always been popular. Their fate is so twisted, you see? I am surprised Landon didn’t show up this year. I wonder if the rumors about him are true.”

I clenched my jaw. “They are.”

“Oh that’s incredible,” she exclaimed. “Wonder who is the lucky girl. He was always so private. I tried to approach him once but got nothing out of it. The same goes for many of the other girls here. Allison is the same as him, though poor Mateo over there seems to think he has a chance.”

I laughed. “So, she does this often, huh?”

“She does it every year to a lot of guys,” Opal told me, suddenly very eager with the idea of gossip. “They always seem to think they have a chance. Even those who have seen it happen to others. I don’t know why they think they are going to be the one.”

“A guy can only hope sometimes,” I commented.

“Certainly. She is gorgeous, is she not?” We both looked in her direction. Allison was still doing her best imitation of a flirt. “And strong too. Even Alpha Keiran tried to get her. Landon put a stop to that immediately.”

“Now that you mention him,” I said, finally arriving to the point. “Allison told me not to get close with him. Do you know why?”

Opal’s face dropped a little. “She isn’t wrong. There are many rumors surrounding his pack, but there are many rumors about her as well. How do you know her anyway? Everyone was wondering why you approached her first.”

I hesitated a little. The circumstances under which I met Allison were a bit complicated to simply summarize. I didn’t want to say too much to a girl I had just met, even if I wanted information from her.

“She helped my pack out while we were going through some rough times,” I answered. “Her and her brother did.”

“The twins did?” She asked, seeming surprised. “Well, that’s certainly unexpected.”

I grimaced a bit. I couldn’t exactly fault her for falling victim to gossip, but after the troubles I went through my pack, I had an aversion to these kinds of things. Allison and Landon were weird, yes, and I don’t think I could ever befriend either of them, but they had come to my aid in my time of need. Even if Claire was most of the reason why, I was still grateful to them.

“They are not as bad as they are rumored to be,” I said.

Opal tilted her head at me. “Really?” I nodded. “Well, I suppose that can be true. You don’t seem as bad as the rumors say either.”

“I have rumors too?” I mused. I had known as much from Allison, but it’d be nice to hear a bit more about it.

“Well yes,” she said. “You are a very young and powerful Alpha. Of course there are rumors about you.”

“Would you care to tell me more?” I asked.

“Well, I am sure you can decipher most of them,” she said. “Gorgeous alpha. Played around a lot. Too much, it seems, because his mate decided to leave him.”

I flinched. “I see.”

“I am sorry.” Opal covered her mouth. “I don’t have a lot of filter. That was very insensitive, wasn’t it?”

“A little,” I agreed. “But it wasn’t very untrue, either.”

“Oh.” She looked down for a bit. “Either way, it must have hurt when she left.”

I felt my heart clench in my chest. “Yeah. It did.”

I suddenly felt like leaving. I looked around for Ashley again, but she was truly lost. I barely glanced at Opal before giving her a halfhearted goodbye. I then found the nearest door to step out of.

The air outside helped a bit with my situation, but not by a lot. I almost laughed. I had come here under the guise of moving on, and yet one little comment had managed to set me off. It seemed I was still a long way from accomplishing that.

Once again, the image of Claire’s marked neck flashed through my brain.

I pulled at the buttons around my neck until they snapped off and kicked the nearest bush. “Damn it.”

“Easy there, cowboy.” I looked up immediately. The voice came from the beautiful girl from before, the one I had seen with Kieran. “Why are we kicking bushes?”

She shook the leaves out of her own hair then smiled. “Having a rough time?”