Alpha Rising

Chapter Ten

Alvira's P.O.V.

It had taken a few days, which was more than it normally should have, but soon enough my brother was back to normal. He was up and vibrant, buzzing around my room as I tried in vain to sleep in on that Sunday morning. I caught his scent even before he came bursting into my room, and was able to duck underneath his energetic dive at my bed just in time.

I rolled onto the floor just as he hit my wall with a thud, and we both heard the frustrated huff of our mother from the hallway. In that moment, we both paused and looked at each other before busting out laughing. “Okay, okay,” I managed to say through short breaths. “You win, Alban.” I groaned as I stood up and brushed lint from my pajama pants in disappointment. Goddess above, I really did just want to sleep.

But I couldn’t deny those eyes or that goofy grin. Ever since he’d brought Richie home, Alban had been more vibrant and more energetic than usual. Mom said that had a lot to do with the euphoria of finding your Goddess-given mate, but that he would likely keep the brightness.

Good. He deserved it.

“Eyy,” he shot me a cheesy grin paired with some over-the-top finger-guns and shook out his hair from his eyes. “Figured you’d prefer me over the little ones,” he said as he swung his legs over the edge of the bed.

“You’ve got that right,” I said. I stretched my arms up while he talked, squeaking a little and cracking my back. I loved our two younger siblings, don’t get me wrong. But oh was it a headache being woken up by Jacob. He was just a young pup and had the attention span to match. Much like the two of us were at that age, I wager.

As I was shifting, I felt the hem of my tanktop ride up on my waist and hastily tugged it back down under the guise of just readjusting. I caught the hint of a growl from my brother’s direction while I still stretched and turned to face him, and before I could even ask what was on his mind he was up and grabbing my arm away firmly by the wrist.

With his other hand he moved the cloth again to see the large purple and yellow welts on my side that I’d been hiding. “What the f**k, Vira,” Alban said just low enough for me to hear, but not loud enough to be overheard through my open bedroom door. “More bruises?” At that moment I knew I’d been caught. The doctor had put us on glorified bed rest for up to two weeks, which included a very strict order to not spar or train.

My eyes met his with a stubborn defiance as I wrenched my arm free and quickly moved to shut the door. Once it was shut, I let my hand rest on the solid wood while I thought through what I wanted to say. Eventually, I turned to face him and leaned my back against the door. “You want me to lie about it?” I asked with as little bitterness as I could manage. “Want me to tell you I ran into a door or my dresser?”

I didn’t have to see his eyes to know he was rolling them. “No,” my brother replied. “I want you to rest.”

“Rest?” I spat back with a laugh.

“Yes!” He raised his voice some, sure, but I could see the flush of his cheeks. Alban wasn’t so used to being this assertive with me.

“You want me to sit back and do nothing?” I crossed my arms under my chest and turned my face away from him. He looked too much like our mother when he was disappointed, and he knew that it often got him what he wanted with me. But I could tell that he was frustrated beyond belief. “Unlike you and Nell,” I started “I don’t have anyone to spend my time with.”

Alban made a move to speak, or so it seemed. But he couldn’t quite get out a word.

“I’ve been alone since we got home. You and Nell are so wrapped up in your mates-” The words felt wrong and raw as they hit my tongue, but by now it was too late to take it back so I continued. And I didn’t realize how much I’d been holding back from him these past few weeks. “Mom can barely look at me, dad keeps avoiding me.” The words couldn’t stop now, no matter how much I tried to just shut up.

“I want to tell the Elders to f**k off and let me go through with the Alpha ceremony, but he says they won’t budge. That still goes to you.” I had started to pace, and I could feel my breath coming faster. “I have nothing. My best friend is always busy, you almost died-”

Alban moved closer and tried to keep a stern gaze on me, but I could see the edges of his resolve cracking. He raised a hand and I felt the weight of it hit my shoulder softly.

Under the pressure, it felt like I was going to crumple. “You almost died, Al,” I said in a whisper. “And I needed a way to feel in control again.”

“I get that,” Alban said. “But there have to be better ways than by going balls to the wall in a sparring arena.”

“Like f**k if there are better ways,” I huffed. “My wolf wants to fight. She’s getting worse and worse, Al.”

My brother closed the gap between us and wrapped me in a deep and tight embrace. I could feel his worry and I could feel the soft shake of his shoulders as he tried not to cry. Clearly, the thought had occurred to him too, because the only other thing he said while we stood like that was a hushed apology. It was quieter than any before, and less warranted to boot.

“You don’t have to be sorry,” I finally said, finding my way past him with my eyes downcast. “But,” I said. “I’ll hold off on the fight-clubs as best I can.” That news did seem to brighten him a little, and he leaned in to kiss my forehead.

“I want you to be happy, Vira,” Alban sighed. “When you hurt, I hurt.” He tapped on the end of my nose with his knuckle and laughed quietly. “Now go get ready. Dad says the other Alphas will be here by lunchtime.”

I nodded quietly as my brother slipped out of my room and left me to my own devices, feeling oddly better about myself now than I did before. Who would have thought that being honest with him was the key to that. Now that I was alone, though, I could really get a good look at the mark on my side. Standing in front of my mirror, I pulled off my tank top and stood bare-chested in the light. Turning to the side, I could see the color of tanned skin shift to the mottley of colored bruises that splotched out in a wave around to my back. The skin was tender, but not enough so to cause any deep pain, but it would undoubtedly be an issue if someone held me too tightly.

A flurry of footsteps ran past my closed bedroom door, and by instinct, I flung an arm over my breasts. I heard the sound of my youngest brother sprinting by, followed closely by the teenage rage that was my sister screeching about him stealing her cellphone. Once they passed, I let out my breath and shook my head in relief.

I needed a shower, for sure.

And once I was cleaned and warm from the water, I emerged back into my bedroom to see that apparently mom had set out a dress for me to wear. Really? This? One hand clutched my towel shut over me while the other reached out to touch the soft cotton of the teal dress laid out for me.

I slipped into it and stood back to look at my reflection in the mirror. The hem of the dress fell an inch or so above my knees, which I very much appreciated. My legs were my favorite feature, by far, and this let me show them off without giving my father or the elders a heart attack. The way the fabric cinched in at my natural waist gave off vintage housewife vibes, but I didn’t hate it.

It sure as hell was an upgrade from the athleisure outfits that I usually wore on the daily. From downstairs I could hear my father laughing loudly, and could only assume that some of the Alphas had already started to show. Showtime, I suppose.

The sound was so much louder once I opened the door to my room, and I nearly slammed it shut to hide away again. My wolf caught something though, and perked up before I could retreat.

She was whining and panting, and pulling me towards the stairs. Every step left her nearly jumping in my mind, and I could feel a heaviness in my throat. My lips felt dry, but my senses were on edge. There was the faintest scent of pine and cinnamon on the air, and it made me think of a crisp Christmas morning running through the trees. The scent alone drew me down the stairs, and my mother’s voice hardly registered in my mind.

Intense eyes focused on the door leading into the kitchen from outside, and I could feel my breath slowing to a halt while time seemed to tick on for eternity.

Then, all at once, a large figure came barreling in through the front door in much the same unceremonious state I stood in. And the moment his eyes met mine, I could feel my wolf start to howl and keen in desire.

“Mate.”