The Alpha's Siren Song

Chapter 15

For the first time since I had started living out here, I slept in. I had stopped referencing clocks long ago as I didn't have much access to them out here, but I knew the colours of the sky when the sun was just starting to rise. And the sun had fully risen now, while I was still in bed with damp sheets encircling me and hair clinging to the moisture of the back of my neck. 

"Fuck," I hissed to myself, tossing the blankets off. I needed to get to the creek and wash last night off. The freezing water would surely wash away whatever has possessed me during my sleep. Easton wasn't allowed to take up any space in my mind, much less a sexual fantasy.

I grabbed my little towel and biodegradable shampoo before waddling out to the creek. 

"Why won't you ever warm up for me? Even the sea did it," I hissed as I toed into the water, completely naked, my clothes tossed on a rock. The glacier water offered no response and remained icy. I rolled my eyes and began washing my body anyway. It's not like I had much of a choice. 

After cursing and muttering to myself that I was never going in the creek again, my hair was shampooed and my body was no longer coated in dry sweat. I would spend the rest of the day trying to get my long hair to dry and hoping that my bangs would cooperate. I wouldn't waste this fresh skin on working up a sweat cracking open firewood or hunting down fallen trees that I could manage to chop up. Whether I liked it or not I would spend my day inside with only food and books for entertainment.

After a brief snack I grabbed my book and settled on my bare mattress, the sheets and blankets fluttering on my make shift clothes line, hopefully drying before the night fell and dew grazed everything.

Even with a book in my hand, the boredom seeped into my skin. My stomach was full and I was finally able to relax, my body no longer tormented by some unseen force. My eyes drifted a little more shut with each sentence I read. The words began to blur and my head bobbed down. 

I finally fell into the sleep I needed.

But it brought me right to my fate.

My head popped up suddenly, groggy and confused. Had it been minutes, seconds, or hours since I had opened my eyes last?

My whole body was tense, the wake up coming from an outside source. I froze and strained my ears, trying to hear what had caused me to wake up. A bear perhaps? I hadn't come face to face with one yet, but I was living in their backyard. It was only a matter of time really.

And I could hear movement outside. There was the soft sound of timid steps. An animal had come and was scoping out my setup, smelling my human aroma along with the smoke and traces of the shampoo I had used. Nervous, but too curious to leave.

But then there was a soft male voice. "I know, I know. Don't you think I'm being careful?"

My fatigued brain spun out of control. How was this possible? My mind must have been playing tricks on me because there was no way that anyone could locate me out here. Well, anyone other than maybe a park ranger. Yes, that made sense. My cabin wasn't technically legal after all, sitting on government crown land. A coy smile and a twirl of my hair was all it would take to get out of this situation. No need to panic. Everything would be fine.

I slipped out of the bed and toed my way over to the single window, staying low enough to be invisible from the outside. When I got close enough, I peered out the dirty glass. 

I clamped a hand over my mouth when my gaze landed on a man I had seen before. Not Easton. But his sidekick with black hair and brown eyes. He had one hand up to his head, speaking on the phone as he paced about, his back to me. My sheets fluttered in the wind, the flag that had signaled him to my existence was now concealing him from me.

Keys. I needed my keys. 

But wait, hadn't I seen a glimmer of red? Was there another car out there?

Risking another glance I confirmed that there was in fact another car. A red Jeep Wrangler was sitting right next to Eddy's old tan CRV. So, I could squeeze out of the window or the front door. If I somehow managed to avoid detection I could climb in the car. Surely the sound of the engine starting would alert him to my presence if I managed to make it that far. His car was newer, outfitted with everything from a lift kit to a snorkel. His offroad tires and suspension would eat this landscape without much issue while I had to plan every line to avoid getting high centered.

"Fuck, fuck," I hissed under my breath. "This is impossible."

"Listen, I'm just waiting for the alpha now. He had a hell of a time getting through the heat last night. He wanted to wait, but it doesn't seem like an option anymore," the man outside continued.

Alpha. 

Now I wasn't so concerned about whether or not I could shimmy out the door without getting noticed. The werewolves had all called Nero alpha. He was their leader. And he was coming here. 

His loyal subjects would do whatever he asked. They always did. I could kick and scream and beg for mercy. None of it would matter.

My mind replayed what Eddy had said. No one needed to know that I had done what was required to stay alive. No one needed to know.

It was my life or theirs. 

I grabbed the gun. 

I walked out the front door without thinking about the alternatives. I was leaving this place whether this man put up a fight or not.

The sound of the door swinging open startled the man, but he still had his back to me, his cell phone pressed to his ear.

"Listen, I have to go. I'll update you when I get back home, okay?" he murmured as he turned to face me. 

I watched his face as he noticed me. Before he could register his surroundings completely, his lips pulled upwards in a smile, the same smile that he had shot at me when he was on Eddy's driveway. Then he noticed the gun in my trembling hands. It wasn't like a gangster's gun, small and shiny. this gun was meant to take down a bear if needed. It would blow this man apart. His cell phone fell to the forest floor. His hands slowly raised upwards and his eyes widened.

"Please don't," he whispered.

"I'm going to get in my car and I'm going to drive away from here and you aren't going to follow me. Do you understand?"

"Please-"

"Do you understand?!" I shrieked, throttling the gun for dramatic effect. 

"I-I"

He was cut off as the dense brush at the base of the forest shook. My gun swung around, my quaking finger hooked over the trigger. I could do this. I would do this. When Nero appeared out of the bushes, I would pull that trigger. And I would run. I would live. I would survive this just as I had survived everything else. 

"Don't shoot him!" the man protested, his voice rising with hysteria. 

And a figure emerged from the bush. 

Brown hair. Green eyes. 

"Easton," I whispered.

~~~Distraction Section~~~

Happy spooky season!

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