Page 102 of The Alpha and the Baker
That may have been true, but talking about it made the seconds pass faster, at least.
My heart thundered when the megaphone let out another one of its annoying crackles.
“Here it is, everyone. Your judges have the final results of what has been our most attended bake-off in our entire history. We thank all of you for coming and donating to a good cause.”
Oh right, the proceeds were going to charity. I’d been so caught up in my own drama that I had forgotten. Whoops.
“Thank you, thank you all for being so patient,” one of the judges began after taking the megaphone from the announcer. “This really was an exceptional event, and we’re thrilled with the level of skill brought by all the contestants this year.
“And after much deliberation, we’ve decided that the winner of the showstopper round is… is… is….”
Is who?
But the man never finished his sentence, and that was probably because he and every single other human were suddenly asleep, collapsing to the ground or slumping over wherever they were sitting.
“What the hell is happening?” Sal blurted.
“Look!” one of our kids yelled from the bleachers, pointing down the main road beyond the entrance.
What I saw made my blood run cold. Approaching us was a convoy of polished, jet-black SUVs. There were at least six cars, and they were barreling toward the market way faster than the speed limit.
“Fairies!” I hissed.
The entire mood of the event shifted, with the rivalry and tension instantly turning to fear. My worst nightmare was coming true, and when I glanced over to Sal, I saw he was equally pale.
“What do we do?” he murmured, meeting my panicked gaze.
“You and me take the fall,” I said quickly, earning a gasp from my mother. “As alphas, we can say we coerced our packs into being here. Might win them mercy.”
Sal nodded. “Yeah, if they want to maintain their good image, they can’t punish our victims.”
I was immediately relieved at how quickly Sal agreed. He could have argued or tried to find a way to save his own skin, but no, it seemed like he was just as dedicated to protecting his own people as I was to time.
“Castiel, you can’t do this,” Aunt Letitia objected. “It’s a bake-off. Maybe they’ve come because they’re amused.”
“I’d love for that to be true,” I answered. “But we need to be prepared.”
“I’m not going to let you just sacrifice yourself!” my mother hissed, and although her voice broke my heart, I knew what I had to do.
“Chris, can you get her somewhere safe?”
“And leave you?”
I fixed him with a steady look. All of Felicia’s calm that I had been admiring all day settled over me. I wasn’t looking forward to what was going to happen, but at least I could make sure my pack wasn’t punished for my idea.
“You’re my beta. I need you to survive and lead if…” I trailed off, not wanting to upset my mother further. She looked like she was about to cry. Seeing her like that made what I was about to do that much harder.
“I understand.” Chris’s voice cracked as he wrapped an arm around my mother’s waist to lead her away. She started to object, but I leaned forward and placed a kiss on her forehead. When had she gotten so small? Sometimes it felt like yesterday when she showed me how to tie my shoes and put Band-Aids on my own scrapes.
“Please, Mom.”
Her protests died on her lips. “I love you, son. My alpha.”
“Love you too, Mom.”
With that, she allowed Chris to lead her away, and I turned to face the parking lot where the SUV convoy had arrived, lined up all in a neat little row along the curb.
Their doors opened in unison, and then figures began to step out. They were all tall, and willowy, dressed in impeccable designer suits right down to their overly polished shoes. Men, women, whatever other flavor fairies came in, it didn’t matter—they were all decked out to the nines in business professional finery.
