Page 60 of The Alpha's Heir

Xavier looks at me sheepishly. “The thing is, son; we need to secure the future of The Moon Stone Pack. We now know that, at the very least, Junior will be imprisoned. I think the Mafia will ensure he loses his head for what he has done.”

Although both Eva and I had expected this talk, we weren’t expecting it so soon. Now is not the right time for Eva to take her rightful place. She hasn’t had any training.

I expect him to ask Eva to start Alpha training and as much as I don’t want her to go away, I want to support her. She doesn’t feel competent or confident right now, and she is under house arrest for the Goddess’ sake!

“Junior has put us all in peril. My leadership will be called into question for not keeping my own son in line. If I don’t step down soon, they will strip me. I cannot have that. This is my pack, and Woodwards have been the Alphas of the Moon Stone for centuries.”

If I was in his position, I would feel the same. The pack will be taken over by a stranger as directed by the Werewolf Council.

“Evangelina is my successor, but given her current predicament and the fact that she cannot leave her cell for the time being, we need to make alternative plans.” This is what I wasn’t expecting.

“What do you mean?” I ask. Eva smiles meekly back at me and, although she looks more relaxed, I can sense her nervousness.

“My father would like to merge the Moon Stone Pack with another pack. I might be an Alpha Wolf, but I’ve had no training, I have no skills and I cannot lead from my prison cell. I have enough to deal with right now. I have told my father I cannot become the Alpha of the Moon Stone, but I know someone who can.” I keep quiet while they continue with their explanation.

She continues to grin at me with a small smile on her face. “Who? You don’t know any other wolves, do you?” She raises her eyebrows, giving me a clue, but she cannot mean what she is saying. The packs would never go for it. Roman, sensing what is being suggested, growls in my head. He is not happy about us having to share our lands, they belong to us.

“My request is that you merge the Moon Stone and the Onyx River and be Alpha over both packs. My daughter will, of course, be your Luna. Part of my conditions is that Summer is named the rightful heir of the Moon Stone while your child with Eva, is named the heir of the Onyx River.”

“What do you think, Aidy? Will you do it?”

*** Alejandro ***

We need to find Dominga and Junior, but I haven’t found anything of value. I trace them to a hotel, but they abandoned their room a few days ago without paying the bill. The more I look, the further away they seem from my reach.

I go incognito. Alone and under the cover of darkness, I search for the piece of shit that neglected a little boy, killed her lover and is now threatening the safety and well-being of my wife. I know Salma wants to be here and doing this too, but it is too dangerous, and Ricky needs her right now. So, I go alone, knowing I am less likely to attract attention this way. I am less likely to set tongues wagging about my whereabouts and intentions too.

Word filters through that Serrano cars are coming and going at an old, abandoned warehouse along the docks. I decide it is worth checking it out. Maybe Dominga has heard about it too and will go looking for allies. I stake out the place for four hours and I consider calling it a night when all the people I have been watching drive away. The sun rises, and my cover will be blown if anyone looks too closely.

My car is parked a couple of miles away, so as not to draw any attention to my presence. Having come the rest of the way on foot, I now begrudgingly start the long, cold walk back when another car catches my eye. Having seen that licence plate not so long ago, I recognise it immediately. It is Tony Serrano, driving himself all alone to an abandoned warehouse.

Something feels off. I’m not sure what is happening, but a Spanish Mafia Don coming out to an old, abandoned warehouse at the crack of dawn on his own is unusual and therefore exceedingly interesting to me. From my hiding place, I watch Tony, and I begin to regret my decision when he simply sits in his car for six hours, talking occasionally on his phone and smoking.

I am cold, hungry, and bored. I consider approaching Tony and asking him to drive me to my car, that's how desperate I am starting to feel.

Before I can, though, I see Dominga, acting like the Queen of Sheba, the very woman I've been searching for. She pulls up in an old Mercedes and she flashes the headlights at Tony’s car. After getting out of her car, she walks towards the warehouse and Tony follows her once she disappears inside.

Sal rings me and I tell her to get ready, I will be bringing Dominga to her. I am sure of it. Tony must have had contact with her, and he is getting information for us. I am so sure about it, I don’t think twice when I slip into the warehouse and creep up to where the raised voices echo around. I take my gun, which is loaded and fitted with a silencer, and creep closer.

“You weren’t supposed to fall in love with the fucking mutt though, were you? And now you’ve completely blown your cover. You were meant to trick the dog into doing the dirty work and haul your ass out of there. Now you have half of fucking England looking for you and your lover boy and believe me, you’ll both lose your heads over this.”

“I just need a couple of hundred grand and a passport. Come on, Tony, you owe me. I did this for you. You wanted the Morales and Suarez turf and it’s all there, ready for you to take. It's not my fault you lost your bottle.”

“The way I see it, Dominga, Salma and Alejandro believe you and your fucking puppy are responsible. They have no reason to suspect me, not when I looked after your little boy and helped them reunite with him. They trust me. I owe you nothing.”

“YOU FUCKING BASTARD, TONY! YOU PROMISED ME! HALF A MILLION IF I WORKED WITH YOU. IF I AM GOING DOWN, I’LL TAKE YOU WITH ME, I PROMISE THAT NOW.” A cold laugh reverberates off the walls, and a woman’s cry of distress follows.

“And who is going to believe an old whore like you, Dom? They have all the evidence they want and need that puts you and the wolf at the scene of the crime… they have some half-hashed motive that they’ve made fit into what they want to believe. I am in the clear and you are well and truly fucked. Go on girl… tell me… who is going to believe you?”

I don't know what possesses me. Is it his arrogance or my own? Is it finding out the truth and knowing we have made all the square pieces fit into a round hole? Or is it just plain anger and carelessness? I’m not sure, but for some unknown reason, I step out of the shadows and shout, “I believe her.”

I’m not sure what happens next. Is it a scream or the click of the gun? Either way, the whole place turns dark and cold. Tony Serrano has revealed his hand, and I have inadvertently revealed mine too. It cost a life… but whose? Who is lying dead in an old, unused warehouse?

*** Eva ***

Aiden looks back at us all and it is evident from the expression on his face that he didn’t expect this, and we have shocked him.

“Aidy, say something. Please.” I plead with him because I am afraid I’ve overstepped the mark. I am under no illusion of the size of this task, but I have every faith in Aiden and his ability as the Alpha. I know he is the best Alpha for the job, the only possible candidate worthy of the position.

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