Page 13 of Wolf's Witch

“Can you believe Mathias wants me to be the new Alpha?” I whispered as if my brother might be listening. I sighed, selecting another small flat rock. “What’s the point? He refuses to see that we’re the end of a dynasty that’s been fading sincehisAlpha was forced out.”

My phone buzzed in my pocket. I took it out and checked the screen before pressingAccept. “Hey, Mom.”

“Zeke? How long were you going to wait to tell me Mathias asked you to be the Alpha?”

I cursed under my breath. He’d told my mother? And she sounded proud. Dammit. I shook my head, staring up at the sky. “I’m trying to talk sense into him, Mom. Kyle was his second when he died. His brother should have the spot.”

“That’s not your decision to make. You’re not the Alpha yet.”

There went my mom spilling truth all over the place. I sighed. “I never found my mate. I won’t have an heir to take over my spot.”

“Neither does Kiefer. Why are you so sure he’d be a stronger Alpha than you?”

I clenched my jaw. “He wants the job. I don’t. That makes him a better choice.”

“Hear me out.” She paused. “The werewolf hunters have everyone on edge. When Kiefer’s nervous, he lashes out. When you’re anxious, you overthink. An Alpha has the strength of the pack behind him, and they rely on him to lead. He has to be able to think things through, not make snap decisions because he’s angry.”

My mom was many things, and wise was near the top of the list. Mathias had been smart to enlist her in his plot to force me into the spot.

“I just don’t see the point in changing leadership now.”

Her tone softened. “Mathias feels the blood of Trevor and Kyle on his hands. The stakes are too high to ask him to keep carrying this burden on his shoulders. Your generation needs to step up.”

I hadn’t thought about it like that. I sighed. “You’re saying you think I should do this.”

“I do.” I could almost hear the smile in her voice. “They already look to you on the farm. They’ll follow you, Zeke.”

I didn’t know about that, but I kept it to myself. “I love you, Mom.”

She chuckled. “Does that mean we’re finished talking about this?”

“Yeah.” I scanned the pond. “I’ll come by tomorrow and split the last of the logs from the downed tree.”

“All right. I’ll make brownies.”

I smiled despite my shit mood. “See you then.”

A raven swooped past me as I ended the call and put my cell back into my pocket. The large bird landed on a tree branch and tipped its head as if it was staring at me. It reminded me that I was supposed to take the crystals back to the Crow’s Nest.

After one last look at the pond, I whispered, “Miss you, man.”

I went back to the truck and got in. As I drove away, the raven took flight. Maybe he’d been spying on me after all.

Stranger things happened in Salem all the time.

CHAPTER 5

Ruby

The bell rangon the door, and I jumped. Zeke came in with Lillian’s velvet pouch in his hand. “Didn’t mean to scare you.”

I shook my head. “The jingling surprised me, that’s all.”

He handed me the bag with a knowing glint his green eyes. “Are you sure it was the little bell and not the werewolf walking into your store?”

“Wow. You just said that out loud.” My eyes widened. “Someone could’ve heard you.”

He shook his head. “I would’ve smelled them the second I came through the door. You’re the only one here.”

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