The Alpha

Embarrassment doesn't even begin to cover the mortification I feel right now. After crying for longer than I care to admit, I must've fallen back asleep again because when I woke up, two small eyes were peering up at me from the corner of the bed. It was the boy from the woods—the reason I'm in this mess right now.

With a grunt, I try to lift my torso off the bed and incline to a sitting position. The once cozy cabin walls now seem to close in around me, and I feel the urge to bolt. To pretend none of this is real. Werewolf. The word beats around my head, giving me a tumultuous headache, and I hang my head onto my hands.

There is a subtle shuffling sound and I see the boy has moved directly in front of me now. He regards me with open curiosity."Why were you crying?"Unable to answer him, I shake my head and throw in a question of my own,"What's your name?""Marcus. You can call me Marc though, all my friends do that."

I nod, feeling a lightness begin to spread in my chest at the boy's cheerful tone."Thanks for saving my life."I shake my head. "I didn't do much."

The boy seems to disagree. He raises his hand and speaks animatedly, "You were so strong. The way you grabbed that branch was just... wow."I feel a smile tugging at the corner of my mouth. "Well... it did hit him hard, didn't it?"Marc giggles in response."But Daniel is the one who actually saved us though," I say with a heavy sigh.

He frowns. "How come you call him by his first name? No one calls him that."That makes me pause. What else should I be calling him?"What do you mean?""I mean he's our—" He gets cut off by the door being swung open, causing a beam of light to stream in, stinging my overly sensitive eyes.

The old lady from before comes in and does a once-over of my appearance. "Your injuries seem to be healing well." She pauses. "Does it still hurt somewhere?"

Shit. She must've noticed my puffy eyes. I turn my head slightly and clear my throat awkwardly."I'm fine now. Thank you for taking care of me."

She nods matter-of-factly, like it was an expected thing. "You are our alpha's special guest."Before I can question who the alpha is, she begins bustling around the room, fussing over the pillows and sheets, and rubs Marcus on the head."Young master, if you miss dinner one more time, your mother will have you living in the stables."He grins sheepishly and nods, "Yes ma'am."

She shakes her head in exasperation but brings around some wet towels to place on my forehead. I didn't even realize I had a fever—and she didn't even have to touch me to find out.

The previous fear from earlier erupts within me again as I remember that all the people in this room are werewolves. Even the adorable boy. Even the old woman. Everyone in these woods, surrounding my cabin, are all monsters.

The fear must register in my eyes because the old woman narrows her eyes at me slightly."We aren't exactly thrilled at the prospect of having a human contaminate our environment."The chilling tone of her voice makes me realize the precariousness of the situation I'm in. She speaks lowly, so much so that Marc doesn't notice and is content playing with the candle propped up on the windowsill.

Keeping the tremor in my voice from escaping, I ask, "Are you going to kill me?"

She makes a disgusted look. "Just who do you think we are, girl? Some kind of predators? Your kind is the one with the problem. We just want to be left in peace."She turns around as if dismissing any further conversation, so I quickly blurt out, "Who is your alpha? What do you mean, special guest?"

She reaches for the door but pauses at the handle."The one who brought you here is our alpha." She pulls the door open and looks at me over her shoulder. "As we speak, he's facing a lot of trouble for bringing a human here. Especially someone like you."She slams the door behind her, causing Marcus to look up from his playing and shuffle over to the bed again.

I gulp. "Daniel is your alpha?"The words feel heavy as they leave my mouth. The man I loved, who I grew up with- that Daniel is the Alpha?

"Yeah!" he gives a toothy grin. "He's the strongest.""How many of you are there?"His brow is furrowed as he considers his answer."Hundreds and hundreds of us."

My eyes shift to the door of the cabin. I wonder, just how much danger—and how many enemies—are lurking behind that single, fragile panel of wood right now.Just what kind of world had I stumbled into?