Page 58 of Alpha Games
Poor little thing.
Ranger took care of us when you drank the poison.My wolf stretched out languidly in my mind.Go to sleep. He’ll return after the hunt.
“The hunt!” I screamed, kicking off the blankets and hopping across the giant bed. I didn’t see my phone anywhere so I didn’t know what time it was, but the sun was already shining through the tinted windows lining the back wall.
Finally, I made it off the bed and threw open the bedroom door, coming face to face with Fallon.
I let out a panicked shriek.
She stood there in her black checkered pajamas as if she was waiting for me. “Good. You’re awake.”
I clung to my chest, trying to keep my heart from leaping outside it. “What am I doing here?”
“Having a little chat with me.” Fallon gave an apologetic smile, moving to the side to show the cart with silver lidded trays. “I ordered us breakfast.”
*
I sat on the leather couch in the drop-down loft that was bigger than the living room and kitchen of my trailer at home. A red Moroccan style rug covered the hardwood floors under the glass coffee table. Floor to ceiling windows lined the wall. They didn’t have a balcony, but something told me whoever used this room wouldn’t miss it.
A flatscreen television was mounted over the gas fireplace in the formal sitting area. To the right was a four-seater dark wood table next to a bar cart and small stocked kitchen.
We are definitely in different tax brackets.
I didn’t even know the resort had room service. Fallon removed one of the lids from the tray, revealing a plate of steaming omelet and breakfast meat. On the side was a basket of freshly baked croissants that hadn’t spent any time on the buffet line. As uncomfortable as things were, I wasn’t going to turn down good food.
“About last night,” I started, picking up the silver tongs and adding sausage to a clean plate. I wasn’t sure where to go after that, but I was hoping she’d fill in the blanks.
“Did you have fun?” Fallon sipped her ceramic coffee mug, watching me with a strange expression.
“I can’t remember.” I shoveled a bite of cheesy eggs and mushrooms into my mouth to cover up my embarrassment.
Fallon’s black nails drummed against the side of the mug. “Have you ever done drugs before?”
“Drugs?” I choked on my breakfast, hoping this wasn’t some sort of rich person mafia indoctrination test to determine if I was worldly enough to be here. I was about to fail big time.
And Ineverflunked tests.
“So, no then?” Her eyebrow arched as she relaxed back in her seat. “How are you feeling this morning?”
My mouth hung open as I connected the dots and then my claws started to slowly descend. “The apple martini. I knew it tasted like poison. Did Edith drug me?”
“Slow down there, killer,” Fallon said. “Edith didn’t drug you. But even if she did, you wouldn’t be going to fight her alone.”
I liked Fallon, but she was crazy if she thought I’d let another threat to me slide. I had to put a stop to it. Now. We weren’t in Nuva Pack, but it was the same cycle all over again. Upper ranking wolves thinking they could do whatever they wanted without consequences. I was done taking their shit. They’d messed with the wrong wolf… again. Edith may not have poisoned the drink, but she was right there and might have seen who’d done it. I wasn’t messing around anymore.
“Thanks for breakfast.” I set down my plate.
“Aspen, stop.” Fallon started growling as I rose to stand. “I didn’t mean it as a challenge. Edith didn’t drug you, but we–as in all of us–will find out who did.”
“We?” I looked around the empty suite dramatically, as if there were more people hiding somewhere. Granted it was big enough to fit a whole classroom in here.
“I’ll explain,” she said. “Will you sit down?”
I crossed my arms. “Explain what?”
“Really, you’ll want to be sitting for this.”
That made me want to keep standing. “How bad is it? Should I go brush my teeth first?”