The Alpha and The Lost Princess

Hanging out at the Lake

The following day after graduation, I slept in a little bit before my aunt woke me up for breakfast. My stomach was in knots, but I was still hungry. Sighing, I got out of bed and took a quick shower, and dressed in shorts and a t-shirt with SpongeBob on it. I picked up my cell phone and saw tons of messages from Myra and Bailey. I quickly dialed Myra's numbed.

"Holy s**t, Cal. Where have you been?" Myra almost yelled into the phone.

"I was sleeping. Sorry." I replied to her.

"What the hell happened last night? You went outside and then disappeared."

I sighed. I did not feel like telling her over the phone. "It's a long story."

"Hey, want to come over, and we can talk?"

"No, I would rather not be anywhere near your house, no offense."

There was a pause as I heard Myra talking to someone that sounded like Bailey. "Bailey is here. She suggested we go to the lake and hang out?"

"That sounds good. I'll tell you everything then."

"Okay, we'll be there in about fifteen minutes, don't forget your swimsuit. Kay?" Myra said.

"See ya," I replied as we hung up. I grabbed a tote bag and stuffed my swimsuit, some sunscreen, and my phone into it. I then went downstairs. Aunt Juni was in the kitchen washing dishes while Nora was sitting at the counter eating breakfast.

"Morning, sleepyhead." Nora greeted me. She was dressed nice.

"Morning." I picked up some toast and bacon. "Aunt Juni, is it alright if I go to the lake with Myra and Bailey?"

My aunt turned to me. "You are eighteen now. You don't have to ask."

"Well, fine. Aunt Juni, I am going to the lake with Myra and Bailey."

She laughed and nodded. "Okay. Have fun. Will you be home for dinner?"

I shrugged. "I don't know."

"Call me if you aren't." She turned back to washing the dishes.

"Want to come with us, Nor?"

She shook her head. "I'll have to take a raincheck. I am going to the mall with Rachel."

"Okay," I finished the toast and bacon and then poured myself a glass of apple juice. I then sat on the couch where Chad was sitting playing a video game.

He grunted an acknowledgment while keeping his eyes on his game. His phone was sitting beside him on a side table which began to chime. He paused his game and looked at it. I noticed his brow furrow as he snorted. "f*****g Harley wants to hang out with me." He shook his head.

I felt a chill run down my spine as he mentioned Harley. "And?"

"We never hang out on the weekends. He is always off with Brandon."

"What did you tell him?"

Chad shrugged. "I told him I would hang with him."

"Here?"

He nodded.

I shuddered as a car horn beeped outside. "See ya later, Chad." I jumped up and ran out the front door, almost bumping into Harley. He smiled at me, and I just ran past him, not looking back. I opened the back door of Bailey's car and got in.

"Why is Harley staring at you, Calliope?" Bailey asked.

"Just drive, Bails," I said to her. "I'll explain later." I sunk below the window as she drove away. She turned up the music, and I just closed my eyes.

"Cal," I heard Myra say to me. "Cal," She repeated. "Are you alright?"

I shook my head. "Not really," I replied as I sat up in the seat. Bailey stopped at a grocery store, and I walked around with her and Myra, grabbing snacks for the lake. I didn't say much as Bailey and Myra chatted. My friends tried engaging me in conversation, but my mind was just in too much turmoil, and I wasn't really interested in the conversation at the moment.

We finally made it to the lake about two hours away from our pack's territory. The lake bordered Zephyr Moon's territory, one of the largest and most powerful wolf packs in the kingdom. We got out of the car and hiked to our favorite spot on the lake. It was just inside Zephyr Moon's territory. The border guards usually let us stay as long as we didn't cause trouble. Myra spread out a blanket on the grass while Bailey and I set out our snacks. We sat on the blanket and munched on chips for a few minutes.

"Okay, Calliope, spill," Myra finally said.

I sighed as I took a sip of soda. "Fine." I set my chips down. "Okay, as you know, I went outside during dinner," I said to Myra while Bailey sat beside her, eager to listen. I looked at Bailey. "I felt uneasy because Myra told me Harley had been staring at me during graduation. Then at dinner and he was still staring at me. Myra suspected that I might be his mate."

Bailey gasped. "What?" She looked at Myra.

"Thankfully, I am not his mate," I said, and they both sighed in relief.

"I mean, that would have really sucked. Not that I would have minded having you as our next luna, but Harley is an asshole," Bailey told me.

"Anyways, I told Myra I had to go outside, and I went and sat in the gazebo, and of course Harley had to come and interrupt my peace." I narrowed my eyes, reliving the anger I had felt last night. "He told me he likes me and wants me to be his chosen mate," Both of their jaws fell open.

"Are you kidding me with that?" Bailey nearly yelled.

"No, he was not kidding. He told me he tortured me because he couldn't handle his feelings for me," I shook my head as I felt tears well up in my eyes.

"I'm sorry, Myra, but your brother is deluded as f**k," Bailey said.

Myra snorted. "No kidding. Please tell me you told him to f**k off."

I managed a slight smile. "Well, he tried to kiss me, so I kicked him in the balls." My friends both laughed loudly at that.

"Of course, that just pissed off his wolf, and he came after me. He grabbed me, and well, Harley was begging me." I explained to my wide-eyed friends. "I ended up kicking him in the balls again." They both laughed. I left out the part with the vines and the ground shaking. "He let me go, and I ran all the way home."

"Wow," Bailey said and looked at Myra. "Did you know your brother liked Calliope?"

She shook her head. "No," Myra sighed and reached for my hand. "I am so so sorry about my brother, Cal. I didn't know."

"It's alright, Myra. I am not giving it a second thought. Tomorrow I am leaving for the palace, and I am not looking back."

Myra frowned and took a deep breath.

"I didn't mean it like that. Of course, I'll come to visit. Just you and my family."

She managed a slight smile. "Or I can come to visit you."

We were startled by threatening growls, and we looked towards the tree line as five large muscular males in shorts walked towards us. "Why are you trespassing in this territory?" One of the males asked in a gruff voice.

Myra stood up as she often took the lead in these situations. It must be the alpha blood in her veins. She held up her hands. "We come here often, and you guys let us stay as long as we don't cause trouble." She stated in a normal voice.

The male who spoke. "You know you are in Zephyr Moon's territory."

"Yes, we do. I am Myra Devins, daughter of Alpha Thomas Devins of Forest Moon. I believe our packs are allies. We are here just to hang out by the lake. We mean no harm."

The males looked at each other for a moment. I saw their eyes glaze over. Something wolves did when they were communicating in their minds. "Fine, you can stay. But just clean up your mess when you are done." The lead male smirked at Myra.

"Thank you, we will."

The males then left us and ran into the trees. We all breathed a sigh of relief and went back to talking and eating our snacks. Later we went swimming in the cold water of the lake. We enjoyed splashing each other and laughing. We were sitting on some rocks sunning ourselves when Bailey sat up and looked towards the trees as two young males walked out of the tree line.

The males stiffened as they spied us. They looked to be about thirteen or fourteen. One had black hair and green eyes, while the other looked a little older and had brown hair and brown eyes. "Who are you, and why are you in my territory?" The younger looking one demanded.

Myra looked at them as their eyes bugged at three females in bathing suits. "Chill, guys. I am Myra, that's Bailey and Calliope," She pointed to us while facing the males. "We already told your patrol guys we are just hanging out."

The brown-haired male smirked at us. "You can hang out all you want." His eyes flashed lust for a second while the other male rolled his eyes.

"I am Andrew, son of Alpha Iain MacKenzie, and this is Gavin," He introduced himself.

"I hope you don't mind us being here," Myra said to him. "We like this particular spot."

Andrew shrugged. "As long as you don't mind sharing it with us for a bit." He used authority in his voice for someone so young.

"Well, it is your territory," Myra shrugged.

Andrew and Gavin sat on rocks close to us. "What pack are you three from?" Andrew looked me over. "You aren't a wolf." He said to me.

"No s**t, sherlock," I blurted out.

Myra snorted. "Calliope is a witch but still a member of my father's pack. We are from Forest Moon. My father is the alpha."

"Ooh, a witch," Gavin smirked at me. "I like little witches." He slithered closer to us.

I rolled my eyes. "I'm pretty sure you are too young for me."

"I am fifteen, plenty old." Gavin pouted as Andrew laughed.

"I just turned eighteen, sorry."

"You don't look eighteen," Gavin tried to argue.

Myra and Bailey laughed. I always looked younger than I was, partly because I was so much shorter than my friends and cousins. "Thank you."

"Anyways, we can still hang and talk," Bailey pointed out. "How are the future alpha and his friend doing today?" She asked them,

Andrew folded his arms and snorted bitterly. "I am not the future alpha." He grumbled. "Even though I am my father's only son. The future alpha is my cousin Nicholas."

"You don't sound so happy about that," Myra joined in.

"Of course I'm not. Nicholas is my aunt's illegitimate son, and for some reason, my father picked him to be his heir and not me, his son."

"I'm sure Alpha Iain had his reason," Myra tried saying to Andrew.

The younger male shrugged. "Whatever. Let's just not talk about it."

My friends and I exchanged glances. "So, how did a witch end up in the Forest Moon pack?" Gavin asked as he was slowly inching his way towards me. He was a handsome young male. But I wasn't interested in underage males.

"My aunt is mated to the beta," I explained. "My parents' clan was attacked when I was two, and my parents told my aunt to flee and take me. She carried me for days until we stumbled into Forest Moon's land. They almost threw us out, but I guess the beta found out she was his mate. So that's how two witches wound up in Forest Moon."

Myra wrapped her arm around me. "And I am glad because Calliope is an awesome friend."

I smiled at her. "Love you too, Myra."

"Yeah, I agree," Bailey replied.

"Hell, there is a couple of vampires living at the royal palace, so it's not that weird, I guess," Gavin said out loud.

"Really?" I hadn't heard about that, and I was going to be working there. "I am leaving to go work at the palace tomorrow. But I didn't know there were vampires there."

"Well, one of them is married to the king's sister," Andrew spoke out. "He seems nice, I guess."

"You've met him?"

Andrew nodded. "My aunt is the queen, so I go to the palace a lot."

"Right, I forgot Alpha Iain is the queen's twin brother," Myra chuckled.

"And my cousin Princess Daisy's best friend is a vampire. He is at the palace a lot. Dominic is pretty nice too for a vampire."

"Wow, sounds like the palace is more interesting than I thought, "I looked at Myra and Bailey.

"What will you be doing there?" Gavin asked.

"I will be working in the kitchen."

Gavin scoffed. "That's omega work. Your uncle is a beta, and you are going to be doing omega work?"

I shrugged. "I don't mind working while earning some money for school."

"You are nuts." Gavin laughed. "I am the future Delta of the pack after my dad. So I guess I don't think of needing to work in a kitchen."

"A little hard work doesn't hurt anyone, "I told him. "I like cooking for my family sometimes, and I have helped the omegas in the packhouse sometimes."

"I have too, and I am the alpha's daughter," Myra chimed in. "Truthfully, I like doing dishes. It's relaxing."

The boys laughed. "You girls are strange," Andrew said to us. "But I like you three."

"You guys seem quite likable also," Myra told him.

We spent the rest of our time at the lake talking and swimming with Gavin and Andrew. It started to get late, and Andrew said he and Gavin had to leave. Myra decided we should go too. We were still planning on spending the night at my house watching movies. Hopefully, my aunt would still allow it.

We finally returned to the territory, and Bailey parked her car in front of my house. We walked in, and Chad was still on the couch playing his game. My aunt and uncle were sitting at the kitchen table playing cards. "Hey Aunt Juni, Uncle Rick." I waved as I walked towards them.

They both looked up as Bailey and Myra sat on the couch. "Hey, kiddo, looks like you got some color," Uncle Rick pointed to me.

I looked at my arms and legs. He was right. I did get a little sun. It was going to hurt tomorrow. I must have forgotten to put on more sunscreen. "Yeah, we had a lot of fun. Anyways, is it okay if Bailey and Myra stay over?"

"Of course. I said they could yesterday, remember?" Aunt Juni said, not looking up from her cards. "You can order pizza if you want."

I leaned down and kissed her cheek. "Thank you, Aunt Juni." I trotted back to the couch and squeezed in between Myra and Chad. "Hey Chad, how is it going?"

He shrugged while keeping his eyes on his game. "Better now that Harley left."

"I thought I smelt my brother," Myra snorted.

"He kept talking about you," Chad looked at me. "Which struck me as weird. I mean, I didn't think he even liked you. No offense."

"None taken, Chad." I patted his arm. "We are going to order pizza. Want any?"

"Sure." He smirked and paused his game. "Are you two staying over?" He asked Bailey and Myra.

"Yeah, we are having one last sleepover since Calliope, and I are leaving tomorrow," Bailey replied to him.

"Nora is sleeping over at Rachel's house. I thought I would get some peace, "He laughed.

"Just for that, we aren't sharing our pizza," I stuck my tongue at him.

He held up his hands. "I take it back." He stood up and turned off the game system. "I'll be up in my room. I don't care what kind of pizza you get, just no anchovies." He said and left the room.

"I say we get a double anchovy pizza for him," Myra snickered, and we all laughed.

"Triple anchovy," I added as I pulled my phone from my pocket and looked up the pizza place. I ordered four large pizzas with hot wings. While waiting, we watched TV. The pizza finally arrived, and we called Chad, and he came down the stairs.

"Dude, Harley is blowing up my phone wondering if you are home yet," He told me.

"What did you say to him?" I asked as I trembled. I did not want to see that asshole.

"I told him you were home."

"Chad!" I nearly shouted at him.

My cousin narrowed his eyes at me. "What is up with you?" He asked while grabbing a slice of pizza.

"Nothing," I mumbled as I ate my pizza. Myra and Bailey exchanged looks. I looked at my friends. "I hope he doesn't try coming over."

"I'll kick his ass if he does," Myra stated.

We devoured the pizza and wings. I cleaned up the mess, and then the girls and I went upstairs to my room. Bailey turned on music, and we talked while doing each other's hair. "Hey Myra, did you ever get to your concert last night?"

She shook her head. "No, my stupid mom wouldn't let me go."

"Why not?"

"I don't know." Myra folded her arms as I braided her hair.

There was a knock on the door, and my uncle poked his head. "Calliope, Harley is here looking for you."

I shuddered and shook my head. "Tell him to go away. I don't want to talk to him."

"He is pretty insistent on talking," Uncle Rick stepped into my room.

"I don't want to talk to him, Uncle Rick. Please make up an excuse. I am sick or sleeping. Something," I pleaded with him.

Myra stood up. "I'll go talk to him."

"That won't be necessary, Myra," Uncle Rick said to her. "I don't need you beating up your brother outside of my house. I don't want to explain that to Tom and Julie," He sighed. "I'll cover for you. Why is he obsessed with you all of a sudden?"

I shrugged. "Hell if I know. He probably misses beating me at school."

My uncle gave me a sad look before walking out of my room and closing the door. The girls and I went back to talking, and I saw Myra making faces.

"f**k, my brother is blowing up the mind link."

"I am not talking to him, Myra." I insisted.

"I keep telling him to f**k off." She shook her head. "There, I put up my block."

"He won't stop. I can't wait till I get the f**k out of this place tomorrow." I said with entirely too much anger. That made Myra frown again. I hated leaving her. But I just could not stay in this pack any longer. "I'm so sorry, Myra."

She shook her head. "It's not your fault. My brother is such an asshole. I am so kicking his ass tomorrow after you leave."

I smiled at her. "I can always count on your Myra."

The rest of the night was filled with fun and laughter as we stayed up late watching movies in the living room. We fell asleep on the couch, and my aunt had to wake us up the next day. She made us all breakfast. Bailey went home to get her stuff before coming back to get me. Myra helped me pack my bags then we waited for Bailey to return.

As we were putting my stuff in Bailey's car, Harley showed up.

"Calliope, talk to me." He approached me but was pushed back by his angry sister.

"She doesn't want to talk to you, Harley. You don't get to be Prince Charming with her after bullying her for ten years. Now f**k off," Myra snarled at her brother.

"I am the next alpha, and I demand to talk to her."

Myra pushed him hard. "f**k your demands," She growled, and I could see her eyes changing color.

I walked over to Myra and pulled her back. I looked at Harley. "I told you last night, Harley. I am not the least bit interested in you. I want nothing to do with you. You made the last ten years of school a living nightmare for me. I dreaded every day I had to look at your face, listen to your taunts, and endure your abuse. So kindly f**k off. I hate you. The only reason I will ever visit this pack again is for my family and Myra." I explained to him with as much anger as I could muster.

He just stared at me with sad eyes. "I really made it a nightmare, for you?" I could see tears in his eyes.

"Oh my god, you are so deluded. You thought I enjoyed being beaten every day?" I nearly yelled at him.

"Go away, Harley," Myra growled at him. "I would like to enjoy these last few minutes with my best friend, and you are ruining it. Go back to Jocelyn. She is the right kind of girl for you. You don't deserve Calliope."

Harley started to say something to his sister, and then his eyes turned colors as he growled. I could see he was beginning to shift into his wolf. "Fine, I'll leave. But Calliope. You may hate me, but I love you." He nearly choked on tears before running towards the trees, shifting into his large grey wolf.

We silently finished packing the car, and I went into the house to find my aunt and uncle sitting in the living room. "Harley is in love with you?" My uncle asked me.

"You heard that?" I asked him.

He indicated his ears. "Werewolf hearing."

"Yeah, I guess so. But I don't want him, Uncle Rick. Like I told Aunt Juni last night. I want nothing to do with him."

My uncle looked at my aunt. "You knew?"

"Yes, I didn't think he was that obsessed with Calliope. The boy needs to take a hint."

"I am ready to leave, alright? I am going to go to the palace and forget about Harley f*****g Devins."

"Calliope!" Aunt Juni barked at me. She stood up and hugged me.

"This isn't going to cause trouble with the alpha, is it?" I asked my uncle.

"It will, but I will tell Tom what you said. His son needs to back off. We aren't going to force you to be with someone you don't want to be with."

I hugged him. "Thank you, Uncle Rick. Thank you for everything. You guys are the only reason I have to ever come back here beside Myra."

He hugged me back. "You will kill it at the palace. I just know it."

"Thank you."

My cousins both trudged down the stairs, and I said my goodbyes to them. Then my family walked us out to Bailey's car. My friends were waiting outside, and I hugged Myra. We were both nearly bawling. "Please call me every day, Cal," Myra said to me.

"I will. I promise." I said while hugging her. Myra said goodbye to Bailey. Bailey and I got into her car and waved as she drove away. A grey wolf ran beside the car as we left the territory. I heard a mournful howl as we finally passed the border.

"He'll get over it," Bailey said out loud. "He'll either go back to Jocelyn or find a new bimbo and forget all about you."

"I hope so, Bails." I shuddered. "Let's just look forward to our futures and not worry about Forest Moon."

She nodded. "You are right, Cal. To the future." She pumped her fist and then turned up the music.