An Alpha’s Revenge

Eleanor’s POV I jolted out of my sleep, sweating. The same nightmare, again. It was always the same nightmare since I was 13. Blood everywhere. The constant sound of screaming in my ears. Werewolves running past me, fighting off something I couldn’t quite see. My parents’ faces telling me they love me. Telling me to hide. Telling me that they would come back. It was all I saw when I closed my eyes to sleep on most nights, and it was what drove me to train harder and protect the ones I had learned to call family. I turned over restlessly, knowing I wouldn’t get much more sleep tonight. I saw the clock turn to 4:37am. I groaned. I didn’t really want to get up, but I knew I should start my day. It was only the thing that helped scrub my mind of the images flashing through my brain. I sat up in bed and rubbed the sleep away from my eyes. “Alpha,” a woman said quietly near my bed. I jumped and turned to see my Beta, Angel, hovering with worry in her eyes. I hadn’t even heard her come into my room. Angel looked just like her name suggested: an angel. Her hair was bleach blonde and hung in loose curls around her face. She was pale, but it only accentuated her green eyes and pink, full lips. She was slim, yet muscular, with legs for days and had just enough curves to make the men stare and drool. She was undoubtedly beautiful, and though I was glad to have her as my best friend, my insecurities often compared myself to her, since I looked nothing like her. I, on the other hand, had the typical dark brown hair that hung straight down, no straightener needed. I had blue eyes that shifted to grey more often than not and absolutely no lips. My face was small, and my stature of 5’5” often made me feel short around most of my pack, including the females, who were at least 5’8” and above. I had enough curves to show I was a woman, but not enough to tempt any man in my opinion, which honestly, was fine by me. I didn’t need nor want a man or mate. I was doing just fine by myself. One of the things I learned from Angel was that men were not worth it. Some were clingy, some were obtuse, but most were just assholes. Angel’s cough got my attention back to her. “I heard you screaming. Was it…?” she trailed off. “It always is,” I replied gruffly. “I might as well get up, but you should still sleep if you can.” Angel shook her head. ‘It you’re up, then I’m up, Alpha.” I nodded. “Okay then, let’s get changed for training.” She smiled at me and put a reassuring hand on my shoulder. We both quickly changed into our training gear, which consisted of normal activewear with small protection pads, and walked out of the room and downstairs to the kitchen. I rummaged through the refrigerator and grabbed our normal breakfast items of eggs, spinach, broccoli, and bacon. Angel was already making the protein smoothies as I put a pan on the stove to prepare the rest of our food. After eating in silence and putting the dishes in the sink, Angel finally asked, “ Are you ever going to tell me what the nightmare is? You have it almost every night.” I sighed and turned toward her. “Angel, trust me when I say you don’t want to know.” “But I do, Alpha. It’s my job to help you in every area you need. And this is a need you’ve been ignoring since we first got the pack back together just about 5 years ago.” I looked at her, wondering to myself if I should lessen the burden on myself. How nice it would be to just let it go, forget about it, and let someone else take over the problem. Why did the entire situation have to rest on my shoulders? Why couldn’t I just let the weight go and lead the pack like a normal alpha. Why did we need to struggle and have our past bathed in blood just to get here? And how far had I even gotten us anyway? Was it far enough? I hated all the questions that constantly ran through my head. I loved being an alpha, but sometimes the responsibility of it all consumed me. I slumped my shoulders forward and wished to dump it all onto someone else—someone who could handle it. You can’t, El, and you know it. My wolf, Rae, was always right. I know. I won’t let it go. It’s just a dream at this point. You know how rarely we ever have those. I will never let my parents’ death go in vain. He will pay for his crimes, and I will take his payment in flesh. There’s my girl. There’s the alpha we were raised to be. Don’t ever stop fighting our fight. When we get our victory, we will wear it proudly, just like they’d want us to. Yes. I felt that resolve strengthen my soul. We will get that bastard. I felt Rae’s anger and satisfaction at my words, and then I remembered I was in the middle of a conversation with Angel, who was just staring at me with a mix of worry and frustration in her eyes. “Maybe one day, Angel. I know you mean well, and you have helped me tremendously. Without you, I wouldn’t have gotten our pack back. And without you and Max’s support, we couldn’t have grown the pack to the size it is now.” I couldn’t miss the smile Angel had when I mentioned Max, her mate. “Honestly, I’m glad you mated with Max. He has been one of the biggest benefits to the pack,” I said. Her smile faded, and she peered at me. “You’re sure? I mean, I know how you feel about mates.” “Yes, Angel,” I said reassuringly. “I’m so happy you did. It’s a personal choice for me, and it always has been. I see how you two make each other better. Now let’s go train.” She nodded and followed me to the training gym outside of our main pack house. A few others were up and about, but we still had time before the 6:30am training session with the head trainer, Xavier, began. I looked forward to his morning training the most because he pushed me harder than any other trainor. He didn’t care that I was the Alpha of the Black Shadow Pack. He treated me like all the other rookies, as he should. He was by far the best fighter we had and head of security. He’s easy on the eyes too. Hey! No eavesdropping on my personal thoughts. How can it be eavesdropping when we share one mind? I’m not judging. Xavier is handsome. I never did understand why you stopped his advances. I rolled my eyes at Rae. I held myself to a strict no dating your in-pack subordinates and my wolf knew it. I wouldn’t date Ryan, my gamma, Xavier, or anyone else in a trusted position. “Morning,” he said casually, dipping his head slightly as I walked in. He gave me a sly smile. I nodded at him. “Morning, Xavier. What’s on the docket for today?” “The usual,” he grinned. “But maybe with a twist,” he added with a wink. I shook my head and smiled back. Xavier had an easy air around him, and his smile was gorgeous, which is how he usually talked the she-wolves into bed with him. Something about those dimples or his brown curls. But, he stopped trying to get with me after I beat his ass in a dare. I chalked it up to my plainness, which he denied, I think out of respect for my title, but he never did stop flirting with me. I only told him to be careful. He could keep banging she-wolves with his lean body and powerful build all he wanted. I never set any ground rules around pack members sleeping with each other other than everything being consensual. I turned to see other members filing in for Xavier’s beating and began stretching in anticipation. My favorite part of the day was about to begin, and I couldn’t wait. Xavier had not been joking about the workout. It was the usual routine of running a two-mile warm-up that then transitioned into the smaller obstacle course, which focused on shifting in difficult terrain. It wasn’t just about speed for our pack; it was about perfection. Xavier called out many for completing a task wrong and made them re-do it. He even called on me when I messed up on the jungle gym bars and missed a crucial turn, which caused a few around us to gasp. I smiled curtly at him and started over. After everyone had finished, Xavier gathered us around and began leading us to the forest that surrounded our territory. He then finally told us the twist he had concocted: a hanging bridge obstacle course. He gave us time to drink water and rest before beginning this last phase of training. “Alpha!” I heard Angel’s voice and growled in frustration. “Yes?” “I’m sorry to do this, but you’ll never guess who’s requested a meeting with you.” I looked at her with a scowl. “Who?” “Alpha Evan and Alpha Lanie.” My scowl deepened. “Alright, tell whoever’s with them that I’m on my way.” I saw Angel’s eyes glaze over and then she was back looking at me. “I left Max with them, and he told them. What can I do for you?” she asked. “Come with me, I suppose. Xavier,” I said, as he looked over at me. “Keep training. I’ll call if I need you.” “I’m sorry, Alpha. I know how much you love training. But Alpha Evan said that you need to meet with them.” I gave Angel a small smile. “It’s not your fault. You did the right thing. I just really wanted to do that obstacle course!” Angel laughed, “I’ll race you when we’re done!” I left the training grounds with Angel, and we headed back to the pack house. Thankfully I had snatched a towel before leaving and patted myself down. “Do you know what they want? Did they say anything when asking for an audience with me?” I asked. Angel shook her head. “Max was the one who encountered them at the gates. All they said to him was that they wanted to speak with you.” “Isn’t it a bit early for visitors?” I asked, while rolling my eyes. Angel laughed. “It is, yes, but you always think every meeting is too early. I swear, the way you’re able to put off meetings is a true talent!” “One of many,” I muttered and entered the house with a grin. The house itself looked much smaller on the outside than it was on the inside. In fact, the entire pack territory was meant to look small and dilapidated. I paid a witch a handsome sum to ensure that others would underestimate us. Though we were used to it by now, others often gasped when they entered the “small” and “homely” house. It was a mansion on the inside with everything a pack needed to survive if we were ever attacked. With three stories above ground and three below, it could house all 250 of my pack members and still have room for more. Though most of my people chose to live outside of the mansion, I wanted to ensure that we could all fit inside if something ever happened. It had kitchens, game rooms, offices, indoor training gyms, recreational rooms, a movie theater, and even an indoor swimming pool. I made sure to be ready for anything that could happen. I knew it was only a matter of time before the other surrounding alphas would challenge my claim to this land and their alliances to my murdered parents. “Alpha Lanie, Alpha Even,” I bowed my head slightly at each of them, as I walked into my office. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”