Alpha Heir's Dilemma

Chapter 6

She saw a couple of guys she knew loitering around the back of the art faculty building as she stepped out…both were foxes.

“Hey Jesse…” One called out, waving his hand that clearly had a cigarette wedged between his fingers.

Jesse smiled. “Hey, Scott…got one of those for me?”

“Sure…” He fumbled into the pockets of his khaki army coat and pulled out a cigarette packet and lighter, holding them out. “Thought you had art this afternoon?”

“I do…” Jesse grumbled.

“I thought you liked art…never missed a class…” Scott frowned at her, concerned.

“Usually I don’t, but something’s come up…” Jesse answered vaguely.

“Adler Fenrir?” The other guy, Jake, suddenly piped up, looking sideways at Jesse with a raised eyebrow.

Jesse flinched at hearing the name and looked at the guy suspiciously.

“What?”

“The something that came up…it was Adler, wasn’t it?” Jake gave her a serious, intense glare.

“How did you…” Jesse gaped a little shocked.

“He’s been asking people about you…and I saw him heading into the art block…not somewhere he would ever usually be seen…”

Jesse lit a cigarette and handed them back to Scott. “f*****g hell…I’m heading home…if you see Pieter can you tell him I wasn’t feeling well and left for the day…cheers for the smoke.” She turned to leave.

“Why is Adler looking for you? Shouldn’t we tell Pieter?” Scott asked concerned.

“Don’t you dare! Just ignore it…I am.”

“Clearly not…you’re running away and hiding…” Jake pointed out with a sneer.

Jesse scowled at the impertinent fox looking down his nose at her. “Don’t tell anyone…especially Pieter…or the Silva brothers!”

Jake shrugged, inhaling a drag of his cigarette then flicking it away. “I’ll come with you.”

“I don’t need protection…” She growled at him.

Scott looked at them both a little confused. “Me too…” He piped up.

Jesse rolled her eyes. “Alright then…did you bring your car, Jake?” It was easier to just go along with them and get the hell off college grounds.

He nodded and walked off in the direction of the carpark, making sure the way was clear. He looked back at Jesse.

“Can you make the security cameras glitch?”

Were the foxes worried the wolves would access the camera surveillance system? She nodded and closed her eyes, waving her fingers around in the air in an intricate pattern for a minute then a little blaze of light shout out from her finger tips and like a mini lightning bolt it flew up and circled around the camera that was stationed under the lights in the carpark.

They bolted for the car.

“It’ll only last a couple of minutes…let’s get out of here quickly.” Jesse said as Jake unlocked the car and they jumped in.

Once in the back of Jake’s car Jesse let out a heavy sigh. How long was she going to be able to keep these evasive manoeuvres going before Adler inevitably caught up with her?

“So where should we go?” Jake asked as he drove.

“Let’s head to the skate park.” Scott piped in. “You got your board in the trunk, yeah?”

Jake grinned. “Yeah…okay…alright with you Jesse?”

Jesse slumped back into the seat and nodded, looking out the side window. Anywhere where Adler Fenrir wasn’t was a good place to be.

She glanced at her phone, staring at the message notifications, before dropping her phone into her lap and closing her eyes with another hefty sigh, leaning her head back against the seat.

.

The condition that was set upon her from the Renaud Family allowing her to transfer into their town and attend the university, as a favour to her father, was that she kept a low profile and caused no fuss.

Her father had sent her half way around the world to his old friend to take care of her. It had become too dangerous for her stay with her father. The old artic fox shifter and his wife had kept her secret all these years after finding her, alone and abandoned in a fox hole deep in the woods off their territory in Norway. A small beautiful white baby kit of only just weaning age, who miraculously turned into a human child before their eyes. Unable to have children of their own they saw the child as a miracle…not as the fox demon everyone else would know her as if they had witnessed her transformation.

As clan leader her father was able to shelter and protect her as she grew up, until she reached an age where her powers started to manifest and his clan started to demand answers as to what she was and where she had appeared from all those years ago. Her father knew then it was time to send her away to start a new life, pretending to be something she wasn’t, far away from anyone who knew the truth…something a little more accepted within the supernatural world. Fox demons – any demons – were hunted and killed. So she was sent aboard to the care of the Renaud Family of red foxes, as an artic fox therianthrope, witch hybrid, in need of tutoring of her magical ability.

The Renaud Family were tolerant of her wayward personality…their son Pieter was Student Council President and studying to be a lawyer, just like his father, and didn’t have much to do with her except to make sure she was kept track of using the Silva brothers and their gang…Pieter creeped her out in all honesty so she was more than happy to not have his interest…these Red Foxes were true to nature…crafty, sneaky, calculating, extremely smart, rich and influential both in the supernatural community and the human world.

Jesse had to be careful…had to toe the line and keep under the radar until she was legally an adult…that was the deal for them to give her the chance at a new life, with no questions asked as to why her father had suddenly sent her away. She really didn’t need some testosterone filled Neanderthal werewolves mucking up her less than stable life…

.

.

After hanging out with the guys at the skate park for an hour Jesse made her way across town to Madam Veitche’s house…the witch that was teaching her the magical arts. Jesse went there three times a week after college and spent another two hours learning to meditate, spell cast and mix herbs to help heal as well as other things involving a lot of reading and studying. Jesse managed to adapt her demon power to not raise suspicion and was slowly starting to get the hang of the arcane magic. It was tricky and cumbersome, with lots of hand signals and rune sketching and relying on strange potions and elixirs with revolting ingredients, but Jesse found it enthralling.

To cultivate her real power – her fox demon power – Jesse required human life source. If she was ever to achieve the levels of power she read about in the myths and legends of the Kitsune, she had to take from the humans around her. She had no intention of hurting or killing anyone…so it was a slow process…taking just enough that no one would ever notice…hidden within the pretence of playing with witch magic, voodoo and illusion.

She knew one day she would be extremely powerful…she knew one day she would be extremely dangerous…but cultivation took time…as she increased in her power so would her tails increase…right now she only had one, she was but a mere pup hiding for fear of her life just trying to survive long enough. She could expect to earn her second tail by the time she was fifty…

She knew she was going to live a very long time…if she was lucky and didn’t get caught or exposed for what she truly was…and executed by the Council.

.

.

She dropped her head to look at the ground in front of her as she walked along the sidewalk with her hood up, hands in the front pocket of her sweatshirt. She liked to walk everywhere…the town wasn’t that large that things were miles away…and walking gave her a chance to let her mind free to wander, with ear buds in listening to music.

She was in one of these little daydreams as she turned down the small lane that led to Madam Veitches house when she suddenly stopped as an obstacle loomed up on the sidewalk in her way.

Jesse stared at the giant feet in her vision, covered with expensive looking special edition basketball shoes before her eyes drifted up the grey tracksuit covered legs up over the slim hips, up the chest covered in a large letterman jacket until she was looking at the chiselled handsome features and golden hazel eyes of Adler Fenrir as he smirked at her with an intense smoulder through his dark chocolate bangs before sweeping them out of his eyes in a well-practised way that he knew made girls swoon.

“Hello…I figured I would find you coming this way eventually…” His deep voice was smooth and velvety.

Jesse backed up a couple of steps, taking out her ear buds and looking around bewildered a moment. She noticed Adler’s car parked on the kerb. “Did you…wait for me?”

Adler’s eyes narrowed and his top lip twitched in a little sneer. “Yeah…unlike you! I sent you heaps of messages…”

Jesse frowned and folded her arms protectively from him. “I don’t do as you say, Adler!”

“I want you to.” He said simply, his tone flat.

Jesse didn’t know what to say to that. “Are you serious?”

“Deadly. Jesse, I meant what I said last night…plus I need to talk to you about something…”

Jesse took in the sudden change of stance in Adler, he looked pensive and a little guilty.

“What is it?” Jesse asked apprehensively.

Adler fidgeted on his feet and rubbed the back of his neck. “I…ah…I saw you last night…” He started awkwardly.

Jesse frowned, confused. “Yeah…I know…” She replied sarcastically.

“Not that…” Adler growled gruffly. “After…that car of foxes…” He couldn’t get the edge out of his voice as his wolfs jealously came through unbidden.

Jesse’s eyes widened in shock and her tongue darted out over her lips nervously. “You…you stayed behind?”

Adler cursed himself as he saw her fear. “I wasn’t going to do anything…I just wanted to make sure you got home safe…”

Jesse barked out a little scoff. “Safe from who? Because the way I see it the only one I need to be kept safe from right now is you!”

“I told you I won’t hurt you!” Adler growled, taking a step forward as his wolf wanted to be near her.

Jesse backed up, holding her hands out, making Adler freeze. “f**k! I’m sorry…I…” He combed a hand through his hair in frustration. “I need to know what the deal is with those f*****g foxes.”

Jesse’s face went stoic as her eyes hardened and locked onto his face. “The deal?” Her voice was sinister as she hissed through her teeth.

Adler huffed. “I mean…shit…I know this isn’t coming out right, but…”

“Don’t say it.” Jesse cut him off. “Understand something…I’m a transfer student from Norway…I know no one. I’m being looked after by the fox community here as a favour to my father who knows the Renauds…I’m just trying to get along and not cause a fuss, get my degree and leave.”

Adler watched her intensely, she seemed nervous but he didn’t get the vibe that it was because of him any longer. “I didn’t like what I saw…that’s all…but if you say you’re fine, then fine.” Adler sighed and looked away resigned to the fact that this chat was a bust.

“Why do you care?” Jesse asked then, her voice quiet.

Adler twisted his mouth, looking away up the street before looking back at her. “Because I’m the only one that gets to bully you, okay.”

Jesse’s eyes hardened into a vicious glare again as Adler smirked and tilted his head at her, coyly.

“Okay?” He asked again. He grinned a boyishly rogue smile at her and winked.

Jesse sighed and looked away. “They weren’t bullying me…they were giving me a ride home…because of you chasing me for two blocks I wasn’t where I was supposed to be…that’s all.”

Adler straightened up, feeling abashed for causing her trouble. “Oh…okay…got it, sorry.”

“Can I go now?” Jesse indicated the old Victorian manor at the end of the lane.

“Ah…yeah…sure.” Adler stepped sideways to clear the path for her and smiled at her. “Thank you for talking to me, babe.” The cheekiness returned to his voice.

Jesse rolled her eyes and walked past him, but Adler saw the tiniest twerk of her top lip in a little amused smile. “Whatever…”

He grinned and watched her walk away before getting into his car. His wolf seemed a little more content for the time being.

Just as he sat down and closed the door the white Audi came round the corner driving extra slow. It cruised up next to his car and stopped in the middle of the road as the tinted window lowered.

Adler glared with a bored intensity at the dark haired Silva brother as they locked eyes on each other through the open windows.

“What the hell are you doing here, wolf?” Tobias demanded.

Adler grinned. “That would be none of your business, fox.” He spat the word fox out like an insult causing Tobias to grip the steering wheel tight.

“I hear you’ve been showing an interest in one of our girls…” Tobias’s voice was cold and threatening. “Let me tell you…that one is off the market to any one, got it?”

Adler’s wolf growled deep in the back of his throat and wanted to reach out between the cars and grab this fox assh0le by the throat. Instead Adler chuckled and ran his thumb over his bottom lip as he leaned his elbow on the window edge. He tilted his head, c0ckily at Tobias. “Is that so…and who thinks they can stop me?” He raised an eyebrow looking at the silver fox with complete distain. “You?” He scoffed and started his engine before glancing back again. “I suggest you keep the hell out of my business…”

Adler put his foot on the gas and left Tobias sitting in his dust in the middle of the road.

Tobias slammed his hands on the steering wheel. “f*****g wolf! Wait till Pieter finds out about your sudden interest in our little artic fox…”