Kiss Of The Alpha : A YA Paranormal Romance

Chapter 196: Chapter 196

Heather

"Am I in trouble?"

"No. I think this is more curiosity than anything else."

"Why don’t they talk to Mr. Langdon? Or Donovan? Or anyone else who’s not a total newbie?"

"That’s why they want to talk to you. Because you’re new. They’ve already talked to Michael and a few others, but you’re the one from the news, so they want you."

I tried to take a little bit of comfort in that, but nerves were still creeping in. "Okay."

"Get changed and dressed. I’ll wait for you in the common room." He waited for a second, glancing from Brent to me and back again.

Brent laughed through the bond, but his face was a mask of seriousness.

You’re not helping. I stepped past Dad, and opened the door. "I’ll be right down." He nodded, and left without another word.

I closed the door, and leaned against it. "Was it just me or was that super awkward?"

"It wasn’t just you."

Laughing came from Serena’s room. "Yeah. Laugh it up, you two. Just you wait. I know your brothers’ phone numbers. And your mother’s. I can get them down here in no time for an awkward encounter of your own."

"My parents are happy about this. They’re Weres. They were expecting me to pick a mate years ago."

She was right. They’d been super happy when Donovan claimed Serena as his. "Damn it. Why am I always the newbie?"

"Because you are the newbie."

I strode to my closet. The hangers scratched the rail as I searched for something to wear.

What exactly should one wear when being questioned by the FBI?

Something that made me look as innocent as possible. I’d worn all my dresses, so I picked a pair of dark jeans and a floral printed blouse. Anything I didn’t have to pull over my head was a win. My side needed time to rest, and not have me pulling on it.

I dressed as quickly as possible, sparing time for Brent to redress my cuts with a fresh bandage.

"Do you want me to come with you?" Brent asked me as I buckled my sandals.

I glanced at Brent. "Is that an option?"

He gave me one of his trademark Gallic shrugs. "Might as well try. Worst they can do is not let me in the room."

I went back to the closet, dug out one of his button-downs, and tossed it his way. "Well, then you’re coming with me."

Once he was ready, Dad escorted us to the conference room.

The two FBI agents sat at the opposite side of the table.

They rose together, and I knew they’d probably done this a lot. Except maybe not with werewolves.

"Heather, these are Special Agents Ramirez and Morgan."

Ramirez had to be the short Hispanic agent. His navy blue suit hung a little baggy on him, but I could tell he had a reasonably fit body underneath. Not Were-fit, but fit enough. Morgan was a petite blonde. She seemed overly friendly with her megawatt smile, but something told me she wasn’t all warm and bubbly.

At least I already knew who was the good cop and who was the bad one?

"I’m sorry, but we only want to question Heather," Special Agent Morgan said.

Yup. Not warm or bubbly.

I thought about arguing, but that seemed like a bad idea. Definitely not the first impression I wanted to make.

I’ll be right outside, listening in, Brent said as he brushed a kiss on my cheek. You need me, I’ll be back. No matter what they want.

Thanks.

Dad nodded. "We’ll be right outside. If you need me for any reason, I can come in as counsel."

"As we told you earlier, your daughter isn’t in any trouble." Agent Morgan placed her folded hands on the table. "There’s no reason to worry."

I tried to take that to heart as I settled down into one of the tall-backed leather chairs. I wheeled myself closer to the table, and sat up straight. My side throbbed at the movement, but Brent had been right. The wounds were already scabbed over. By tonight, they’d be red marks at most.

"We’ve talked to some of your fellow pack members." Ramirez said "pack members" like it was a question. "But we wanted to speak with someone who wasn’t born into this world."

I nodded. I wasn’t sure how much they knew, and unless they asked, I figured silence was my best option.

"So what do you think of the werewolves?" Agent Morgan asked.

That was an incredible vague and open-ended question. "They’re fine. Some I really like. Some I don’t. Just like anywhere else."

"And the witches?"

Where were they going with this? "The same. There are some here that I really like. Others, not so much."

"That’s pretty honest," Ramirez said.

That wasn’t a question, so I kept my mouth shut.

"Do you like being a wolf?" He asked.

I let out a sigh. "Right now that’s like asking if I like being short. It doesn’t really matter because that’s what I am, but I guess I know what you mean. It was hard at first, but I’m pretty okay with it. Running as a wolf is really freeing. And having enhanced abilities isn’t a chore either."

"So you can change?" Morgan said.

"Of course." I didn’t know that was in question.

"But you didn’t the night you fought the demon?" Ramirez asked.

"I’m not the best fighter when I’m all furry. I’m more of a help when I fight with magic."

"That’s right. Mr. Langdon mentioned that you were special in that you come from a long line of witches."

I guessed I didn’t mind that he’d told them, but it was a little odd that they’d been discussing me. "Yes. On my mother’s side."

"So the wolves can’t use magic?" Ramirez asked.

I thought about it for a second. True, they weren’t as good as the witches, but they didn’t totally suck at it either. They did their best with their metaphysics classes. "I wouldn’t say that they can’t do magic entirely. The pack is its own kind of magic. Not the same as what the witches have, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t count."

"I see. And what kind of magic do you practice?" Morgan asked.

I raised an eyebrow. "I don’t know. The good kind?" It seemed like an important distinction to make when Luciana was out there.

That got Morgan to smile. "Could a human use the magic that you use?"

Wow. Morgan had been quiet, but now she was blowing my mind with the tough questions. "Honestly, I don’t know. I mean, I guess there’s got to be a little bit of magic in us all, right?"

"And what about Ms. Alvarez? What are your connections to her?"

I tried to keep a look of disgust off my face. "I have none."

"Mr. Langdon has told us a little about the grudge that she has with the pack, but we’d love to hear it from your perspective. Why is she really killing people?"

God. If I only knew. "I was asked this at the press conference, and I don’t know how much my answer can change. I mean, you must deal with this a lot. People do bad things all the time. Beats me why they do it." That was part of it. "But if I had to guess, it started out as her being afraid of the pack."

"So the pack started it?"

"No!" Shit. That’s not what I’d meant. "No. Not at all. She’s been acting out over the past few years. Some of my friends used to hang out with the coven members our age. But a few years ago, that all changed."

"How?"

I wasn’t sure I should be answering this.

It’s okay, Brent said through the bond. Go ahead and tell them. Serena won’t mind. They need to understand how bad Luciana is.

Okay. But if she get’s mad, I’m saying you told me to tell. "Luciana found out her son was hanging out with my friend Serena. She cast a spell on Serena that almost killed her. She’s okay now. I broke the curse. But ever since then, the pack and coven have been estranged. When Brent bit me, she took that as a personal affront and an act of war against the coven."

"Why would she do that?" Ramirez asked as he rested his forearms on the table.

I licked my lips. It was like with every new question, I was digging myself in deeper. At some point, I needed to just shut my mouth. "I was supposed to be the next coven leader."

"But you told us you had no ties to her?" Morgan asked.

"I don’t. I never met her—or knew anything about being the next coven leader until recently." I paused as I thought about what I should say next. "This is all really complicated, but it boils down to her vendetta. And to be quite honest—I think it’s driven her a little mad. Raising demons?" I blew out a breath. "She’s crossed into extremely evil territory. Stopping her before she hurts more people is imperative."

"And how do you plan on doing that?" Ramirez asked.

"Honestly? I have no idea." Wanting to end this before I spilled any more pack secrets, I leaned forward. My side pinched with the movement, and I ignored it. "Can I ask you a question?"

Special Agent Morgan nodded. "Yes. Of course."

"What do you want from me?"

"You’re very straightforward." Special Agent Ramirez leaned back in his chair.

I didn’t think he did that because he was afraid of me, but I wondered... "It’s been a really rough few days—as I’m sure you’re aware. My father woke me up from only a few hours of sleep to come talk to you, and I just want to know what’s going on. Am I in trouble?"

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