03. THE FALLEN ALPHA GENERAL

TEMPEST

“You’ve been brought to the mansion of the Alpha King’s General, Sir Archer Whitlock”

My question was answered by the woman who’d walked into the little servants’ room and thrown the other maids out.

It was obvious she was someone people respected... and feared.

Her black hair, streaked with gray, was pulled tight straight back into a low bun.

"The mansion’s warriors saved your life and brought you here unconscious... what’s your name?"

"My name is Tempest." My voice sounded rusty, like un-oiled hinges. "Why did they bring me... to the capital?"

I barely managed to prop myself against the wooden headboard.

"I’ll cut to the chase. I don’t like circling around," she said, frowning.

My whole body went tight, not knowing what to expect. I didn’t believe in selfless compassion.

"My name is Lydia. I’m the housekeeper." she said.

"The General’s right hand rescued you from what looked like a barbaric sacrifice." She snorted, angry.

"He saw the Brood wouldn’t attack you. You survived somehow... how did you do it?"

Her question caught me off guard.

My foggy mind still couldn’t grasp that I’d been saved, taken far from the pack, and that something would be asked of me in return.

"I... I don’t know. I thought I was going to die..." I said, knotting the sheets in my fingers.

Cruel memories slid in like knives driven into my soul. I survived, but my son didn’t.

A shadow blocked the light over my head. When I looked up, the woman had stepped closer.

Her aura sharpened, almost threatening. Black eyes searching for lies.

"You’d better not lie to the General, because I can promise you he can be more cruel than those monsters," she warned, pupils narrowing.

Fear of the unknown squeezed my chest. I shut my mouth, not sure what to say.

"Get dressed." She pointed to the stool beside the bed. "I’ll wait outside. Don’t take long."

She left with a slam. The cold stone walls felt like they were closing in, choking me.

On shaking legs, I stood, almost dropping to the floor from weakness. Who knew when my last decent meal was.

I dressed as fast as I could in a rough servant’s gown and raked my fingers through my hair.

I didn’t need a mirror to know I was a wreck... gaunt, thin, ugly, the way I felt inside.

She was waiting in the hall, and, without a word, she motioned for me to follow.

My eyes wandered over the wall decor and the beautiful carpets.

Neutrals and deep shades everywhere, a sense of pressure and severity... even coldness. No woman’s touch.

We passed several maids dusting, tidying, busy with their chores. Head down, I followed the housekeeper up the stairs to the third floor.

The change hit me right away. Deserted. No one in the halls. Too gloomy.

We turned a corner and I saw a massive door at the end, the only one in the corridor.

A roar rolled out from behind it and shook the walls.

Then… a woman’s torn scream.

"For the Goddess... what now?!" Mrs. Lydia rushed into a run.

Before she could grab the metal rings, the doors flew open from within and a short woman stumbled out crying.

"Merida! What happened?!" The housekeeper shouted when she saw her clutching her cheek, blood running from the corner of her mouth.

"I can’t... I’m sorry, I can’t stand it!" she bawled, yelling, a grimace of disgust on her face.

"I can’t do this anymore, not for all the gold in the realm! It’s unbearable!"

"I told you not to come near me while I was sleeping!!!" The roar that crashed out of the dark room made us shake.

Even the housekeeper’s back went iron-stiff.

"Then leave this mansion..." The lady ordered her.

"But I can still work in the kitchen… " The girl reached for Mrs. Lydia’s hands in desperation, but the woman didn’t allow it.

"You volunteered for this task and you were warned from the start. It’s too late to back out."

"But…"

"No buts. Gather your rags, take the money we owe you, and go back to your farm!" she snarled, drawing fresh tears.

"And don’t you dare talk about what you saw in there. Remember the consequences. Go!"

I stepped aside as the woman ran by, almost tripping.

For a second her red-rimmed eyes crossed with mine, and I saw the silent warnings screaming inside them.

"Come." When Mrs. Lydia called me again, I hesitated. What was I about to find in there?

"For your own good, go in even if you’re scared... and don’t come off hysterical in front of him," she murmured across the few feet between us.

"Remember you were already marked to die, so take this chance."

Her sharp gaze went straight through me. She turned her back and finally slipped into the shadowed room.

I forced my legs to move, heart racing out of control.

Truth is, I wasn’t afraid to die... just of what I didn’t know.

The door shut behind me with a thud that rattled my soul.

The enormous chamber reeked of medicinal herbs and something else... harsher.

"Holy Goddess, what a mess..." she murmured.

I followed the smell and found the source.

A tray of food lay on the carpet, the meal smeared with vomit. Something told me it was the maid’s.

"Sir, are you all right?" I lifted my gaze, following the housekeeper’s steps as she went to the back of the room, where a massive canopy bed sat in near-total darkness.

My soul almost left my body when my eyes locked with a pair of intense blue ones watching me from the bed.

A beast on the hunt. A predator waiting to tear into its prey.

I swallowed hard, holding up under that scrutiny, a little intimidated, like an invisible hand was closing on my throat.

"Yes. I’m fine..." a rough, resonant voice answered, and those wolfish pupils slid to Mrs. Lydia at his side.

"I told her not to come near me when I was sleeping. I didn’t have time... to cover up."

The angry snort carried something else. Frustration. Pain. I didn’t know. Same as I didn’t know why I was here.

The housekeeper bent and began speaking to him in a low voice.

Standing there in the dark doing nothing only made me more anxious.

Without a wolf spirit, I didn’t have much in the way of she-wolf gifts.

My head wasn’t exactly right anyway, so I started picking up the broken porcelain.

The clink of it steadied me as I set the shards on the metal tray.

When I reached for the dropped napkin to wipe up the vomit, a pair of feet stopped in front of me.

"So you’re not squeamish. That’s good." I lifted my head and met the housekeeper’s eyes.

"I’m sorry. I just... wanted to help."

"The best way to help is to be useful with what’s actually expected of you," she said, helping me to my feet.

"Leave that. Someone will clean it. Go to the bed, Tempest. I have a feeling your life could change today."

With that, she left the room. The door thudded again. It felt like being locked in a cell.

I looked back at the bed, clenched my hands, and decided to go. Nothing could be worse than losing my freedom, my dignity… and my child.

A candle on the nightstand threw just enough light to show a huge figure propped against the headboard.

A broad-shouldered man, his features half-hidden, but those cold blue eyes were more than enough to intimidate anyone.

"Good... good morning, General. My name is Tempest Vale" I didn’t need a formal introduction to know he was the master of this house.

"Don’t call me that. I’m not the General anymore. My name is Archer Whitlock”, he said, voice deep and rough from the bed. "You can call me sir."

"Good morning… sir," I whispered, hands together in front of my dress.

I twisted them without thinking and dropped my gaze to avoid staring.

I knew he was a noble.

Even in my ignorance, I’d heard about the Alpha King’s bold General. Knox admired him.

Why did he look sick?

"I’ll be blunt, Miss Vale… I’m dying."

His words snapped my head up in shock.