Crossed Fates by Lexi C. Foss

Alaric

I pressedmy palm to Tyler’s gravesite, my eyes closing as I whispered a mental goodbye to the man who would always be my idol.

Run free, brother,I said to him. Until we meet again.

Time seemed to stand still around me.

The air froze, allowing me this brief second of grief.

I took it.

I swallowed it.

I embodied it and allowed it to settle in my soul.

This was the sort of moment I would always remember. The moment I would avenge. The moment that would shape my future.

Not because of my alpha legacy.

But because of Tyler’s legacy.

I’ll kill them all, I promised silently. You will rest easy, brother. I vow it.

My father’s warmth seeped into my side as he murmured a blessing out loud, praising Tyler for his life and the sacrifices he made for the pack. They were old words meant for a traditional ceremony, but only five of us were here to observe it.

Me and my parents.

Makayla and Savannah.

It was oddly fitting. A small ceremony of family. And yet, I barely knew Makayla. However, when my father had shown up in his all-black suit, I’d automatically grabbed her hand to take her with me.

I refused to consider why. I refused to think about it all. Tyler had my focus, my heart, my mind, my grief.

I swallowed, my fingers curling into the free dirt. We’d buried him ourselves using shovels. An old-fashioned method, but an oddly calming one. The task had consumed my mind, allowing me to thrive in the present with my brother and family. And Makayla.

She stood just behind me, her floral perfume a welcome scent on the incoming evening breeze. I was no longer frozen. Time no longer stood still. Life revived around me.

My father had stopped speaking, all of us saying our own form of goodbye. I couldn’t even remember when I’d crouched or how long I’d been squatting. My legs ached, my hands were filthy with dirt, and yet my heart beat a little steadier now.

I’d said my goodbyes.

I’d made my vows.

And now it was time to carry out those promises. To seek vengeance. To kill.

Except I needed rest before I could properly take on those tasks. I’d meant to sleep earlier, but the events of this morning had bled into the afternoon and evening. And now here we were, close to midnight, standing over a freshly covered grave with nothing but the moon as our witness.

I stood and wiped the dirt from my hands on my black pants, then I faced my father.

Alpha Hawk Calder.

A true leader.

He lifted an arm for a hug, and I stepped into his embrace like I used to when I was young. For just a breath, I allowed myself to feel vulnerable, to be the kid from my youth and accept my father’s affection.

And then I returned it, my wolf brushing his beneath our skin, giving him the reassurance he needed.

I’m here.

We’re going to fix this.

We’ll avenge Tyler together.

My dad clapped me on the back, his signal that he felt my words more than understood them, and then he released me to pull my mother into a hug.

Savannah stood beside her, looking lost.

I almost stepped toward her, but Makayla took my mother’s place and wrapped a comforting arm around Savannah. They didn’t know each other. However, it didn’t matter. Makayla’s alpha pheromones provided a blanket of peace and comfort that instinctually soothed Savannah’s wolf, allowing the two women to bond.

This is why, I thought. This is why I grabbed her hand.

She belonged here.

In this moment.

With us.

Family.

Her bright blue eyes met mine, a current of understanding falling between us. Even if we chose not to continue into the future together, I would forever know that fate had delivered her to me at precisely the right moment.

A gust of wind caressed my cheek, my brother’s presence all around us, his spirit blessing this precious second.

There and gone in the space of a blink.

“Goodbye, Tyler,” my mother whispered. “We’ll see each other again.”

“We will,” my father agreed, kissing the top of her head.

Savannah sniffled, her gaze on Tyler’s gravesite. “Fate might not have called him mine, but I did.”

“Then that makes him yours,” Makayla replied quietly. “Always.”

“Yes.” Savannah looked at her. “Thank you.”

“Anytime,” Makayla replied, giving her another squeeze.

Savannah cleared her throat and took a step away. “I actually think I’m going to… run back.” She swallowed. “I feel like being alone with my wolf, just for a bit.”

“Are you sure you don’t want company?” my mother asked.

“I’d be happy to run with you,” I interjected, innately disturbed by the prospect of leaving Savannah to mourn on her own.

But she shook her head. “No, no. I really… I just need to do this… by myself. For a little while.” She winced. “I… I need to grieve. With my wolf.”

Makayla moved to my side, her hand finding mine and giving it a squeeze. My hackles immediately smoothed—hackles I hadn’t even realized were raised. But the notion of just leaving a packmate to hurt… alone… unsettled my wolf.

“Please,” Savannah pressed, the word soft, a packmate seeking permission from those she saw as alpha. “I need this.”

“Of course, Savi,” I told her, using the nickname I knew she preferred. “But if you need one of us, don’t be afraid to seek us out, okay?”

She nodded, her lips curling into a watery smile. “I know. You all have been… the family I needed. Thank you.” She took another step away, then turned for the woods and disappeared behind a tree. A moment later, her brown fur poked into view, her eyes gleaming yellow beneath the moonlight.

And then she bolted into the underbrush.

My mother bit her lip, uncertainty etched into her features. “I feel like I should go with her, Hawk.”

“Sometimes it’s best to let them fly a little,” my father whispered to her. “She’ll come back when she’s ready.” His blue eyes met mine, the message not lost on me. “They always do.”

My usual gut reaction of annoyance didn’t appear.

Instead, I felt resigned. Like I’d been running from something all my life and had finally decided to just start walking.

Not away from my destiny necessarily, but around it.

A trail of what-ifs sprawled out before me, the choices vast and intimidating.

I shook my head, exhausted and not wanting to ponder that mess right now. It resembled a maze of torment that all led to the same end.

Makayla gave my palm another squeeze, drawing my attention to her beautiful face. You okay? she seemed to be asking.

I nodded, then brushed a kiss against her forehead, thanking her for being with me tonight. It felt so natural, my lips against her skin, that I lingered for half a beat before pulling back.

Approval radiated from my mother as she melted into my father’s side.

Then the four of us made the long walk back to the pack.

We could have driven, but this experience was about reflection and honoring Tyler’s existence. With every step, I thought of a new memory. Some of them, I shared out loud with Makayla, just because it seemed right to tell her about my brother.

She laughed a few times, entertained by our antics.

My mother joined her, too, adding her own commentary about the trouble we used to cause together.

It was uplifting in a lot of ways, our mutual reminiscence refreshing. “I can’t believe you know about that,” I said, a laugh in my voice. “God, Tyler and I were sure we’d kept that secret from you.”

My mom scoffed. “Please, there’s not a damn thing you two did that I don’t know about.”

“Her ears are even better than mine,” my dad added, winking at me. “But she’s right. You two were not nearly as stealthy as you thought you were.”

I chuckled, shaking my head. Tyler and I had done some stupid shit as teenagers, like setting off that firework by the old shed. “You two weren’t even home,” I recalled.

“Doesn’t mean we were deaf, boy,” my dad retorted. “That firecracker nearly blitzed my damn hearing.”

“Oh, come on. It wasn’t that loud.” It totally was. Tyler and I had immediately regretted setting it off, and proceeded to destroy all the others.

“You two weren’t wolves yet,” my mother pointed out. “So of course it wasn’t loud. To you.”

Well, she had a point there. I couldn’t even imagine what it would sound like now.

“This sounds like something my brother would have done, only with a toy gun or something,” Makayla said. “He went into the military at eighteen, mostly because he wanted to make a difference in the world. But I think it was also his penchant for loud noises and the potential to blow shit up.”

“Is your brother older or younger?” I wondered out loud, aware that I barely knew anything about her family.

“Older. I was only eight when he left for the military.” She smiled. “Pretty sure that’s what motivated me to join enforcer training. I wanted to be like him. Or I thought I did, anyway. Then my skill set evolved, and I realized my true calling.”

“And what’s that?” my mother asked.

“Helping those who can’t help themselves,” she replied, smiling. “I went freelance, not wanting to be tied down to my alpha’s company, and here I am.”

“Fate put you exactly where she wanted you,” my dad agreed, giving her a knowing grin.

Makayla just shook her head, but amusement shone in her expression. “I think Sapphire had something to do with it,” she admitted.

“The witch?” my dad asked.

“Yep.” Her lips popped on the p.

My dad gave my mom a brief summary of Sapphire being the witch Makayla had saved, and then added the bit about the witch’s penchant for fortune-telling.

“Hmm,” my mom hummed, doing that thing she loved to do. And passed on as a family trait.

“Don’t,” I warned her.

She merely smiled. “I did give you a week, didn’t I?” She looked at my dad. “I get to pick our next vacation spot when I win.”

“Win?” Makayla repeated.

“My parents are betting on us,” I muttered, shaking my head again. “I say we leave them now and let them go find something else to place wagers on.”

“I didn’t bet against you,” my dad was saying. “So you can’t exactly win.”

“I can,” my mother argued. “And I will.”

I bit my lip to keep from laughing, then tugged on Makayla’s hand. “We’ll let you two continue that conversation without us,” I said, already walking in the direction of my house. “See you tomorrow, Dad.”

“Five o’clock,” he called back to me.

“I know.” I’d been there when he’d made all the arrangements with the other alphas to meet tomorrow. Just as he’d been there for my conversation with the McKenzie Pack Alpha. That’d been… difficult. Yet I’d somehow found the right words to say.

Just like I had tonight with my parents.

Maybe I’ll figure this shit out, Ty,I thought with a glance upward.

I pictured my brother’s face and imagined what he would say back to me right now. Of course you will, bro, he’d say. But first, you need to go seduce that pretty wolf.

My lips twitched. It was like I could really hear him in my head. Probably because we’d spent many years glued to each other’s hips.

“What’s that look about?” Makayla asked, a smile in her voice.

“Tyler.” Which probably didn’t surprise her since we’d just spent all night talking about him. “I was thinking about what he’d say to me right now.” I looked at her, studied her gorgeous, perfect face, and grinned. “He had no filter.”

She leaned into me as we walked, her presence a balm I didn’t realize I needed. “What would he say to you right now?”

I allowed my eyes to roam over her long-sleeved black dress. My mother had brought it for her to wear, as well as a pair of black sneakers. Wolves didn’t really do heels. Not practical. And we liked to walk. A lot. But I imagined Makayla would look good in a pair of stilettos. They’d accent her calves nicely.

“You look rather famished, Alaric,” she said, a false note of concern in her voice. “Maybe you should have eaten earlier. Wouldn’t want you to pass out from starvation.”

My lips curled as a laugh taunted my chest.

This girl.

This fucking girl.

She knew exactly what to say to lighten my mood. And I sort of adored that about her. Hell, I loved a lot about her. The way she’d helped me with everything tonight. This week, even. How she’d essentially become my rock. The life-beat in my heart.

It all scared the shit out of me.

But fuck if I could be bothered to run right now.

I wanted more.

I needed her to give me more of that life, to ground me in this harsh world, to provide me with the anchor I required to remain docked in the present. “Will you tell me more about yourself?” I asked as we entered my house. “More about who you are, Makayla? I don’t even know your last name.”

And I found I wanted to know everything about her.

Every single beautiful detail.

“Laurier,” she said, locking my front door behind us. “Makayla Laurier.”

“No middle name?”

“Oh, I didn’t realize we were going to get that personal.” She gave me a sultry look as she started backward, her hand still clasped in mind. “You sure you want to talk? You still look hungry.”

“Are you offering me something, Makayla No-Middle-Name Laurier?”

“Makayla Mae Laurier,” she corrected. “But if you call me Makayla Mae, I’ll stab you again.”

I laughed outright. “That sounds like a challenge, sweetheart.”

“I thought we decided I wasn’t the sweet type?”

“Well, now, actually, if I recall, you asked me if you looked sweet to me.” I ran my eyes over her again, grinning, as she kicked off her shoes. “And the answer is yes, delectable, even.” I released her hand to grab her hip, yanking her to me. “So I’ll give you a choice.”

“A choice?” She smiled. “I like choices.”

“I know you do, mate,” I replied. “So I’ll give you one.”

“I’m listening.”

“Good.” I wrapped my arm around her, my opposite hand going to her thick, red hair. “We can talk all night, and you can regale me with stories of your childhood, similar to the ones I just shared tonight.”

“Or,” she prompted.

“Or…” I drew the word out, my voice dropping to a seductive murmur. “You can let me spread those creamy thighs and allow me to find out if you’re as sweet as you smell.” I walked her slowly backward toward the bedrooms. “Either way, it’s happening in my bed. Talking or tasting. The activity choice is yours. The location decision is mine.”

Her nostrils flared. “And if I just want to talk?”

“Then I’ll listen to everything you have to say,” I promised, guiding her expertly into my room and nudging the door closed with my boot. I drew my teeth across her bottom lip, loving the way she quivered in response. Her eyes practically burned into mine as I whispered, “What’ll it be, mate?”