The Pack's Alpha (by Cooper) novel Chapter 48

Wendy

“Yorick…” I begin.

“I will have words with Hacker. I know you’ve been working with him. Is he Alpha Lane?” he asks me.

I shake my head. “That’s Hijack.”

“Why were you on the phone with him?”

“He was prepping me for this meeting. He used my computer, so he’d have a trail to follow. He told me he made sure there was nothing illegal on it, so I didn’t have to worry,” I say.

He turns and looks at Hijack. He’s talking with Henry.

“No more secrets, Wendy. You’re underage. I’m proud of you for getting early acceptance to the Academy, but the Tech Team are NOT to take liberties with you.”

“They haven’t, Yorick. I swear. I worked with Tracker too. They’ve all been wonderful. I promise,” I tell him. “Please don’t tell Dad. He may not let me keep in contact with the Tech Team if he does and I KNOW Connor won’t. He’s already wondering who Alpha Lane is. Please Yorick,” I plead.

Yorick is still glaring in the direction of the Tech Team. When I look, I see Hacker watching us.

Finally, Yorick turns and looks at me. “I’ll talk to Hacker. If he agrees with what I have to say, fine. If not, I’m telling Dad.”

I glance at Hacker, hoping he can see that I need him to get this right, before I nod at Yorick.

“If you don’t say anything to Dad and Connor, I could be part of the team that helps you get Cyra out of her alliance agreement,” I say, pulling out my ace card.

He immediately turns to look at me. “What do you know?”

“Hijack is following the money. He has some ideas. I’m not exactly sure what that means, but he’s letting me watch so I can learn. Please Yorick. This is important to me. You wanted me distracted from Henry and I am. Let me have this. It’s good for me,” I say.

“Replacing one obsession with another, or two others, isn’t exactly what I meant, Wen,” he says.

“I feel like I’m finding my way, Yorrie. You know as well as I do that it’s important to have a plan for your life.”

“What if Henry is your mate, Wen?” he asks.

“Then, I talk to him about giving me the year that I want to complete my education.”

He shakes his head. “Tracker is a second year. Hacker and Hijack are third years, Wendy. This isn’t a year-long commitment and Henry wants a Luna in his pack. You need to think through things, long and hard, about what you want and if this really is going to be the direction you want to go in,” he says.

I look at Henry, who is having a very intense-looking conversation with Hijack. Almost as if he feels my eyes on him, he turns and looks at me. I give him a smile, but it feels like my future lies in another direction. I would have loved being Henry’s mate before Yorick asked for my help. I couldn’t care less about the age difference between us. But now, I feel like I can find my purpose in life and maybe that purpose is more than being someone’s Luna.

“I know what I want, Yorrie, and what I want is different than what I wanted a month or so ago. I will always love Henry. We all do. But now… now I think my path lies elsewhere.”

“Elsewhere with Hacker you mean?” he asks.

“If by Hacker you mean the Tech Team, then yes. But I feel like this is my calling, Yorrie. I was made for this. I was made to work for the Council, to find bad people and help bring them to justice. Being a part of the group of people that does that is exciting. Being part of the elite of the elite is REALLY exciting,” I say.

He looks at me a moment, then pulls me into a hug.

“I love you. I only want the best for you. If you promise me that you won’t keep secrets from me, I won’t say anything. But do NOT keep any secrets from me. If I hear that Sphinx is working on a project and I ask you about it, I better hear that you’re working on it. Got it?”

“Got it. Thanks, Yorrie,” I say, hugging him tightly.

“You’re welcome. Now, get with your team and figure out how to get my mate out of her alliance bond,” he says before releasing me.

“I promise.”

He turns and heads over to Cyra. I look at Hacker and he gives me a wink. I give him a look, trying to warn him that Yorick is going to talk to him. He holds up his phone and I pull mine out of my pocket.

Hacker: You know I’m hacked into your phone, right? I heard everything.

Henry POV

“I’d like a word … Alpha Lane,” I say to the man who is called Hijack. What the fuck kind of name is that, anyway?

He turns and looks at me, not at all surprised that I recognized his voice from our call the other day.

“Alpha Henry, what can I do for you?”

“I want to know what your intentions are with Wendy. She is a minor. She is under the protection of her brother’s pack, her brother-in-law’s pack, and my pack. Starting something with her at this point in time would be unwise,” I tell him, making sure I’m clear in my threat that if he hurts Wendy, we will destroy him.

“Alpha Wendy is a brilliant young woman. She’s got great instincts and from what I’ve gathered, an intelligent mind as well as powerful skills on the sparring field,” he says. “I think the better question, Alpha, is what are your intentions with Wendy? She has a chance for a future, something other than being a Luna to your pack.”

I narrow my eyes at Alpha Lane. “You know nothing about me.”

“Don’t I? I know that you’re harboring a hope that Wendy is your mate. I know that you’ve been holding out hoping that she is. But what if she isn’t. Are you willing to let her give up her dreams so you can be mated to a Hill? I know your alliance is strong. Strong enough that you don’t need to be mated to one of the Hill daughters. But you want her, don’t you? It’s obvious in the way you look at her, the way you protect her. It’s obvious in your need to confront me here at the Council meeting. And before you try to deny it, I’ll remind you that I’m a possessive Alpha too, Alpha Henry.” 1

Fuck! He’s right. I have been holding out hope that Wendy is my mate. I’ve always felt protective of her, but ever since I saved her life in that battle against Jasper and Brogan on Quirin’s pack lands, I’ve felt much closer to her.

“Wendy should be able to find her fated mate,” I tell him.

“I agree. She shouldn’t limit herself and decide that if her fated mate isn’t who she thought that her only option is to take him as a chosen mate. Perhaps it’s time you broaden your horizons, Alpha Henry.

I turn and look at Wendy. He’s right. If she wants to come to the Academy, then being a Luna wouldn’t be enough for her. She could do both, but I wouldn’t want her leaving for long periods of time to complete some covert operation.

I turn back and look at Alpha Lane. “A lot will depend on what happens on her eighteenth birthday,” I say.

“It doesn’t have to. If you’re already mated by her birthday, then she’ll have no choice but to complete the Academy. For tech wizards like me and her, that takes years,” he says. 1

“We’ll see,” I say. But the seed has been planted. Maybe it really is time for me to go to my mother’s pack and look for a chosen mate.