Fat-Free Alpha by Angelique Voisen Page B

resurfaced. So did old ghosts and old
pains.
    The weight of the past seemed to
rattle at the door he’d slammed shut ages ago. All it took was hearing Reed’s
name. Damn. Don was right. The Beta knew just hearing Reed’s name would fuck
him up.
    “What about Reed?”
    Don looked taken aback by his
marked changed in speech. The last thing his childhood friend probably expected
was the deadly calm in his voice. Weariness then crept into Don’s gaze.
    “Carlos, promise me you’ll look at
the situation with a clear and logical mind.” Don winced when his hands blurred
and closed on his wrist.
    Carlos leaned in close to say his
next words.
    “The last thing I am today is your
friend, Don. I’m your Alpha, and I make all the decisions in the pack.”  
    He wrung out just a bit of pack
magic to place emphasis and command on his words. Don let out a sound. The Beta
tried to fight against the command, but he couldn’t. Not every werewolf could
be an Alpha because not many wolves could use and manipulate the werewolf magic
that made up the metaphysical heart of every pack.
    “Reed is the representative sent by
the Starr Mountain Pack to negotiate. Apparently, he’s been working as Jax’s
second for the past few years.”
    Shocked into silence, Carlos could
only numbly let go of Don.
    The New Haven Pack was his life and
home. He’d spent countless years shaping and making it his, strengthening it
and ensuring it so every wolf who came to his door felt welcome. Carlos would
defend and protect his pack from the encroaching enemy pack even at the cost of
his own life.
    For the better part of the year,
the Starr Mountain Pack had been interfering with the affairs of his pack,
claiming it was his pack stealing and poaching their wolves. Carlos couldn’t
understand what the fuck they were talking about, because the wolves who came over to his pack all came over willingly when they
found their mates.
    “Alpha,” Don began quietly. “The
Starr Mountain Pack is one of the largest and most powerful pack in the Quad Cities.”
    “You don’t have to fucking remind me,” Carlos snapped at him.
    Don flinched, and he instantly
regretted his hasty outburst. His friend deserved better. Hell, they might not
be related by blood, but Carlos couldn’t wish for a better brother.
    “Sorry ‘bout that.” Carlos let out
a breath and reined in his anger.
    He’d reserved and let out his anger
on more deserving outlets, like tearing Reed to shreds.
    “Jax wants to goad you, Carlos. He
sent Reed for a reason.”
    “Yeah, I know. That bastard Alpha
never plays fair.” Carlos clenched his jaw, remembering how Jax Starr played
dirty on more than one occasion.
    Sending spies to his town was just
the tip of the iceberg. Jax shredded every bit of his honor when he hired the
ex-mate of one Carlos’s wolves to shake up chaos in his pack. Carlos also
suspected the bastard subtlety, but happily, steered a serial killer into his
town. What a fucking mess that had been, but at least each of Jax’s plans had
backfired.
    “I also want to remind you that
each time Jax tried to shake us, we only come back stronger. Because of him,
more of our wolves found our mates, including me,” Don pointed out.
    Carlos knew what he meant. He’d
seen firsthand how more and more of his wolves were finding their fated mates,
and in doing so, strengthened their pack bonds. Don also found his mate during
Jax’s little games, and Carlos couldn’t be anything but happy for his friend.
    “He’s a fucking coward. He can’t
even meet me face-to-face,” Carlos spat, disgusted.
    Even though he never met the other
Alpha, Carlos didn’t just disapprove of his methods, he’d wanted to kill Jax
Starr the instant the coward set foot on his land. The wolves Jax claimed
Carlos poached weren’t exactly in the best condition when they wandered into
New Haven.
    The pack bonds surrounding them felt
tainted and broken. It took a while for those wolves to finally have