Page 19 of Cruel Alpha Beast (Roseville Alphas #1)

As I lead the others to the new meeting place, the sun is still breaking through the sky.

One of the twins is sitting on the edge of the lake with a backpack at her side, playing with her messy hair.

Peering out at us from behind the swarm of cat-o’-nine-tails is the other.

And judging by the green bulb of light she has floating in her hand, the second one is Danielle.

Neither looks like they have slept all night.

I shift back into a human, inspiring the other alphas and Greg to do the same. Monroe looks over her shoulder to the woods behind them while Danielle eyes each of us individually. I can see in her eyes that she’s uncomfortable, but she still greets me with a polite nod.

“Glad to see you two are alright,” I tell them honestly. “Now, what happened last night? And what can we do to help?”

Danielle swallows hard, but before she can answer, Monroe rises from her seat and points at the forest, her lips parted in a small circle.

Just then, I hear the sounds of footsteps on the earth.

A small figure comes through, and I don’t recognize her at first. The woman’s face and body are covered in bruises and cuts.

If it weren’t for her strawberry blonde hair and the self-satisfied grin on her face, I may not have figured out it was Violet.

Sensing Ellis, Jasper, and Greg’s confusion, I reach behind me and hold out a hand, silently telling them to just stay quiet for now.

Violet’s devious eyes drift from each of us men to Monroe’s, before finally landing on Danielle’s. “Ladies, ladies, ladies…” she purrs. “What are you doing here with these filthy mongrels?”

Jasper growls in his throat, causing Violet to throw him a wicked glance.

“Oh, someone should swat that little pup with a rolled-up newspaper,” she says, tutting and shaking her head. “That could be arranged very quickly if you don’t behave .”

I turn my head, throwing Jasper a warning glance. I hope he can read in my eyes just how dangerous this woman really is.

“I think the more important question is, why are you here?” Danielle asks, her voice only quavering a little. She’s scared, but it’s clear she’s trying to keep Violet’s attention on her and only her.

The respect I have for her grows exponentially.

“Oh, I just came to warn my favorite twins,” Violet says in a sickeningly sweet voice, stepping closer to the sisters. “You see, things are going to change very soon, for the better. For all of us. But all you need to do is stop contacting these fleabags. And stop trusting that old bat, Penelope.”

Monroe rises swiftly, as if someone flipped her switch on right then and there. “There isn’t a single person I would trust over Penelope. Least of all, you .”

“And who do you think you’re talking to?” Violet’s eyes and nostrils flare. “If I were like you, and I couldn’t do magic— heh , well, I probably would have walked into this river with rocks in my pockets, but that’s beside the point.”

Violet steps closer to Monroe, creating another fireball in her hands, tossing it up and down like a yo-yo as she circles the young woman. From what I’ve seen of Monroe, she isn’t as loud or sure of herself as her twin. But right here, right now, she stands tall. Brave in the face of danger.

“What I’m trying to say,” Violet continues, “is that I would worry about all of the things someone who has a problem with you could do.”

“I’m not scared of you,” Monroe tells her defiantly.

“Maybe you should be,” Violet says, levitating that ball of fire very close to Monroe’s face.

But before Monroe’s eyebrows can singe off, Danielle gestures with her hand in a way that looks like she’s waving someone over. Except instead of a person coming over, it’s a splash of water from the lake at our sides. The tiny little wave douses the fireball, leaving a tiny cloud of steam.

“Leave my sister alone, you crazy bitch,” Danielle says as calmly as she possibly can.

“You should use that water to clean your mouth out, Danielle,” Violet says venomously.

“And you should take a fucking hint,” Danielle counters. “I’m much more powerful than you could ever dream of being, so good luck with whatever scheme you’re concocting, Vi. Because I’ll bring you down myself if I have to.”

Fear flashes on Violet’s face for the briefest moment, and it’s like she becomes a different person. But then she becomes her awful self once more and throws her bruised and battered head backward, laughing up at the sunny sky.

“Oh, Dani, please ,” Violet says once the laughter subsides. “With Willow’s help, I’ll be the most powerful witch this forest has ever seen.”

With whose help?

I see Danielle’s brave face falter when she hears that name, too, and I realize that my ears are not deceiving me.

Violet casually examines her fingernails. “Of course, I’m still working on turning the rest of the coven against you two and Penelope—not that I’ll need the extra power. Just because it will be more fun to me to have the people who love you crush you like the bugs you three are.”

“Penelope raised you!” Monroe explodes. “And this is how you repay her?”

But Violet has already turned around and disappeared into the trees. Still, the second twin shakes in quiet rage. Danielle puts her arm around her protectively, then turns to us, as if she’s just remembering that we were there, watching it all.

“Where’s Lacey?” Danielle’s voice wavers.

“At home,” I tell her, “with Shea.”

“I wish she were here right now.” Danielle swallows hard, then meets all of our eyes. “Even with her, we’d still be outnumbered by all of you shifters. It’s, uh, it’s a little intimidating.”

“We all just saw you take that bitch down by yourself,” Ellis cuts in. “I think we should be the ones intimidated.”

I turn over my shoulder to him, surprised that he said something like that. It was the closest I’ve ever heard him compliment someone, especially a witch.

“Could you tell her to come?” Danielle asks. “I’d just really like to see her.”

As would I, I think to myself. “Yeah,” I say out loud. “Yeah, I’ll give her a call.”

Greg steps forward, offering the sisters a gentle smile. “So, you two are the twins I’ve heard so much about.”

“And you must be the Greg,” Danielle responds somewhat pleasantly.

“So, which one of you is which?”

I turn around and pull out my phone, calling Lacey’s number. She picks up on the second ring, and I’m so pleased to hear her sweet voice.

“Is everything alright?” she asks immediately.

“Hey,” I reply. “Yeah, Violet showed up and threatened Danielle and Monroe, but they held their own.”

“Oh, good.”

“I mean, Violet’s up to something, we just don’t know what yet,” I tell her.

“Do you think we’re any closer to figuring it out?” Lacey asks.

“I don’t know,” I say. “But she did mention someone helping her out.”

“Who?”

“That’s the thing. She said her name was… It’s Willow .”

There’s silence on the line. I want to hear Lacey’s voice again. It’s the only thing providing me with any happiness in this situation right now.

“Oh, that doesn’t sound good,” Lacey finally says.

“No, it doesn’t.” I sigh. “Anyway, the reason I called you is because the twins would feel a lot more comfortable if you were here right now.”

“I’d be there in a heartbeat, but I have Shea, and I don’t want to bring her into this mess any more than she already is,” Lacey points out.

“No, me either,” I say. “Well, why don’t you just drop Shea off with my dad?”

There’s more silence on the other end.

“Does Lucas even know he’s a grandfather?” she asks.

“Oh, shit,” I breathe out. “Well, he’s going to find out soon, then.”

“Alright,” Lacey says. “I’ll bring her, have the most awkward conversation of my life, then I’ll be right there, I guess.”

“Thank you,” I make sure to say.

“Bye, Sawyer,” she says before hanging up.

I tuck my phone back in the front pocket of my jeans and turn toward Danielle, who’s eyeing Ellis and Jasper icily. Monroe is standing there with her arms folded across her chest, only making eye contact with Greg, who seems to be the only one not intimidating either of them.

This is going to be fun, I think to myself. I really hope Lacey will get here soon.