Page 50 of Ruthless Alpha Beast

“Anyway,” she says. “Would you like one?”

“Yes, please.”

She hands me a cookie and then bids me goodnight. She doesn’t ask me where I’m going.

“Thank you,” I tell her, “For the cookie.”

“That’s no problem, Tara,” she responds. “You’re part of the pack.”

Part of the pack.

That makes me feel good and a bit guilty at the same time.

I continue heading toward the library, which feels sort of like a safe haven now. I like the damp, musty smell thatgreets me as I go in. The sobering bright lights are comfortable in a strange way. It’s so silent in here, always more silent than outside.

I’ve always loved libraries, even back at my old home, but none of them compares to this.

The place ishuge, three stories with large winding staircases. Everything has been organized perfectly, with not one book out of place, and I’ve deduced that’s probably because no one in the pack uses this place too much.

Oh, andthe windows.Large and oval-shaped, showcasing the most beautiful views—especially at night.

I just love reading against the backdrop of blinking stars and a velvety blue night sky.

Sighing to myself, I head back over to the magic section and take a couple of books that I started last time I was here.

What fascinates me are the stories and fables often associated with these curses. Things are never straightforward; it’s never as simple as this is the curse and this is the solution. It’s always multilayered with metaphors and convoluted stories that you have to piece together in order to figure out what is going on and how to stop it.

I never knew magic was like this. I always thought you wave some wand, chant some spell, and something is either fixed or broken.

In reality, it’s much more interesting and complex.

I’m determined to somehow piece together the story of what the hell is going on this time.

I make myself comfortable and open up a book on ‘recurring curses.’

The writing is tiny, so I have toreallyfocus. It is convoluted at first, and there are sections filled with language I don’t properly understand, but I push through. After a little while, things begin to make sense.

Soon, the outside world fades away, and I’m hooked.

***

Against my head it’s hard, and down my neck there’s a shooting pain. My vision is black.

Before I know it, two large arms are holding me, lifting me up off the hard surface.

Where am I?

I was just dreaming about something. What was it? I was dreaming about something related to witches, spells, and curses.

But I’m not there anymore.

I’m somewhere dark and relatively cold.

Now I’m being carried, I can feel the weight of a hard chest beneath my head.

My body finally registers that I’m in the arms of a man and produces enough panic for me to open my eyes.

I see the library, then biceps, then chest.