Corrigan Fire Bloodfire - Helen Harper Page 0,36

as to the import of ignoring my compulsion. I had to be sure though.

‘I am the Lord Alpha. I am everyone’s alpha.’ I sounded like a dictatorial tyrant with a rod shoved up his arse. Right now, however, I didn’t care. Come on Kitten, I silently added, if you want this job, then it’s yours. But you can have all the shit that goes with it too.

‘Hey, you’re new at this game, remember?’ The corner of her mouth quirked up. ‘It’s not my fault if you’ve not fully come into all your lordly power yet.’

I glared at her. She really didn’t get it. And the power created by being Lord Alpha didn’t expand over time. It was a static thing. Conflicting emotions flickered across her face as it suddenly struck me that perhaps Staines had been right. Had taking away Lola’s pain meant that I was temporarily weakened? It hadn’t lasted long; after all, I’d used the Voice to compel everyone else immediately before and after Mack’s show of defiance. With the power of her grief and her thirst for vengeance added into the mix… I pondered the idea. Either way, my opinion that she was potentially the strongest shifter I’d ever met was coalescing into something deeper.

As if continuing to defy me at every turn, she dropped her head into a submissive posture. What the hell was going on now?

‘I’m sorry, my Lord. My disappointment at realising this was not my alpha’s murderer along with the adrenaline from the fight has caused me to speak out of turn. I bow to your ultimate authority, in accordance with the Way.’

I wanted to shake her. Mack’s volte-face not only baffled me, it annoyed me more than I could have thought possible. A breeze rippled through the still air, sending goosebumps across my skin, and I abruptly remembered I was standing naked in front of her. Not only that, but I was supposed to be acting like the Lord Alpha. It wasn’t the over-complicated Way Directives that were concerning me, however. I gritted my teeth. ‘Your punishment shall be meted out in due course, shifter. Your role in taking down the beast is noted in your favour.’ I quickly walked away before she could say anything else. I was starting to think I didn’t have the self-restraint to continue any conversation with her. Besides, the woman was utterly confounding.

Wrestling for control of my emotions, I spotted Anton under the shadow of a huge oak tree and hailed him. ‘Do you know what this thing was?’

He seemed pleased that I was asking. ‘No, I’ve never seen anything like it before. Do you think it’s what killed John?’

I shook my head. ‘Unfortunately it appeared to rely more on its ability to make the ground shake than anything else. The evisceration your alpha experienced showed more,’ I struggled to find the right word, ‘finesse than that beast was capable of.’

He inclined his head. ‘You’re right, my Lord Alpha.’ A sly look came into his eyes. ‘Somehow Mack seemed to avoid your Voice order to hold back.’

I opened my mouth to offer some inane answer but, fortunately, Staines joined us and replied for me. ‘It’s not uncommon. Sometimes rage takes over, overpowering anything anyone else might do. Miss Mackenzie no doubt assumed her alpha’s murderer was present and was prepared to do whatever it took to bring him down.’

Anton snarled, a deep rumble that gave away his true nature as a werebear. ‘I’d have done the same if I was as reckless and stupid as her.’

I flicked Staines a glance. Is that true? That anger can block out the Voice?

He shrugged mentally. I’ve heard of it before. I imagine, my Lord, that you’re concerned she did to you what you did to Brady.

I flung everything I had at her, Staines. She didn’t even slow down.

She’s a mere werehamster. You’ve heard, no doubt, of those stories of women who find the strength to move cars off the bodies of loved ones in the wake of terrible car crashes? I imagine what she did is simply something similar. She’s not even Brethren. Don’t worry about it.

I grunted acknowledgment. She still requires close attention. I have no desire to cling on to the position of Lord Alpha if…

Please. It’s a ridiculous notion, my Lord Corrigan.

I threw him a look. You’re being overly obsequious all of a sudden.

His eyes narrowed in my direction. And you’re being overly paranoid.

Aware that Anton was regarding us both carefully, I cleared my throat and