“But what about after that? I passed your test. Why didn’t you tell me the truth then?”
“I was waiting for the right time, but then I got the call about my dad and…” His shoulders slump in defeat. “I didn’t handle it well.”
Something dawns on me. “Wait, earlier you said you had to take over the pack after your dad died. You’re the Alpha?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t be modest, Rett. He’s not just the Alpha of Crystal Lakes’s pack, he’s the youngest Alpha to be appointed and he’s got a seat on the supernatural council,” Huxley explains proudly. It’s obvious the two of them are close.
“Supernatural council? Like the town council?” I read about that in the welcome booklet.
Hux groans. “You really need to talk to Giles.” At my confused frown he continues, “He’ll give you a reading list that will cover everything you need to know about the supernatural community. Reading the welcome booklet was a good start, but there’s still so much you don’t know. You need to get caught up before you put your foot in it with the wrong person.”
“Is that why you were freaking out over me yelling at Garrett?”
“Yeah. You’re lucky the two of you are friends. If anyone else spoke to an Alpha, not to mention a council member, like that, they’d be in deep shit.”
“Oh.” I turn to Garrett. “Thanks, I guess? Although considering you left me thinking I was human for years, I think the scale’s still in my favour,” I joke.
He snorts. “There’s the Jared I know. So, what kind of demon are you? I still can’t tell.” His thick brows pinch together.
“Don’t worry, you’re not losing your touch—it’s because I’m still wearing this,” I explain, tugging the amulet out from beneath my shirt to show him.
“Damn, that explains so much.” He reaches for it, eyes full of curiosity flicking to meet mine, then asks, “Can I?”
“Sure, just don’t take it off.”
Gently, he gathers the pendant in his palm while leaving the chain securely around my neck. The moment the amber stone meets his skin, he inhales sharply. “Fuck,” he curses, yanking his hand back. “That’s some seriously powerful magic.” His greeneyes are wide with horror. “You’ve been wearing this your whole life? How are you even functioning?”
“What do you mean?” I look between him and Hux, lost.
Huxley’s lips press together in a firm line. “Look, we didn’t want to worry you?—”
“Just spit it out, please. I have had enough of secrets.”
“A dampener this strong can be dangerous when worn for an extended period of time. If you weren’t as powerful as you are… there could have been long term, even fatal consequences.”
“But my birth parents gave me this.” My heart sinks. “You’re saying they would have known this could kill me?”
“I’m sorry, Jared.”
“Is it safe for me to be wearing it now?”
“Since there have been no adverse effects on your health so far, at this point the benefits to you learning to control your powers while wearing the dampening amulet outweigh the risk of removing it too soon.”
“In other words—it hasn’t killed me yet, so a couple more weeks won’t hurt?”
“Essentially, yes.”
“OK. Whatever reasons my birth parents had for giving me this, I have to believe they thought they were doing the right thing. Because of the dampener, I ended up with two human parents who loved me.” I look to Garrett. “Without the amulet, I wouldn’t have been adopted by them, right?”
“No, you’d have gone into the supernatural child welfare system. Supes have a harder time conceiving than humans—experts think it’s linked to our longer lifespans—so chances are high you would have still been adopted, but not by your human parents, no.”
“Then it all worked out for the best.” I wouldn’t trade the happy years with my adoptive parents for anything, not even learning the truth about my demon heritage sooner.
Tired of the heavy stuff, I change the subject. “So, how did you two meet?”
Hux and Garrett spend the rest of the evening filling me in on how they became friends. Rett tells me what it’s like being pack Alpha, and Hux even hints at what drove him to move to a sanctuary town. The conversation leaves me feeling lighter than I have in an age. Worrying about Garrett had become second-nature to me. Now that weight’s been lifted I can give myself permission to settle in and start enjoying my new life here.
