Doc purses his lips and his gaze darts to Luke. “The humans never actually seeing him shift is a good thing, but the fact that he never tried to shift concerns me.”
“Why?” asks Luke, his hold on my waist tightening again.
“There aren’t many circumstances under which a shifter wouldn’t think to even attempt a shift when facing danger.” He glances at me, then back to Luke. “Given his earlier reaction to you being an Alpha, I think an Alpha command might explain why he was stuck as a wolf.”
Luke tenses. “Are you suggesting an Alpha commanded him to shift into a wolf and be docile for the humans?”
“Not exactly,” replies Doc. “I'm merely saying that a command may have been what caused him to shift in the first place and, if there was enough power behind it, that command held until another Alpha—youwere able to counteract it.”
“No,” says Luke. “I’ve never heard of an Alpha command lasting that long.”
Doc shrugs. “Some of Zachariah’s commands could last weeks if he did them right.”
“Wait. Are you telling me that Zachariah was able to keep an entire pack in line using Alpha command?”
Doc makes a seesaw motion with his hand. “Not quite. He could command basic obedience from everyone for over a month as long as he kept it simple and he could control individuals or small groups more precisely, but only over shorter periods of time.”
“Is that your excuse for what you did to Keir?” asks Luke, his voice cold and hard. “That your brother was controlling you?”
“No,” says Doc, his gaze darting to the floor. “I have no excuse for that and I’m not saying Zachariah was controlling me. Well, not in the way you think.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“I'm not sure how familiar you are with the actual science behind Alpha command, but it tends to work better on people who… might not think for themselves much anyway,” he says. “Small minds take less effort and are more susceptible to command. Zachariah couldn't control me, but he could controlthose around me. He treated me more like a useful prisoner than his brother.” His gaze moves to me. “Shifters in wolf form are also more susceptible to command. It might be one of the reasons the humans kept you drugged, to be sure the command stayed in place.” He shrugs. “I could very well be wrong about the human’s motives, but I think the Alpha command aspect is something to consider.”
“I guess you have a point,” says Luke. He sighs and pulls me closer so my back is resting against his chest. “But we don’t need to figure it all out tonight. I think we should try to get some rest and then we can plan our next steps in the morning. It's been a long day.” He rubs his cheek over my hair. “For all of us.”
Thirteen
Omega
After wishing everyone agood night, Luke and I head back upstairs and crawl into bed, not even bothering to get undressed. Luke curls around my back, tucking me against his chest. He’s warm. And he smells good. And… for the moment, I let myself revel in nothing else but the connection between us.
The situation might be a little—okay,a lot—weird, but I can’t complain when it led me to the handsome alpha fated to be mine. There are plenty of things we still need to figure out, but that’s a problem for tomorrow.
So, cocooned in warmth and the scent of mate and home and safety, I drift off to sleep.
For the first time in I'm not sure how long, my dreams are clear, or at least intelligible, my human mind more easily ableto process and understand the images playing through my head. Faces without names pop in and out along with places I don't recognize, but instinctively know somehow.
A cabin in the woods.
A dining room filled with people.
An expansive view from the top of a mountain overlook.
Two more faces flicker by in quick succession, both male, one of them creating a pit of anxiety in my stomach. I don't know who they are, but the feeling of one of them is definitely off.
Next, there's a woman's pale face wearing a sad smile as she lies in a bed.
I know her.
Sort of.
She’s… someone important.
I reach out to her, my hand small and dirty, and she grasps my fingers and pulls me forward, urging me to crawl up on the bed with her. I'm much smaller than I am now, small enough to curl up next to her and barely take up any room.
My heart hurts with an aching loss I don't understand as she tucks me under her arm and sings a soft lullaby, the tune eerily familiar and the lyrics a memory hovering just out of reach.
