Behind The Alpha Book 5 Deacon

DEACON

I sit on the edge of the foundation, my legs dangling into the hole where my dumbass left my girl.

I shouldn’t have fucking left her. I vowed to protect her and I didn’t. I felt this coming. I should have taken her with me. What the hell would compel me to leave her after saying I wasn’t taking my eyes off her.

I throw the chunk of concrete into the lake that’s settled in the basement after they turned the water and gas off. Maybe I was scared of her. She looked like Jenny, but it was like it something was…in Jenny. Controlling her in some way.

“Deacon.”

I turn to the voice behind me. “Azriel.” I pull my legs up and jump to my feet. Brushing my hands off, I extend a hand. He takes it in a shake.

He pushes past me. “There was a building here.” He says as he runs his hand though his brown, blonde streaked hair. He rubs his lightly pointed goatee as he analyzes the situation.

I cross my arms and squint my eyes. “Yeah there was. You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?”

He searches the pockets of his loud, purple, checkered suit. He glances at me quick. “No. Why would I?” His pompous attitude makes me even more irritated.

“Call it a gut feeling.” I grit. I know he knows what’s going on.

He pulls out a small magnifying glass, blows on it and cleans it on his suit jacket. “My dear boy…” He lifts it to the sky and looks into it. “Whatever you think in that fantastical brain of yours, I assure you, I had no involvement in this.” He turns and arches a brow.

I look to the glass. “What’s that for?”

He cups it in his hands and whispers words into his fingers. Gold light shoots from the cracks then dies down. He releases the glass and walks to the edge. “Investigation, my dear Watson.”

He places it to his eye and extends his foot out.

“AZ...” I start.

“Shush!” He barks. He places his foot down and instead of falling, it stops in the air like he’s on the floor of the store.

My eyes widen as this guy walks around on fucking air.

“Oh my. There’s quite the mess in here, isn’t there?” He says as his movements indicate that he’s looking around at the destruction I saw.

I walk to the edge. “You can see it.”

He turns to me. His one eye is grossly enlarged by the glass. “You’re observant, aren’t you?”

I narrow my eyes at his snarkiness.

“Be quiet.” He warns and continues his search.

He walks to the back of the foundation. Oh, ho…What’s this?” He makes a motion like he’s opening a door as he steps off the air onto the foundation wall. He’s looking up and all around. “I can’t believe it.”

“What? What can’t you believe?” I say loud to him.

“She found it.” He says as he walks around. “It’s really big in here!”

“What did she find?!” I growl.

He looks at me again. “I said, Shush! You’ll break my concentration, you irritating Alpha!”

I flare my nostrils and slam my hands on my hips. I look up and down the street as I try to push down the urge to snap the clown in two.

He takes a few more steps. “Uh…Damn.” His arm flops as his side and his shoulders slump.

“What? What is it?” A wave of concern crushes my chest.

He squats down, looks like he picks something up in his fingertips, raises it to a small height and lets the invisible thing go. He rests his arm on his knees and sighs. “Cedric. I knew him well.” He looks around and stands.

“OK. Who’s Cedric?” I ask.

He pockets the glass and walks with determination across the air back to me as he searches his pockets.

He stands in front of me. “Nobody that you need to be concerned with.” He pulls out a hand full of baggies. “Hold these.”

I hold out my hands and he dumps them into my palms. I inspect them and scrunch my brow. “Is that green?”

He glances at me. “It’s personal. I have a magic license for it.” He goes back to searching. He pulls out papers and a wand and some other weird things that look like the toys you get in a kids fun bag.

“You do birthday parties, don’t you?” I smirk.

He looks at me with seriousness. “On occasion. They’re…enlightening.”

My brow goes up as I think this guy has got to be certifiably insane.

He pats himself down. “Where is it?” He pats his ass. “Ah. There.” He pulls out his cell phone.

I look at him like he’s nuts. “Really?”

He smirks. “It’s always in the last place you look. Now…”

“I know, shush.” I grumble.

“Thank you.” He bows his head.

He walks around the sidewalk as he waits for an answer. He stops. “Catherine…Yes, yes…I’m fine…Oh, good.” He sings. “Listen…that thing we lost…I may have found it.” He walks around more as he answers with hem's and ah's. I can’t hear the other side even with my wolf hearing.

He stops and turns to the foundation. “Yes, well, that may prove to be difficult…We…lost it again.” He juts his head back and removes the phone from his ear. He puts it back. “Don’t shout at me, it was the Alphas fault.”

“What?!” I glare at him and some of his stuff falls onto the sidewalk.

He shakes his hand at me and presses his finger to his lips, waving me off.

My wolf growls dark in my chest.

“It’s on the move so keep an eye out…Yes…I will…I won’t…Do not tell Windum I told you…No, Catherine…I will deal with him when I’m ready…Goodbye.” He hangs up and looks at me like I have something on my face. “What are you waiting for? Get in the car.”

I look down and my arms are cradling air. I jut my chin out and flop my arms down. I shoot daggers at him for making me look like an idiot.

“Chop, chop.” He opens the passenger door.

I take a deep breathe. I better get some answers here or he’ll be in so many pieces, that they won’t be able to bring him back.

****

Azriel bursts into the council room with me behind him.

“Alphas! Your full attention…if you please.” He talks over the grumbling of the Phoenix Council as he walks to the table, pulls out a chair and sits with poise.

I pull out a chair next to him and sit in my utter frustration because I can’t stand this guy and he refused to answer any of my questions while he was teleporting me and my car through a portal. He better take me back because I’m not driving the days drive in my mustang.

Owen stands at the podium. “OK Azriel, this better be good.” I can tell Owen has very little patience for Azriel too.

Azriel adjusts himself and fixes his suit jacket. “As you know, we were put in charge of the blade known as the Reaper…”

“Yes, you put it in the library.” Owen adds.

“Correct. Then two years ago that library went missing. How, we have yet to determine. Alpha Riley seems to have found it.” He motions to me.

I can only furrow my brow at him. He could have told me the fucking room was the library.

“Finally, some good news.” Jake says.

“No…It’s really not.” I sneer, lean back and cross my arms.

“Yes. It seems a girl is now trapped with the room and…they’re both missing.”

The room erupted in questions and grumbles.

“What do you mean?”

“What girl?”

“Where did it go?”

Owen put up his hands. “OK! Order!”

Azriel talks over the Alphas. “The Reaper is still safe. The library appears to have taken a building with its last teleport and should be quite easy to find.”

“She better be ok, Azriel.” I growl.

“I’m sure she is. As long as she stays with the building, she’ll be fine.” He reassures.

I turn my chair and lean to him. “If she doesn’t?”

He chuckles nervously. “I’m certainly…she shouldn’t have a need…”

I glare at him. “What aren’t you saying?”

He looks at the other Alphas and back to me. He begins to talk when the council doors fly open.

“Not another word, Azriel.”

We all turn to an old man in a blue pin stripe suit. He’s wearing dark glasses and his graying hair is slicked back. He runs a hand down his thick, short, white beard. He rips his glasses off revealing a hard old face with white eyebrows. The guy looks 70, but has the body of a 20 year old.

Azriel stands. “Windum.” He bows as he checks his suit.

“What’s the meaning of this? Where the hell is the guards to this building?” Owen looks to Jake.

A young man steps forward. “They’re taking a much needed break.” He smirks.

“Euris.” Azriel cocks a brow.

“Az. Nice to see you after all this time. We have some questions for you.” He gives Azriel a smart, conceited look.

“I imagine you do.” Azriel grits.

“Answer my question.” Owen says.

Windum steps to the table. “We are the keepers of the library. Starting this minute, the investigation belongs to us.”

“No! No way!” I stand. “My girlfriend is in that building…”

“SIT DOWN!” Windum raises a finger and I feel a pressure pushing me into my seat. I try to fight it, but it’s too strong. I slam in my seat and my hands ball into fists. I shoot daggers at him.

Azriel leans to me. “Don’t test him.” He whispers in my ear and I turn to meet his eyes. He nods and I reluctantly nod back.

Jake stands. “You don’t have a right to push this council around. Who do you think you are?”

“I, dear Prince, am Windum Cornelius the fifth. High Chancellor to the Sorcerers Council and, if memory serves, higher than you.”

Jake leans on the table. “No one’s higher than Zander.”

“Assure you boy, Zander bends to my will or I’ll turn him into the jackass he is.” He arches a brow.

Jake sits back down and pulls out his phone. He turns his chair as he dials.

“Aren’t you a High Sorcerer?” I lean to Azriel.

He clears his throat. “I am. He’s…He’s kind of my boss.”

I shoot him a look and he ticks his head.

“Chancellor, if I may…” Azriel stands.

“No, you may not. What I want is everything you have on the library and to turn yourself in for insubordination to the council duties of wizardry.” Windum stands tall with his hands behind his back.

“I’ll do no such thing! Eternity was as much a problem for us as it was for them. It was our duty to this planet to fight back!” Azriel protests.

“And by doing so, one of our brothers is missing, another is lost in some mirror world.” Windum barks.

“Reggie isn’t lost. He just finds the mushrooms better on that side of reality.” Azriel informs.

“Be that as it may. We have not seen him since he got sucked into this circus and I’m enforcing Sorcerers code to correct this egregious mistake.” He juts his chin and puffs his chest out. “Now, information…if you please.”

“Zander…Hurry…” Jake hangs up the phone. “The High King is on his way here from London. He wants…a discussion.” Jake eyes him.

“Good. I have much to discuss with him. Tell him to meet me at my hotel when he arrives. This clown show ends now. Azriel.” He turns and Azriel rises.

“Don’t go with them.” I stop him.

“Thank you, but I do have a responsibility to my seat.” He removes my hand.

“But…Jenny…” I say.

He leans to me. “Don’t worry. I have a feeling she’ll turn up real soon.” He looks into my eyes and I nod. I get the feeling that if I can find the building before they do, I can get Jenny out.

He taps my shoulder and joins his fellow council. The three men and single lady leave.

“Thank you for your gracious hospitality. Good day. Continue on.” Windum says smugly and turns. He flicks his wrist and the doors close as he walks out.

“They all look like a box of fruit loops and we’re the clowns?” Ash growls.

We all turn to him as he huffs and settles on the wall.

“What do we do?” I ask Owen.

“Hunter. Put feelers out. A building can’t just show up without making some sort of noise.” Owen instructs.

“Right.” He picks up his tablet and presses the screen as he turns his chair.

“Jake. When Zander gets here, call Destiny. If the building is in the cosmos, we need to know about it.” He leans on the podium.

“Deacon. Was there anything special about the girl? Anything that would insinuate the room wanted her?” Owen asks.

“No. I mean, she’s special to me, but she’s not magical or anything.” I shake my head.

“So, if it’s not the girl, maybe it’s the building.” Peter suggests.

“It was the first apartment complex built in my pack. Maybe there’s something in it that we don’t know about. I could search the pack records.” I offer.

“Do that. Everyone else, be ready at a moments notice. At this point, anything can happen.” He nods and signals meeting adjourned.

I get up and rub my neck. My anger has now turned to worry. My baby is off floating in space or wherever the fuck a teleporting building goes and there’s nothing I can fucking do about it. I hate this and need to hit something hard.

Peter joins my side. “We'll find her.”

“I know I will.” I open the council door. “I’m just not sure what I’ll find when I do.” I glance at him before walking out.