Behind The Alpha Book 5 Deacon

JENNY/SELINE

“Say that again?” He's sitting on a table in sweatpants with his arms crossed.

“She can’t leave.” I repeat as I tell Deacon that Seline is stuck in me.

He leans forward. “Why not?” He side eyes me and arches a brow.

I start getting nervous, trying to find the words. I look around at the people cleaning and investigating around us. “Um…well…uh…” I sweat as my brows go up and glance quickly at him.

I slam a hand on my hip and kick a leg out. “Oh, for Pete’s sake. Let me tell him.” I furrow my brow.

“Seline?” He studies me.

“Yes.” I say with attitude.

He scratches his temple. “OK, this is just really weird, now.”

“Anyway, the reason I can’t leave Jenny is because she’s my sister.” I inform.

“Excuse me?” his brows go up.

“They’re twins.” Azriel joins us with his hands in his pockets.

“OK…How?” Deacon demands.

“One of the duties of the High Council of Sorcerers is to search out new talent. You know Samantha.” He motions to Deacon.

“Yeah.” Deacon nods.

“Jenny and Seline were born in the year 1720. Identical in every aspect, but one.” Azriel holds up a finger.

He raises his hand. “Jenny’s over 300?”

“No. She’s 24. She just grew in a different place?” Azriel states.

“Explain.” Deacon demands.

“I’m trying.” Azriels says.

Deacon arches a brow. “Ok. What’s different about them?”

“Magic.” Seline supplies. “I had it, Jenny didn’t.”

“Now, when finding these new Sorcerers, we must protect them at all costs from witches and other threats. They need to remain pure for the training to work. We were too late for Sam, but Selines life went swimmingly. Selines magic was pure art. The question was what do we do with Jenny. Having a regular shifter around is not something we can do. She was also in danger of being used to get to Seline. So we did what any responsible Sorcerer Council would do…We took her to the future and switched her with a pup born in this time and hid her.”

“Oh, yeah…Because that’s totally responsible…” Deacon stands in front of him and scowls. “What happen to the other pup?”

“Hmm…I don’t exactly recall, but I do know she was placed with a nice, loving family.” He smiles.

Deacon nods and looks down. He looks back up. “I don’t care how you do it, but you separate them. Now.”

“Deacon.” I interrupt.

“Jenn?”

I nod. “Seline is a prisoner here. She doesn’t deserve to be. She was only protecting the room from Euris. Yes, she opened it, but it was Euris who wanted to break the code. He became obsessed. When Seline tried to stand in his way, he turned Helos on her. It’s the reason she anchored her spirit to this room. If Euris gained control, she would be the last line of defense. She shouldn’t be punished for being brave.”

“Baby, I love that you want to help, but you can’t have two people in your head.” Deacon rubs my arms as he speaks softly.

“I do.” We turn to Jake who has his hand up.

“Two wolves are different than two humans, Jake. Your mind is yours all the time. Jenny can’t share hers.” Deacon corrects.

“It’s not much different. When these guys get chatty, I can’t hear myself think.” He points to his head and chuckles. “The point is, I worked it out, maybe Jenny can too.”

Deacon leans to me. “What are you going to do? Time share your brain? No!”

“Well, smart ass, the only other option is to find my anchor and set me free.” I fold my arms and arch a brow.

He leans back and points. “Seline.”

I nod.

He throws his hand up in the air and turns. “OK. Where’s this anchor? I can’t tell you two apart unless one of you is insulting me.” He glares.

“Dea?”

He sighs. “Baby, you gotta see how crazy this is.” He turns to me as my brows cinch up.

“But…She’s my sister. I just found her and I have to let her go?” I play with my fingers.

He walks up to me and holds my cheeks. He rests his forehead on mine. “She doesn’t belong here, baby.”

“Neither do I.” I hitch as tears well.

“I love you. So much. I don’t want to break your heart, but you have to let her go.” I whisper.

Azriel places a hand on my shoulder. “I’m afraid this time, I must agree. Seline has been trapped in this room for too long. Keeping her in your body would be even more detrimental to both of you. Set the poor dear free.”

Deacon smiles. “You’re strong and so fucking brave. You won’t go through this alone, I’m right here with you.” He stares into my eyes and wipes my tears away.

‘He’s right, Jenny. I want to be free. I don’t want to be bound to anyone or anything anymore. Let me go.’

My heart breaks more as I speak to my sister. ‘But...I just…I want you.’

‘I know. I’d love to stay, but not like this. We will meet again.’

‘You promise?’

‘I promise.’

I meet Deacons eyes, bite my top lip and nod. “Good girl.” He places his lips on my forehead. He hugs me tight as my heart shatters for the sister I will have to send to her resting place.

He pushes me back. “Seline…the anchor.”

I wipe my eyes. “Um…it’s my heart.”

He scrunches his brow. “Your heart.”

“Yes. I removed my heart and tied it to the library.”

“Why your own heart?”

“Two reasons…um…” I sniff and blink tears away. “One, an anchor needs your DNA and two, the more Euris pushed, the more I felt like giving in. I loved him so much, I knew if I didn’t feel anything, I wouldn’t fall for his manipulations. I cut it out and sealed it in crystal.” I look around. “The problem is I don’t remember where I put it. I wanted it to be hidden incase someone found it. I hid it too good I guess.”

“Well, let’s go find it.” He smiles.

****

DEACON

We gathered as many people as we could. Azriel and Windum tied magical beacons to everyone so they could be found and we dispersed to the belly of the beast with the warning of ‘Don’t touch anything.’

Don’t have to tell me twice. I don’t even want to see a card trick after this crap.

I enjoy the feeling of her electric warmth as I hold her hand down the halls.

“So what does this look like exactly?” I ask.

“A crystallized human heart.” Jenny informs.

“For real?” He glances at me. “Shit. I thought she was exaggerating. Damn.” I turn to her. “How did she live without a heart?”

“Greatest library of all time.” She smiles.

I rub my nape. “I guess you’re right. If you can’t find it here…”

“It doesn’t exist.” She smiles and kisses me. I melt into her and I jones for this to be over and be alone with her for an hour or ten.

We turn down a hall and my ear twitches. It’s muffled, but it sounds…

“You hear that?” I concentrate and slowly side step the doors. The gets a tiny bit louder.

“Deacon, what is it?” Jenny asks.

I cock my head to the wall.

Da-dum

Da-dum.

I raise my head and look at nothing as I try to pin point it.

I follow the wall. “No way…” I say quietly.

‘…Find my heart, Dea…’

My mind wanders to the dream I had of Jenny. I look back at her and smile. “I found it.”

Her face lights up and I break into a run. I slow down at door after door. The sound grows louder and louder.

Finally, it’s so loud I feel it in my heart. “Here! Here, here…” I tap the door excitedly. I try it and it’s locked. I slam my shoulder into it to try and break it.

“The key!” Jenny says and pulls it out of her pocket.

“Think it’ll work?” I ask.

“Doesn’t hurt to try.” She shrugs.

I run my hand down the back of her silky hair. “No, it doesn’t.” I’m beaming with pride for how much she’s changed. Going head first into a room she doesn’t know anything about is another huge step. So is sticking up for the ghost that’s living in her. My timid Jenny wouldn’t be keeping it so together if she hadn’t grown over the last 10 months. I don’t think I can fall anymore for her than I already am. I can’t wait to tell her either.

She sticks the key in the keyhole and turns it. The door pops open.

The heartbeat got stronger.

We both push the door open and both of our jaws drop.

It’s another library.

“You have got to be shitting me.” We both say at the same time. We look at each other and back at the room.

“Oh…uh…I wonder if all the rooms are like this.”

“Honestly, my brains exploded enough. Can we just get the heart and go home?” I half whine at her.

“OK.” She giggles.

I walk down the main aisle which is red. The walls are all white marble and outside the windows are dark and stormy despite the room being in the middle of the building.

I listen to the heart and follow it to a shelf. I lean my ear and yep, it’s here.

I grin at Jenny as I start tearing books off the shelf. She gets the idea and helps. Once clear, I take off the shelf. I rest my hand on it and the rhythmic pulse beats against my hand.

I look around and knock on the shelf. Hearing a hollow spot, I call my wolf. I pull back and drive my fist into the wood. Jenny yelps and jumps out of her skin. I look her and laugh.

“Ooo…You.” She scowls and slaps my arm.

“I’m sorry. I love making you jump.” I lean to her and kiss her.

Back to the task at hand.

I break more wood. Behind it is hole dug into the wall. I clear more wood and reach in the dark hole. It’s deep. I reach in all the way to my pit.

I furrow my brow. “I think…Yeah, I think I got it.”

I grab onto something round and hard. I pull it out slowly and the hole pulses red as my hand gets to the entrance.

I hold it in my hand and stare at it.

It’s a real human heart surrounded by clear, cut crystal. Truthfully, the way it glitters with the faint red light pulsing inside it, makes it beautiful. Gross…but beautiful.

Jenny lowers herself to it. “Oh yeah. I remember now.”

“Seline." I snap.

“Yes.”

“I’m getting better at that.” I grin.

She arches a brow and her face twists in confusion.

I motion for the door. “Come on.”

She shakes her head and we both run out of the second library.

We backtrack the way came. I have the heart tucked under my arm as we round a corner and enter the main hall to the first library.

“WE GOT IT!” I yell and hold it up as Azriel and the others turns to us.

“Excellent!” Azriel claps.

I slow down and hand it to him. He takes it and looks it over. “Seline…This is perfection! A perfect preservation spell.” He looks at her. “A+!”

Seline bows her head. “Thank you.”

I flick my head between the two them. “Alright, so, what do we do?”

Seline takes the heart. She puts it in her palm and places her other hand over it. Her eyes meet mine. They glass over as she forces a small smile. “Cherish her. Never break her trust. Protect her at all costs. More importantly…” Her chin quivers. “Love her with everything you have.”

I suck in a breath and press my lips together. I close the gap between us. “I promise.”

She smiles more and I kiss her forehead. As I hold my lips to her skin, I hear her whisper words.

I pull back and look down. Light grows between her fingers.

I look into her eyes. “Good bye.”

“Good bye.” She looks down and the light from the heart increases.

Her face turns to pain and she starts to whine.

“Jenn?” I hold onto her.

“Deacon…” Her body’s shaking as she falls to her knees.

I catch her under her arms and fall with her. “Jennifer?!” I try to see her face as she winces and shakes

The heart in her hands starts to crack and chunks of crystal fall to the floor, freeing the fleshy organ. The heart itself, starts to slice open and light is forced out the tears.

Jenny’s arms are shaking. “Deacon!!” she yells.

The room starts to spin and I hang onto her.

The heart tears more until its consumed by light in her hands.

Like they were shoved, her hands slam into her chest.

I’m holding on as she glows so bright I can’t see.

“DEACON!!” Her arms and head shoot back as a thick beam of crystal light shoots from her heart straight up to the roof of the library.

“JENNY!!” I grit as I hold her under her arms. I feel like a force is trying to pry us apart and I’m fighting it with everything I have. I will die before I let go!

She screams as the beam sends balls of white light into the ceiling. Each one explodes on contact and spreads like water across the painted tiles. One after another, the balls ride the beam like a Roman candle firework. Jenny’s body pulses with every shot out of her heart.

I scream and hold her as tight as I can, the beam is sucked back in and the room goes silent.

I raise my head and Jenny is limp in my hands. I watch as a cloud rises from her chest. It gathers above us. I watch the white fog turn slowly above us.

‘Thank you.’ It whispers in a ghostly wind.

My eyes well as I see the form of Seline smiling at me. “You’re welcome.”

She looks to the Sorcerers and nods. Azriel clicks his dress shoes together and salutes. “Godspeed.” He says.

She spins around and around, rising higher and higher. She giggles as she meets the ceiling. The cloud hits it, spreads out across it and dissipates with her giggles fading to nothing.

I lower my head just as I feel hands on my arms. I scoop her head and raise it up. “Baby?”

“Dea?”

I pull her to my chest. “Hey.” I kiss her hair. “There you are.” I smile and hug her.

I pull her head back and cradle her in my hand. Her eyes are slits. “What happened?” She’s weak, but still with me and that's all I care about.

“I’ll tell you later. Right now, I just want to take in your stunning face.” I say softly.

“I can’t see.” She tries to lift her head.

I look up and look around. “Her glasses. She needs her glasses.”

Jake turns to a table. “We found these in the hall, they’re broken though.” He carries them to me.

Azriel takes them. “Let me.” He cups them and whispers words. Pink light fills his hands and then dies down. He puts them in his fingers. The cracked and missing lenses were fixed. I take them, open the arms and put them on her breathtaking eyes.

Her eyes open a little more. She smiles. “There you are.” She whispers.

I huff a laugh then I can’t contain myself. I pull her into me with a huge laugh and hug.

I promised Seline that Jenny would be my first priority always and I mean to keep that promise. When we clean this mess up and get back home, I’m telling her just that. I’m telling her everything. Jenny is mine. Not even the afterlife can take her away from me.

I scoop her up and she wraps her arms around my neck.

Bastian, River and Jayson were standing off to the side with Jake.

River looks to Bastian. “Yours was good. His was better.”

Bastian face falls. “Yeah…it is.”

Jayson leans to him. “Sucks, doesn’t it?”

“Yep. It does. It really does.” He presses his lips together and they all follow as I carry Jenny out the medics.