The Falcon Ridge Series Book 3 If Looks Could Kill

(Chapter song ‘Daughters' by John Mayer)

ALEXI

I didn’t realize how exhausted I was. Sleep found me quickly and, of course, my mind began its usual attack.

I dreamed of my people running for their lives from the Alliance. I relived the hurt and the fear we had. I dreamt of facing my father as the Alliance killed us all. I yelled at him. I blamed him. He tried to tell me that it was me that failed. Not this time. I dreamt of walking away while the Alliance mowed him down in a hail of bullets. I dreamed of mourning, guilt and self-loathing then my dream changed.

****

I dreamed of my mother sitting on my bed as she combed my hair. I played with a doll as she brushed and twirled each curl.

‘Mummy.’

‘Yes, my beautiful princess.’

‘How will I know he's my prince?’

She leans over my shoulder, smiles then goes back to combing.

‘Alexi, it'll be wonderful. When the moon is high and full, and turns a secret shade of blue, your prince will come to you. He'll fall at your feet and profess his love with a bond no one in this world can break.’

‘Like Daddy?’

‘Yes…like Daddy.’

She turns me around to face her.

‘You'll feel so much. So much love and joy. This man will be so special to you and only you will know him. He will be strong. He'll protect you with his life. He will be devoted to you because he's made for only you.’

‘But how will I know it's him?’

I dance my doll in my lap.

She smiles as she cups my cheek.

‘Your heart will find him before you do. Your heart will guide you. Once you see his eyes, your heart will tell you.’

‘Did you like Daddy’s eyes?’

‘I did…very much.’

‘I bet my prince will be handsome.’ I giggle.

My mother giggles, too. ‘Of course, you're a princess. Now, off to bed with you.’

****

I wake with a start, looking around to see where I am and I feel a hand on my cheek. I look up and my eyes are met with soft hazel ones.

It takes me a minute to realize Luke's sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” He fixes my hair as my mind fully comes back to reality.

I sit up, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. "No. It's quite alright. I'm...." My eyes find his like always. I always get this little skip in the rhythm of my heartbeat when our eyes lock. I've never noticed how predominant it was until now.

"What?” He grins.

“Nothing." I smile and decide to change the subject. "Is there food? I'm starving."

He laughs. "Yeah, come on."

He takes my hand and leads me out of the room.

The house is a bustle of people in background, but no one is really around as we walk down the steps.

Luke leads me to what he calls the dining hall. It's another large room with a number of tables in them. Each one smartly decorated with white cloth and place settings. There’s a kitchen off to the side where Luke orders food then brings the plates over.

The steak, mashed potatoes and vegetables never smelt so good.

We dig in and eat in silence for a while then Luke wipes his mouth.

He leans an elbow on the table and clears his throat. "It's gonna take a bit for everyone to get used to you being here, so just stick with me when you're out of your room."

"Am I in danger here?” I arch a brow.

He sits back and shakes his head. "No. Not physically, anyway. I just don't want these guys flipping out on you. They won't do it if you're with me."

I slowly nod. I'm starting to feel uncomfortable again.

Again, like he senses it, he reaches across the table and grabs my hand. "Don't worry. You're safe here. I promise."

I nervously smile.

"After we eat, I have someone I want you to meet. He's very excited to see." Luke smiles.

“Really? Who?” My brows raise.

Who could possibly be excited to see me?

****

We stand outside a set of white double doors to a bedroom at the back of the house. I can sense a bit of sorrow from him as he places a finger to his lips saying I need to be quiet.

I nod and he slowly opens the door. As he does, I hear machines beeping and air pumping. My brows meet when I walk in behind him then step aside to see a sad image.

In the bed on the other side of the room, an old man, so beaten with age, lays in the bed. The bed I'm sure he fought and risked his life for building his pack.

Luke walks over to his bedside and checks the equipment keeping this man alive. It’s a heartbreaking sight, but I can’t help but be jealous that Luke has this. I never did for either of my parents. An opportunity to say goodbye is the one thing I will always feel robbed of.

I watch Luke sit beside the old man on the bed and lean down to him. He wakes the old man up. "Dad. Alexi's here." He whispers.

The man waves his hand in a weak form of excitement.

"Bring her." The old man struggles.

Luke looks at me and waves me over. I walk over with a smile on my lips as he stands up and sits me on the edge of the bed.

The man reaches blindly for my hand and I help him find it. I felt honored to hold the hand of someone who’s so special to Luke. The love in this room is clear.

His eyes find mine and he grins. He may be frail, but he has a handsome smile like Luke. "My son said you were beautiful, he never said you were gorgeous." He laughs, but it turns to coughs.

Luke immediately grabs a handkerchief. He helps his father calm himself and wipe his lips. He asks his father if he’s alright and his father gruffly waves him off.

"Thank you, um..." I look to Luke.

"Samuel." He supplies as he leans on the wall by the monitors and crosses his arms.

"Thank you, Samuel." I smile.

"So polite." Samuel looks at Luke who smiles and nods.

He pats my hand with his other hand. "Alexi. I know my son can be a handful. God knows, I've wanted to knock him out more than a few times." He chuckles and so do I.

I look at Luke who's watching our interaction. I see his eyes seem a bit glassy.

"He has love in his heart. He sees things in people that no one else will ever see. He knows a good person when he sees one and will have their back without question. My son sees something in you, Alexi. It's not dark or evil. Whatever he sees, he's willing to throw everything in." Samuel tries to grin, but it seems like that’s even a struggle for him.

I glance at Luke and he wipes an eye before looking to the floor. He's so vulnerable right now. I know the man speaks the truth. Luke has been nothing but honest this whole time and it seems whenever I'm at my lowest, Luke is always there to pick me up.

"My son cares for you, Alexi and I can see in your eyes. You care for him." He continues.

"Yes, I do." I smile as my own eyes start to sting.

He squeezes my hand like he’s making an extremely important point that I need to pay attention to. I put my other hand on his and listen.

He looks me directly in the eye. "My son may act tough, but he still needs help. You take care of him. He's going to need you, now" His voice quiets. “Be…with him…”

"I will, Samuel. I promise." I squeeze his hand again.

“I’m…sorry.” His voice quiets and the strength in his grip begins to fade.

My brows cinch as his eyes close and Luke pushes off the wall. "Samuel?”

“Dad?” Luke takes his fathers hand from me and tries to get Samuel to respond.

My fingers rise to my lips as I realize what's happened.

Alarms go off as his heart and breathing stops.

"Dad!! No! Damn it, Dad! Not yet! Please!" Luke bends over his father, checks his pulse then shakes him. “Dad!!” I hear his voice crack and see a tear fall.

My own tears fall as the bedroom door opens and medics rush in. They pull Luke aside.

“Dad…no…” He shakes his head and I get out of the way. I pull him back then place his head in my shoulder. Her wraps his arms around me and my heart breaks.

He softly cries and I cry with him as the medics work. Alarms are shut off and they check vitals. One medic looks to me and shakes his head no.

I squeeze my eyes closed and hold on to him while his father quietly passes away.

****

LUKE

We buried my father a few days later in a private family ceremony in the woods behind the pack house.

After the funeral, Bobby held a small press conference outside the house.

I told my people that my father passed away and that as their official Alpha, I promised to make their home safe.

After, I walk slowly up the stairs. I want to scream and punch things. I want to destroy and dismember, but I also just want to lay in Alexi's arms and cry. I'm not ready to be alone as a son. With my dad being so old, I felt I just didn't get enough time with him. Being a shifter, you take time for granted. Any one of us could still die at any moment. We forget that a lot.

Now that I’m Alpha and in charge of people's lives, they'll look to me for all the decisions. I’m terrified as fuck, but I said I wanted to make my Dad proud of me again. As scared as I am, I have to be strong.

But for me to do that, I want to feel safe. My wolf is bugging out and wanting to run. He wants to escape the pain. Before this, I would have run, now, I just want a safe place to feel it without being seen as a pussy.

Walk slowly down the hall to Alexi's room and open the door. She’s sitting on her bed reading a book. She looks so angelic in a white long skirt and blue crop sweater. Her hair is pulled back into a pile of messy curls.

She gives me a half smile and I feel my lip tremble. She closes her book and holds her arms out to me. Without saying a word, I ripped of my tie, took off my jacket and untucked my shirt.

I climbed into her arms and she laid us both down. I didn’t break down. I still fought it. But I rested my head on her chest and she stroked my hair as I listened to her heart. It’s so weird for me to want this. I’m so far from this mushy shit, but this… this is gold, man. I won’t lie. No ribs. No judgments. Just someone to help me through the pain in my chest.

Alexi gives me that. She gives me an outlet other than drinking and running.

If Alexi didn't have this in her, I'd probably be smashing up a bar right now. Her holding me like this is like a magic that keeps me calm. She's helping me process this. Even if she doesn't know it.

My dad was right. I am going to need Alexi now. Because now, she's my anchor. Alexi will be there to prevent me from losing my mind.

After a while, she broke the quiet. "Was it a nice service?"

I nod on her chest. "Yeah. My mom really went all out. There's a ton of people downstairs."

"Shouldn't you be with them?" Her fingernails twirl in my hair.

"No." I shake my head. "I want to be here. Feeling you near me."

"I wanted to be there for you. I want you know that. I never got to bury my father. Even though, my time with Samuel was just a minute, I want you to know that I’ll be anything you need during your time through this.” She mumbles.

I lift my head and rest my chin on her chest. "I'm sorry. I wanted you there, but it wasn't the time." I reach up and trace her jaw with my fingertip. “Thank you.”

"You're welcome." She traces the bridge of my nose with her finger. "I hope I can be the strength you need.”

My mouth ticks up. "You surprise me."

"I do?" Her brow goes up.

I nod. "Yeah. Here you are a bad ass, kick ass Dragon fighter, yet you're all sweet and soft."

She laughs a little. "You're not the only one with surprises, Alpha."

I sit up. "Hey. You wanna beer? I could really use a beer."

"Um... I don't drink much, but I'll take a tea." She smiles.

I arch a brow. "A tea? Seriously?"

"What?" She looks surprised.

"Can you be anymore cliché. Fancy talk. Asking for tea. We may have to fix that if you're going to be with me, baby." I tease.

She laughs, pushing us up into a sit. "Or, I teach you a thing or two about proper etiquette. Like not drinking before noon."

"Baby, that will never happen." I smile. "Let's go."

I probably should have thought this through, but I wasn't thinking really. Having Alexi among my family and friends, was probably the dumbest idea I had yet. But all I wanted was to have a drink with my girl and for a while it was fine.

Until it wasn’t.

"Is there a ladies room down here?" She asks.

"Uh. Yep... Down that hallway and turn right. Can't miss it." I supply.

She taps my chest and tells me she'll be right back.

I told her I'd order her tea for her.

With my beer almost gone, I realized she hadn't come back yet. So, I decide to go look for her.

I'm so glad I did.