Becoming Alpha (2 page)

He nodded.

I only had a second to think about how much fun using my visions for something useful would be before I hit the bottom stair and stopped.

This had to be a fire code violation.

A few people clogged the bottom of the stairwell that emptied into the living room. The party planner must’ve taken out some of the furniture to make room, but there was still not enough. There were people in every square foot available, and—except for the few actors who everyone would recognize—I didn’t actually know anyone.

Waiters dressed in black pants and white button downs made their way slowly through the room, offering up hors d’oeuvres or drinks, depending on what their silver platters held.
Speakers stood in the corners of the room, playing non-intrusive electronic music with a steady beat but I didn’t spot the DJ. He had to be set up outside by the pool.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and entered the madness. It wasn’t long before I heard Dad’s voice above the din. “There she is!”

So much for no one seeing us. I wanted to hit Axel. So I did.

Dad shook his head at me. “Come here, Tessa,” Dad mouthed. His blonde hair hid most of the gray that had started appearing a few years ago. I always wished I had his blue eyes, but got my mom’s brown ones instead. He was wearing a tailored navy suit, and I suddenly felt way underdressed.

I brushed against someone and their jealousy burned through my mind. I shook it off and focused in on Dad. He was watching my careful navigation through the crowd with worry. Dad knew about my “gift,” but chose to ignore it for the most part. Luckily Mom understood it more, most likely because my
abuela
had the same one. She always said it made it really hard to be a rebellious teenager when her mother could read her mind. I’d say actually having the abilities made it hard to be a teenager. Period.

Dad pulled me to his side, and I tucked close to him to avoid any touchy people. I got a few flashes from him, but thankfully nothing that drew me in.

“We’re so sad your dad’s leaving us,” said some lady in a super-tight dress. “What are you going to do in Texas?”

I shrugged. “Eat a lot of bar-b-que and go to school?”

She laughed and her fake boobs nearly popped out. I looked for my brother. He was flirting with some young girl who looked way too skinny. Must be an actress. “Help,” I mouthed as soon as I got his attention.

He made his way through the sea of people. I tuned the lady out as Axel grabbed my gloved hand. “Tess-aaah,” he practically shouted, drawing my short name into two long syllables. “There’s someone over here I want you to meet.”

Dad’s hand brushed my arm as Axel pulled me away.

Dad was talking to his boss, a silver-haired man in a slick suit. His tie was a little undone.

“Jesus, John. Are you serious?”

“I wish I was joking.” Dad sat heavily on the couch across the room from his boss. “I know I’m leaving soon, but this is a lawsuit waiting to happen. She’s a liability. You need to get rid of her.”

Whoa drama.

I nearly cracked up at the look on Dad’s face as he held onto my hand. He definitely didn’t want to be talking to this lady. I almost felt bad leaving him with her. Almost. “Oh, fantastic,” I said to Axel, my voice so thick with sarcasm that Dad laughed. “I can’t wait to meet this person.”

Before I could get away, tight dress lady smothered me with a hug. Her hand brushed the top of my arm.

I hadn’t been to Dad’s office in a while, but I recognized it—the wall of glass behind his desk with an amazing view of the city. She was in his chair. In black lace lingerie.

Dad walked into the room and she stood up.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Dad yelled as he spun around. “I’m giving you five minutes to get dressed and get out of my office. When I get back, you better be fucking gone.”

Axel tugged me away from her and the onslaught stopped. He brilliantly played it off as tripping, glancing at nothing on the hardwood floor and cursing. “I’m sooo sorry. Lost my balance there for a second. Must be something spilled here.” He didn’t give her a chance to say anything before he started walking away, towing me with him.

Holy shit. Did I just see what I thought I saw?

I spotted mom and pulled on Axel’s hand. When he turned, I motioned to her. She was already heading our way.

Mom was super cute with her short, wavy dark-brown hair, and looked ten years younger than she actually was thanks to her daily power yoga routine. A boldly printed Diane Von Furstenberg wrap dress showed off her curves, and got her quite a few stares from the male contingent as she walked through the crowd.

“You decided to come down on your own?” she said to me.

I raised an eyebrow. “Not likely.”

She smiled, and it wasn’t a totally happy one. “That’s what I thought. Thank you anyway. I know that your father will appreciate you making the effort.”

Before she could leave, I stopped her and leaned close. “That lady talking to Dad—the one that’s about to have a wardrobe malfunction—totally tried to come on to him. She’s thinking yucky things. Fifty shades of things…”

Mom laughed her big, booming laugh.

Not the reaction I was expecting from her. “Don’t worry though,” I whispered into her ear. “She hasn’t gotten anywhere with him.”

Mom sobered and stepped back to look at me. She seemed to realize something and then shook her head. “Of course she hasn’t. That’s one thing you don’t have to worry about. Your
father and I are one of the few who have a forever marriage. Your
abuela
made sure of it.” Growing up with my
abuela
made Mom able to block everything but what she wanted me to see. No one else I knew could do it. So when she reached out to cup my cheek, I relaxed my head into her hand and closed my eyes.

I was flooded with the twenty or so times that they’d said they loved each other today. She kissed my forehead, and I heard the echo from her mind that she loved me.

I opened my eyes and smiled. “Thanks. Love you too, Mom.”

She gave my cheek a couple of light pats before looking at my brother. “Be good, you two.”

Axel scoffed. “Are we ever not good?”

“Yes. Frequently.” With that, Mom slid back into her role as hostess.

“Let’s go before anyone else stops us,” Axel said.

We made our way to Dad’s office and locked the door. Thick law texts were haphazardly stacked in his now mostly empty shelves. Bankers boxes were piled high to the right of his large oaken desk. Two long file cabinets sat along the wall behind the desk. I had no idea where to even start to look for the St. Ailbe’s stuff.

“You find the file, and I’ll touch it.” I took off my right glove and stuffed it in the back pocket of my jeans. “I’m not touching anything I don’t need to.”

He dug through some drawers, and then started in on the Bankers boxes. My palms were sweating. The longer Axel took, the better chance there was that Dad would look for us, even if that was ridiculous when we had half of Hollywood in our house.

“Got it!” Axel stepped around the mess he’d made and handed me a folder.

I grabbed it and my father’s office disappeared.

An image flashed through my mind. Five red brick buildings in a circle, surrounded by forest. Teenagers. Students carrying books walking through the center of them. Wolves running through the forest around the buildings.

Why weren’t the students scared of the wolves? Were they tame? Or maybe they were just large dogs. Or maybe it was a farm school. A giant-sized, wolfish-dog farm school.

Wind blew against my face. The scent of the trees and dirt filled my every breath. I’d never had a vision so vivid before. Usually it was just one or two senses, but this was all of them.

Someone brushed past me, and before I could react, my vision shifted to a one-room cabin. It was nighttime now. The two men—one about my dad’s age, one maybe a few years older than me—were sitting at a table discussing something. No, they were arguing.

“Trusting some unknown outsider with—” The younger one stopped, and looked straight at me.

I froze. He couldn’t actually be looking at me, could he?

“We’re being watched.”

No way. This was impossible. When I touched something, I only saw echoes of the past that had imprinted in the object. There was no way I could actually interact with a vision.

I had to test it. I had to know if he could see me. “Hello?” My voice cracked.

The younger guy stood up. “There’s someone here. In this room.”

“Can you see them?” the other one said.

The younger guy shook his head.

Then how could he hear me? Or could he hear me? Maybe he could just sense me? But how? I was looking into the past, wasn’t I? There was no way I could’ve linked with whoever signed the papers. Because that would be way messed up.

The younger one continued to stare in my direction. The look he gave me made my pulse race; it was like he was seeing through my soul. His muscles strained against his black T-shirt as he stepped toward me. His inky black hair made his amber eyes seem brighter. Holy shit. He was way sexier than my favorite Scotsman.

“They’re not going away. They’re still here,” he said.

“Do you know who it is?”

“No. But it feels familiar. I don’t know, but whoever it is, it’s like I know them.” He ran his fingers through his short black hair. “That doesn’t make sense.”

No. It didn’t. I’d never seen that guy before. I would’ve remembered meeting someone that hot.

The older man turned to me and said something in a language that I couldn’t understand. And then it was like something shoved me out of the vision.

The next thing I knew, I was on the ground in my father’s office.

Holy shit. What the hell was that? My vision actually interacted with me. The people in it knew I was there. That could mean only one thing.

Axel leaned over me. “Are you okay?”

“I’m not sure.”

“What did you see?” he asked. “What’s the story?”

I swallowed. There was only one logical conclusion, but it seemed impossible. But Occam’s razor hadn’t failed me yet. The simplest explanation was usually the correct one. And if that were true, then holy shit. I connected with whoever signed the papers.

Out of all the visions I’d had in my nearly eighteen years, nothing like that had ever happened before.

Not only that, but the older guy pushed me out of my own vision.

Could there actually be more people out there like me? And if so, then how did I not realize this sooner?

There had to be something to draw Dad to his new job. If St. Ailbe’s was a school for the gifted, I wanted in. Maybe. Probably.

This was insane. I had to talk to Dad before I got my hopes up, but there was no chance of that happening tonight.

Axel was asking question after question, but I ignored him. I needed air. And fast. That sensory overload had blown my mind. Possibly literally. Well, not technically literally. But still, all rational thoughts had fled.

I hopped up and swung the door open.

“Wait. Let me pick up—”

I left Axel to clean up the mess he’d made in Dad’s office. I probably looked as crazed as I felt, since I somehow managed to get to the backyard without touching anyone.

Even with our decent-sized backyard, there wasn’t a spot to disappear into. The pool took up most of the space. The path around it was sprinkled with cocktail tables, and people were packed around them, mingling. A bar was set up in the back and drawing a sizable crowd. The bartender was making a rowdy group a bunch of chilled shots, and a DJ played off to the right of the pool while people danced in front of his table.

This was a disaster waiting to happen. I didn’t think I could make it to the stairs without bumping into someone, but there was no other option. It was worth the risk. Being alone right now was a must.

Before I could go back inside, a hand closed around my upper arm. Full-contact skin against skin.

Shit.

I slammed into a mind I was familiar with. The fact that he went out of his way to touch me when he knew what I was only made him that much creepier. Images of his fantasies flooded my mind. Sweaty bodies. Naked bodies. Ones he wanted to be with. Those he had been with. And to top it off—a few fantasies starring me.

Was it necessary for Axel to invite every asshole in his class to the party?

I wrenched my arm away and spun to face Caleb. If his visions didn’t already make me want to kick his ass, his skinny jeans and hipster smile did. Usually I’d just shake it off, but not tonight.

“What the hell is your problem!” I shoved him hard, and he stumbled back a few steps. “Do you really want me to see what goes on in your disgusting little mind? Do you think I want to see
when you and Jessica were banging in your backseat? Do you think it turns me on? Because it doesn’t.” I poked him in the chest with my gloved-finger. “And if you think that I’d ever consider—”

“Tessa!” Axel said as he stepped between us. I don’t know how long he’d been yelling my name, but from the silence in the backyard, I could tell it’d been at least a few times.

Shit. Why did DJs always lower the music for a fight? Didn’t they know that drawing attention to it made it worse?

I swallowed and looked around. And there was Mr. MacAvoy in the flesh, staring at me like I was a complete nut-job. Just perfect.

“Freaky Tessa is at it again. Bitch doesn’t—”

My brother spun. I didn’t have time to stop him before he punched Caleb in the face.

Caleb groaned as he fell to the ground.

“No one calls my sister a bitch, you—”

Dad appeared behind Axel and grabbed him before Axel could do any more damage to Caleb. “What the hell is going on out here?” He looked from my brother to me and then to Caleb, who was holding his hand against his face. It wasn’t the first time this had happened, but it was the first time it’d happened during one of my father’s parties.

I stared at the ground hard. “It was my fault.” I didn’t choke on the words, but they didn’t come out easily.

“Tessa?” Mom said. “Why don’t you go upstairs, honey?”