MATED TO THE ALPHA AND HIS BETA - Season 5 Episode 37

Discovering that the High Council had lied to us all for decades about the existence of other supernaturals had been shocking. Learning that the world was also full of monsters just about laid me out flat. I still couldn’t believe it, not even after riding on the back of a giant freaking worm miles underground.

The Slitherkin weren’t really worms. Not snakes, either. They were something totally unique, a hive mind race that grew as big as blue whales but that somehow had managed to escape the eyes of the world. There weren’t even any rumors about them. No sightings.

“They’re not Bigfoot, Papa,” Stella said in a low voice as I leaned against the wall of the tunnel in which we’d be spending the night. She must have read my thoughts. She laughed and leaned against me. “The Slitherkin are real.”

“So long as they’ve decided we aren’t the enemy,” I told her. “Those things have massive teeth.”

“Sure, to bore through rock and dirt. Not to eat wolves.” She laughed again.

She sounded tired.

“We should get some rest. You hardly slept at all last night, and I know how hard it must have been to wrangle those things all day.” I nodded toward the empty end of the tunnel. The Slitherkin that had helped us were gone, at least for now.

Stella yawned, hiding her mouth behind her hand. “They have so many voices, speaking all at once. They’re easily distracted. And, they don’t like being so close to the surface, so we’re lucky they consented to taking us anywhere.”

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“It was fast, I’ll give them that.” Xander handed her the last half of a peanut butter sandwich.

“And safe from the High Council seeing us,” Lanie added.

The High Council had no idea the Slitherkin even existed. It seemed like a sweet irony. The creatures that helped us were hidden from the council by its own ignorance. If only they hadn’t been so determined to hide away and keep the real knowledge of the world hidden from us, they might have learned so much. Instead, they’d chosen to stagnate.

Unfortunately for us, the wriggly monsters weren’t able to take us all around the world. Their habit was relatively small, especially since they’d been avoiding the enclave for years. They’d been able to get us closer to the ocean, though. We had a few miles’ walk tomorrow on the surface, and then we’d be at the water.

From there, Stella had promised us a boat ride.

We weren’t going to build a fire in the tunnel. The smoke could easily collect against the stone walls and ceiling and end up suffocating us. Instead, we huddled into a group.

“At least it’s warm,” Lanie murmured, resting her head on my shoulder. “Okay, warm is an overstatement. It’s not freezing.”

I moved so I could put my arm around her, letting her rest on my chest. Xander and Mason were side by side with Xander next to me. They were discussing Alpha tactics in low tones. Stella leaned against her mother.

“Tell us what to expect, Stella.” Lanie’s voice sounded thick and syrupy with sleepiness. She yawned, which triggered one from me, and one by one, from everyone else.

Stella’s was the last to finish, and she let out a small yip at the end of it that made me chuckle. Xander had just yawned in exactly the same way. So had Mason. It must be an inherited family trait.

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“I’ve booked us passage on a small private yacht,” Stella began.

Lanie’s laugh interrupted her. “Why, out of all the things I’ve seen you do, is this the one I can hardly believe?”

“It was one of the hardest to manage,” Stella admitted. “I had to manipulate actual data and deal with human money. The only thing supernatural about it was the fact I used troll talents to hack into the banking system and make the reservations.”

“I should lecture you about breaking rules, but I’m too tired. And frankly, too proud,” Lanie told her.

Xander leaned around me to look at his daughter. “Who’s going to be sailing this yacht? I’ve never even been on a boat.”

“The rental comes with a captain.” She hesitated. “He’s human.”

We all fell silent at that.

“He won’t survive,” Mason said quietly.

Stella twisted to look at him. “I’ll do my best to make sure he does.”

“He won’t be able to get within a few miles of the island,” Mason continued.

Xander and I shared a look. So did Lanie. It was clear the three of us didn’t know as much about Fallen Crest as Mason did. That was no surprise, since before Stella told us where we were going, I’d never even heard of the place.

“Wait,” Lanie said hesitantly. “Fallen Crest is on an island?”

Stella shook her head. “Fallen Crest is the island.”