Rise of the Dark Alpha

~ ZEV ~

Zev stepped smoothly between Sasha and Minos as his friend snorted, his fists tightening at his sides and his scent spiked with anger.

"Min," Zev said calmly, but readying to fight, "she was attacked. She didn't go after Xar, he went after her. With a knife."

Minos snorted again, but he hesitated. "He brought a weapon against her?"

"Worse, he did it because I was fighting him for Alpha and he was losing. He went for her to hurt me. He'd brought the blade to a mating ritual and hidden it in his clothing. She was only saving her own life—and ending his, rightly. He broke every tradition we hold sacred. Did you hear me, Min? He already has a mate and he tried to take mine."

Minos stared at Zev, obviously considering his words. Zev heaved a sigh of relief, the minotaur was a good male, but he could be hot-headed when he was caught off-guard. Zev should have been a lot more careful with his words.

"Now," Zev said carefully when his friend seemed to relax a hair, "What are you doing so far north?"

Minos snorted again, his eyes drifting over Zev's shoulder, obviously looking for another glance at Sasha, but he didn't deflect the question again.

"There's unease in the winds," he said finally, reluctantly. "I was looking for Yhet, to see what had happened. It sounds like much more than even I thought."

Zev nodded. "The hierarchy is safe and you're welcome to become a part of it, Minos. I told you that before. Sasha won't resist you now. Xar is finished. His ridiculous rules are over. The Chimera will live at peace with each other. Our enemy comes from across the gateway, not within Thana."

Even with his bison face, Minos managed to look skeptical. "A human rules in Thana, and you say our enemies come from across the gate?"

"They tried to kill me, it's why I'm here," Sasha piped up from behind him, pushing forward. Zev had to fight the urge to pull her back. She was Alpha after all, whether she understood the impacts of her actions or not. He needed to talk to her so she understood how she would be perceived. How her actions spoke to Chimera differently than they would to a human.

"Who tried the kill you?" Minos asked darkly.

"The same group of humans that took Zev away from you, and took the females," Sasha said fiercely. "They've deceived my hus—my mate, and they've hurt the Chimera. I didn't know of them and want nothing to do with them."

Minos regarded her carefully. "The Team. The ones who do the experiments."

"Yes."

"You don't know them, yet they're trying to kill you?"

"Because of me," Zev added quietly. "They know she has more power over me than they do now. They're trying to pin me down, using her."

"And yet, she is Alpha? Are you certain this isn't a trick, Zev? That she hasn't been planted by them?"

"No!" Zev and Sasha both snapped. But Minos just blew the breath from his wide nostrils again.

Zev wanted to plow his fist into his friend's face for casting that doubt over Sasha, but in the back of his mind that little voice niggled.

If Minos thought this, others would, too. It was a warning. Something they would need to address when they returned to the Village.

The village. His mind sparked with an idea—a detour he and Sasha would take before returning to the village. He would show her the beauty of Thana, and its former strength.

Forcing himself to focus on the problem at hand, Zev kept his face blank, but made sure his friend scented his determination, his strength.

He would not accept any danger around Sasha. If Minos thought he could challenge her the way he would another Chimera…

But his old friend shook his head until his ears flapped. "No good ever comes of being close to the humans," he said darkly. "But if this one will fight the others… perhaps that is an asset we have not had before."

Zev heaved a sigh of relief. His friend wouldn't charge.

"How long are you staying?" he asked him. "We're in Yhet's cave for another few days, then headed back. Will you stay here or are you travelling to the gate?"

"Not to the gate, no," Minos said with a snort and a shudder. "That place is a death trap. No, I hoped to catch Yhet and just… understand what was happening."

"What's happening is that we're removing the human stain from Thana," Zev said fiercely. "We're going to strengthen the Chimera in Thana, then find a way to bring our people back here and keep the humans from ever returning. They can shove their assistance up their soft asses," he growled.

Minos chuckled and Sasha bit her lip.

Zev looked at her carefully. He hadn't spoken to her about that part of his plan. But she didn't seem concerned. He prayed they could find a way. His head spun with ideas, none of which were likely to work.

"So, you two are in your Solitude?" Minos said suddenly, his eyes wide.

Zev nodded.

"Forgive me, friend. I didn't mean to intrude."

"It's fine," Zev said. "You weren't to know. And I'm glad to see you."

The minotaur shrugged. "I will move forward then, travel on. I cannot bring myself to be near the gate, but perhaps the City… perhaps I can stomach that."

He didn't sound confident. Zev understood the feeling. The City was nothing like a human City. Ancient and carved mainly from rock and stone, it was very clearly not something from the human team. And yet, their ancestors had understood the use of straight lines and levels—and Zev wondered if, even with the larger spaces and cavernous ceilings, he would be able to sleep within the City?

He guessed he would find out soon.

"If you come across the twins, don't tell them," Zev said, leaning in to share scents with Minos as his friend prepared to move on. "I want to tell them myself if I get a chance. The Tigers might find them first. But let them hear from someone they recognize, Minos."

His friend nodded. "It is not a duty I would relish, they'll hear nothing from me."

"Thank you."

Then Minos turned to face Sasha. "I do not know how you came to be in this place, and with this male. But I know he has heart. He would not choose a female without it. So I pray you prove true, Sasha of no Clan. I pray you lead to strength for Chimera, not for the humans."

Sasha looked stunned, but nodded. Minos and Zev brushed each other once more, then the male turned and started down the valley without looking back.

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