Edmund remained vigilant until the others finished eating. The feeling of being watched had seemed to intensify the longer that Sebastian sat there. It got so strong that he finally couldn’t resist looking up in the direction he felt it from, which caused him to lock eyes with a slender young man dressed in all black. The man’s eyes widened as he realised that he’d been caught, but that expression morphed quickly into curiosity.

“I think it’s time to head home.” Edmund said, causing Sebastian to break his staring contest with the stranger.

The feeling of being watched disappeared and Seb looked back up to see the stranger was gone. Somehow, that made him feel worse. So, he simply nodded in agreement with Ed.

The group disposed of their waste, collected their shopping bags and headed for the exit. Daisy took hold of one of Sebastian’s hands as they were walking and rubbed her face against his upper arm for a moment.

Luke noticed Sebastian’s mild confusion and explained, “She’s scenting you for comfort.”

“Mama did this for me whenever I was feeling anxious,” Daisy added.

Sebastian felt extremely touched by the sentiment, as well as grateful for the explanation. Daisy didn’t fully understand why certain things, especially ones she found to be normal everyday actions, needed to be explained to Seb and Ed, but she was very accommodating, nonetheless. Sebastian did feel a touch embarrassed though that the twelve-year-old was able to pick on his anxiety

He supposed that technically she was only able to do so since she was a werewolf, but he still wondered if he shouldn’t be trying harder to keep her from worrying about things.

They made it to the car and out of the parking lot without further incident. Daisy picked out songs from Sebastian’s phone to play over the aux. She was fond of lip-syncing to the upbeat 70s/80s songs that Seb had on his ‘classics’ playlist. Sebastian watched her and Luke in the rear-view mirror as they did a little dance in the backseat to YMCA, when he felt that creepy sensation in the back of his mind again.

“Eddie-” He began, but abruptly stopped as a man suddenly appeared in the middle of the road, causing Edmund to slam the brakes.

“Holy shit, where did he come from?”

“I think he followed us from the mall.” Seb replied, once again caught up in a staring contest with the guy in all black.

From this close, Sebastian could somehow tell he wasn’t fully human. There was something just slightly off about him. Edmund got out of the car and flashed his eyes at the man. Seb got out too and prepared a spell in his mind, just in case.

The man simply grinned at them. “Hello.”

“Who are you? And what do you want?” Edmund practically growled.

“My apologies, I failed to properly introduce myself. My name is Elliot Argelio. You are the new Alpha of this territory, correct?”

“Yes, and you’re one of the vampires from Persephone’s clan. Why were you stalking us?”

“Not one for beating around the bush, I see. I’ll be direct then. I needed to know if you were a good alpha. I know a handful of werewolves in need of a pack. A good, stable pack with an alpha who can be as caring as he is protective.”

“And these werewolves asked you to help them find that?” Sebastian asked with clear scepticism.

Elliot shook his head. “No. In all honesty, I was hoping to find a territory where I could stay close to them. So, my efforts are more selfish than anything.”

“And why do you want to stay with these werewolves?”

“Like I said, selfish reasons. They’re good people, fiercely loyal. Taking them in would benefit you both.”

“Why do they need a new pack?” Edmund questioned.

“They were abandoned by their alpha. He felt like the elders of the pack and certain disabled members were dead weight.” Elliot’s eyes became dark and distant as he explained. “He had the others in the pack basically ignore their existence until they either died or went off on their own – which is practically the same thing for a werewolf. And the few that disagreed with him got the exact same treatment.”

“That’s… fucked up.” Sebastian breathed.

Elliot nodded in agreement. “There are twenty of them in total. And as I’ve mentioned, they’re all loyal. They’d just need to be recognised as your pack members and allowed into the territory. I’d see to it myself that they find good accommodation and have their necessities.”

Ed raised an eyebrow at that. “You would ask us to take them as a pack, but not have them live in the den?”

Elliot seemed surprised at the question. Seb himself felt surprised, but only because the concept of a den hadn’t been explained to them until recently. Persephone had mentioned it before, she’d called it a pack house. It was more than that though.

It was where everyone could socialise, bond, and relax. The majority of the pack usually lived there too. Hence why it was usually referred to as the den. Since Edmund, Luke and Daisy all lived at the Kingsley house, they’d claimed it as their den, and Sebastian wasn’t sure if they could have twenty more folks living there. Especially when you took into account Garret, Obsidian, and Victoria’s crew.

“You’re considering taking them then?” Elliot asked instead of answering.

Edmund and Sebastian exchanged a look before Ed replied. “We’re considering it, yes. It would be better if we knew more about them. And maybe talk to them directly.”

Elliot nodded. “I’m sure we could arrange something. I could bring you more information later today. I have a prior engagement that I need to see first.”

Edmund narrowed his eyes in suspicion. “Who are you meeting with?”

“None other than the lovely lady Persephone.” Elliot easily answered. “She doesn’t know I’m in town yet. I am supposed to check in with her over lunch.”

“We can talk more later then. But please just approach us like a normal person. You nearly caused us a dent in the car and a shit-ton of trauma.” Sebastian remarked.

Elliot smirked. “I wouldn’t have actually let you hit me but noted. I’ll be less dramatic next time. Until then, gentlemen.”

And with a tilt of his head in a mock bow, he vanished.