19. Calvin

nineteen

Calvin

*ELDEN*

S amuel truly worked his magic, as expected, and has set up a meeting between Calvin, Vincent and me for the weekend, already. Vincent is driving the both of us. On Samuel and Dad’s insistence, he isn’t using his motorbike that often anymore, and instead drives the car they bought for him. Dad is so much about prestige and looks that he preferred spending thousands of dollars over Vincent using his motorbike.

“Vince,” I say. “I need to talk to you about something.”

“Sounds official,” he says while parking the car.

“It is,” I admit. “Probably the first help I need from you as my beta.”

“Hit me with it; I’m eager to help.”

“I feel like someone is searching through my room,” I explain. “The first time I had the feeling was when I went to that party, on the day we first met. And then again, last week when we met Trixie, and were at Flora’s place for most of the evening. It’s not awfully obvious, and there are no weird scents anywhere, but I like to have my stuff in certain places, and it’s not always where I think I placed it.” I pause. “It could be the maids, I guess.”

“If there is even the tiniest intuition that someone is going through your things, then it’s worth researching it,” Vincent says promptly. Relief fills me with how seriously he takes my words, and how he doesn’t try to convince me that it’s all just in my head. He was truly the perfect choice as my beta. “I will think of something,” he says. “One of the maids is a good friend. If you want, I can ask her to keep an eye on who is entering and leaving your room.”

“We could at least try,” I say. “Well then, let’s go.”

“Wouldn’t want to keep the new guy waiting,” Vince grins.

“Let’s hope this Calvin is a good one, because we’ll be stuck with him for a while.”

“But you have a choice.”

I gaze at him. “No,” I mutter. “I don’t. Geneva just made it sound like I have one, because she is nice. But the fact is that with my father involved and with the council involved, I have to accept the beta my dad picked for all the reasons they emphasized… his name, his rank, his upbringing.”

“They don’t think I’m enough, huh?”

“No, they think your name isn’t enough,” I say, annoyed at the whole situation and that I can’t change how our world is run.

“Then, let's work our asses off,” Vincent says to my surprise. “For a future in which a young alpha like you has a choice.”

Vincent and I briefly nod at each other before we walk into a high-end French restaurant to meet Calvin. It doesn’t take me long to spot him; he oozes the power and confidence a lycan, with his standing and experience, should have.

He stands up when we approach him, bowing in front of us. “Prince Elden,” he says, “and Beta Vincent.”

“Dude!” Vincent exclaims. “He knows my name!”

“Of course.” Calvin looks up at us. “I did my research.”

We all sit down again. “And what did your research tell you?” Vincent asks.

“That you are an interesting young man with lots of promising talents,” Calvin says in a matter-of-fact tone.

I let my gaze wander over him. The picture didn’t do him justice. He is an attractive man and looks much more approachable than I thought he would. However, he comes off as slightly awkward and stiff and doesn’t smile much. He doesn’t sound mean, just neutral, but he seems to have very good manners and is very polite to both Vincent and me. One striking feature is his eyes; his pupils don’t dilate much, and he barely blinks.

Vincent keeps the conversation going and asks a lot of questions. To my surprise Calvin answers them all willingly. He can hold a conversation well and asks questions in return. I’m surprised, because in Samuel’s documents it said that one doctor evaluated him and even came up with a diagnosis. I’m by far no psychiatrist and I only did minimal research after reading Calvin’s file, but everything he does is close to perfect.

Maybe it’s his IQ. People with high IQs often struggle in other areas.

“Man, I wish I could read the menu,” Vincent says. “It’s all in French.”

“They should have an English one, too,” Calvin says.

“Do you come here a lot?” I ask him.

“It’s my first time here,” Calvin says. “Alpha Caelum suggested it. The place is too fancy for me.”

“I was about to say the same,” I chuckle.

“If it’s too fancy for you two, you can only imagine how I feel,” Vincent points out.

Calvin smiles as if he is relieved at our reaction. “I can help with the menu,” he offers.

“Finally, one of you offered and spared me the embarrassment of asking for an English menu.” Vincent sighs in relief.

With Vincent’s lighthearted comments, the tension around us lessens, and I find myself relaxing. Calvin probably won’t become my type of person, not like Vincent, but he is respectful and accommodating. He didn’t judge Vincent for his lower status, no snide comments, not even a hint about him not being royal.

As the waitress approaches us with our drinks, she stumbles, knocking our beverages over and spilling them over me and Calvin. She panics and starts apologizing. Calvin looks annoyed, but obviously tries to keep his cool while he grabs some tissues and hands them to me. “What about you?” I ask.

“You are clearly the priority, Pri-“

“Okay, okay,” Vincent jumps in, saving Calvin from saying anything that hints on who we are. He smiles dashingly at the waitress. “It can happen, please don’t worry. Could you find a place where these two young gentlemen can clean up?”

“Of course,” she stammers. “Please follow me.”

“Young gentlemen? ” I ask him.

“I thought you would like that,” he grins.

“Let’s go,” I say to Calvin, following the waitress to the restrooms.

“It’s for the staff,” she says. “No one will come in to disturb you. I apologize once more.”

“Don’t worry,” I reassure her. “Fortunately, it wasn’t red wine.”

“Yes,” Calvin says. “We can just dry it up.”

We wait for her to leave us before starting to clean up in silence. I am not sure what to say now that I am alone with Calvin. I barely know him, and he is quite some years older.

“Listen, Prince El-“

“Please just call me Elden,” I tell him.

“Sorry, Elden it is then,” he pauses. “I know I’m not your first choice, and that nepotism is what got me here today, but I am hard-working, and I am ready to put all my abilities into this, use all my contacts. If I’m awkward to be around, you just need to tell me, and I will do things differently.”

“Thank you for being honest,” I say. “May I ask a question?”

“Of course.”

“I read in your folder that you have troubles with social interactions.”

“It’s pretty obvious, isn’t it?” he says.

I eye him thoughtfully, deciding to test him now, and see his response. “I don’t like being so blunt, but what is your take on this?”

“No, you have to be,” he says. “The truth is, quite some diagnoses were tossed around, ADHD was within them. My parents dragged me to several doctors to get answers. If you ask me, they just accepted the ones they liked the most.”

I am shocked – to say the least – about his honesty. I didn’t expect him at all to answer so directly. “Why did they test you?”

“The truth?” When I nod, he continues. “My parents had high expectations of me, and as a child, I did have some behavioral issues, quite some tantrums, you know. My father believed I wasn’t responsible and reliable enough, and was too detached when I got into trouble. I think he believed something was wrong with me, though I actually didn’t want him to see I’m scared.”

Once again, his words shock me. I didn’t expect him to share a similar upbringing to myself. What he just described could have been me. Granted, I didn’t have any behavioral issues, but my father constantly scolded me for my lack of responsibility, tarnishing our name and whatever, and he got mad when I didn’t give him the satisfaction of getting emotional.

“I am awkward in social situations,” Calvin admits. “I was alone mostly when I grew up. At one point my parents stopped playing an active role in my upbringing.”

I swallow thickly. “Thank you for being honest with me.”

“Can this stay between us?” Calvin asks.

“Of course,” I say.

“I think we should return,” he says. “Vincent is probably already waiting for us.”

“You are right, let’s go.”

*CALVIN*

Fascinating.

He is intriguing even at first glance and worth my effort.

He is still skeptical though, which made me change my original approach, twisting my background into something he could empathize with.

I have my eyes pinned to Elden’s back, watching him return to our table. He was more difficult to convince than others. He saw right through the fake diagnosis. It was my own stupidity as a child, not to have thought of something smarter, but at that time ADHD was the only thing I was able to pull off.

Ever since then I have learned and evolved, not making such feeble mistakes anymore. I know when people expect me to laugh, or when I’m supposed to ask questions. It’s easy to push the right buttons. My original plan was to somehow get rid of the other beta, but seeing him today and his interaction with Elden, I have decided to keep him around. I will need him to be able to properly read the atmosphere and adapt my reactions.

Elden is going to be the most powerful leader one day, and since I knew about his existence, I knew I had to make it to his inner circle somehow. My father showed me his picture once, and I was mesmerized and intrigued instantly. I researched everything I knew about him, about his past, the death of his mother, the rumors about his father, his intelligence and his success at school. Even his luna is special, as she should be to be fated to such a promising alpha.

I was hoping he wouldn’t be a disappointment. Seeing him today though, verified the inkling I’d had. He is composed, attractive, intelligent and has a strong aura. That’s the type of person I want to serve.

“Say, Elden,” Vincent says when we sit down again. “Do you mind if I put up a gravestone for my parents in the pack. They are buried at my old one, but I want to be able to mourn them here, too.”

“I think that’s a beautiful idea.”

Elden looks at Vincent with sympathy and understanding in his eyes, and I try to mirror his expression.

“Sorry,” Vincent tells me. “I don’t want to sour the mood by bringing up some tragic backstory.”

“Not at all, I understand,” I assure him, while I couldn’t care less. Pretending to feel sorry and apologetic, or showing empathy have always been the most difficult for me. It’s difficult to pretend I care, when I don’t. Seeing someone hurt, or even dead, just doesn’t do anything to me. However, it’s fascinating seeing how those close to them react… their tears, their cries. I have seen a mother cry for her baby once, stirring something in me I hadn’t felt before, something I definitely want to see and experience again. When I was just a boy, my mother’s pet bird died in front of me. She was devastated. But that feeling of holding the little bird in my hands, seeing how the air left it, hearing its squeaks, it was the most excited I had ever felt. Since that day, I tried to chase the same feeling of excitement.

I have treaded carefully though, using my gifts to progress in my career and make sure to become the outstanding beta I am supposed to be. I have made useful contacts and acquaintances, bedded women to use them for information, and used my missions to kill and torture to my liking without anyone knowing. My parents are oh, so proud of me.

All of this led me here today.

Finally.

Recently, I have been bored to death. The alpha I’ve been serving up to now is weak and stupid. The only fun I had was using his daughter. She was so easy to get in my bed; easy and boring.

But this here, this is going to be interesting and fun, maybe even a challenge.

I watch Elden talk to Vincent, telling him something about their warrior schedule. He even smiles slightly. He isn’t even eighteen yet, and his beast is already oozing power. At least someone is worthy of my attention. Whoever tries to stand in the way of this young alpha reaching his power and rank will have to go past me. I will ensure he becomes the most powerful alpha on the continent.