He scanned the street, quickly locating her across the way.
She was emerging from the brand-new local bookstore, a paper bag clutched in her hands.
Even from this distance, Malcolm saw the titles of strategy books and leadership manuals peeking out from the top of the bag.Always preparing, always planning.That was Larissa.
Malcolm considered turning away, avoiding the inevitable confrontation.But as if sensing his gaze, Larissa looked up.
Their eyes met across the street, and an internal fire ran through him, the same feeling he’d had since they were children.
Setting his jaw, Malcolm marched purposefully across the street, dodging a pickup truck that honked irritably at him.As he approached, Larissa’s posture stiffened slightly, her chin lifting in her proud, defiant way.
“Larissa,” he greeted her, his voice a low rumble.
“Malcolm,” she replied, her tone cool but not unfriendly.“Fancy meeting you here.”
As they stood facing each other, Malcolm was struck by a vivid memory.Suddenly, he was back in pack school, barely more than a pup.Ms.Everett, their stern-faced teacher, was handing back quizzes on pack history.
“Excellent work, Larissa,” Ms.Everett said, placing a paper marked with a bright red A+ on Larissa’s desk.“Malcolm, you might want to study a bit more next time.”
Malcolm glanced at his own paper, a B- glaring up at him.He’d looked over at Larissa, expecting to see her smirking.Instead, she gave him a small, encouraging smile.“I could help you study, if you want,” she offered quietly.
Funny.He’d completely forgotten that moment of kindness amid their constant competition until just now…
Malcolm shook off the memory.
“Doing some light reading?”He nodded at the bag of books.
“Just keeping myself informed.A good leader needs to be well read, don’t you think?”
“Sure,” Malcolm agreed, unable to keep a hint of challenge from his voice.“But all the book learning in the world can’t replace real-world experience.”
“No,” Larissa said, “but it can certainly enhance it.I prefer to arm myself with knowledge before diving into action.”
As they fell into their old pattern of verbal sparring, Malcolm found his mind drifting again.This time, they were sixteen, participating in a pack training exercise.The goal had been to capture a flag placed at the top of a steep hill, with half the pack defending and half attacking.
Malcolm was so sure of victory.He was the strongest, the fastest.He charged up the hill, muscles burning, dodging and weaving through the defenders.But when he reached the top, panting and triumphant, the flag was gone.
Larissa had outsmarted them all.While Malcolm and the other attackers had been focused on the frontal assault, she’d quietly organized a small team to circle around the back of the hill.They’d retrieved the flag with minimal confrontation, using stealth and strategy rather than violence.
The look of quiet pride on Larissa’s face as she presented the flag to their pack leader stirred something in Malcolm—a fierce desire to prove himself her equal.
“Earth to Malcolm,” Larissa’s voice cut through his reverie.“Am I boring you with talk of pack business?”
Malcolm blinked.
The sunlight caught in Larissa’s hair, highlighting strands of gold among the brown.He pushed away the sudden urge to reach out and touch it.
She raised an eyebrow at his continued silence.
“Not at all,” he said quickly.“I was just thinking about how we might implement some of these ideas.The pack’s been through a lot.We need to be careful about how we move forward.”
Larissa’s expression softened slightly.“I’m glad we agree on that, at least.The pack’s welfare has to come first, no matter who ends up as alpha.”
“You’ve always had the pack’s best interests at heart,” he said.“Even when we disagree on the methods.”
A small smile played at the corners of her mouth.“Was that almost a compliment, Malcolm?Careful, or I might start to think you’re going soft.”
Malcolm chuckled, the sound rumbling deep in his chest.“Not likely.I still intend to win this alpha contest.”
