I stayed in my room all night. My parents' judging eyes were too much to handle, so I went to bed early. Getting up the following day to my mother screaming for me to hurry. I quickly raced around, getting dressed and racing to the bathroom to brush my teeth.
"Did you sleep through your alarm?" My mother asks as I race toward the front door, her keys in hand, where she was waiting. She passes me an apple, and I take it, biting into it as I follow her out to the car.
My mother gave me one of her lectures about coasting through the middle and not drawing attention to myself and Yadda Yadda the entire drive to school. I tuned her out, mostly adding occasional nods and hmm noises, so she thought I was listening. When I get to school, I find Jasmine waiting for me.
"Hey, Kit kat," she says, waving to me.
"Kit kat, really?" I ask at the nickname she has given me.
"Yes, I like it. We have math first up," she says, and I groan. I hated math, the most boring subject, and it always gave me a headache, not that I was terrible at math. I have never failed a subject, but math was one subject I hated.
"Remember what I said, Katya," my mother calls to me as I walk into school. She heads for the staff room while I make my way with Jasmine to the first period. The day goes by quickly, and I groan when I look up and realize it was lunchtime, which meant I had to go to detention, but he didn't tell me where detention was.
I wasn't given much time to think about even asking when Alpha Ezra suddenly walked into my science class just as the bell rang. I pack up my belongings and stuff them in my bag. Jasmine gives me a sad smile darting out the classroom door. While I reluctantly walk over to the Alpha.
"Why so glum?" He asks, staring down at me, a smile on his lips.
"It's detention. What is there to be happy about?" I ask him.
"Lots because you're with me, come on," He says, turning and walking out the door. I follow him, and he stops at my locker.
"Put your stuff away," He says. I go to unlock my locker when he suddenly opens it and makes me look at him.
"What? I know all the combinations," He says, and I raise an eyebrow at him.
"Really, then open that one," I tell him, pointing to the one next to mine, which I know is empty.
"Okay, you got me; I may have snooped," He says with a laugh.
"And why did you do that?"
"You're new, and I am not sure I completely believe your parents' reasoning for changing packs," He says, and my stomach drops.
"And by the sound of the way your heart rate picked up, I am assuming they didn't really leave because your mother hit the Alpha's daughter?"
"Technically, she did hit Alpha's daughter," I tell him. He closes my locker, grabbing my hand tugging me along after him.
"Um, Alpha?" I tell him, tingles rushing across my hand and up my arm. He looks down at our clasped hands.
"Sorry, I probably shouldn't have done that," He says, letting go. My brows furrow, confused at his weird actions.
"So, where are we going?" I ask when we walk past all the empty classrooms.
"Stressless, you won't get in trouble with me," he says before walking into the faculty area. I follow him, and he stops at an office before opening it.
"You have an office here?" I ask, a little shocked.
"Yes, I have decided to be more present here. The school is short of staff, and I have free time, so why not," He says, and I step past him and sit on the chair in front of his desk.
Great, I get to look at four walls for the next hour. While holding my breath, so I didn't inhale the Alpha's scent. He smelled nice, and the room was flooded with his scent, overwhelmingly making me want to breathe deeply.
"What's wrong?" He asks while sitting across from me. I shake my head.
"Nothing," I tell him, and he stares for a second when Mateo suddenly walks in with a pizza box in his hands, and he sets it down on the desk, opening it before falling into a chair next to me.
"Eat?" Alpha Ezra tells me.
"Isn't this supposed to be detention? Shouldn't I be doing schoolwork?" I ask.
"You want to do schoolwork?" He asks, raising an eyebrow.
"No, but that's what normally happens," I tell him, and he turns to look at his Beta.
"Why aren't you with Angie?" he asks Mateo as he makes himself comfortable beside me.
"Switch, she annoys the hell out of me," Beta Mateo says, and the Alpha chuckles, shaking his head.
"So, where is she then?"
"I left her with Shirley" I turned to look at him.
"What? My mother, Shirley?" I ask, and he nods, a devious smile on his lips, and I thought I had it bad.
"Something funny?" Alpha Ezra asks with a smile on his lips at my amusement.
"Yes, my mother will eat her alive," I tell him, and he laughs.
"That is exactly why I ditched her with your mother," Mateo says, biting into a slice of pizza.
"Eat, then we can talk?" Alpha Ezra says. I nod, doing what I am asked. When we are done, Mateo takes the empty box out before returning.
Alpha Ezra raises an eyebrow at him when he walks back in, and I see his eyes glaze over and know they are mind linking. Mateo walks over, sitting back in his chair with a smirk on his face; he appears to be amused by something. The Alpha rolls his eyes at him but says nothing, turning back to look at me.
"You like it here so far?" Mateo asks me, and I nod, feeling awkward in both their presence. Mateo leans closer to me, inhaling my scent, and I notice the Alpha glared at him, which for some reason amuses Mateo as he drapes his arm over my shoulder lazily. I try to pull away when he jerks me closer, rubbing my arm.
"Hands off, Mateo," Alpha Ezra says with a growl. Mateo puts his hands up with a smile on his face but moves away, giving me my space back.
"So, detention?" I ask, wondering when this punishment was going to begin.
"No, I wanted to ask you some questions."
"As would I," Mateo says, leaning forward and looking at the Alpha, who growls at him.
"What sort of questions?" I ask.
"Why did you really leave?"
"If you think my family is hiding something, why did you accept us into your pack?" I ask in return.
"Are you questioning your Alpha?" He retorts. I drop my head, remembering I shouldn't be questioning him.
"Because I love knowing I took two of Alpha Jackson's best fighters, that's why," He answers. I nod, chewing my lip nervously.
"So it will be interesting with your bloodline exactly what you are capable of; you have a lot of pressure on your shoulders," He says, and I sigh. Why is it because I have Beta blood everything is expected of me? Why can't I just be like a normal she-wolf without the wolf, obviously?
"You don't agree?' he asks, and I realize he must have heard me sigh. I must have done that a little louder than I thought.
"And if I am a disappointment?" I ask.
"You won't be. You have Beta genes, and your mother, well, she is a tough woman," He says. I wonder if he would still think the same if he knew my secret.
"I have a question?" Mateo asks, looking at me.
"And what is that?" I ask.
"Have you found your mate yet?"
"She isn't eighteen yet," the alpha answers, and Mateo seems a little disappointed.
"So, why did your family really leave? I promise no repercussions will come if you tell me you are free to remain here," He says, and I feel my heart rate skip a beat. My stomach drops, and I break out in a cold sweat.
"Why are you scared?" Ezra asks, sniffing the air slightly.
"Can I go, please?" I ask, and he reaches over the table, about to grab my hand. I pull mine back out of his reach.
"You can tell me?" He says.
"Nothing. What my parents said is true," I tell him, and he cocks his head to the side, his eyes moving to his Beta.
"You can go, Kat, but I will be speaking with you again," He says, and I rush out the door.
Alpha Ezra POV I watched my mate leave, completely unaware I was her mate. I knew her family was hiding something, something I was eager to find out. If she wasn't my mate, I might have reconsidered letting them into the pack. Something was amiss; they left the second strongest pack. A pack, her parents built a life with. When I got the request, I was a little shocked but also blinded by the fact I could take them from Jackson. Our feud goes back generations, so given the opportunity, I took it. Derrick was well respected, and so was his mate Shirley, yet I never heard they had a child, and it made me curious why she was kept a secret. I could smell her strength, her genes strong, but something was off with her, too, despite her potent scent. "She is your mate, isn't she?" My Beta, Mateo asks. He was my best friend since we were old enough to walk, always stuck by me and I, him.
Katya POV Walking to training, I was suddenly jerked into the locker rooms as I passed them. A gasp of fright left my lips, not expecting to be grabbed. Spinning around, I come face to face with my mother. "Geez, you scared the crap out of me," I chuckle. But she was staring down at me with a stern face I didn't like. "Where have you been?" "Detention, where else?" "I looked for you. You weren't in detention with Angie." "No, they placed me in the Alpha's office." "What, why?" "Because that is where he told me to go." "Don't use that tone with me, young lady; now listen, today is wolf training." "Okay, I will tell them I am sick," I tell her, but she shakes her head. I watch, horrified, as she pulls something
Alpha Ezra POV I watched as the Doc gave her some injections and hooked an IV up to her. My blood is boiling, trying to figure out how she got wolfsbane in her system. "Get out!" I tell everyone but the doctor. Her mother remains, tears rolling down her face as she looks at her unconscious daughter. "I said get out!" Shirley looks at me, startled. "She is my daughter; you can't tell me to leave her." "Until I find out how she ingested wolfsbane, no one goes near her," I tell her, but Shirley doesn't budge. "Get the fuck out of this room now!" I yell at her, forcing my Alpha Aura over her. She whimpers, turning her neck in submission before rushing out quickly, the door banging loudly as it swung closed. I sit on the side of her bed, Doc frantically trying to hook a fluid bag up to her, his hands shaking nervously, and I drop
Following Shirley out of the room, I grip her arm, dragging her away and out of earshot of Katya. I hear the door shut and know Mateo closed it to keep her from listening in. Shirley, however, turns around and glares at me. "My daughter is your mate, isn't she?" She demands. "You don't demand answers from me. Why would you poison your own daughter?" "I told you why; she needs to build up a tolerance," "That's not good enough. Where did you even get it from?" Wolfsbane is banned in my pack from most packs. Her heart rate skips a beat, and I could smell her fear of answering. "I grew it," she finally admits, stunning me further. Wolfsbane was allowed to grow naturally because we know better to touch, but it was illegal to produce it. "Where and how much have you got left?" I ask before sniffing the air. She looks away defiantly.
Katya POV My mother, seeing my panic, rushes to me. I try to breathe around my panic. He wasn't letting me go home. Does that mean I was being banished because I have no wolf? Does he know? "What did you do to her?" My mother demands. "Nothing, you have five minutes," He tells her before leaving the room and shutting the door. "Calm down, Kat, breathe," My mother tells me, clamping her hands on the side of my face, trying to stop my panic attack. "He is making me leave you; he knows," I gasp out. "He doesn't know, but you will stay at the packhouse with him until I can be trusted." "He will find out, he will find out and make me leave mum," I tell her. I have never spent a night away from them. I have always had at least one parent at home. "Please, you can't let him take me; I want to come home."
Alpha Ezra shows me inside. Beta Mateo waited in the foyer when we arrived with my backpack over his shoulder. He hands it to me, but Alpha Ezra takes it, throwing it over his shoulder before leading me up the stairs to the second floor of the building. He pulls down the long hallway. Multiple doors ran along both sides, and I could only assume they must have been other bedrooms. Walking to the last door in the long hallway next to yet another flight of stairs leading to the third level, he opens the door, revealing a bedroom. "You can stay in here. If you need me, just follow the stairs on your right. They lead upstairs where mine and Mateo's bedrooms are," He says, placing my bag on the edge of the double bed. The room was pleasant, nicer than my bedroom back home, and all the furniture was made of oak. "You remember where the bathrooms are and the shower block?" He asks and I nod. Mateo showed us the first night we came
Most of the next day, I spent in my room. This place was pretty quiet for a packhouse. Alpha Ezra popped his head in a few times to check on me, but other than that, he left me alone. Mateo, however, knocks on my door at lunchtime. I open the door and he steps in with a pizza box in his hand. "What is it with you and pizza?' I ask him, shaking my head. "It means I don't have to cook," he says as he flops down on my bed before reaching for the remote and flicking on the TV that was on the wall. He pats the bed beside him and I roll my eyes before walking over and sitting next to him. "Eat!" He orders before flicking through the movies on N*****x. He finds some girly film to put on. I raise an eyebrow at him and his choice. "You want to watch the princess' diaries?" I ask him, just as the bedroom door opens again. Alpha Ezra walks in with coke cans and places them on the bedside table.
I watched the Alpha leave before locking the door behind him. When 5 o'clock came and the dinner call was made. Getting up, I sighed. I had no choice but to go down there and face Angie, queen bitch. Chucking on some warm clothes, I stuck my head out the door. A few stragglers, also running late like myself, walked out of their rooms and headed for the stairs to go to the lower level. Opening the door fully, I quickly lock it behind me and make my way down to the stairs. Turning the corner, I bump into Angie. I almost groaned out loud at the sight of her. Her perfect blonde hair cascading over her shoulders, sitting below her breasts that were pushed up almost right under her chin and drawing attention to herself. Like, how can they not? They were right in your face and her own. She could practically place her chin on them. "Why are you here?" She sneers at me in her nasally irritating voice. "The same reason as yo