I turned off the shower and got out, rubbing myself down with one of the towels hanging from the rack. As I dried off, I grabbed my sweats and a shirt from my bag, throwing them on. Out the door, I started to explore a little. The house was small, only two bedrooms on the top floor. With an office as well.
Opening up the other bedroom, I looked in to see the bed unmade, a stuffed bunny laying on the bed, and some clothes tossed on the end. My mom definitely made herself at home. My dad was the neat freak of the two of them. Outside the kitchen, of course. Mom in the kitchen she was a cooking goddess and everything had a place. More than once my sisters, Freya and Syf, got in trouble for messing up the kitchen.
I headed down the stairs and sat at the kitchen island with Grandpa. He had a glass of tea in one hand, his cellphone in the other.
“Frankie’s made his move.”
My mom turned from the pot she was leaning over and signed: “What happened?”
“Took over the southern region. Managed a full blown takeover operation of six difference locations at the same time.”
Mom shook her head and turned back to pot. It was easy to forget that my grandpa was the great Morgan Russo. Vampire and mafia boss who was feared and revered in the supernatural community. He ran the biggest and the most unforgiving crew. Every so often, he would work with the High Council but he would never go to the castle. Not even when they dangled information to take out the Mexican mafia boss. He did it, but he refused to come into the area for the information we had. He said he couldn’t forgive the High Council, even if no one from the old High Council was on it anymore.
My mom was no slouch either. She was known as The Huntress in her younger days. She picked the name back up a few years ago when she started doing missions for them again. She had been hurt pretty bad in a previous war. There are still details she wouldn’t tell me, but apparently Grandpa and Dad saved her. For a long time, she had to take steroid shots but now, she was just as strong, if not stronger than she used to be. Grandpa was pissed when he found out she was going back into the field. But honestly, it would pale in comparison to Dad finding out. He would be livid.
“Is Frankie a threat?”
My grandpa chuckled. “No no. He’s a human. A crafty one at that but still human. If anything, I might cut a deal with him. He’s already encroaching on some of my territory but the stuff he’s getting into isn’t really my forte. So I might just allow him to work for a cut.”
Shaking my head, I saw a glass had magically appeared in front of me. I smiled and took a sip of tea. Now, I felt like I was home.
Mom turned a bit and her hands came up, signing ‘Are you staying tonight?’ before going back to the pot.
“No. I mean…you know I won’t say no to dinner, but I have a meeting tomorrow overseas. So I need to get on the plane tonight.” He looked at me and ruffled my hair. I growled at him but he laughed. “I just wanted to see my Grandson that I haven’t seen in forever and my wonderful daughter.”
Mom snorted. She turned fully this times and signed faster again. I wrinkled my nose.
“What? I don’t just come by for food and leave!”
I laughed and shook my head. “You absolutely do. You used to do it when we were kids too!”
“I gave your mom breaks when I took you pipsqueaks out for play dates. Hell, who was the one who taught you to shift like your mom? Me. I bet you were conceived while I was taking your brothers and sisters out.”
A towel slapped him in the face and I laughed harder. Mom was trying not to smile and absolutely failing.
“Princess! What the hell?”
She shook her head and started to pull bowls and plates. Serving us up with some of her loaded potato soup and a side of cheesy bread, we ate at the kitchen island together. I talked about a few things happening with the High Council, including reading up in the library. A lot of what I handled was not allowed to be aired outside the castle walls but some of it could. Mom and Grandpa asked a few questions here and there but we moved on to other subjects pretty quickly.
Werewolves right now were experiencing a time of peace. Most packs had peace treaties with others, and so it was only rogues that were an issue sometimes. Even that was rare and nothing like the stories of when my mom and dad first were running the pack together. Rogues, in my opinion, weren’t all that bad. Some were, of course, but so were some bad packs. I’d run into enough good rogues and bad packs that I felt evened out the scales. A pack protected it’s land but outside of the territory, rogues tended to live very human lives. I wasn’t going to judge them for that. It was a choice. But not all packs, even the good ones, shared my sentiments.
Getting up, I refilled my bowl for the third time and sat back down. My mom and grandpa were looking at me with an expression I didn’t like.
“What?”
“When are you gonna meet your mate?”
I nearly choked on my soup. “What?”
My mom snickered by Grandpa continued. “Your mate. You know. Goddess ordained other half of your soul. The person you are to have pups with and rule beside you as Luna?”
Every question I winced slightly. I stirred my soup a little, before finding a huge piece of bacon and chomping down on it.
'You okay, Vale?'
I shook my head. “Dad didn’t find his mate till he was twenty-three. I still have a few years before then. Plus, I don’t get out much. The only time I ever come into contact with more than just the High Council and the people who work at the castle are when we have meetings.”
I took another bite, staring down at the soup that I had tried to replicate so many times but always failed to make as good. It was my favorite or at least in my top three of meals my mom made. It was home. But I knew this trip wasn’t a homecoming. Not really. I was running away.
'You found your mate.'
My mom’s voice filtered through the mind link and it wasn’t a question. I didn’t reply. There was still too much going on and I wanted to forget it. Not dredge it up so I could feel anymore like I was running away. Grandpa wasn’t going to let it go as he launched into a plan for a world-wide tour to find my mate. Rolling my eyes, I tried to ignore the hammering in my chest. My mom placed her hand on my cheek and smiled.
She turned to Grandpa and sighed vampire speed again. My grandpa’s eyes widened and the narrowed. The air suddenly grew thick and I sat up straight, looking at him with a confused face.
“He did what?!” He shouted, the walls of the house shaking. For the first time, I knew even if I brought out Naresh, I would lose. Naresh paced a bit in my mind, watching my mom to see if we needed to step in to protect her. But she sat up straight, never bowed or even looked remotely uncomfortable. Her eyes looked at Grandpa without seeing.
“And Logan let him?” He roared again.
I realized we had moved on from my mate talk. She had changed the subject, obviously to one that trumped anything I could say about my mate. As much as I was thankful to her, this seemed more serious. She signed and it was a blur but he was staring at her hands. His face got darker and darker.
“That’s why….Auri…seriously? You just let him?”
Her hands slowed and I finally was able to read them. “What was I supposed to do? I don’t have control over that.”
“You’re a Luna! The Luna! Týr’s mate can’t even be called a Luna at this point. She’s just there to pump out pups!”
My mom slapped his arm.
“You know it’s true! You’ve had to help her during every single one of her pregnancies because soon as she finds out, suddenly she’s allergic to work.”
My mom sighed and rubbed her eyes. She started signing again. “Well, she’s on her own for this one. But Logan is there. He will help.”
“I will tear him from limb to limb. I should have the first night he broke your heart. I regret it. He was NEVER good enough for you.”
I cleared my throat. “That’s my dad.”
My mom leaned back and took my in her arms, kissing my forehead.
'And I would never go back on having any of you kids. I love your dad. So much. But sometimes we just don’t see eye to eye.'
I snorted. “I know that. But dad needs to lay off sometimes. I mean how long have you been out here? Alone?”
Her eyes looked down.
“It’s coming up on three months.” Grandpa crossed his ams over his chest.
“Three months?! Mom! I thought you said they got into it a couple weeks ago!” I looked up at Grandpa.
My mom growled at Grandpa who growled right back. “He’s your son. He should know. Don’t growl at me, cub. I didn’t realize the punishment for that was so severe. Shit, Auri. Why do you even stay here?”
She looked back at me and smiled. “It’s home,” she signed slowly. Looking back at Grandpa, her hands came up slower. “My kids may have grown up and moved on, but this pack is still my home. I still have people I want to protect.”
Grandpa ran his hand through his hair and huffed. “I can’t win with you.” He leaned down and kissed her head. “I have to go. Otherwise, I’ll end up doing something you’ll be mad at me for. I’ll call you in a few days.”
She nodded and smiled. He came over to me and pulled me into a manly hug, hitting me on the back a few times.
“It was good seeing you. I’ll try to see if I can’t swing by again before you leave. Take care of your mom, yeah?”
I nodded. “You too, Grandpa.”
He walked by mom again and put his hand on her cheek. “You need anything, princess, call me. You know you can move anytime into it. It’s yours. He left it for you. Everything of his, he left for you.”
She nodded solemnly and patted his hand before he headed out. Turning back, she took his plate and hers to the sink.
'Now that he’s gone. What in the world is going on with you? You have a mate, but you’re here…alone.'
I sighed and continued to eat. 'It’s a long story.'
'I’ve got time, Vale.'
***Two Weeks Ago*** Shit shit shit. I was going to be late. I had been searching for a book or really a journal from Alpha Killian, three Alpha King’s ago. I finally found it, but I had been so deep in my search, I didn’t realized it was ten minutes past the High Council meeting that was supposed to start. I raced through the long corridors the castle and up the stairs before turning into a door.I fumbled with it before I finally got it open and closed it behind me quietly. The main floor of the High Council had their seats behind a long table. From what I understood, the old High Council used to have robes they wore but now it was just formal attire. There were seats surrounding the high chairs and table. Those were for any onlookers, people who had come with the parties requesting an audience, or people like me who worked with or for the High Council.Rarely did I sit on the main floor. Usually, I sat in the balcony above. From below, you couldn’t see anyone sitting up in the balc
My eyes widened when I realized what I was thinking and shook my head. I wasn’t gay. At least, my only real sexual escapades was with Jess or another vampire named Emma. She was Jess’s friend and the two of them liked to gang up on me sometimes. Outside of that, there was nothing else, no one else. I didn’t even know if there could be gay mates. How would the moon goddess set up two men when neither of them could have kids? It didn’t make any sense.“Alpha King Vale, please step forward.”My heart fell. I didn’t want to step up. Naresh forced us to stand up. We stepped forward and I grabbed the railing until my knuckles where white. I looked down at the group, keeping my face blank, my lips in a thin line. I watched as the Alpha’s eyes raise to mine. We looked at each other and the room melted away. My heart hammered in my chest and I watched as his eyes grew to the size of saucers. For the first time, his scent filtered into my nose. It was pine. Pine and the scent of cracking openin
I closed the books and sighed. Looking at the genealogy book, I pulled it closer and opened it up. Flipping through some of the pages, I decided to go from the back and worked my way in. The last page that had any writing on it was my name, sitting at the top of the blank page.The next page was full of Dad. Logan Everfell and a fairly detailed recount of his time as Alpha King. It included the information that the High Council requested to collect him as a child. As a result, his entire pack was nearly wiped out. I could understand why my dad had no love for the High Council. It spoke of the war between his pack, the fake Alpha King, and the BloodHunter coven.It wasn’t unless you pulled my mom’s journals on the war that there was any detailed information of what happened. Though, all of it was missing the parts about her being the Alpha King. I flipped through the pages further in.Alpha King Reinard with his Luna Bethany.Alpha King Callus and his Luna Courtney.Alpha King Killian
Jess nestled her boobs against my neck and wrapped her arms around my shoulders. “It’s so cute the relationship you have with your mom. You guys are almost like siblings rather than mom and son.”I shook my head. “You don’t want to see how I am with Freya and Syf. They took it upon themselves to fuck with me at every opportunity.”“And your brother?”“In the beginning, he taught me what it meant to be a young wolf. How to be brave and strong. How to save the girls from the spider on the playground. He was there a lot until I was twelve. Then, my family just broke apart.”She rested her chin on my head. “Is the Alpha King gene that strong?”I nodded. “I was still learning to get a handle on it. My dad said he didn’t remember ever having an issue, which doesn’t help. But Mom said he rejected his blood from the beginning. He never really knew until he was in his mid to late twenties. But Mom taught me not only how to control it but to embrace it. It might make it stronger.”“You’ve never
'Vale Maximillion Everfell!'Before I realized it, I got a mouthful of pillow. Blinking, I looked over, my mom who was readying another pillow to hit me with.“Woah woah woah. What the hell was that…” I was still hit in the face by the second pillow. “…for?”'The first one was because you explicitly disobeyed my instructions on not to use your power unless it was an emergency. Not for fucking around because you wanted to impress your mate. Goddess, Vale, you could have hurt people.'“I know. I know. But I didn’t think it was…wait…you knew it would work on everyone?”A cheeky smile graced her face. 'Of course I did. Did you think that your grandpa gave you the last bite of cake for a year because he wanted to?'My eyes widened. “I was forcing Grandpa to give it to me?” She nodded and I threw up my hands. “No wonder he stopped eating cake around me. Mom, you should have told me!”Her eyes narrowed. 'What? That you are the most powerful Alpha King there has been and that you, as a fiftee
I jolted up in bed and shivered. Looking down, I saw I was covered in my own cum. Rubbing my eyes, I fell back on the bed. When was the last time I had such an intense dream that I literally came over myself?'You were fourteen. The 9th grade and the substitute teacher Miss Halloway.'I growled. 'That was a rhetorical question, Naresh. I didn’t actually need to remember.'He snickered. 'Good dream though. You think our mate felt it as well?'Rolling my eyes, I got up and headed into the bathroom, turning the shower on. 'Probably not. He was probably fucking his Luna at that exact moment.'Naresh whined and immediately regretted it. It was mean and uncalled for. 'I’m sorry, Naresh. I’m still angry about it apparently.'He didn’t say anything as he retreated into the back of my mind. Sighing, I stepped into the shower and washed my body off. When I turned the water off, I could hear movement in the kitchen below. My mom must have been up already.Pulling on some boxers, sweats, and a sh
She signed at the screen: “I’ll connect with you later.”“Alright! Have fun! Nice to see you, Vale!” Immediately, she cut off the call before I could even reply.“Mom?”'So the day after you called me, the High Council called and asked for me to do a mission. You didn’t tell me anything so how was I supposed to know?'“You can’t do that mission! That group is dangerous. It’s more than just one or two wolves. It’s a pack, able to give grief to an entire other pack. You think you can just waltz in there and fix everything?” My voice was serious but I was pissed that she agreed to the mission.'Sometimes I wonder if you know what I really do. I kill people, Vale. No matter the race, about 90% of my jobs are to kill people. I know what the mission was. I get briefed on it before I agree to it. Plus, I’m not going alone this time. I have a crew.'Shaking my head, I got up and started to pace. “Mom, you cannot be serious right now.”She sighed. Getting off the stool, Mom placed her mug in t
I looked around at the giggling werewolves I called my family. My eyes were wide as I looked at all of them. It was hard trying to keep a straight face as I pictured a chubby wolf bounding through the forest. Squeezing my eyes shut, I struggled and finally succumbed to the laughter. Naresh was already roaring in my head and I joined him.“How much weight have they all gained?”Hector cleared his throat. “Some…more than others.”“Alpha Týr is absolutely the worst. His beta is a close second.” Lucy’s nose wrinkled and I watched as Bryan put a protective arm around his daughter.“Then Logan is probably third with the rest following in varying degrees of severity.” Bryan added, smirking. “It helps he wasn’t at the pack house full time until the last few weeks.”Shaking my head, I gulped in some air. “But you can’t be putting that much in.”“Until you see the portions that they eat.” Hector giggled.'That was added in by your Grandpa. It hightens their appetite as well. So the normal werew