Hector drove through the city and dropped off Bryan, with Lucy, at a small home just on the outskirts of Kirk. He turned around and headed back into the city, south toward the pack house. I moved to the front seat as soon as Bryan had gotten out. It was a quiet ride until we got closer to the pack house.“Vale, you need to remember. You aren’t just your mother’s son. You are also the Alpha King and by extension, the High Council.”“Can’t I just be a son? Worried about what the hell is going on in my family?” I looked over at him but his face was hard.He shook his head. “No, you can’t. Not here. With your mom, with us, you can. But the moment you step outside of this car or her house, every action you take is as the Alpha King. More eyes are on you than you know.”“Hector, come on. I just want to talk to Dad and Týr.”We pulled up and Hector parked the Jeep. “Your Dad and Týr aren’t an exception. Speak to them as Alpha’s because that’s who they have decided to be.”“But I’m the Alpha

The next couple of weeks, I threw myself into training with my mom. She meal prepped all our food, even including two extra portions for Bryan or Hector when they would come by. Hector came around more, both helping me train as well as training with Mom. He said it was good to get your ass kicked because it reminded you there were still things you needed to work on. For Mom, that was Grandpa. She could beat him, but not every time.My Dad and Týr still hadn’t been by to see us. At first, I was annoyed when they didn’t show up the first week but my mom wasn’t bothered by it or at least didn’t let it show. So, I let it go. Days became a routine. Get up early, have breakfast, help in the garden, tea, training, lunch, more training, dinner and then reading or talking with Mom about different issues with the High Council.Today though, I had landed my first hit on her. It had taken seventeen days but I finally was able to hit her shoulder. Of course, she wasn’t at one hundred percent but I

“I’m checking in. What else would I be doing, Vale?”I crossed my arms over my chest. “At this time of night? Sleeping, actually. Or you know, you could have checked in weeks ago.”“I was busy. Auri, do you mind if I get something to eat? I’m starving.”Snorting, I rolled my eyes. “You don’t need to eat anything else.”My mom came over and elbowed me. She started to sign but my dad turned his back and disappeared into the kitchen. Her hands fell to her side and I heard her sigh. Kissing her head, I nodded up the stairs.“Go to bed. I’ll make sure he doesn’t eat the sink while he is in there.”She smiled and kissed me on the cheek. 'Goodnight, Vale. Don’t get into a fight with him, please.''I promise. Go.'“Auri, do you have tea made?”I shook my head and headed into the kitchen.“Auri…oh, Vale, where is your mom?”Pulling out the cold container of tea, I grabbed two glasses and poured him one. I poured one for myself and sat down at the kitchen island. “She went to bed.”“What do you

Naresh and I lapsed onto silence for a minute or two before I hauled up the bag of potatoes. She didn’t specify what she wanted so I would just bring the bag back in. When I went out, Danger was in the middle of the burnt pile with a shovel.“Mom, you didn’t call him all the way out here to roast your pig, did you?”The smile she showed me told me that’s exactly what she did. Danger though, seemed all too eager to be helping her out with this. She placed the potatoes in the ground and then Danger helped prep the pig in his trunk before they put it in the smoldering pile. Between the two of them, they finished in just under an hour.He came in for a slice of cake but headed out soon after, saying that his mate had such a tight leash on him, he started to yell their safe word every time she wouldn’t let him go. I realized, at that moment, all my mom’s friends were as shameless as she was. She asked him to come by later when it was done cooking and he said he would text her later if he c

Hector got to her door first and threw it open. I could hear the lock break as it hit the wall. Right behind him, I surveyed the room. My mom was standing, chest heaving, golden eyes lit up and her full-length mirror shattered under her. Her hand was sporting shards of glass and blood as it held the crumpled piece of paper. She was shaking but the look on her face was angry more than upset.“Mom?”Her eyes found mine and suddenly, I was brought to my knees. Behind me, I felt Bryan grab me so I didn’t fall to the ground.“Auri.” Hector walked into the room, his hands up. “You’re bleeding.”Shaking her head, she brushed past him and disappeared into the closet. She came out a few minutes later, wearing body armor, her hair pulled up and completely suited up with weapons.Bryan took a deep breath. “You aren’t going onto the territory, Auri. You can’t. They will attack because they would know you are coming! They can feel you!”Her hands came up quickly. “I don’t care.” She signed it over