Chapter Four

Shannon’s POV

“You know you just have to give them a chance?” My mother’s voice startled me, I didn’t realize she was in my room until she spoke.

“Mom, you don’t understand, I hate it here.” I argued, hoping she would see my pain, hear it through the breaking of my voice.

“I understand more than you know sweetie, but I think this place is good for us, look on the bright side, you have a new father, and I know it is not easy to leave behind the life you have known your whole life, but it all comes back down to you giving this place a chance.” She caressed my face, gently guiding me to lay down on the bed as she draped the blanket over me.

“Okay Mom, I’ll do it for you. Give this place a chance.” I agreed before letting sleep take me, the exhaustion of the day’s event finally catching up and the dreaded anticipation of the third brother.

I wonder what he will be like.

The next morning, I woke up feeling the need to get some free air and to escape the wrath of the brothers this early.

My breath puffed out in frantic bursts, misting the chilled air of dawn as I darted between the dense trees that cloaked the outskirts of the Dark Moon pack's territory. The forest was my refuge, the only place where the shadows of the towering pines felt more like protectors than the suffocating walls of the house I could no longer bear to be confined within.

My heart raced, not just from the exertion but from the raw need to escape, to find solace somewhere, anywhere, away from the disdainful glares of the alpha's sons. Cool and mocking, those eyes seemed to follow me, even here, amid the whispers of leaves and the occasional chirp of waking birds. But as the distance between me and the pack house grew, the weight on my chest lightened, the invisible shackles of fear and anxiety loosening with every step I took deeper into the woods.

Then I noticed I wasn’t alone. A figure leaned casually against the other side of the clearing, shrouded in the morning fog that made it difficult to discern any details.

"Lost or running?" The voice was neither male nor female, with a gentle tone that seemed to blend seamlessly with the natural sound of the forest.

"Running," I admitted without hesitation, my guard momentarily lowered by the unexpected compassion I detected in the stranger's tone. I couldn't make out the person's features, but there was something oddly comforting about their presence.

"From what?" The question was asked with a curiosity devoid of judgment, inviting confidence from someone who hadn’t found much in the way of trust since coming to this place.

"Everything," I exhaled, the word carrying all the weight of my seventeen years of existence. "My mom and I... we just moved to the Dark Moon pack. Thought it would be a fresh start." I hugged my arms around myself as if to ward off a chill that had nothing to do with the morning air. "But it's not. The alpha's sons, they..." My voice cracked, the unshed tears from countless nights welling up.

"They bully you," the stranger finished for me, not a question but a statement laced with understanding.

Was that distaste I hear?

"Yes," I whispered, the admission feeling like both a relief and a betrayal. Here, in the growing light of day, I had laid bare my pain to a person whose name I didn't know but who, somehow, provided a flicker of kindness to my troubled soul.

"Sometimes," the stranger mused thoughtfully, "the bravest thing one can do is to stand and face what scares us."

"Feels more like foolishness when you're the prey," I responded quietly, a bitter laugh tugging at my lips. I looked up, trying to see the stranger's face, but the dawning light seemed determined to have them kept in mystery.

"Perhaps," came the reply, the words floating toward me like leaves on a breeze. "But sometimes, it's the prey that teaches us the most about survival."

I considered this as I straightened, a newfound resolve firming my stance. I turned back toward the path leading home, my steps lighter than when I had fled into the safety of the woods.

“Oh hey,” I greeted the alpha, who met me with a soft smile by the door

“Hello, Shannon, your mother has left for work, and so have the boys, I was hoping you and I could bond over some baking?” it was a question, but at the same time it wasn’t. It was hope, it was expectancy. He needed to bond with me, that was the only way he could let be me at rest, I was an omega, his mate’s child, it was instinct for him to want to do this, so I agreed.

“Sure, just let me change out of these,” I replied, pointing to my dirty outfit.

It was good, Robin was a good man, he would make my mother happy, “I am happy we’re doing this.” I commented, smiling up at him as I heard a breath of relief escaped him.

“Thank you, Shannon, that means a lot and I promise to talk to the boys, you know boys will always be boys.”

“That would be nice, Alpha.”

Then I went upstairs, that was when all hell broke loose. The boys came back from school and Robin has gone to attend to pack duties.

“Hey Shannon,” I heard from the door and my breath hitched, “We just want to talk, if you would be so kind as to come out.” Jules, I am pretty sure, said.

“Um, okay?” I wasn’t sure of my response, but I slowly walked to the door and creaked it open.

“We just want to apologize for treating you the way we did over the last couple of days, peace offering?” Jules said as Cole nodded along and handed me a box filled with cookies, similar to the ones I baked with Robin earlier.

“Thank you.” I can never be too sure with these two, but I took their peace offering and was about to close my door when Cole spoke up.

“To show that you have forgiven us, how about you take a bite.” He urged and I nodded, opened the box, and took one of the cookies out. I should have suspected something was wrong because it didn’t smell like regular cookies, but I thought everyone had their recipe and this could be theirs.

I took a bit, but I couldn’t chew for long, it was as if they had put in all the spices in the world, it was beyond what a normal person should consume, supernatural or not. “Ah ah ah.” I could only breathe out through my mouth as my eyes watered, begging for them to get me water, but they only brought out their phone and started to record me. It was cruel and I felt as though I was dying.

“You think you can waltz in here and get our father to play girl Dad with you? I think not bitch, now think about that while you are close to death.” Then they left me to die.

***

“Shannon, I’m back,” Robin called from the front door, I wanted to respond, but I could only wheeze out, that sound must have caught his attention as he came rushing forward with a bottle of water.

“Here, drink this, I am so sorry Shannon, I take it the boys are back.” At the mention of the boys, I shot him bombastic side eyes but continued to drink from the bottle.

He heaved a deep sigh, “I am sorry Shannon.” That was when I noticed someone else was standing in the room with us, I looked at Robin in confusion as if to ask, “Who is this?”

“Oh, this is Ricky, the oldest of the triplets.” He introduced the new face with a proud smile.

“Hi, Shannon, nice to meet you.” It is him!

The voice from the forest, and it sends shivers down my spine, “Just what have I gotten myself into?”

“Hello Ricky.” I muttered weakly.

“We are going to have so much fun.” Excitedly, he declared and my eyes widened.