Ch. 2

As the last bell of the day rung I walked quickly to my car, it was already 2:15pm. My father had sent me a text message telling me that even though tonight was the party, I was still expected to train from 3-5pm. I shuddered, I hated training, hopefully he will go easy on me today because of the fact that I’ll have to look perfect tonight, it would be an embarrassment to him otherwise. My car wasn’t fancy, it was an old Toyota corolla that had apparently belonged to the mother I never got to meet, it was the only place in the world where I felt safe- where I felt like I had a choice, I could leave right now and be across the packs border before anyone even knew I was missing. I let out an exhausted sigh, I knew I would never leave my brother, or Cami. Ace and I were only half siblings, me being the result of an ill-timed affair with my father. Ace’ mother was kind to Ace, and tolerated me, and I didn’t blame her. She tried to raise me like her own but that only fueled my father’s rage, in the end, enduring his rage wasn’t worth it. So she kept me at arm’s length, treating me more as if I didn’t exist, and I understood.

Ace poked at the corners of my mind, and I hesitated letting him in. Once you become one with your wolf, any member of the pack will be able to mind link with you no matter the distance, but we had never heard of it happening before the change, so we kept it to ourselves. The link formed during one particular training session in which my father decided to test out how long it would take me to heal after being branded, I learned at a young age that crying and screaming only seemed to egg him on even more. The second the rod started searing through my flesh, the screaming began. My brother, who wasn’t privileged to these kinds of sessions, heard and tried to break down the door. My father’s alpha strength wouldn’t allow that to happen, but I heard Ace in my head, telling me he would do what it took to make him pay one day. Ever since then, we are able to communicate through our thoughts. He poked again, and I let him in.

“Where are you at, kid?” His deep baritone voice infiltrated my senses

“Must you call me a kid? You’re only two years older…”

“Yes, you’re my BABY sister, which makes you a kid. Dad told me he had some important business to attend too before tonight, I’m in charge of your training.”

I breathed a sigh of relief, my big brother didn’t stand a chance against our father, but he was kind, and he was fair- he loved this pack and he loved me. With him, I was at least safe. He must have felt my relief through our connection.

“Don’t get too excited, Bennett is with me. Meet us at the pool in a half hour.”

“Shit.” I outwardly cursed. Insufferable Bennett, noble and loyal to a fault Bennett. We all used to get along as kids, if I’m being honest I had a major crush on Bennett, but when I turned 13 my father’s trainings became brutal and my childhood was no longer, the friendship fell apart. Ace became increasingly protective in the world outside our own personal hell because he couldn’t help me against our father. Ace made it known that if anyone messed with me to any extent, they would face the full wrath of him, and that implied my fathers as well. Since Bennett was my brothers second in command, the responsibility fell to him as well, although he wasn’t privileged to the information on why. He just assumed it was my brother sticking up for me against hormonal teenage boys. I checked the backseat to make sure I grabbed my gym bag, and headed out of the human city and into the pack lands.

The drive was always peaceful, the dessert turning into mountains with an expansive wildlife. My father somehow convinced a High Priestess to create barriers, no one unless they were members of the alpha pack could enter, and if they tried they would burn from the inside out before there was nothing left. I’d seen it happen once, a lone wolf was unaware he was about to step into our territory, by the time we heard the screams, it was too late. My father was extraordinarily pleased that the barriers worked, and not at all worried about the loss of a life over a mistake.

In a little less than 20 minutes I was crossing into our territory, and a feeling of unease settled over me. I never felt like this was home, it felt like a pretty cage. It was suffocating.

I reached the packs rec center about five minutes after crossing into our territory, pulled in and took a minute to collect myself before being around Bennett, he didn’t talk much, but even his presence seemed to knock me off kilter. He hadn’t come to a training session in years, and I only saw him from a distance for the last two years or so since he came into his wolf, the fact that my father kept tabs on me at all times didn’t help either. I had no life, and only one friend because that’s all he allowed.

“We haven’t got all day to sit around” Ace sounded annoyed now

“What’s the rush big bro?”

“Just get in here, Bennett is getting antsy.”

I grabbed my gym bag, and got out of the car. I made my way through the front not needing to bother checking in, everyone knew who I was, I was allowed full access at all times to the packs training areas. In the locker room, I heard two other female betas a few rows down from me changing. I could tell by their smell it was Laura and Darcy. Darcy dated my brother for a few months about a year or so back- she’s absolutely convinced they are mates, but brother would roll over laughing if he ever heard her say it out loud.

“Did you see Ace? God, he just keeps getting better looking… he must have remembered I come here every Friday” she all but squealed, her high pitched voice hurting my ears.

“I bet that’s it, and nothing to do with the fact that they just kicked everyone out so they could train.” I could hear the sarcasm dripping from her words, but Darcy didn’t say anything. “Bennett is here, and man that guy is so hot, I’m pretty sure if he would just lower his swim suit a little we could see a 10 pack...” Her voice got wistful and trailed off.

I scoffed, and apparently out loud. Darcy & Laura came around the corner.

“Oh…sorry, we didn’t hear you come in Aurora… we’re almost finished.”

“Don’t worry about it, I’m just training with my brother today. No need to rush.”

Everyone was always in a rush around me, it was almost as if being around me made them uneasy, but I was never anything other than polite and mostly at times, timid, I preferred to fade into the background. I liked to observe people, for instance, I knew that Darcy’s parents were both omegas, when she turned and was a beta they threw a huge party for her. She likes the color pink probably a little too much, she’s obsessed with my brother, and never wants to leave the pack. She’s sweet and kind, even if she is a little bit naïve. Laura on the other hand is an alpha, and she has a mean streak- she surrounds herself with betas so she’s always in control. She’s not someone I would consider a friend, and not someone I would trust. I started taking off my clothes and Darcy and Laura finished packing up their belongings. I waited to take off my tank underneath my t-shirt because I wasn’t sure how well I had yet healed from my previous training session. 

“Do you find it odd that we never hear or smell her when she enters a room? I can smell everyone else from 100 yards away…” Laura asked Darcy in a whisper, since they were both 20 and had gone through the change, they probably figured I couldn’t hear them yet. Wrong.

“SH.” Darcy said, “Let’s just go.”

I gave them a faint wave as they passed through me towards the exit, mulling over what she said, they couldn’t smell me? That was odd, but an issue for another day.

I pulled out the black one piece and threw it on, forgetting to check myself in the mirror.

The smell of chlorine and chemicals almost made me want to gag when I exited the locker room, smells had started to become very overwhelming for me, and it was almost as if I started being able to see in 5K which isn’t even possible. I was too distracted in my sensory overload I didn’t even sense that Bennett had creeped up behind me.

“What the fuck is that Aurora? Has someone been messing with you?”

I gasped and turned around, it had been years since I was this close to Bennett, and his smell hit me first. He smelled of pine, and peppermint, with a hint of rain. My mouth went cotton dry, and my knees buckled almost causing me to fall. Before I could even register what was happening his arm snaked around my back to prevent that from happening, when his skin touched my skin it was like static electricity, I yelped.

“Yo, what’s going on over there?” Ace hollered from the deep end of the pool.

“Your sister was about to tell me why she has what looks like whip marks on her back.” He glared down at me, still not moving away from me, but dropping his arm. The jolts of electricity dissipated into a small hum around my lower back now where his arm used to be.

I was still dumbfounded by being so close to Bennett for the first time in years, I’d apparently forgotten how to speak. I heard Ace emerge from the pool and he was next to us in a flash.

“Aurora?” He asked me, although he already knew the answer. Painfully I moved my gaze from Bennetts’ navy blue eyes, and stared into the hazel ones of my brother. I saw anger, regret, and pain, but most of all, I saw fear.

“Like you’ve never fallen off a bike while riding through the mountains. I haven’t turned yet, I take a while to heal, these are old.” The lie fell from my mouth without a second thought, I used my palms to push Bennett farther away from me, the electricity following to the base of them. Leaving me even more confused.

“Will you ever not be clumsy? You are a wolf after all.” My brother squeezed my shoulder as he said it, he meant it to be comforting, but it made me queasy, how often we were expected to lie to protect the legacy and reputation of my father, and how easy it had become.  

I shrugged, wanting to be done with this conversation. I made myself look back at Bennett, I wanted to see if he believed my lie. His lips were pursed, his blue eyes looked like a raging storm and his fist clenched at his sides. He didn’t.

I did the only thing I could think of to diffuse the tension, I turned and leapt into the pool, secretly hoping I could stay under the water forever and let it consume me, along with my pain.

Ace made me swim the length of the pool for an hour and a half, it was easy, it was a welcome release from the havoc that being close to Bennett wreaked on my soul. When Ace told me it was finally time to stop, I looked around and noticed Bennett was gone, I let out a sigh of relief. Ace was sitting on the ledge of the pool with his feet in.

“I know we don’t talk about it Aurora… but is it that bad every time?” I followed his eyes to the marks on my back, and said the only thing I knew that would make him feel better.

“No.”

“You’re lying.” His knuckles were turning white as he gripped the edge of the pool.

I looked up at him, “Does it matter if I am or not? It’s never going to change.”

“It will when I’m alpha.”

I couldn’t help the laugh that escaped me, it sounded hollow and broken, just like I was. “Wolves live a long time Ace, my best chance is being a strong beta and him marrying me off to a strong pack to create an alliance, at least then I’d finally be free of him.”

“You’d trade one evil for another?”

I paused to consider my answer, “I’d trade one evil for a lesser one.”

His head hung low, he knew I was right. Any life I had here would be tainted by fathers’ cruelty, if he married me off to a pack alpha I would become the packs Luna, at least then I might be able to fight back and stand a chance.

I made my way over to the stairs to climb out, Ace gently grabbed my hand.

“You deserve better than this life sister.”

“So do you.” I said as I pulled my hand away and walked towards the locker rooms.

It was almost time to face the music.