Six.

Bella

Aiden keeps his eyes on the road. His jaw clenching and unclenching. He probably had a million questions. And yet, he kept his mouth shut. So much for him hating the silence.

I don’t even know why I wanted him to see the scars. I just felt like he should know. I wanted him to know.

“Your father did that to you?” He mutters after a few miles.

I nod my head.

He pulls the car off to the side, bringing us to a stop.

“Why? Did you do something?”

I stare into his strange grey eyes. I wish I knew what he was thinking. He was just so hard to read.

“My father made me what I am.”

“That includes beating you so much that you are scarred for life?”

I shrug my shoulders at him. It was all I had ever known. 

The beatings were to make me stronger. The burns, to help me learn to withstand pain. Everything he did was to make me more resilient. To make me something that he couldn’t be. He had led me to believe it. He convinced me that I wanted it. 

Grace lost it when she found out a month ago. It was only then that I started to see my father for who he really was. An arsehole.

Grace had walked into my bathroom without knocking. Her eyes practically bulging out of her head as she caught me trying to put ointment on my back.

“What the hell, Bella?” There was no more hiding it at that point. But it took her hours to convince me it wasn’t normal. She even showed me her back. That’s when I realised my fathers words were nothing but lies. 

He had told me time and time again that I was stronger than the other two. That I was better than them. That I had succeeded where they had failed. When it turned out that he was just using me as a punchbag. Telling me it was for my own benefit. 

I couldn’t wait until I could get my hands on him!

“You weren’t scared?”  Aiden was scowling. Did he not understand why? I had already told him I was a killer.

I shake my head.

“Shit, Bella. I’m surprised he didn’t killed you.”

“He can’t. That’s why I’m alive and my sisters are dead. He is afraid of the monster he created.”

His grey eyes lock onto mine. “You being a monster is the last thing I believe.”

He doesn’t ask any more questions about my scars. It was strange. Almost as if he wasn’t bothered. Or maybe he was, he was just hiding it well.

Aiden stops the car twice on the way. Once to let me use the bathroom. Once so he could fuel up.

As he climbs back in, he throws a bottle of water at me. “Wouldn’t want you to die of thirst on the way.”

I think he was surprised that I was still in the car.

It was another hour or so before we rolled up to a large set of black gates. 

It was nothing like my father’s pack. Everything there was open for people to come and go as they pleased. It was a trick of my father’s. He said it means people won’t expect bad things

Two large men move towards the car. I was already preparing myself for an attack as Aiden opened the windows.

“Alpha Aiden. We were wondering when we would see you.” The larger man mutters with a smile. He runs his fingers through his greying beard. “Alpha Colt isn’t in the best of moods.”

“He never is.” Aiden mutters back

“Who’s the girl?” He peers in at me.

“Bella. Don’t worry, she doesn’t have her Wolf yet. She won’t be a problem.”

The larger man calls for the gates to be open. Aiden creeps the car through with a smile on his face.

“You don’t know that I’m not going to be a problem.” I mutter

“Then let’s hope that I can trust that you won’t be a problem.”.

He creeps the car along the gravel drive. Bringing the car to a stop in front of a massive mansion. It was easily three times the size of my home. Ivy crept along the grey stone walls. Some of the windows were massive.

“Never seen a pack house before?” He mutters with a laugh as he gets out of the car

“Not like this.”

A raven haired girl throws the front doors open and comes running down the steps. She jumps into Aiden’s arms, wrapping herself around him. 

“Bout time!” She mutters as he lowers her back to her feet. “Dad is losing his shit at Dom. Leighton can’t even reason with him.”

The raven haired girl was about my age, maybe a little older. She had the same strange grey eyes as Aiden.

“Who have you brought with you?” She beams at me through the window.

Aiden steps towards me, opening the door. “Halle, this is Bella. Bella, this is Halle, my sister.”

“Hey” She beams at me. Her smile quickly disappears when I frown at her. She turns her attention to Aiden. “Dad’s in the kitchen.”

She hurries back into the house as Aiden stares at me. “Did you really have to do that?”

“I don’t know who she is.” I mutter, crossing my arms across my chest.

“Halle wouldn’t hurt a fly!”

I shrug my shoulders as his hand latches on to my wrist. Pulling me from the car.

“Where are you taking me?” I demand, pulling my arm back.

“To my father. I have already told you.”

“I can walk. I don’t need you to hold on to me!” I growl.

He raises his hands up, giving in to me. “Just don’t try anything stupid. He will see through it.”

As I trot up the steps. He takes them two at a time, opening the front door for me. I could already hear a deep voice complaining. Muttering about how he had to wait for Aiden and that Aiden would need to learn to be on time.

A woman’s voice responds saying that the man should be giving Aiden a break. It was amusing to hear them talk about Aiden like that. My father would have hit the roof if I was ever late. I had learnt that the hard way and had never made that mistake since.

I feel Aiden’s hand on my lower back as he guides me forward. Pushing his arm away, I frown at him. I was more than capable of knowing how to follow directions.

He doesn’t seem annoyed with my response and just pushes the door open. The man and women stare directly at me before their eyes drift to Aiden. Aiden looked just like the man, except for his eyes. 

The man must be the King and the lady looked just like Aiden's sister.

“Aiden!” The lady wraps her arms around him, pulling him in tight against her

“Mum, it’s good to see you too.”

“See, Colt, I told you he would be here.” She turns to look at me. Her eyes run up and down over me. “No Wolf?”

I shake my head. I knew I had to be careful. I was in the company of Royals. Still, how did they know? Usually, people just couldn’t figure it out.

The Queen turns back to the King. “Seems to me that our son was right and Dom was lying. Again.”

“Yes, Lilah. I heard as well.” He rubs his forehead looking at Aiden. “Leighton wants to kill him.”

“And I fully agree.” Aiden mutters

“Then tell Leighton he can.” He brushes by Aiden and heads out the kitchen.

He didn’t even speak to me. He didn’t want to hear anything that I had to say. I look to Aiden. I was confused. I thought the reason he was bringing me here was to confirm what Dom had done.