“We’re related? Why haven’t I heard about any of this?” Cassius is shocked by the revelation. “There’s a little distance between us but yes, we are cousins. It’s part of why I never suggested a dual alpha leadership. While they have been done before, I was under the impression that the council didn’t like having relatives running the pack together. It’s only under extreme circumstances that they allow brothers to be co-rulers.” “I haven’t researched the history of the White brothers but that might be why the White Fang and White Moon packs are separated.” I add in. “If the pack is large enough then that’s the normal option the council seeks.” Deven nods his head. “Deven?” I start cautiously. “Were you aware that Clay fell asleep?” I relax as he nods. “Although he’s more educated on sex than we were prepared for as he’s only six and a half, I wouldn’t have exposed him to the fact that my great grandmother was raped repeatedly before being dumped.” “How do you know he can’t hear
“Nick and Chrissy went on to have six pups, three boys and three girls. The last pregnancy was a surprise set of twins just like the first. Their first born son, Cannon, was taught from an early age that he would one day be alpha. It took some time to calm him down but in the end, when his father died an early death in battle, he became the alpha Marcus and Nicholas would be proud of. He found his fated mate, Charlotte and continued the pack’s sanctuary roots. If you need help we will care for you gently but if you cause trouble you will pay dearly. As you’re already aware, your mom and dad only had you and you started your rule very young.” Cassius is nodding his head as he obviously recognizes this portion of the family tree. “After Nichole and Henry wed they immediately started trying to create a family. They too had a large family consisting of three girls and three boys, none were twins. It was Niki’s youngest daughter, Megan, that showed the gift of being an empath. Both Rose
“I haven’t found any alphas currently ruling that have had this classification but I found close to fifty packs on the east coast where an alpha or beta that was being brutally abused, challenged the ruling alpha and won the duel. All of these challenges happened in a forty year time frame from the early 1940’s to the early 1980’s. When the council visited each pack the ruling alpha was tested after telling his story and each one was granted the special status of being a protector. While these alphas still ruled with an iron fist it was only because of the abundance of abuse and rape that these alphas felt it was necessary to continue the practice of physical punishment. Once the roots of progress started to be seen the alpha often calmed down and started intense reeducation programs to help parents who relied heavily upon abuse to parent in a more effective and respectful manner. Those who suffered the abuse received therapy so they could heal and learn what was normal. Although th
“He’s stopped talking but what I see isn’t stopping. He’s whining that he’s sorry. That this is the reason he doesn’t share his memories, our memories with me.” His entire body shakes as his panic and fear rises. “Noooo!!!” He yells as he leaves his seat. The hallucination is strong enough that he attempts to run from whatever happened in his past. “What’s happening? What do you see, Cole?” I speak firmly without anger in the hopes of reaching him as I stop his ability to run. “Help me!!!!” He screams as he fights my hold. It only takes a few minutes before he relents and collapses into me. I hold him gently as he whimpers. “What’s going on, Cole?” I ask as I rub his head. “It hurts. I don’t want this.” He whispers after a long pause. “It’s hard to remember what happened but it’s also important. I don’t normally encourage this but I need to know what’s happening.” I explain as I continue my gentle rub on his head. “It hurts, I’m hurt.” He starts off slowly. “What’s hurting
It takes far longer than I anticipated to get Cole settled into bed. Somehow the memory of his brother forcing him to receive Viagra and silver has become twisted in his head causing him to believe that he’s the rapist. I just don’t have the heart to explain that it’s the opposite when he counters my claim that his interpretation of events is wrong. It wasn’t until Deven gave me his Ativan that he was finally able to settle into sleeping in the same bed as his mate. The lad is truly exhausted and I don’t see much sleep happening for him with the awaking of this memory. I wait fifteen minutes after he’s fallen asleep before attempting to leave the room. It’s taken him nearly two hours to settle down. I walk back into the living room with Deven after he checks vitals on Jessa, flopping carelessly into the chair Cole left. His scent lingers on the cloth as I lean forward, placing my face into my hands. “It’s obvious that finding out about the shots he received are disturbing but I don’
(Demetri’s POV) “Noooo! Please mama! Don’t do this!” A young boy in his teens screams and fights as he is dragged down the hallway by an older woman and man to an open door. His fight intensifies as they enter the room. “Don’t do this! Please! What have I done to deserve this?!” He stops his fight just long enough to look up through his right eye. I roll uncomfortably in my bed as the pain this young lad is already in creeps into my body. His sight holds the telltale signs of his left eye being swollen as his vision is partially blurred and it’s painful to open. The man that held one arm of the teen lets go as the child freezes in terror. “You have no right to say a thing about what happens in this room between us. You have a harsh lesson to learn in keeping your mouth shut.” A grown man twice the boy’s size growls as he towers over him. His mother lets go of his hands before hurriedly leaving the room. The sounds of the door clicking shut and a bolt on the outside being loc
(Cole’s POV)My briefly peaceful sleep is violently interrupted by my own screams. Without a moment to wake, I dart into the bathroom and kneel before the porcelain god forcing the contents of my twisted stomach into the water below. I continue heaving and retching despite there being nothing but bile available to pull out of inside me. My lungs burn as I struggle with a deep wheezing and my entire body shakes violently with pain and fear. I stay on the cold floor, trying to put the pieces together. I shake my head, unwilling to believe that it happened. That it wasn’t just a dream but a memory of what I ran from. Just like the description of sex that I gave Deven. Two shots leading to a painful hard on that the ladies ride. This is even more depraved than that. I whimper on the cold tile floor as I long to be held and cuddled like a young pup. It’s only as the sound of Jessa retching in the bed reaches me that I finally stand. I grab and lean against the wall holding my breath as m
I wake to find myself wet and freezing cold only I’m no longer in the tub with my mate. My body screams in pain, I can’t open my eyes and I’m struggling to breathe when I hear multiple voices surrounding me. “How do we know if that water woke him when his eyes are swollen shut?” A vaguely familiar voice asks as I feel a hand grab my arm near my shoulder. “He’s awake. His breathing has changed. He’s trying to take deeper breaths to accommodate his asthma attack but he’s too beat down to realize all he’s doing is causing more pain. Doesn’t matter much. He hit me. You’re witness to that. He’s about to experience a whole new pain that makes the rest of this child’s play.” Another familiar voice has grabbed the other arm and the two of them walk together dragging my feet on the floor. “Are you really going to take the whip to him?” The first voice sounds nervous, almost scared for me. “He’ll be the youngest I’ve ever done. I’ll be surprised if he survives the night once I’m through
“It was during his return that things became more active in his case. Alpha Demetri made the trip with his mate to the Shadowlands pack. Turns out she’s an empath and was very sick with silver poisoning. They were able to save her and to the best of my knowledge he returned to Crimson Dawn around the beginning of the year.”“He did it? He made it home?”His face lights up like a child on Christmas day.“Yes, he is with his mate in the protections of Alpha Demetri Black. Unfortunately, his amnesia has not yet resolved and as a precaution, in order to obtain custody of Cole, Alpha Black had to agree to restrict his movements until his mental health improves.”“He’s a prisoner there?”I had a feeling he would take this part hard.“Not necessarily. Considering what little I know about the hell he lived through next door and his encounter with the alpha of Purple Mountain, I don’t see where he’ll have the desire to leave that territory any time soon.”He nods his head a little more relaxed
(Julius’s POV) I smile as the tall frame of my son in law stops and knocks on my open door. “You wanted to see me?” “Yes sir. Please come in.” He steps inside the room but only manages to close the door halfway before the demons of his past creep back upon him. “I would prefer this to be a private conversation but if closing the door makes it feel like you’re going to be punished then I encourage you to keep it open.” I speak my true feelings as he slowly turns around. The look of disbelief on his face. While it takes him several deep breaths he does manage to shut the door by the time I’ve stood from my desk. “Where would you like to sit?” Once again he’s in disbelief. “I need you as relaxed and level headed as possible. Where would you be the most comfortable?” I try again. “The recliner?” He manages to speak after a hard swallow. I nod and allow him to lead. He chooses the rocking recliner allowing him to rock subtlety as Hayden stirs gently. I smile as he console
“I threw a fit. Charles waited until I was outside the courtroom to start punishing me for embarrassing him. He punched me in the face several times before I fell to the ground, then he started kicking me. He kept me on the ground until he was certain Heather and Marcus had left. Even though I had driven my own car to court he dragged me to his. He drove me home, only he didn’t go to the garage. No, he went to the back of the west wing where the room he modified for Cole is. I’ve only been in that room a handful of times when participating in my brother’s torture.” I stop as the memories of wrapping the silver belt around his leg and the condition he was in when I rescued him eight months ago blend together in a confusing mess. Murmurs float around the room, commenting on my unprompted confession. “Breathe, Andre. That was a very difficult truth to admit to. No comments will be made.” I know he’s addressing the pack as I continue to struggle. “You knew what was going to happen to
“I’m concerned about you Andre.” Julius now has my attention only he has crouched down to my level. “While your statement seems to have helped Hayden it gave me the clue I was looking for.” “A clue to what?” “The true reason behind the terror you have in gaining custody of your kids. While any other wolf in this pack saying such a thing would be passed off as simply being very serious about their statement, you stating that you nearly died once to fight for them is something I take very seriously. What happened the last time they were taken from you?” I shake my head hard, holding my breath as I fight against the flashbacks trying to invade my thoughts. “Andre?” He tries again but all I can do is shake my head slowly. “Papa Redmen hit him. He made him bleed.” The innocent voice of my daughter breaks through. “You saw it?” Abe seems shocked that it would be done in front of her. I watch as she nods her head. “Mommy spanked me for crying.” She whines hard before laying against h
(Andre’s POV) Stepping into the pack house is surreal at best. My head is spinning out of control with thoughts I had desperately tried to put behind me. I had relinquished all hope of ever having my kids just for the full force of the unpredictably of my life to cripple me when I need to be my strongest. The house is silent as I pick my way through the crowd. Julius is carrying Harper and Abe is trailing behind the two of us. It seems Julius wants as much of a barrier as he can create between Hayden and any escape route he may manage to find. I’m more concerned about him getting lost inside the pack house than him getting outside it. This place has proven to be a maze to me despite living here full time for the last six months. The house is completely silent except for the television quietly counting down the seconds until the new year. I can only hope that this year is different. That the New Year will actually be the change I’ve needed for years. Shamefully, I feel the dread tha
“To show him the effects that abuse has on others. To prove to him once and for all that what his father taught him is wrong. Besides, Charles has been extremely cruel to Andre as well.” “How so?” “Well, I just learned tonight that Alpha Redmen gave each of his sons permission to have sex, to even rape, at the age of sixteen but lied about the penalty for getting the lady pregnant. Andre has been beaten multiple times for pregnancies. The first two were not his, yet he was mercilessly beaten three times during both of those pregnancies. He was forgiven a fourth when the pups came back not his. The beatings got worse when he got three others pregnant just to be denied the ability to be their father. The two older ones with two different ladies are in better packs than Red Fang but the two with him now. Well, their mother isn’t much of a mother.” I state sadly as I pull into the garage, turning off the motor as the door closes behind me. “I need your help. These pups are terrified a
(Julius’s POV)It’s an hour's drive to get from Red General to the Red Moon pack house. Since Charles has been removed, moving through the Red Fang territory has become easier as the borders are completely open while the council is here. The bad news is, it’s gotten a lot more dangerous. While open borders allows the pack members to come and go, even move out if they please, it also allows rogues to infiltrate the territory. I’ve had to up my own guards on the border to account for the vulnerability it’s created for my own pack. The council hasn’t been happy with me accompanying Andre to and from the territory. They felt that, as the coronated heir, he should be able to handle this himself. I took the opportunity of his consistent meltdowns to save the fallout from such visits showing the council exactly how severe his abuse has been. I cringe every time I hear him speak about his brother, Cole. How has Cole even survived if his analogy of the situation is true? That Cole’s suffering
“It’s quite alright. We are used to this type of reaction from children who come in abused. I can tell by the way he’s calmed that you are his biological father. We’ve been waiting for you.” I’m stunned when a voice comes from behind me instead of the nurse in front of me. I turn to see an unfamiliar woman in the doorway in front of Julius and Alex. Something about her unnerves deeply and my immediate reaction is to step back. “Easy Andre, she’s here to help.” Julius tries to calm me. We study each other silently as I sway gently. “I understand that you have had a very rough time with the council’s family court. I promise it is different this time. Take a seat so we can talk. Are you okay with me sitting on Harper’s bed?” I nod slowly without moving. “Mr. Redmen, do you think you can get him to take this?” The nurse hands me a little cup of purple liquid. “What is it?” “Tylenol 3. It has a small amount of codeine in it. Humans won’t give it to children this young but it has be
I wake up yelping, screaming and fighting from the fitful dream I fell into during the ride to Red General. I cling hard to the back of Alpha Julius’s shirt as he silently embraces me. I had no idea how hard dad had been on me until I went to Blister Ridge. I had to harden up while I was back at Red Fang which has not only delayed my ability to process what has happened but it has added to the trauma I’m already struggling with. Josh has diagnosed me with complex PTSD, he did shortly after I moved into this pack after Cole disappeared. He simplified the description as being multiple traumatic events instead of just one causing the post trauma anxiety. Julius waits patiently for me to get myself together as going into the hospital with my own PTSD on full display won’t help me with my kids. I lift myself from his shoulder slowly, taking several deep breaths with my eyes still closed. It’s only as I open them and look into his blue-green eyes that he speaks. “Are you ready?” His voic