RheaI had been awake since before the sun rose. Sleep was never something that came easy to me. I often found myself staying up later than everyone else or waking up earlier just to have a few moments of peace. To have quiet time where I could pretend like my life was normal. Or I could pretend that I wasn’t always so sad and hurting all of the time.I sat on my window sill and watched as the world outside came to life. It was beautiful. The birds and animals outside looked free and happy. Even the flowers bloomed with bright colors and looked careless as they blew in the breeze.I envied them greatly. More than anything I longed to be free. To have any moment feeling so careless and happy.I finally got off the ledge when the alarm on my phone rang softly on my nightstand. I grabbed a rubber band from my dresser and threw my long hair up in a tight ponytail. I grabbed my sweater and backpack before heading out. I was going to be late if I didn’t get out to the kitchen soo
I climbed onto the bus and kept my head down. Everyone stared at me, putting their backpacks on empty seats as I passed. I found an empty seat in the back and took it quickly.I looked out the window and avoided the looks and whispers from the other students. Everyone knew who I was and everyone knew how I was treated. It had been worse when the Horace brothers were still in school. It almost gave the other students license to mock me and tease me just as ruthlessly.Now they mostly just talked about me behind my back, which was easier to ignore. Everyone except Anastasia, who seemed to think it was her mission to make sure I continued to suffer just as much as I would have if the boys were still in school. Part of me wondered if she blamed me for the twins breaking up with her. It was possible. Though she should have known better than to think that Dylan, at least, would have settled down with her. “Hello,” came a new voice I hadn’t heard before, “is this seat taken?” I
“What? It was just an accident. I promise I will knock on the door next time!” I said with panic, but the twins had their iconic evil smiles on their faces when they heard my begging. I could see the excitement in their pretty eyes.“Too late to apologize, Rhea. We will help you to learn the lesson.” Dylan grinned as he walked closer. Gerard stood next to him and looked around the kitchen like he was thinking of how they were going to punish me. My brain ran through all sorts of things they could do to me. The twins—especially—loved opportunities to torture me further. I was like their favorite toy to play with and destroy.Often they’d encourage Simona to starve me or lock me out of the house. One time I spent a weekend sleeping in the old shed during a storm because of their ‘punishments’. They would set traps and tricks to catch me in a mess or get me in trouble just to harass me further.I mentally tried to prepare myself as best as I could for whatever they could come
I felt better and more confident heading to school. I knew Emma would be there and she would help make things more bearable. I got onto the bus and took my usual empty seat in the back. It was easier to ignore the stares and whispers from other students now—their gossip didn’t matter.I waited anxiously as the bus rounded the corner to the next stop. Several people got on first but then there was Emma, smiling and waving at me. I hadn’t realized until I saw her that part of me still felt like it had been a dream that I had found a friend. “Good morning,” she said, sitting next to me. “Good morning, how are you today?” I asked. “I’m doing good, though I’m a bit tired. I stayed up too late doing homework,” Emma explained. “What about you?”I thought about the strange encounter with Dylan and Gar yesterday. I thought about how I felt afterward and my time alone in my room. All the uncomfortable and confused feelings rushed back. I forced them quickly from my mind. “I
“No, I am fine.” I held my tears so they wouldn’t come out. I learned to not cry in front of the boys. It would only make things worse and they wouldn’t feel sympathy—they only thought it was fun to watch me cry. “Did you just come out from my brother’s room? What are you doing?” Lionel said as he pulled me closer and narrowed his eyes. “You cried because he did something to you? Tell me and I will ask them to stop.”Before I could even think Lionel pulled me close to him again and ran his hands down my back until he was gripping my ass. I wanted to pull away instantly but he held me tight. I was very aware of his body pressed against mine. Sometimes when I was alone with Lionel he was nicer than the others. He wouldn’t treat me so poorly and would even comfort me. Now was clearly not one of those times. He never seemed to fail in reminding me that no matter how nice he could be, he was still one of the Horace brothers. I would never be someone he could really respect. “
Alpha Angus was home when I woke up. I felt a little better. Things were always calmer when my adoptive father was home. My brothers were always on their best behavior when the Alpha was around to watch. But it didn’t stop Luna Simona from treating me like a servant and reminding me that I was not and would never be her child. I dragged myself out of bed and headed toward the shower. I tried to wash off all the negative feelings from the days before. I would start fresh and focus only on graduation so I could leave. The day went by quickly. I tried to be quiet and ignore everyone but Emma. She was concerned but I tried to brush her off. I couldn’t explain all that had happened with the brothers. When I got home and it was time for dinner, Alpha Angus insisted I eat with them. Part of me wanted to see him and spend time with him. But I didn’t really want to endure more torture or conversation with the brothers or Luna Simona. I could only imagine the little whispers she woul
GerardNone of us were particularly excited about the mating ball but none of us objected to our father. Our mother seemed weird and flighty about the whole thing. When she talked to us directly—especially Ezekiel—she seemed excited and anxious that we should all find mates. But she acted strangely whenever Rhea was around. I could tell that she was not excited about the idea of Rea finding a mate.Rhea.Thinking about her sent a strange mix of emotions through me. When she first moved here, none of us liked her. She was a small worthless little thing that our father had taken in. She was almost a nuisance to the family.It was very clear that my mother had a high distain for her. I wasn’t entirely sure why my mother hated her so much, but since my feelings were the same, neither me or my brothers argued with her.I was certain there was something we were missing. Something between our father and Rhea that we were missing. There had to be a reason he felt so connected to
Rhea My mouth dropped open. I couldn’t believe it was happening. Instantly, I remembered our day in the kitchen. I remembered each of them touching me and how much I had wanted it. Clearly, I couldn’t be completely to blame for my lustful feelings toward them. They were my mates. And I hated that. The wolf in me cried and yearned for them. They were clearly meant for me and I could tell they felt it too. But they had clearly just finished having sex with Anastasia. The thought of that made me nauseous. It would have been bad to catch them with any girl at that moment but Anastasia was by far the worst. I felt sick and utterly betrayed. How could they do this to me? How could they deceive me and be with Anastasia of all people? Anastasia stared at me and moved toward me as if to make some terrible move. I stepped back instantly. At this moment, it was hard to decide if she just hated me, or felt threatened by me. But it didn’t really matter either way. I wanted as li