Lana got back home closer to noon of the next day. She was lucky to meet an airport employee who was going home early in the morning and was kind enough to give her a lift to the nearest car rental, Lana rented the old used Honda and went home already on wheels. Unfortunately, it took her more than a day to get back. But in any case, she was in no hurry at all. She was even glad for the delay. Lana did not want to return home at all.
Nicky would return from the training camp in a week, and Vicky went with her friends to the mountains on a hike and will be back in a day or two. She was madly in love with her children. Lil' Nicky was already twenty years old, as Aunt Ani loved to say, and the youngest Vicky was sixteen.
Shifter genes strangely influenced their kind, except for endurance, strength and other treats, the werewolves grow up quite differently than ordinary people. A long time ago, when the mortality among people was much higher and the medicine not so efficient, the average life spine of the shifters was much longer than that of a normal human. But now they became almost equal in that aspect. But, shifter grew up much faster than humans and by the age of 12-13 already could look like an adult, then the process of growth slows down for the most part of their life. So in 60-70, a shifter can often seem like a 30-year-old man. Therefore, Ruslana even though right now she was 36, didn't look much older than 23-25. And her husband, in his 54, looked in his early 30th.
Ruslana frowned at the memory of Ralph. He was the main reason that she was happy about this delay. Not often she managed to leave the house for a long time. Lana even began to suspect that Daniel - Alpha of Benne pack and the head of the werewolves city in which she lived, gave her this mission out of pity.
Shifters never recognized human marriages. Among the shifters, only a few lived together as a couple and created families, and most of them were Mates. It was a unique tradition, connecting just those people who were meant for each other. They said you would surely feel when you meet her or him. Mate is something like the Destined One in humans legends, the soulmate. Ralph was not Lana's Mate, but she realized it too late. When they passed the Ceremony of Unification, she was only 16, and she was fascinated by this proud and robust man whom Ralph seemed to her then. Only later she understood that it was an ordinary teenage fancy, but not an attraction to her true Mate.
At first, everything was fine, not as wonderful as a stupid little girl dreamed of as a child, but not as intolerable as it became later. Ralph told everyone that they were real Mates and Lana, sincerely believed it too. She was then very young and quite naive, ready to try and learn all the tricks of family life from him. Such an attitude would surely flatter the vain man. But when she finally realized what was going on, it was too late. Ralph bit her neck almost every day, pretending that it was the show of his passion. But then, once Ralph was drinking all night and stayed out at his friend's house. In the morning Lana woke up and looked into the mirror and could not believe her eyes. The scar from the bite, which he left the day before, healed. The scar on the neck was the only thing that never recovered entirely on the Mates body. It was a sign, a stigma, a promise. Only then did she understand how she had been deceived. But by that time she was already pregnant with Nicky and she had nowhere to go. She called her father, but instead of support, he got angry. He threatened that if she only tried to open the truth to everyone, he would do so that she would never be found again. In fear for herself and the unborn child, she had to support Ralph in this lie. He realized that the truth got out and began to distance himself, Ralph was never particularly affectionate or caring with her. But after that, he treated her as a burden, a duty that must be tolerated and used to please himself.
First, Nicky was born and Ruslana went headlong into the world of motherhood. At the same time, the irritation of her husband started to grow. And then everything went down the hill. By the time when they had Vicki, Lana already knew all the delights of domestic violence. Sometimes people call such men - beasts. That was how Ralph justified himself, saying that because they are not real Mates, his beast strives to get out. But it was too late to fix anything. Many people were mixed in this mess. Therefore, Lana had no other way than to clench her teeth and remain silent, finding happiness and comfort in children.
And then everything collapsed. That day was imprinted in Lana's memory forever. Ralph since childhood dreamed of being Alpha. He was the eldest son in the Benne family, his father was in charge of the pack, as before his grandfather and so on. All that Ralph did was for the day when he would become the leader. Even the Connection with Lana was made only because of the status of her family, the pack in which she grew up. And then came the day when Alpha had to appoint a successor and the name that flew from his lips was not Ralph.
Nicky was seven then, and Vicky was just 3. Even now, every time Lana close her eyes, she still sees the serious blue eyes of her son, who had stand between her and the enraged father, when Lana was no longer able to move. And she still hears Vicky's quiet howl, that was huddled under the table in horror from what was happening.
It was the last straw, and as soon as Ralph left the house, she grabbed kids a made a run for it.
She was so lucky then to accidentally stumbled upon Susie on the road. A woman who had firsthand knowledge of women's shelters and who did not take long to see one of the potential clients of this institution in Lana. It was a whole network of safe places for victims of domestic violence, though they were meant for humans. But who can be picky in that situation?! In one of these crisis centers, Lana was finally able to get at least some breathing space and help. And then she met Him!