Hannah POV
I'm sitting at the back of the packhouse watching twins playing with local boys.
It's already been almost two weeks since we came here. Officially, we are visiting our grandma, at least that's what I told the boys and Rosie, and that's what Rose told everybody else, including Kyle, although he didn't seem convinced.
I must say none of my worst fears came to be true during the last two weeks. The boys seem pretty happy with the change of scenery, and with Rosie, honestly, I don't think that three-year-old girl is too much focused on what is happening around her. She spends most of her day with me and most of her nights. The boys are already sleeping alone in the other room, but Rosie has a tendency to wake up early, and I have to cuddle her or carry her since 4:00 in the morning almost every day, and I'm tired.
Hayden is nothing but well-mannered and properly behaved all the time. He keeps spending some quality time with boys and because of that with me because I'm still unsure about leaving him alone with them. As much as I don't like to admit it, he's good with them, and I can see they like him very much. I can't complain, everybody seems very lovely, well maybe not everybody.
From time to time, I can catch two sets of eyes sending nothing but anger in my direction.
The first one belongs to Andrew. Rumour has it he has been quite ridiculed because of our "encounter" in my house. Kyle and the other omegas working in the house seem to enjoy making fun of him a lot. I guess Andrew wasn't very popular before I came, at least not among lower members of the pack. This pack hierarchy is also quite different from what Maddie told me. She used to say that some higher members of the pack could be abusive, but for these two weeks, I haven't witnessed any sort of bullying.
Kyle told me, to my surprise, that when Mikkeli became an Alpha, he strictly forbade this sort of behavior, and at the beginning, he punished those who refused to obey him quite severely. Who would have thought that Mikkeli would be so thoughtful about the others? This takes us back to the second set of eyes, which keeps bothering me even more than Andrew's. I don't know why I feel so unsure every time he looks at me, and he keeps looking at me quite a lot.
The problem is I also keep looking at him; even though he's a jerk, he is a handsome jerk. But something in his eyes keeps bothering me; Andrew hates me, that one is certain, and I know I need to be careful around him, but Mikkeli... with him, I feel threatened and safe at the same time, and I have no idea what I should expect from him.
"Hello there, can I sit here?" I look up and see no one but Tony.
I already know he is a Beta, which means second in command in the pack and Mikkeli's best friend. How is it possible that best friends are so different? Tony smiles and jokes a lot and always seems cheerful. He's also quite a tall brown-haired guy with tattoos and sharp brown eyes. He smiles gently and sits next to me after I have permitted him.
"How are you feeling? Do you think all of you are now pretty much settled here?"
" Pretty much, yes, I can't complain. I mean, I think it was good for the boys and Rosie to meet their grandma," I reply. "they seem more at peace here."
"I think it's normal; it is their pack; your brothers' wolves should surface soon. Their first shift is coming, so being around other wolves and being around the pack is good for them. It gives a feeling of security." he smiles, looking in the direction of my brothers.
"You know what we are not going to stay here," I say, not looking at him.
"Maybe you should think about it; it's good to have a place called home."
I want to reply that we have a home, but the problem is after the accident after my parent's death, I'm no longer sure where my home is. I know we spent in that place so much good time but home is where your family is, home is where your parents are, and my parents are no more.
Tony seems to notice my sudden change of mood and cautiously puts his hand on my shoulder. I don't shrink away; I don't feel threatened; his hand feels good. It gives me a feeling of reassurance.
"Tony, I think you have things to do," our moment of peace is interrupted by the devil himself.
I almost jump hearing his voice because I haven't expected him. Tony smiles at him and gives a slight bow, a sign of acknowledgment towards the Alpha, then leaves. But before he does, he blinks at me. I smile, looking toward the direction he disappears.
"I can see you keep whoring around," Mikkeli says with a mocking tone. "Are you trying to seduce my Beta too so he could help you escape? You can give up; Tony is loyal and can control himself; he will not jump like Andrew after every bitch that he comes across."
I can feel my cheeks flush; I can feel fury start boiling up in my veins. Seriously, he barely said five words to me in two weeks, and now this!
"You don't get to call me a whore!" I say, standing up and looking straight into his eyes. "You entered my house, attacked us in our house, threatened the safety of my siblings, and you dared to talk to me about self-respect and proper behavior! It's not my fault that your mighty pack warriors can't keep hands towards themselves!"
"Threatened you! I saved you and your family; with the number of scents of rogues that were there, you probably would be dead by night that day!" He growls, and I can see his eyes changing.
Usually, I follow Hayden's request and try not to engage in any interactions with Mikkeli, but honestly, I feel hurt; how dare he say these words and insult me? I can feel tears in my eyes.
"We were pretty well without you. I can manage to protect my family. I don't need your wolf's ass to help me," I say, trying to calm myself.
"You can manage?" Mikkeli smirks. "You may be brave, but you are still only human. You don't stand a chance against a rogue! How do you plan to manage boys? They are Alpha's blood; their wolves will be difficult to control, and you cannot teach them how because you are not one of us! Their Alpha's scent will attract more and more rogues, and out there, they will be in constant danger! Your father might've been not stupid, but he was not a werewolf but a pathetic human! Hayden is the best thing that happened to your brothers; he can guide them, protect them, provide for them, he can give them things your father would've never given them!"
The only reason I don't lose it is that we hear the screaming and sounds of fighting. We both look in the direction of the noise, and I see Jason sitting on another boy, punching him and screaming.
By the time I reach him, the other boy is already bleeding seriously, and Jason's knuckles are blooded. He's in some rage; children scream for him to stop, but he doesn't listen.
I can see James trying to pull him away from his victim, but Jason brutally shoves him away. I try to stop him by grabbing his arm, but he pushes me.
I gasp in shock. His eyes are not his eyes; he's looking at me with dark wolf's eyes, werewolf's eyes. For a moment, the swift moment, I fear he will jump at me.
"STOP!" I hear a very strange, low, and raspy voice.
I can feel the power and immediately see all the werewolves surrounding us bow their heads in submission, including twins. Mikkeli stands very close to us; power and dominance are leaking from his posture.
"Jason, go to your room at once; everyone else diverges!"
I can see that Jason is trying not to listen, not to obey, but Mikkeli snarls, and Jason sprints in the direction of the packhouse. James comes closer, helping me to stand up.
"What happened to him?" he asks me, and I can see he is frightened.
"He's wolf manifested; his first shift is coming, probably yours too," Mikkeli responds and looks at me. "Now, how do you intend to "manage" that?
I can feel my lips trembling.
"I really can't stand you," I say with a shivering voice. I grab James's hand, and we follow Jason.
We find him in the boys' bedroom; I see that he is still agitated and furious.
"What were you thinking?" I scream at him, "You could have seriously hurt that boy."
"Stop scolding me; you are not my mother! You hear me! You are not my mother; my mother is dead," he yells, and I'm quite sure the whole packhouse can hear him.
"I know I'm not your mother, and I know that mom is dead, but I am here, Jason. You hear me, I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere," I say calmly, even though I'm livid inside.
Jason bursts out crying, and he kneels on the floor. I am instantly next to him, holding him in my arms. His hands are clutching my waist. I put my arms around him and hold him, caressing his hair. James sat next to us and rested his head on my shoulder.
"That boy said that we were lower than him, and Jason's wolf was a weak omega because our mother was an omega, and we have a human father. And our mom was stupid for leaving the pack for pathetic human," he whispers.
"I lost it. I couldn't stop; it was as if it wasn't my body anymore but something in my head. I wanted to hurt that stupid kid so much; he shouldn't have said that. Dad wasn't pathetic; dad was great; I want dad back!" Jason is sobbing in my arms, "and I want my mum."
"I miss them too; I miss them so much," I say, "but they are not coming back. But at least they left me with their greatest gift; they left me, you, and Rosie. I know it hurts, but we will be alright because I've got you, and you've got me."
Jason starts sobbing even harder, and I feel James's tears on my shoulder. I let them cry; honestly, since my parents died, we didn't have time to grieve.
Sometime later, both boys are sleeping with their heads on my lap, and I slowly pet their hair when I hear the opening door's cracking noise.
Hayden enters the room and sits on the bed next to us.
"How are they?" he asks.
"They miss our parents. I should have seen that coming; they didn't cry too much during the funeral, and after that, there was not much time to cry; too many things happened." I say, looking at him sadly. "We didn't have the time for proper grief. Where is Rosie ?"
"With Rose, you don't need to worry." He turns around and looks at the wall.
"How is the boy who Jason hurt?"
"He's fine, and we are werewolves; we heal pretty fast. What happened today with Jason was a very strong manifestation of his wolf. He lost control; he didn't intend to hurt anybody, but he will have to learn how to control his wolf, and it won't be easy because it's a high-ranking wolf."
"Will you mock me like Mikkeli, saying that I don't know what I'm doing and I'm insane because I try to raise three werewolves being human myself," I say with a bitter voice.
Hayden shakes his head and looks at me.
"Your father was an amazing man. Boys talk a lot about him; he raised them very well, and he managed to do something I was always afraid I wouldn't. He managed to give you all assurance of being loved. You adored him, and he adored you, all of you. It amazed me that he had managed to give each of you exactly what you needed, treating you all equally and caring equally for all of you."
For a moment, there is only silence; I'm unsure if he is comforting me or seeking comfort for himself.
"You didn't feel safe with your father? I ask.
"My father was an Alpha; that was his whole world. He was a proud leader, a strong warrior, not a father material. He raised us, taught us, and gave us a purpose, but deep inside, I knew I was always his heir, not his son. He didn't mistreat me; it was more student and teacher relations, not father and son. It took me many years to realize that despite being strong and proud, he had many flaws, flaws a leader shouldn't have had. He valued power; there was no place for compassion or kindness. For him, tears were a sign of weakness and weakness only. When Mikkeli was small, he used to say: better not cry, or I'll give you the real reason to cry. I know now that mistreating people doesn't help in anything, but it took me time to understand it, and my father was the main reason behind it. I let him influence me so much that I destroyed my own life. "
"Do you hate him?" I almost whisper, and he gives me a small smile.
"No, I still love him. I've just seen him what he was. Mikkeli is different, though; he waited so long for our father to acknowledge him that when he finally got that, he kind of lost himself in it."
"Your brother can be a real asshole," I say slowly.
"Mikkeli is an Alpha; that is his strength but also his weakness. He's so used to always being in charge and always knowing the best that sometimes he can be difficult, really difficult. He keeps trying to convince me to make you all stay here permanently, but don't worry; I have no intention of forcing you into anything." he quickly finishes looking at my face. "now is not the time, but in a couple of days, two of us should have a proper talk."