Mikkeli POV
Byron trots slowly through the forest with Hannah on his back. I feel his enjoyment of having her so close to him. I feel her tiny hands wrapped around his neck, and I know he's exceptionally content. She's no longer nervous. I can hear the steady beat of her heart, and I'm a little jealous that my wolf always gives her peace when I give her unsteadiness. She's so much more comfortable around him than around me. Hearing my thoughts, Byron is puffing with pride that our mate prefers him over me.
When we reach the packhouse, it's not quite yet; only a few remaining people are still talking in the garden, but almost all the omegas are cleaning alongside some other pack members. Hannah and I don't say goodbye; she gets off Byron, pets him one last time, and gets into the house through the kitchen door.
I make sure that no one has seen us and shift back, put my clothes on, and go slowly into my room. I'm still aroused because of her presence, and the memories from the forest flashing in my mind don't help me. I guess I will have to spend another half of the night in an icy cold shower. I am about to strip when I hear loud percussion and screaming. I bolt out of my room in the direction of the guestrooms. The closer I get, the louder snarls I can hear.
Hayden is lying on the floor, bleeding and bruised. Hannah is standing in front of him, trying to shield him from two black wolves, Jason and James. Just once glance at them, at their ruffled fur and bared fangs, and I know that it was them who had attacked my brother. Rosie stands at the opened door to the girls' bedroom and cries loudly. I can hear many footsteps, the noise has lured many pack members, but as soon as they assess the situation, they do nothing, looking at me to handle this.
My loud growl echoes through the corridor and stops Jason from launching at Hannah and Hayden.
"Shift now, both of you," my alpha's voice forces them to obey; they don't want to; they are furious, and they both whimper in distress, but they obey. I can see tears in their eyes, confusion, and for sure, betrayal.
"Both of you go to your room now."
They listen immediately, and I turn around to look at my pack members.
"Everyone go back to bed or to cleaning; this is a family matter. Rose and Gideon can only stay!"
Again I'm listened to; I'm not surprised no one dares to disobey an Alpha, especially in a situation like that.
"Rose, please take the little one," I point in the direction of still crying Rosie, "and go with her to your room. It will be better if she sleeps there with you today. I can handle this, I promise. Hannah, go to your brothers. I will be with you in a minute."
She only manages to give me a sad look and follows my order. After that, Gideon and I help Hayden to stand up. I can see that his wounds are pretty severe. I'm not surprised, considering the fact that he was attacked in his human form by two alpha wolves, even though they are still pups. I tell Gideon to take my brother to the infirmary but Hayden whimpers in protest.
"No, I have to talk with them, I have to talk with them now!"
"No, you have to take care of your wounds." I stop his movements when he wants to go after his sons.
"They know Mikkeli, they know I'm their father, someone told them, and someone told them that I raped Maddie," he whispers with a trembling voice with tears in his eyes.
I gently press his head to my chest, trying not to touch his wounds; he hugs me back, shivering.
"I'll do that, big brother. They need to calm down first. They need to have some space right now, I'm sorry, but they need this. I promise I will manage it; please go with Gideon and let him take care of you"
I let go of Hayden and watch him as he limps with Gideon in the direction of the pack's infirmary.
I take a big breath and open the door to the boys' bedroom; they both sit on the bed, already dressed but still covered with bloodstains, Hannah is on the opposite side of the room, and the tension is evident.
"We all need to talk calmly," I say, and three sets of eyes are stuck on me.
"You lied to us!" Jason screams in my face, "You lied...!"
"We didn't lie to you," I interrupt him "We didn't tell you the truth, but we didn't lie. I know you are furious right now, but we wanted to tell you the truth tomorrow. We didn't want to spoil your fun today."
I can see Jason's lips tremble when he tries hard not to start crying; James, on the other hand, is crying openly, squeezing his brother's hand all the time.
"It's true, isn't it?" he says in a small voice. "Hayden is our father?"
"No, he's not; our dad is dead!" Jason screams again, and James starts crying harder.
I take my breath again and go closer, kneeling in front of them so they both can look into my eyes.
"Your dad is dead, the one who raised you, that is true, but Hayden is also your father, the one who made you, and he's not dead."
"But I want him to be dead! I hate him! I don't want him to be here!" this time, Jason is not screaming but bursting with tears.
"I know that you are angry, I understand that you feel betrayed and deceived, and I know it hurts like hell. But we didn't mean to deceive you. It will be difficult for you, but tomorrow when we all will be calm, you should talk with Hayden, at least give him a chance to explain," I say.
"But he forced mum, didn't he" James looks at me as I nod "Then why should we hear him out? He hurt mom, and he abandoned us!"
"He did something horrible, something he will never be able to change, but he's sorry; he's regretted it every day since it happened, and he didn't abandon you. He decided to stay away from you for your sake and your mother's sake. It broke his heart not to see you growing up, but he knew that he had to do it so you and your mom would be happy."
They don't argue with me, but they don't say anything latching to each other more substantial.
" I know how you feel, boys, I really do," I say slowly.
"No, you don't," Jason shakes his head "he used our mum, he..."
"So did my father," I interrupt him. "He used my mother, too; we are almost the same. But there is one difference between us: my father was never sorry for his actions. He never apologized to her, he never tried to make it up to her, and when I was born, he took me away from her even though she begged him not to. Hayden didn't do it, your mother wanted him to stay away from you, and he listened to her even though he wanted so much to take part in your life. But he knew that he had no right because of what he had done, but I know that he loves both of you very much, and even if you never forgive him or accept him, he will never stop loving you. The same is for me, you are my family, boys, and I will never stop protecting and loving you."
They say nothing at my statement, but James starts crying harder and throws himself into my arms, he buries his head in my shoulder, holding me strong, and Jason soon follows in his footsteps. I hold them both, gently patting their backs and shushing them, letting them cry as long as they want. And it takes a while, a very long while, before they get themselves calm, too exhausted to cry any longer. During all this time, Hannah isn't saying anything, silently observing us.
"OK," I finally decide to stop the silence, "get into the shower and go to sleep. I'm sure you are tired. "
Both boys nod their heads and let go of me.
"Tomorrow, you will talk with Hayden, ok?"
Jason looks like he wants to protest, but I don't allow him.
"We must face our problems, not run away from them."
As I'm leaving the room, Hannah stops me to whisper a small "thank you" into my ear, causing butterflies in my stomach. I finally did something good; I finally made myself worthwhile to her.
As I enter my room, I'm not surprised to see Hayden and Tony waiting there for me, my brother is already patched up, but he doesn't look well; turmoil on his face is evident.
"They are alright; they will talk with you tomorrow."
"Mikkeli," Tony says, "the patrol spotted not long ago some wolves very close to our border, but they didn't enter. They looked like they had been waiting for something."
"They have been waiting for the boys," I say, growling dangerously. "I've seen the packed backpacks in their room as if they wanted to run away immediately from here"
"They wanted to run away," Hayden says with a trembling voice. "I heard them arguing with Hannah. They heard about what I had done, ran to their room to pack, and waited for Hannah because they wanted to leave with her and Rosie immediately. When they saw me, they started screaming that they hate me and I'm a monster, and they lost control and shifted, and then you came."
"Do you know who told them the truth?" I ask.
"No, they were screaming that they had heard some people talking"
"Alright, we will ask them tomorrow for more details, but someone did it intentionally; they probably thought that with all the commotion with the party, the boys would not be guarded so well and wanted to provoke them to escape. Tony, please make sure to contact the lawyers tomorrow so they can start the official acknowledgment of Jason and James as the heirs of the Blackwood Pack after my offspring if I ever have them. And inform all the head warriors about the situation that someone is targeting my nephews, and their surveillance is our top priority. You, brother, go to sleep; you will have one hell of a conversation with your sons tomorrow."
Once both of them are gone, I finally step into the warm shower, feeling how tired I am. But it seems I cannot keep my mind calm. If I'm right and what happened today was meant to provoke James and Jason to escape, it means that our enemy is closer than I think. The problem is if boys cannot identify who they heard the truth from, it will be difficult to find out, and gossip spreads too quickly, usually to find the one who started them.
I leave the shower, but instead of going immediately to sleep to finish this day finally, I feel worried. This time it's not Byron; he seems calm, and this time it's me. I feel restless; the longest full moon in my life has still not ended. The corridors of the packhouse are silent when I walk through them in the direction of their room. I want to see Hannah one more time today. Suddenly my eyes spot a tiny small figure walking ahead of me; it's Rosie.
"What are you doing here, little one?" I ask, kneeling close to her
She looks at me with sleepy eyes and a slight frown on her face.
"Granny is sleeping; I want Hannah to carry me," she says and starts rubbing her eyes.
I smile and pick her up; she immediately wraps her hands around my neck and buries her face in my shoulder. I take her to their room, and all three of them, including Hannah, seem to be in a deep sleep. I proceed in the direction of the bed, I want to lie Rosie next to them, but when I try to, she whimpers in protest, tightening her hold on my neck.
"Carry me, want to be carried," she says, and I give up. I don't want her to wake up her siblings.
I walk with her around the room for about 20 minutes before I'm sure she's asleep, but my next attempt to put her away on the bed fails again because she whimpers and doesn't lessen her hold on me. Finally, I sigh and lie at the edge of the bed with her still snuggling into me. I relax, enjoying the pure smell of all the pups and Hannah. Curled into a highly uncomfortable position, I slowly doze off, surrounded by the intoxicating smell of my mate.