Hannah POV
Too many things happened during the last two weeks, definitely too many.
After a very eventful and the longest full moon night of my life, I woke up in one bed with Mikkeli, thankfully not only with him. But it didn't stop my cheeks from turning red when I noticed our position.
Mikkeli was lying in the center of the bed with me on top of him. My head was resting on his chest, and his hand was on my head as if he was trying to get me closer to him, even in his sleep. Rosie was sleeping on his left side, curled into Mikkeli's armpit with her tiny arms wrapped around his big one. The boys were on his right side, with Jason's arms wrapped around Mikkeli's leg with his feet pointed very close into the direction of the Alpha's nose, and James was between his brother and me, clutching my waist.
All my muscles were a little bit aching because of the uncomfortable position, but nevertheless, I felt a very warm feeling in my chest at this sight. I relaxed against Mikkeli's chest, letting myself keep this moment of silent calmness.
From the corner of my eye, I noticed Rose standing by the door, looking at us with a tiny smile and cheerful eyes. I managed to wiggle out from all arms, holding me without waking up anybody. Rose and I let them all sleep and went downstairs.
Gideon and Becca were already sitting in the kitchen, sipping their coffee slowly and looking slightly tired.
"So the cat is out of the bag," said Becca as soon as she noticed me," but yesterday's party was fun."
I smiled at her, appreciating that she was trying to cheer me up.
"How is Hayden?" I asked Gideon.
"I patched him up; the boys certainly have Mikkeli's temper. Hayden has bruised ribs, lots of claws, scratches, and one excruciating bite wound on his leg. And he's not healing very well."
"Why?" I asked; I was concerned about him.
"First of all, Hayden's wolf is much weaker after his mate's death, and the second is the fact that it was his sons who had attacked him. It made his wounds more painful and difficult to heal for his wolf. It would get better if the boys' wolves could lick his gashes, but I'm sure they are not in the mood for that."
I raised my brows with an unspoken question, and Gideon explained:
"As werewolves, we can heal our family and closest ones, especially mates. So when you are wounded, it's good when your mate licks your wounds to speed up the healing process, but it also works the other way around. If a child hurt the parent or opposite, or if mates hurt each other physically, the wounds are usually more severe and heal slower."
The scene when Mikkeli had licked my bruised face a couple of months before flashed in my memory. Was it why he had done it, to help me heal after him hitting me? But I did not comment when Hayden entered, limping into the kitchen.
"Where are Jason and James?" he asked me, but it was Rose who answered:
"They are still sleeping with Rosie and Mikkeli."
Hayden looked confused and worried hearing that, but he didn't say anything as Rose continued:
"Eat your breakfast now, Hayden, and go to your room or whatever you must do to calm yourself. When the boys wake up, we will feed them, and then I will talk with them together with Hannah, and after that, we will send them to speak with you."
I gently squeezed his hand, trying to reassure him. He looked at me with gratefulness and managed to smile back at me.
And that's how it went.
After all our sleepy heads woke up, we made sure they were fed breakfast. After that, Mikkeli returned to his duties, Kyle took care of Rosie, and we talked with the boys. I let them read Dad's letter to Maddie, and Rose explained what had happened from her point of view.
Again, some were crying and hugging each other, but they didn't protest when we took them to Hayden's room so they could work this out. I let them speak alone even though I was standing all the time in the corridor next to the door, worried about how the situation would progress.
Well, Hayden had to hear many sharp words, which was very painful, too, but at least they all came clean now with everything. He also told them the real reason why we had been forced to move here.
Since then, Hayden has been under the punishment of silent treatment from my brothers. They put some distance between them and him, and we all let that happen, understanding that they need some time and space, but it doesn't stop Hayden from trying every day to talk with them or offer them some help. Well, at least they answer him, don't initiate any interaction with him, and usually give him short answers, but at least they talk to him.
We, of course, tried to find out from the boys who had told them the truth but they couldn't tell us, they heard some people talking, that's all. The same came with talking with the pack members; some admitted that they knew the truth, but all of them had heard it from someone. So we are again not even close to finding out who our enemy is. Rose said that 11 years ago, all the omegas had known why Maddie had escaped; it seems lots of people knew about Maddie's rape but not about the fact that she and Hayden were mates.
So lately, I spent my time taking care of my brothers, taking care of Rosie, my omega duties, and Mikkeli.
Exactly; since Hayden is so preoccupied with fixing things between himself and his sons, he's stopped paying too much attention to me and his brother, which Mikkeli eagerly uses to his advantage.
Every day for two weeks, I have had a morning "date" with Byron. Officially, I'm going into the woods for some running, but he's always there waiting. I'm now pretty good at sensing his emotions, enjoyment, happiness, or sadness. And his sulking, he sulks every time our time together is nearly finished, and I have to leave him alone. But according to Mikkeli, Byron is in much better condition now when he can be close to me every day.
It seems the same goes for Mikkeli.
Even though he seems pretty busy with a significant pack business right now, he always finds a way to put his hands on me at least twice a day. Unnoticed and undisturbed by anybody, we kiss each other in his office, in my room, near the garden shed, or at the end of the corridor near omegas' quarters. Hungry and lustful for each other equally, I enjoy every moment. Neither Rose nor Kyle has said anything, but I'm sure they've noticed. I'm sure I must reek of Mikkeli's scent all over me.
Our encounters are not that long each time because Mikkeli fears losing control again, and I know I'm not making it easier for him. I enjoy it. I love his hands on my thighs, my breasts, and my back. I love his tongue in my mouth, and I love touching him. The funny thing is that even though Mikkeli is much older than me and a dominant alpha wolf, I'm the one leading our make-out sessions, even though he's the one who initiates them.
"I've never thought I would enjoy someone on top of me," he whispers into my neck.
Right now, we are in his office, on his leather couch, him lying shirtless on his back and me on top of him, straddling his thighs. I stop teasing his nipples and sit straight to look into his eyes.
"Are you complaining?" I ask, pulling my loose hair out of my face.
"Not even thought about it," he responds with a smirk, his hands caressing my butt. "I'm sure you can feel how much I'm not complaining. You are sitting on top of it."
"It's good that you still have your trousers on, and I'm fully dressed," I reply, moving a little bit so the bulge in his pants is directly under me; he starts gently squeezing my thighs, none of us moving. I don't want to provoke him, and he seems to enjoy my weight on top of him.
For a very long while, we look silently into each other eyes.
"How are the boys and Hayden?" He asks me.
"Slowly going towards some understanding. I think they will be alright."
"Yes, and when they figure this out, Hayden will be back to stand at the end of my rope, not allowing me to get close to you. But I'm happy that they managed to somehow get along with their past. Being a rape baby's not the easiest burden to carry."
"Mikkeli, what you told my brothers about your mother, I didn't know. I'm sorry," I gently say, seeing that his mood seems to be changing.
He turns his eyes away from me and says nothing, and as if he's just made his decision after some time, he starts speaking.
"When Hayden's mother left, she burned her mate mark away to serve all the connections between my father and her, so he stopped being her mate and Alpha. She was no longer obligated to follow his commands to never speak about my mother, and before she left, she had told me who it was," he says, but his voice seems full of sorrow.
"Did you know her?" I ask, and he nods, his eyes still focused on the wall.
I feel as if he is slowly backing away, trying to hide his insecurities from me and maintain his stoned, solid Alpha image.
"She was one of our lower members; it.... wasn't literally the rape, it's not like he beat her or tied her up, but he was an Alpha, and she couldn't say "no" to him. I was born with a strong alpha scent and blood, so that's why my father decided to acknowledge me publicly. He forbade her ever to tell me the truth, but since I was the one who came to her with questions, she could give me the answers. Father never noticed that I knew; it was safer for her that way."
Mikkeli starts playing with my fingers.
"Where is she now?" I ask.
"She died during the last war with hunters, the same my father died, just not in the battle or ambush."
"What do you mean?"
"She found her mate; he was one of the warriors from the different pack who fought along with my pack against our common enemy. Just like her, he had never married before, and he accepted her; they mated and marked each other. My father wasn't happy, but against mate bonds, Alpha has no power, and the law is clear. Her mate wanted to take her away to his pack after the fighting would've been over, and I was happy for her. I really was; she deserved some happiness in her life. They didn't get this because he was killed just a couple of months before my father. And after that, her wolf just gave up; she slowly wasted away."
"I'm so sorry," I say, and he looks at me with a sad smile.
"We lost many during the last war. My mother was one of them."
"And now, how serious is the situation right now?" I ask, biting my lips.
"What did Maddie tell you about hunters?"
"They live in groups. They move around a lot, targeting different packs; they are dangerous..."
"Hunters and werewolves have been enemies for centuries, and each party of this conflict wants nothing more than to wipe out the other one completely. Werewolves live in packs; hunters create more like clans or groups traveling together. The hate is endless, and there is lots of guilt and cruelty on both sides. The only thing we are united about is keeping our conflict under the radar; the human world must never know about it. When I was away to help my friend, he suffered a great loss because of those fucking bastards, but we managed to get a lot of intel from the prisoners."
"Is this why you are preparing a big operation against them right now? Rose told me that next week, we would have warriors from different packs to train and prepare for the joint attack."
"Rose seems to be extremely well-informed about everything."
"She's the one who will have to organize cleaning, cooking, and sleeping places for them; she must be well-informed unless you want them to make tents in the garden," I smile.
"There will be no tents; we will have ten packs with Alphas, their Betas or Gammas, and 15 warriors each. Each pack will live in one of my warriors' houses as they will move with their families to the packhouse for the time being. We will train together, and after that, they will go home and share our common strategy with all their warriors. With the intel we have, we will prepare the ambush and probably eradicate the strongest hunter's alliance in this part of the country."
"Is that what worries you so much?"
"I can't postpone this operation because sooner or later, hunter clans will reorganize again, and the information we have will no longer be validated, but at the same time, someone is still out there trying to get his hands on Jason and James, and that's what makes me worried. It is difficult to protect anybody when you don't know who your enemy is."
He gives me a peck on the cheek and then gently smacks my ass.
"A little bit longer, and someone will catch us here red-handed," he says, and we both stand up.
"Maybe next time we should play 20 questions," I suggest, heading slowly in the door's direction as Mikkeli, who is in the middle of dressing himself, gives me a questionable look.
"I mean, I almost had my hands literally in your pants, and I still don't know your favorite color," I say, looking at him.
"Black and yours?"
"Green, like your eyes," I say, leaving Mikkeli with a dumbfounded expression.