Alyssa, pack doctor of Howl Pack above

Terry POV

I walk between the buildings, the packhouse is burning behind me. That was a very small pack, but it disappear completely today. We lost some men, men we shouldn't have lost if Jordan wasn't trying to be an unnecessary hero and stuck to my plan. I hear the howling and whimpering, the sounds of agony. There are dying, those who are not dead will die soon.

I know Jordan is still in front of the packhouse, he and his people managed to get the Alpha alive and are now in the process of killing him slowly. Tough guy, he hasn't made any sound, at least not yet. Since we should leave soon I also hope that Jordan will finish him quickly.

By the corner of my eye, I notice the movement and someone jumps on me, that wolf isn't big but seems determined. Why is it still here, they should have run, not many who survived should run away as fast as they could.

My instincts kick in as Doggy jumps into the fight, Eric is also very quickly next to me to help. He manages to push it away from me and when it jumps at us again I shoot. The wolf lies on the ground bleeding, I gulp trying to ignore the sight of her big pregnant belly.

There is someone standing at the entrance to the nearest house, how old is this boy, seven? Eight?

No movement comes from him, he just looks at me, he doesn't make any sound, just looks at me.

I carefully look around but it seems there is no one here, except us and the boy.

I hear Jordan's voice through the walkie-talkie as he asks me if I found anybody alive.

"Nobody, we are done," I say not looking at Eric.

None of us utter a single word as we just turn around and leave, the boy is still looking at us.

His face is a blur to me, if I bump into him ever again I would not recognize him, I'm sure of it. Just like I'm sure he will recognize me. Sometimes when I am in the mall or in cities I haven't been to before and some people look at me I wonder if they recognize me. If they saw a monster I'd been. If their hatred will be stronger than their fear and they will try to take my life.

Sometimes I wonder if I try to protect myself or not, do I care enough to protect myself?

I open my eyes, and when a nightmare strikes I don't wake up screaming, just covered in a cold sweat and panting hard, just like today. I glance at the clock, 3 in the morning. I know I won't be able to sleep anymore so I stand up. I am moving slightly Pearl to the edge of the bed. She was so persistent on sleeping with me so I agreed but only in her wolf form.

She must know that at her age she can't sleep in one bed with the man, and since I didn't want to start to explain her flowers and bees this one rule seemed to be better to close the topic. Doggy stirs in his sleep, he has never slept in bed with me. But Pearl couldn't understand why her wolf can sleep in the bed and Doggy can't. Well, in just a couple more weeks, she will turn him into the lapdog, and I won't be able to do anything about it.

I sit in the kitchen with a cup of hot tea wondering how I should spend the hours left to dusk when Pearl enters the kitchen.

"Daddy can't sleep?" she asks sitting next to me.

"I had a nightmare, and you why are you up?"

"Worried about Daddy but Daddy okay."

I smile at her waiting, she usually plays with her fingers when she wants to say more and that is what she does right now.

"Mommy had nightmares, she wasn't able to sleep, so I worry when you don't sleep. Mommy was crying a lot also in her sleep. First daddy said that mommy must rest more, said that I make mommy tired, that I make everybody tired. But I don't think that's true, because I heard mommy saying once that she can't no more, that she tired and he said they must try again because heir to the pack is important. "

"Pearl, what happened with your brothers?" I ask, I know she had 3 of them.

"Died, they came out of mommy, cried but later stop, very quickly. But, but mommy said at least she could hold them. Many babies in mommy she couldn't because they came out of her as blood."

I reach to grab her hand and she accepts my touch.

"Has your mommy had many miscarriages?"

"Yes, that the word, difficult so I don't remember. Yes many, and she was always sad after and daddy was very angry and was destroying things at home. And finally the pack doctor said mommy can't have children inside her again and that's when daddy started to make mommy cry and scream in pain every night. My aunt said that mommy's wolf feels that daddy touching somebody else."

"He wanted to have a male heir."

I raise my eyes and see Ivory standing at the entrance to the kitchen.

"Pearl was born first, next I and then three dead boys, I don't know why, but something was wrong with our mother that her wolf couldn't heal her. After that, she had around 10 miscarriages, and then my father started sleeping around. Saying he needs an heir, but none of his sluts managed to give him one. But our mother suffered a lot because of it."

"How did she die?" I ask and Ivory turns her eyes away.

"Her wolf started dying so my father stopped cheating but it was already too late, he couldn't stop the process. She died because of a broken heart"

"And what happened later?"

"Does it matter, do you want to know why we left, does it change anything?" she is angry I can hear it.

"No it doesn't, but if you need to talk about it with anybody I'm here. Sometimes you feel better if you tell someone what haunts you."

"Do you want to talk about the years you spent as a hunter?"

I sigh, sometimes I forget how sharp she is.

"No, but we are not the same Ivory. I used to hurt others and you and your sister used to be hurt."

She bits her lips, and we sit in silence for a while.

"Have you ever done something that was good?" Ivory asks breaking the silence.

"I've never tortured anybody, I saved some lives when our clan was rented to help people deal with werewolves. But still, I did things that would make you sick and that makes me sick Ivory. I'm not a good man, I may not do bad things now, but that doesn't make me a good man."

"But you good for Jewels, so why you think you are bad?" asks Pearl innocently, and I have no idea how I'm supposed to explain that to her.

"Because I care about you, that's why I'm good for you and your sister" I finally say, I mean it, I will never let anybody hurt them no matter the consequences.

"I've never met a hunter," Ivory says "But I heard stories. That you were cruel and wanted to kill every werewolf alive and that you liked to torture and that the pack existed to keep everybody safe. But my father isn't safe and as an Alpha, he should be. He hates weakness, so he has been cruel to those who worked in the packhouse. He hasn't been physical with anybody but has liked to humiliate people, especially omegas, and he hasn't been just in his judgment. And he didn't love my mother and he doesn't love me or Pearl"

I gulp and take a glance at Pearl, she sits curled and painfully biting her lips, but seems to understand and remember perfectly what Ivory is talking about.

"How old were you when your mother died?" I ask

"I was nine, after her funeral, he trashed the whole house, and nobody was able to calm him down, no matter what. Our Beta moved Pearl and me to our aunt's house because father wanted to be alone in the packhouse. Before mum died we used to have dinner with him every day and it was the only interaction we had with him. It usually ended with disaster because Pearl often spilled things and he didn't like that. He used to scream a lot." Ivory's eyes are stuck on the table.

"Stupid, stupid, daddy used to say very often Pearl was stupid. Mommy said that's not true, but daddy used to say it every day, Kiana was scared of daddy a lot." Pearl says sadly.

"My father's Beta convinced him to let us live with our aunt after mum's funeral, and I was very happy with it, I didn't want to be close to him no matter what. The Beta once said to him I was strong enough to lead the pack one day and he... he wasn't happy with it. He started to behave paranoically, especially with rogues, after he killed them no matter if they had attacked or had been just unlucky to stumble in Ravenswood territory he used to leave their corpses in front of the packhouse for days, saying they should rot. Because the smell of the rotting meat will convince others not to come."

Pearl moves slightly to me and wraps her arms around mine, but Ivory hasn't finished yet.

"But I think the worst was that it wasn't like that at the beginning, we were okay as a family until I was around five. He was strict but not cruel or violent, and we were a family. But later with each loss of the baby, it was as if he was losing part of his feelings towards us, he started to see me and Pearl as disappointment and nothing more."

"None of you is a disappointment, both of you are brave and strong. Just sometimes people, especially too proud and cruel don't see what is right in front of them" I say and Pearl smiles at me.

"Pearl too? Ivory strong and alpha, Peral weak and omega, but not a disappointment?"

"No, kid. You are kind, loyal, and persistent, everything in you is worth praising." I say

She smiles brightly and I smile back at her.

I send them back to bed and start wondering about what was just said. It is obvious that their father doesn't care, then why look for them? Why does he bother himself with them to the point of using rogues, which he clearly despises?

It seems that he was so focused on getting the male heir that he emotionally tormented his Luna and finally managed to kill her. The Beta of his pack seemed to remove the girls from the packhouse because he was sure that their father is a threat to them, but why? If he doesn't want to let Ivory inherit his Alpha's title why couldn't just take another wife and finally has his dream heir and just let the girls live with their mother's relatives?

My grandfather to some point was the same, he didn't value women in general and would never name any clan leader. But he wasn't blind at the same time, he knew Jordan wouldn't do as a leader. He was strong and good at fighting, but he was also reckless and couldn't plan well. When my parents were no longer in my grandfather's way he chose me as an heir because as shameful as it sounds I had the potential of being a cold and heartless leader and my heart was full of hatred for werewolves. The teenager who had watched his parents murder was easy to be molded into a merciless killer and yet no matter how much blood I spilled I've never felt better.

In the evening of the following day when I slowly start closing the bar a woman enters, I haven't seen her before. She is around Aunty Mae's age but doesn't give the vibe of a housewife, more like of a hag?

"My name is Alyssa, I've come to speak with Mae and with you Hunter," she says "You may take me upstairs, I may as well meet the rouges you are housing."

I nod and go to lock the bar's door. I haven't met Alyssa before, but she knows who I am, and she is famous for leaving the pack's territory hardly ever.

"Have you known about me all the time?" I ask as we walk upstairs.

"No, but I knew that being Mae's relative is bullshit because she would never invite anybody so close to the werewolves. But I didn't know about the hunter thing, or you being the son of the hitman Thomas had hired."

"So, you know now because of Danny? How is he, I haven't seen him in two weeks and he usually comes regularly."

"Apparently he's been sick and was in bed for a couple of days. But I wish to talk also about him too. He and Brandon have had some problems and Brandon has left for some time to take care of his job and Danny doesn't leave the house. Julius was trying calling him but he keeps repeating that he needs some time alone," she says sternly.

Aunty Mae smiles brightly seeing Alyssa, Pearl is eager to meet her as Ivory keeps her distance as usual. But we all know that she isn't here for a friendly visit and casual chat, so I quickly ask the Jewels to go to their room and they listen.

Aunty Mae gives Alyssa a cup of hot tea and asks:

"What's so important that you decided to leave your cave?" she asks and Alyssa sighs.

"Alexa was named a possible heir to the pack, she will go under the trail soon and I know that some of the pack members are not happy because she isn't from the old family if you understand what I mean."

"I understand that but why do you come to me with this news? I'm no longer a Luna of the Howl Pack."

"And yet you are my only alive witness, the only one who can testify whose daughter Alexa is and that she was named a successor many years ago."

"I thought you didn't want her to know the truth, no matter what." Aunty Mae says slowly.

"My daughter is not stupid, she did the math when she was in high school and confronted both me and my husband many years ago. And we told her the truth. Thomas died so suddenly that he didn't manage to make the news official and Preston is becoming a bigger and bigger problem."

"Natasha for sure has perfect control over the pack."

"Natasha will maintain control no matter what, she chose my daughter because she sees her potential. But Preston also has respect from the pack and he is blindly enchanted with his son, he refuses to see his flaws. And Preston can do the math too and may try to use it against my daughter. Brandon is strong, very strong and Preston has enough experience and respect to pull many for his son's side. I know Alexa and Brandon cannot avoid confrontation but I want to ask you to stand as my witness if I may be forced to reveal the truth."

"That I can do," says Aunty Mae "Although I don't want to be involved if I don't have to, do we have that clear?"

"Yes," Aunty Mae says "My daughter is very angry recently because Fiona decide to take the same mistake I did."

"You mean Brandon?"

Alyssa nods and looks away:

"It's now common knowledge that Brandon was cheating on Danny with Fiona, and of course, Preston had to do something. So as soon as Brandon and Alexa left to take care of some treaties he started gossiping putting all the blame on Fiona, even suggesting that my daughter seduced Brandon to make him lose his face because of the announcement of candidates for Alpha's title."

I quietly listen to their conversation, I'm not surprised that the shaming for Alpha's title is happening. The desire for power always makes people show the worst in them.

"Another problem is Brandon, I watched him during the last argument, I saw the way he behaved and I know it, I've seen it before. That's how it started with Anthony when your bond was rotting, I fear that Danny can be in danger and just like with you there will be no werewolf law to protect him."

"But for the bond to start rotting one of the mates must be marked against his will and if you are right that means that..."

Alyssa gives her a stern look and I clench my fists as she says:

"That means that Danny was raped during the marking".