Chapter 1
ONE
July
It had been about three weeks since the Fortune caravan had rolled into Shreveport to start our new life.
We'd pulled up to a gorgeous two-story historic craftsman home in the established South Highlands neighborhood. My parents had shown us pictures online before we moved, but nothing could compare to seeing it in person.
The house was white with navy blue shutters, and it had a wraparound porch and a blue front door.
Giant pine trees dotted the front and back yards, and azalea bushes lined the perimeter of the house.
A detached two-car garage sat at the end of the driveway located to the left of the house—perfect for our family’s two vehicles.
The street was lined with similar old but well-kept houses and mature trees.
The inside of the house had been tastefully updated with a modern kitchen and open dining area and family room.
A grand staircase led to our three bedrooms upstairs.
The floors were all cherry hardwood, shining and gorgeous.
It was a far cry from our little ultra-modern townhouse back in Utah, but we all fell in love with it instantly.
We spent the first weeks unpacking boxes, organizing the house, and ordering takeout from the nearby local restaurants.
My room was organized and neat, with my queen bed, antique dresser, and small desk occupying the little corner bedroom.
I painted the walls lavender but kept my curtains and bedspread in neutral grays and whites with dark purple accents.
A faux Persian rug covered the exposed hardwood next to my bed.
Ben's room was still a disaster zone three weeks into our move, but he'd at least unearthed and organized his laptop and his favorite jeans and polos.
We'd taken to exploring the neighborhood around the house in the evenings when the Louisiana sun wasn't quite as brutal, and we'd gone on runs (as humans) together every few days to keep from getting too stir-crazy.
Besides those outings and my parents' two-day orientation at their new jobs after we'd arrived, we'd all been happy to generally keep to ourselves and enjoy the quiet of our new home away from prying Pack members and drama.
The Northwest Louisiana Pack had expansive lands just to the north of downtown Shreveport.
My dad had checked in with the Alpha and met a couple of his betas right after we'd arrived, but none of us had ventured back to the Pack's territory or interacted with any Pack members since then.
Anyone who knew we were here seemed content to leave us alone, which only reinforced my belief that this move had been the right decision.
According to Dad, the local NWLA Pack lands resembled a fancy residential gated community rather than the sparse and sprawling ranch-like territory that our old pack occupied.
There was a large, modern clubhouse with Pack meeting halls and private rooms, a bar, and a swimming pool out back.
The Alpha and his top betas lived nearby in small mansions with a historical vibe similar to our own neighborhood, while other Pack members lived in the more modest but no less charming homes that made up the residential area of the Pack territory.
At the back of the Pack's land was a large untouched pine forest where all Pack members were invited to let their wolves out to run and hunt without fear of exposure to any unassuming humans.
Dad also learned that only some of the local Pack members lived on-territory.
Almost all of leadership did, but plenty of others chose to live out in the community as we did, holding jobs and running businesses alongside the humans.
Everyone generally attended Pack functions and used the forest to shift and run, but NWLA Pack wolves had the freedom to live and work as they generally chose, as long as they paid their dues to the Pack for membership, which also bought them use of the Pack's shared spaces and the forest.
The NWLA Pack also had satellite pack locations in other nearby towns, which was why it was considered the largest regional pack in the South.
The Alpha apparently had married the daughter of the East Texas Pack Alpha about twenty years ago, and with their marriage they had merged the packs into one and doubled the size.
The Pack also had groups to the south in Natchitoches, to the north in Southern Arkansas, and to the east in Ruston and Monroe.
Each satellite pack was run by a lesser Alpha or a strong beta, and each had its own meetings and Pack events.
Occasionally, those wolves would journey to Shreveport for major Pack gatherings to rub shoulders with the Alpha and his inner circle.
I was pondering all of this while munching on a bowl of cereal and inhaling a cold brew coffee at our dining room table this morning, daydreaming about taking surfing lessons on the California coast. Dad and Mom were seated across from me with their noses in their tablets and coffee in their hands, while Ben was sprawled out on the couch behind us in only his pajama pants, scrolling through his phone and drinking tea, like a psychopath.
Dad was a tall, burley wolf man with shaggy chestnut hair and a matching beard.
He kept a pair of nerdy glasses that endeared him to his human coworkers and made him seem a bit less intimidating than the six-foot-four muscled giant he was.
Mom, whose name was Sara, was a five-foot-seven willowy hippie, with long honey blonde hair that she gave to both Ben and me.
She had vibrant blue-green eyes, whereas Ben and I got our hazel eyes from Dad.
They were both rocking casual T-shirts and jeans, while I was in my sleep shorts and tank top sans bra, because fuck bras.
"Hey kids," my dad piped up suddenly, snapping me out of my surf fantasies. "We haven't really had much time to sit down and talk about the rest of the summer and school and whatnot since we've been so busy with the house and the adjustment."
He scrolled some more on his tablet. "All of the information the Pack keeps about Blackstone Academy was emailed to me a few days ago. I've also got a few names of shifters who run a local business that may be hiring since you two were going to start looking for jobs."
"We are starting our jobs officially tomorrow," Mom chimed in. "Since we've still got about six weeks of summer left, we wouldn't want you two to get bored and get into trouble." She reached over and ruffled my hair like I was five, and I swatted her hand lazily.
"You're going to start training again, too," Dad added.
Ben and I both groaned at that. "Cut that shit out!
" Dad barked, interrupting our whining. "Just because we are trying to live a simple life away from wolf nonsense doesn't mean you both shouldn't keep up your combat skills in both human and wolf form. "
"Fine, Dad," I said.
I didn't disagree—our world was never one hundred percent safe, and innate Alpha power was not worth anything if you weren't trained to stand up for yourself in a wolf fight.
We were aggressive in nature. A wolf was unpredictable when provoked, and we lived in a city crawling with them.
Ben and I were pretty top-notch in combat due to Dad's training and sparring with each other, even though Ben continues to claim he is "a lover, not a fighter.
" I can usually beat him, but only barely.
"Can we talk about what you've learned about Blackstone Academy?" Ben asked from his spot on the couch. "I know it's the local private prep school, but why does the Pack spend the money to send all the shifter kids there?"
"Apparently the private nature of the school allows some flexibility for shifter education," Dad replied. "The Pack has managed to get some Pack members on staff there, and evidently they've been able to institute some shifter-only classes under the nose of the humans who work and attend there."
He scrolled his iPad again. "So for example, this says that there is a shifter-only Gym class to allow you guys to go full strength into combat exercises and sports without scaring off the humans.
There is also a shifter history class and a restricted access part of the library for shifter resources. "
"Riveting," Ben drawled. "Though I suppose it is pretty snazzy that the Pack finances private prep school education for everyone."
"Your father and I didn't think it would be wise to turn that kind of opportunity down, and it could open so many doors since you both want to go to college," Mom said.
"Even though it does force you to interact with the Pack kids, I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing for either of you.
You should make more wolf friends since there'll be so many more open-minded people here than back home. "
"Yeah, as long as they don't turn their noses up at the lowly omegas," I scoffed.
“You never know. Omegas in this pack may not necessarily be looked down upon or scorned," Dad replied.
"Omega status can be given to wolves for a variety of reasons.
It's not exactly odd that an Alpha would assign omega status to a new family joining the Pack, as it just indicates that they are unknown entities that need to earn trust and any spots of authority they may want, and that they would need to prove they have the ability protect themselves without special assistance from the pack. "
"That's right," Mom chimed in. "Omega status is often granted to weaker wolves who the Pack places a special priority on looking out for, like those who are disabled or unable to shift, or wolves who just eschew dominance of any kind and are happy to let the Pack take care of them.
Some female wolves actually covet omega status. "
“Yeah, but Alpha Monroe assigned us omega status knowing we are from an Alpha bloodline," I said. "No one in their right mind would think omega status is necessary in our situation. He's doing it because he's petty and insecure about how he might stack up to Dad's Alpha power."
"That's probably true," Dad responded, "but we knew something like this could happen when trying to join a new pack. It doesn't do anything to prevent us from living how we intended to with this move and hopefully keeps the spotlight away from our family."
That sentiment I could agree with. It chafed me a bit to see Dad disrespected like that, but in the end, it wasn't any more disrespect than he'd been constantly treated with back home by his own immediate family members. This was a better situation all around.
We continued our discussion of the Pack and the Academy as we finished up breakfast. Dad downloaded the rest of the information he had regarding school. We were to start school the Tuesday after Labor Day, and Dad directed us to order school uniforms (gross) through the Academy's website.
"Oh my god I am going to look amazing in that!
" Ben exclaimed as he popped his face over my shoulder while I was perusing the Blackstone Academy website's uniforms page.
He was right—his built six-foot-two frame could fill out a white dress shirt and maroon blazer like none other, and they would pair so perfectly with his all-American boy-next-door good looks.
"And I am going to look like I just stepped onto the set of a dirty schoolgirl porno," I said as I eyed the khaki pleated skirt and knee-high socks.
"I’m too fucking tall, so my ass is going to hang out of this skirt.
At least Mom can tailor these a bit so they will actually fit us.
" I selected the various items I needed then passed the tablet over to Ben to complete the order.
"I emailed you the job leads, as well, Mave," Dad said as he cleared the table of our morning dishes. "I think you two should job hunt first thing tomorrow. You can keep a solid routine for the rest of the summer of training in the morning and working in the afternoon."
"Roger that, Old Man," I replied.
"This old wolf can still put you on your back in a fight, young lady."
He definitely could.