Pack Baines (North Five University #2)

Prologue

Juniper

“You promise we’ll always have each other?” I ask on a whisper, turning my head on the ratty blanket Creek brought out into the field behind the twins’ fancy house.

Holding his hand out for me to take, he stares right into my eyes as he declares, “I promise, Juno. You’ll always be ours, and we’ll always be yours. I’ll even make a bet to prove it.”

I’m tempted to do it, too. I’ll get him to kiss a frog or something else I know he won’t like. Before I can agree to it, my thoughts are interrupted.

“You can’t get rid of us, Firecracker,” Geo teases, hugging my skinny leg to his chest from where he’s sprawled, grinning widely at me instead of looking up at the glittering stars littered across the dark sky.

Lips twitching, I nudge him with my foot, knocking loose one of my favorite sounds in the world. His laughter could light up the darkest night, and the battle to keep my smile tucked away is lost the instant I hear it.

Evron, not being one to sit on the sidelines, drops his head onto my stomach and claims, “Damn straight. You’re stuck with us, Blue. Forever and ever and ever and—”

I cut his words off with an oomph , my hand slapping over his mouth while I laugh, only to yank it away when he licks it. “Eww!”

All three of them laugh, and I settle back into the blanket, staring back at the sparkling stars that wink down at me from between tree branches and clouds. I can still feel Creek watching me, but I don’t turn my head, lips twitching again until he whispers, “We’ll get you out of there one of these days, J. If it’s the last thing we do.”

My chest hurts and tears spring to life as I shut my eyes, wanting nothing more than his words to be true. Wishing with everything in my pint-sized body for them to get me out from that place, from them. It’s the only dream I have. Well, that and running away with the boys that brought me into the fold two years ago. That’s the more unlikely dream, though. At twelve years old, I know better, because life doesn’t just hand out dreams like that. Especially not to poor little girls that live in trailer parks and are trapped by a pack that should never have been allowed to have kids. Not to mention, I’m sure the boys’ packs will all be worried. After all, they’re loved and cared for, come from enough money to make me envious, and will have search parties out for them until they’re found. Not a single member of any of their packs would rest until they were back home, safe and warm and cared for.

I’d be surprised if my parents even noticed me missing. It would probably take them a week, by then their money would have dried up, taking with it their addictions. As soon as the fog would clear, that’s when they’d storm into my room and…

Rubbing a hand over the bruises on my collar bone I’ve kept secret from the boys, I fight the dread of knowing I’ll have to go back there soon. The boys will be called home, and I’ll be left to walk back to that crap hole, knowing what I’ll be greeted by the moment I step through the door. Trash everywhere, empty bottles scattered on every surface available, days old empty food packets. Used needles. Baggies of white powder that looks like flour. Weird glass things they boil water in and smoke comes out of. And that’s not even the worst part. I wish it was the worst part.

When I realize Creek is still waiting on some kind of acknowledgement, I nod, accepting and hugging his hand to my grumbling stomach. It’s been eight hours since I ate last, at the pity of one of my teachers who saw my lunch box empty again. Pretty sure she’s taken it upon herself to start bringing an extra lunch for me, just in case. That just in case has been every day of the week so far, my lunch box sitting as empty and neglected as me since the adults still haven’t bought groceries like they were supposed to. Instead, there’s been more alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs stashed away where the food should be, leaving me hungry and ignoring the pains in my belly.

A nearby rustle draws our attention, Evron sitting up to watch the opening where we came through, only to fall back against my stomach when the twins appear through the trees. Both are carrying bags filled to the brim, and Geo slaps his hands over my legs, rubbing them together as he says, “Thank god. I’m starving.”

A thundering rumble from my belly says the same, and Geo frowns the moment he hears it. Before he can question the sound, Leylan drops a bag onto the blanket and smiles shyly at me as he says, “We brought a picnic. I grabbed your favorite chips and iced tea.”

I’m sitting up quickly, dislodging Evron’s head with a grumble of protest following, and I make grabby hands at the bag with a whisper, “Peach, right?”

“Obviously,” his brother answers, rolling his eyes at me, but not without a twitch of his lips that tells me he’s teasing.

Lowie passes me the bottle of peach iced tea with a shudder, and I poke my tongue out at him, taking the bottle gratefully. Then he’s dropping everything else onto the blankets, his brother copying the motion, until there’s a small mountain of food stacked in the middle of the blanket.

Without so much as another word, Lowie takes a seat behind me, his long legs framing mine as he drags me back to lean on him. Cedarwood and faint hints of coconut surrounds me instantly, and I relax into him, accepting the family-sized packet of chips Leylan places on my stomach. Lowie reaches over to open them and, like that was a signal for everyone to tuck in, we all dive in and snack away until the hunger pains slowly disappear.

The next couple of hours are spent talking about school, a football game they all have next week, and everything else but my home life. In fact, they all make a good effort to stay completely away from it, like if they don’t even acknowledge the disaster my life is, it won’t be real. Sadly, that bubble only lasts an hour longer before there’s a call nearby.

“Leylan, Lowie. It’s time to get inside,” one of the twins’ dads shouts, making my lips twitch. “Say bye to your friends, kiddos.”

Lowie sighs, dropping his head to my shoulder, and Leylan sends me a sad look that almost has those forgotten tears appearing again. I try to offer him a smile, but it’s forced and feels funny on my face, but I shrug and tell him, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Meet you here after school?” he almost pleads, his voice cracking and making a genuine smile break out over my face. Ever since they turned thirteen a year ago, the twins have been struggling with their voices cracking, and they get a kick out of me finding it so funny. There’s just something hilarious about them turning squeaky in the middle of a sentence every now and then.

I nod quickly, making to stand, Lowie helping with ease. I offer them both a hug, one tight enough to steal my breath, and the other so soft that I almost break down and cry in front of them, before they start packing away the trash we left in the middle of the blanket. Geo grabs the blanket before holding out his arms, wrapping me in a bear hug to end all bear hugs, and I can’t help but wheeze when those arms band tightly around me. Evron steals me just as quickly, tucking his face into the crook of my neck, rocking us back and forth before releasing me with a sad smile. He knows what I’m going home to. They all do. And we all hate it.

“Boys, we have a house full of packs here,” the twins’ dad calls again, laughter in his voice. “Creek, your mama said to hurry your ass up before your dads come out and haul you inside. Geo, you’ve got ten seconds to get to your mama’s car at the curb before she sics all of your dads on you, and Evron, you’d best explain to your dads and mama why you didn’t tell them you were coming over, because I just caught some shit I wasn’t ready for.”

A burst of laughter escapes me, and I turn just in time to watch Ev wince and cringe, pulling his cell phone out of his pocket and typing a message quickly. A reply comes quickly, and his shoulders sag with a relieved sigh. “Dad forgot to tell them all that I was here. This one isn’t on me.”

“False alarm, Ev. Your dad screwed the pooch,” comes another shout, and I’m clutching my stomach from laughing so hard.

Creek shakes his head, grinning at me while I cackle, but he holds a hand out for me to take and starts our trek through the trees back to the twins’ house. He’s already taller than me, even being only a year older, but his strides are longer than mine. I’m practically running to keep up, and I roll my eyes when he snorts without slowing down.

I’m panting and breathless by the time we get to the twins’ house, legs a little shaky from how little I’ve eaten all day, but I still manage a smile when Kaleb comes into view. “Juni-bear, I didn’t know you were here.”

The twins’ dad pulls me into a hug that hurts my heart with how desperately I wish I had this at home, but I bottle it as I pull away, pasting on a brittle smile that likely looks more like a grimace.

Kaleb can tell, but he simply brushes a hand over my head and offers sweetly, “You need a ride home, kiddo? It’s late and I know Mama Bear would kill us all if we let you walk the streets in the dark.”

“Damn straight, she would. Get your tush over here, missy,” Bear, the twins’ mom, demands a second later, entering the room followed by several other members of different packs, all friends and nothing like the ones that make up my pack at home.

Stepping into her embrace, I’m instantly surrounded by warm butter and sugary scones. Bear hums and whispers, “Gah, I’ve missed you, Juni-bear. We don’t see you enough. ”

I squeeze the slight woman, wishing for the millionth time that my mom was like her, and step back, “Missed you, Mama Bear. I’ll try and come around more.”

She cups my face and nods, worry streaking over her delicately pretty features, but she smiles eventually and says, “Kaleb is taking you home. I don’t want any arguments, alright?”

I nod, because there’s no way I’m arguing with Bear Ledger, and she strokes another motherly hand over my knotted hair and sighs. When she faces her boys, she raises her eyebrows and says, “Don’t think I didn’t see how much food you tried to sneak out of here. I’m taking you both shopping tomorrow so you can replace it all.”

The twins snicker, and she shakes her head with a fond smile, ushering me out of the room. Over my shoulder, I hear the others greeting their boys, all laughter and jokes and warmth. Family and extended family, almost like a large pack, filled with love and respect. Everything my family isn’t. It crushes me as much as it makes me happy knowing my boys have happy lives.

“So, what’s it gonna take for me to keep you here instead of sending you back to that place?” Bear asks quietly once we’re far enough away, her thin, but strong, arm banded over my shoulder.

I shrug, knowing there’s nothing we can do. We’ve tried, boy have we. But there’s nothing that can be done. No amount of calls to social services, or cops, or welfare checks. Somehow, my parents all manage to clean up their acts in time for them to dupe any officer or care worker. The last time Bear tried to keep me overnight, my mom called the cops on her and declared kidnapping. It’s why I haven’t seen much of the twins’ family in the last couple of months.

Swallowing hard, I look down at my scuffed and dirty chucks that look so out of place on the glossy white floor I’m standing on, and quietly confess, “I don’t want to go home. They were drinking before I snuck out.”

A few cuss words slip from Bear’s mouth before she can swallow them, and she sends a pleading look to two of her bond mates that linger in the doorway nearby. Crane and Nolan send me a pained look, and I know there’s nothing they can do. There’s nothing anyone can do. Not without a miracle, anyway.

“I’m sorry, sweet girl,” Bear sniffles. “I’d keep you here with us in a heartbeat if I could. We’ll keep trying, though, okay?”

Nodding like always, but feeling the helplessness burrow into my bones, I accept the hug she gives me before pulling away reluctantly. The boys are all there, frowning and worried, but I smile and remind them, “I’ll see you guys tomorrow.”

I turn and leave before either of them can see the tears wavering on my lashes, Kaleb’s hand resting on my back a moment later as he leads me to his fancy car in the driveway. The drive goes quietly, Kaleb checking on me every now and then, and my whole body grows tenser and tenser the closer we get to the trailer park.

By the time Kaleb parks, my body feels as tight as a bow string, my mouth is dry, and I’m colored in about ten shades of terrified and shaking hard enough that my teeth ache as they clack against one another.

“Juni-bear,” he sighs, reaching over to take my hand. He doesn’t do much more than that for a long while, letting me borrow his strength, before he finally says, “Look, you have Ley and Low’s numbers, right? Call if you need absolutely anything. I’ll come for you the moment I hear you need me, okay? If anything happens, I want you to call straight away.”

With one last pleading look, I nod and climb out of the car, tugging the sleeves of my too small shirt down over my hands, gripping the frayed material tightly as I walk toward the trailer. I can hear the pounding bass of music coming from inside, and I wince as it rattles my bones. I don’t bother looking over my shoulder to see if Kaleb is still there, already knowing he won’t leave until I’m inside. Maybe even linger after.

Squaring my shoulders, I take a deep breath and head into the trailer, the screen slamming shut after me. The sound is drowned out by the pumping music coming from the old speaker tucked in the corner, and the over-the-top laughter coming from the couch where Victoria is sprawled across two of her bond mates.

I’m assaulted by the stench of sweat, beer, and the skunk-like smell that makes me feel sick in a matter of seconds. There’s a cloying mixture of scents from the people within, my own muted until my designation comes in, and I have to swallow back a whimper in case my mother hears it. Not that you could hear much over the pop song blaring all around me.

“Where the fuck have you been?” Hershal snaps, just shy of a bark but no less powerful enough to have me cowering slightly.

“I had dinner with a friend,” I mutter, looking down at the grimy, stained floor.

“Speak up, scruff,” he demands, this time a bark that I have no choice but to obey.

“I was at dinner with a friend,” I almost shout, eyes widening at the floor, shoulders hunching that little bit more in an attempt to make myself as small as possible.

It’s no use, though, because my words draw all of the attention to me. The music screeches to a stop, and I find myself surrounded by adults the next moment. Victoria is watching me impassively, makeup smudged down her face, and wavering on her feet while her blown-out pupils look at me as though she has no feelings at all towards her daughter. Shawn and William’s narrowed eyes are watching me carefully, likely trying to sniff out some kind of mistruth, while Terry and Calvin look as bored as they could look at the show Hershal is putting on.

The man in question looks livid, though.

“What friend? You don’t got no friends,” he snarls, his stained shirt stretched over his rotund belly, sweat staining the collar and underarms.

Swallowing, I explain, “It was a friend from school. One of the girls. She asked me to dinner yesterday. I told Mom. ”

The backhand catches me off guard, and I’m on the floor before I can take my next breath, my cheek scalding where Hershal struck me.

“You tryna’ blame your mother now?” he seethes, spittle flying at me with every word.

I shake my head rapidly, hand clutching my burning cheek while tears gloss my eyes. “No, sir. I’m sorry.”

“You best believe you’ll be fuckin’ sorry when I’m through with you. You’re about to learn some goddamn manners,” he announces, lip curled in a nasty snarl. “Might not know what you are yet, but you’re gonna learn that alphas fuckin’ rule here, you little bitch.”

And then another fist comes at me. And another. And a booted foot that collides with my still-aching stomach. Repeatedly, Hershal tries to teach a lesson I didn’t need learning. The others meander away, uninterested with everything but their addictions and bonds, leaving Hershal to beat me black and blue, leaving cuts deep enough that I feel the blood slowly drip from several wounds that litter my malnourished body.

By the time he’s done, breathing hard and looking down at me as though I disgust him, I can barely move. Everything hurts. It hurts so much. My head is cloudy with pain, and I can’t move an inch without crying out in agony. Not that anyone here cares. Especially not Hershal, who wipes his bloody hands on his stained shirt, before dropping into the nearest chair with a contented sigh.

“Get yourself up and go to bed, Juniper. You have school in the morning,” the woman supposed to be my mother claims, voice soft but no emotion behind it, not once leaving the lap of her bonded to check on me. “And don’t be late coming home tomorrow. Make sure you cover them marks, too.”

It takes me a moment to haul my small body up, sobbing with every move. I have to hold on to the wall while I shuffle to the closet that is my room, passing the nest Victoria made when she was still trying to play the role of omega with her alphas .

I shut the door after myself when I enter my room, slumping against it and sliding down the wall until my bum collides with the unforgiving floor. My vision is spotty, and my head feels wobbly, my stomach rolling with sickness when I try to move too fast. I awkwardly fish out the cell phone Bear bought me and immediately call Lowie.

“Juniper?” he answers, picking up the call after only two rings.

“Low,” I rasp, breaking out into painful coughs that hurt my throat. Liquid flies from my split lip, and I peer down at my hand and find it covered in blood. I don’t think that’s good, but neither is the way my consciousness seems to be draining out of me quickly.

I can hear Lowie, then Leylan, both shouting from the phone, and it takes me a moment to realize I’ve dropped it from my ear, my hand hanging limply on the ground. Then I’m tilting sideways and everything around me fades to black.

I wish I’d known then that things would only get worse from there on. I wish I’d known that life as I knew it would implode in a matter of hours. Maybe then I might not have called Lowie. Maybe then I wouldn’t have had to deal with all the officers and social workers and moving to a strange house with people in white coats, and missing out on the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches I knew Mrs. Burnham would bring me for lunch.

Maybe then I would have kept my promise to see the boys the next day. But that day never came, and everything around me crashed and burned until I was left alone in a world that wanted to do nothing but hurt me.