Chapter 16 #2
“It’s…fine. They’re really nice and get grumpy if I don’t eat,” I say without really thinking about it.
“Why are you not eating?” Lars asks.
“Why do they care?” Caleb growls at the same time.
“Um.”
I can feel them before I hear them and I raise my eyes to find Silas, Easton, and Lyle standing at the entry of the kitchen. They’re remaining quiet, but it’s clear it’s up to me to claim them or not. They don’t deserve to be my dirty secret, despite how much of a mess my life is.
I like them. I don’t know what that means yet, but they are doing their best to fulfill my needs.
“My appetite isn’t great,” I breathe. “The doctor wants me to start slowly to build my strength up.”
A video request pops up on the phone and I drop it on the kitchen table as if it’s going to bite me.
“Answer the request, Alisa,” Caleb growls. “I won’t have men older than you taking advantage of you.”
“What? They’re not. Caleb, stop,” I say, confused.
My tears are drying on my skin, and I’m sure I look like a hot fucking mess.
Pushing my hair back from my face, I wince at how tangled it is again since I haven’t even brushed it yet today.
I stab the deny button on the phone as if it offends me, because I don’t want them to see me like this.
“Alisa.” I can feel the power in that word and I whimper in fear. I don’t want to be alpha barked.
“Please. Caleb, stop,” I whisper. Another request pops up and I shake my head vehemently.
“Fuck this.” Lyle is the first to push away from the wall and he jabs the accept button on the phone as he hovers over it.
“I will bury you if you alpha bark her. Do you fucking understand me? I will remove you from Alisa’s life and I will beg for her forgiveness for the rest of eternity without an ounce of remorse. ”
I gaze helplessly at them before swiping at my face.
“Caleb, Lars. You can’t force me to do things or you’re no better than anyone else who’s done that,” I tell them. “Say hello to my scent match.”
“You’re too old,” Caleb says, glaring at Lyle.
“I don’t believe scent matching cares about his age,” Silas drawls, walking closer. “Nor mine or Easton’s, or the hockey player who is smitten with her either.”
“Four scent matches,” Lars mutters. “Damn.”
“Your sister needs the protection as well as the support of four alphas,” Easton says, drifting over to me. His strong arms lift me up and then I find myself in his lap. “I tried to give you space, baby. I can’t anymore.”
“Can I see my sister so I can apologize?” Caleb asks.
“Are you done being an asshole?” East asks unrepentantly.
“Hopefully,” Lars says. “It’s difficult to wrap our brains around men twenty years her senior as her scent matches, especially as she’s navigating through years of trauma.”
“That’s where you’re mistaken,” Silas says, swiping the phone to stare at my brothers.
Breathing deeply, I can smell the scent of a storm brewing right here in the kitchen.
Yet, his voice is even and soft. There’s no outward signs of his anger.
If anything, his Southern drawl gets deeper.
“My pack is exceptionally patient and we have resources others don’t.
The men who kidnapped Alisa off the street have already been dispatched off to hell with her help. ”
“You made my baby sister a murderer?” Lars asks.
I roll my eyes as I lean into Easton’s body, allowing his presence to calm my racing heart.
“Would you be happier if I was dead in the ground?” I ask, making a face as Silas props the phone up so they can see me.
Lars’ glasses are crooked on his nose as usual, while Caleb’s green eyes blaze with anger.
They look a little older, but not any wiser.
“My innocence died when I was taken from my bed eleven years ago. I don’t even know who I am anymore. ”
“I would definitely not be happy if you were dead,” Caleb snarls, his lips twisting.
“Take a breath or I’m stealing the phone and looping Hollis in. I already texted her,” a soft voice says, walking over and dropping to the floor beside my brothers.
They’re both sitting against the wall in a bedroom, and I can’t stop staring at the pretty wallpaper. They must be doing well to be able to afford such a nice house.
“Hi, Nova,” I murmur, recognizing the gray-blue eyes. Despite her pink and purple streaked blonde hair, I can see the resemblance.
“I got stuck with your brothers,” she sighs, glancing at them. They appear properly abashed, but still can’t stop glaring at Easton as I sit in his lap. “I’ll sic my cat on them later.”
“Pixie is a tiny terror,” Lars mutters. “Caleb and I are well used to killing people, but we always wanted better for you, Alisa.”
“You taught me how to shoot a gun,” I remind him, rolling my eyes. “Why bother?”
“To protect yourself,” Caleb says easily.
“You’re going to need to explain the situation, Little Fighter,” Silas says grimly.
“I don’t want to,” I say petulantly. “It’ll make things worse.”
“Shit. Okay. Pause,” Lars says, taking a deep breath. “We have gaps in our understanding it seems. I’ll muzzle Caleb if I need to, Alisa, okay? Tell us what happened?”
“It’s…dirty,” I say, shuddering in disgust. I checked the bite marks this morning and they’re slowly losing their infected, red appearance. Dr. Walsh was right. It’s as if the bites had a life of their own and were trying to weaken me until they could take hold.
Fucking parasites, just like the alphas who bit me.
“Just because you think it’s dirty, doesn’t make you dirty,” Caleb says gently. “You’re our baby sister, and we will always fucking love you. We keep screwing this up. I’m sorry I overstepped. My bark pulls out of me at inopportune moments. Lars is just as bad.”
“Lars tried to alpha bark me when he met me,” Nova says.
“Hollis was pissed,” my brother sighs. “I need to start doing yoga or something to get it under control.”
The idea of my huge brothers attempting to balance on one foot is very amusing, and Easton smothers his smile against my throat.
“Ugh, I still don’t like this,” Caleb complains.
“The alphas I helped kill forced their bites on me,” I say without any more preamble. Silas is right. I can’t sugarcoat this. “I rejected their bites but they were making me really sick. The only way to stop the infection was to kill them.”
Lars’ look of horror would be almost comical if it wasn’t how I feel about it.
“Your sister is incredible with a gun. She still remembers how to shoot,” Easton says. “It made her miss you though. That’s why she’s calling you now. Alisa has a lot of concerns about how you’ll see her now.”
“Like what?” Caleb asks, confused.
“I’m not fourteen anymore,” I remind him. “I’ve lived through a lot of awful things, and it affects how I process things.”
“She is going to need to carry a firearm when she leaves the house because there are hunters who will want to kidnap her,” Lyle adds, sitting beside Easton.
“Alisa is also really weak after the way those alphas treated her. If we hadn’t found her, she wouldn’t be alive to have this conversation with you. ”
“I’m not made of glass though,” I say firmly. “If I want to help torture people and watch them be blown up with a firecracker, I damn well will.”
“Jesus, there’s so much to unpack there,” Caleb breathes, dragging his hand through his hair. “You’re a tiny little psychopath just like we are, huh?”
“She’s a natural with a blow torch,” Easton drawls.
“Where…why…how?” Lars asks, looking as if there’s a glitch in his brain.
“Do I hit him over the head for a factory reset?” Nova asks, concerned.
“Ugh. In the warehouse, because I wanted to melt their dicks off, and in a wheelchair,” I say, watching as he processes the information.
“This feels like a game of Clue,” Caleb mumbles. Maybe they both need to be reset.
“The fuckers deserved it,” Lars says, blinking as he comes back online. Hollis used to have this happen often to her, and she used to smack them over the head. Ugh, I miss her.
“The only way to fix him is to give him the information he needs,” I explain to Nova. “Glad to see not much has changed.”
“We’re still getting our asses kicked by Hollis when we fuck up,” Lars admits. “Shit. Is that the door?”
“She doesn’t have a key, but why would a locked door stop my sister?” Nova asks, chuckling. “Incoming, Alisa.”
“You fuckers!” Hollis yells. I can hear her feet stomping as she walks. “I hope there are lemon squares in the house. Why didn’t you tell me she called?”
“She’s still on the phone,” Caleb calls out. “She looks like hell, but she’s here.”
“Never tell a girl when she looks less than amazing,” Hollis lectures, entering the room. She hits Caleb and Lars over the head and then drops to the floor. “It’s like I’ve taught them nothing. Hi, gorgeous. I’m so glad to see you.”
“It’s nice to be seen,” I murmur. “Hi, Hollis.”
“They’re barbarians, huh?” she asks.
“They have their moments,” I say. “I don’t think they like who I am very much.”
Her face twists in anger and she turns on my brothers. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
“Look, we handled this really badly,” Caleb mumbles. “Hearing that my sister is being taught how to kill people and is scent matched to four men twice her age is a lot to process.”
“Who?” Hollis asks.
Easton leans down so she can see him and waves his hand.
“Hi, Easton,” she says cheerfully. “I’ve seen these men kill. They’re very good at it. I’d rather see Alisa with alphas who will worship the ground she walks on and will rip the heads off of those who hurt her than some boring accountant who can’t protect her.”
“Aren’t you a lawyer, Lyle?” Lars asks, making Silas snort.
“A lawyer and an accountant are wildly different,” he says.