Chapter 19
Hayden watched Drake walk away. He almost asked him to stay. He felt comfortable being in his orbit. Having that level of kindness bestowed upon him was new. It wasn’t going to last. His stepdad had already yelled at him through the mind-link. He needed to get back to his family.
“Come on, little brother,” the Tarra lady said to him again. “Your room is right here. Throw your clothes out and I’ll get them laundered.”
She opened a door to a walk-in closet full of men’s clothes.
“These are all yours. Everything in this room is yours.”
“But, no. It’s okay. I’m, I don’t have a place for all of that at, um…”
“Little brother, Alpha Steven has given me permission to make you an offer. When you meet him, he’ll repeat it for you so you know I’m not lying.
” Tarra gave him a kind, gentle smile. “He is inviting you to become an official member of the Blood Moon Pack. This will be your room. He’ll do the negotiation with Alpha Dean.
Please think about his offer. I’m serious about the little brother title.
I’m an only child and always wanted a little brother. So tag, you’re it.”
Hayden’s jaw almost hit the floor. Why would an Alpha he’d never met offer him a position in this pack?
And a room in his son’s suite? He’d heard of Drake and Jaxom Bane.
Everyone was talking about them. The fated male mates.
He’d read enough history to know that type of mating was rare and potentially a sign of the Lycans coming back into existence.
No one knew how that could happen, though.
Hayden was just happy Drake had given him a sweatshirt and coat.
It would make sleeping in the cold car a little easier.
“So?”
“So?” He looked at her in absolute confusion.
“Will you think about it?”
“Oh, um, I don’t, yeah, I’ll think about it.” Unfortunately there wasn’t much to think about. It was a fantasy, that was all.
“Yay,” Tarra cheered and backed out of the room. “Yell when you throw your clothes out.”
Hayden watched her dance out the door. She was so happy, unlike his snippy siblings.
There was no way he was becoming part of the Blood Moon Pack.
His stepdad wouldn’t let him go. It would be too high a step up.
Beta Marcus would give Sebastian to them in an instant if it gave him more status. Hayden knew he wasn’t worth the effort.
He slipped into the bathroom and pulled his clothes off.
He didn’t put the hoodie out the door. He’d just gotten it.
And frankly, it was too precious to him at the moment.
It was the first piece of brand new clothes he’d ever received.
Most importantly, it had come directly from Drake because Drake realized he was freezing.
He caught a glimpse of himself in the massive mirror above the sink.
His skin was littered in deep purple bruises and scars.
Scabbed over whip marks marred his back, buttocks, and thighs.
His stepdad had been furious with him for breaking a glass.
It hadn’t even been an expensive one. He’d paid the price anyway.
If he made it to his 18th birthday, no mate would want to look at him, let alone mark him.
The hot steam of the shower filled the bathroom as he chucked his clothes out the door.
“There’s my clothes,” he said as loudly as he dared.
“Thank you,” Tarra yelled back.
Hayden eased under the shower head and shivered as the hot water fought the cold oozing out of his bones.
He’d never been warm in the winter. Beta Marcus had relegated him to a stall in the cowshed.
He’d been able to gather enough scraps of clothes and a few ratty blankets to burrow into.
Not enough warmth to be comfortable. At least he hadn’t lost fingers and toes to frost bite.
He couldn’t remember the last time he’d slept in a real bed.
Tarra’s words were kind. ‘His room’. His stepdad had already told him to come to his suite after everyone went to bed.
He had the cars to guard and a beating to receive beforehand.
Somehow, he’d embarrassed his siblings in front of Alpha Drake.
He’d barely spoken. It was so stupidly unfair.
Not going back to his so called family would only make his life worse later on.
The only relief was turning 18 and leaving the pack by going rogue.
For the first time in months, Hayden was warm as he toweled off and towel dried his hair. No point looking for a hairdryer. He wasn’t going to stay here, despite Tarra’s pretty words. A quick finger comb of his long blond hair, then a braid down his back, and he was done.
He peaked out the bathroom door and saw that the bedroom door was closed.
Tarra had laid out jeans and a thick, fancy looking sweater.
He’d never worn a sweater. He only knew which way was front because of the tag in back.
The sweater caught the heat from the shower and kept it in his disastrous body.
The soft weave felt amazing against his skin.
He didn’t know how Tarra did it, but even the brand new leather boots fit. They were the warmest, most comfortable pair of boots, or even shoes, he’d ever worn. Beta Marcus would make sure those disappeared off his feet and into Sebastian's closet, too.
“Hey, Tarra?” Hayden called out the bedroom door.
“Yes, little brother?” Tarra was at his door in a flash.
“Where are my shoes? Um, please?”
“Don’t you like the boots?”
“Yeah, but, I need, I really need my shoes.” He couldn’t look her in the eye. When he left, he had to have his shoes, not these expensive boots.
“Oh? Well, I kinda threw them away. They had no souls and there were large holes.” Tarra’s eyes got wide. “Oh, sweetie, I’m so sorry.”
“And my t-shirt and jeans? Will I get them back soon?”
Tarra’s face turned bright red. “Well,…”
“Don’t worry about it. Thank you for these,” Hayden said. He’d make it work. The jeans would be fine. There was probably an undershirt in the closet, maybe some tennis shoes.
“Hey, everything okay here?” Drake said from behind Tarra.
“Yeah, all cleaned up,” Hayden said quickly. He didn’t want Tarra to get in trouble. She didn’t know he still needed the rags he called clothes. Wearing this expensive sweater would just benefit Sebastian so Hayden would leave it in the bathroom when he went back to his stepfather.
“Lunch is ready. You hungry?” Drake asked.
Hayden blushed. There was something about Drake that stirred his interest. He never considered himself gay, or at least never really thought about sex and stuff.
He'd had bigger problems to worry about.
But, Drake was really handsome. And mated.
Drake had a mate. That made Hayden kinda jealous. Lucky guys.
“Starving,” Hayden hadn’t meant to say that. Especially not with such fever. It was quite literally true. He hadn’t eaten in four or five days. That wasn’t these people’s problem. He needed to keep his mouth shut.
“Well then, let’s get you filled up,” Drake said with enthusiasm.
Tomato basil soup, grilled cheese sandwiches and salad with lemon pepper chicken graced the table. Drake actually pulled out a chair for Hayden to sit in. It was hard not to blush as he sat down. If he was a girl, he’d have swooned.
Tarra and Asher bantered back and forth about their morning as everyone tucked into the food.
Hayden picked up his spoon but wasn’t sure if it was a good idea.
Even a small amount of food was going to land like a rock, but he didn’t want to offend either.
Soup would probably be easiest on his stomach.
And at this point, he really did need the meal.
“You okay?” Drake asked as he eyed Hayden’s untouched food.
“Yeah. Just a stomachache. It’s passing,” Hayden lied a little. He was okay.
Drake’s handsome face looked worried. “Take it slow. Soup’s easiest on an empty stomach.”
Hayden’s jaw dropped as Drake took his spoon, dipped it in the soup and held it to his lips. Hayden couldn’t figure out what possessed him but he took a sip and let Drake feed him more soup. He’d never had anyone care for him like this. He couldn’t take his eyes off Drake. It just felt right.
Right until his stomach rebelled and he ran to the bathroom.
Hayden groaned as he tried to keep the soup down.
He just didn’t want to throw up at the table if he lost the battle.
It took 15 minutes and a fair amount of sweat but he finally convinced his stomach to stop cramping.
It was a small victory, but a victory nonetheless.
“You feeling okay now?” Drake asked as Hayden finally trudged out of the bathroom.
“Better. Sorry about that. The soup was really good.”
“You can have more or we can order anything you’d like,” Drake said as he ran his fingers through his hair.
“Mind if I get a glass of water?”
Drake was already in action before Hayden got the whole question out. Drake was serious when he said Hayden was his special guest. Too bad it wouldn’t last. He only had a few more hours before returning to his family.
“How about we just hang out here till dinner? We could watch a movie. Asher and Tarra have already said yes.”
“Okay.”
“Anything you wanna watch?” Drake turned on the big screen and pulled up a movie app.
“I dunno. Action I guess?” Hayden had never watched a movie.
He knew what they were of course, but he wasn’t going to tell them that.
They probably thought he was a freak for needing really old, ratty clothes and gagging over soup.
He just wanted to curl up and take a nap.
At least he got naps in his stall when the family was busy.
It’s the only thing that got him through the day.
Drake looked sharply at Tarra for a moment then nodded his head. She didn’t look back at Drake, just kissed her mate. They were curled up in an overstuffed chair.
“You take the chaise end,” Drake said as he hustled Hayden around the couch. “Here’s your water. And, blankets are necessary for movie watching.”
Hayden watched in bemusement as Drake covered him with a blanket.
Then the big guy sat on the other end of the couch, kicked his feet up on the coffee table and covered his own lap with a blanket.
Hayden didn’t want to be rude but he just wanted to close his eyes for a moment.
Maybe they’d be too distracted by the movie to care.
Hayden slowly woke up in the most comfortable surface he’d ever lain on. It took a moment to realize he was in the bedroom Tarra said was his. The clock on the nightstand said 11:30 pm. He wasn’t late. Beta Marcus had said to be back to his suite by midnight.
He quickly got off the bed and felt his way to the closet. He didn’t want to alert anyone that he was up. It’d be too hard to explain that he had to reject the amazing room they were offering.
The sweater was so soft. Taking it off hurt his heart.
Drake must have taken his boots off. That felt like a major loss, too.
Thankfully, there were white undershirts in a drawer and a nice pair of tennis shoes were in a rack by the door.
The most attention Beta Marcus paid to his clothes was to make sure they weren’t of much quality.
It wasn’t the first time he’d had better looking shoes. Better shoes made a better worker.
No light showed under the door so everyone must’ve been asleep.
He slipped out the door and made it out of the suite without waking anyone.
Hayden breathed a sigh of relief when he got outside and a golf cart was still plugged into the side of the building.
It was blisteringly cold outside so taking the cart would get him to the hotel faster.
He’d be back out in the cold soon enough to guard the pack cars.
The moment Hayden knocked on the door his stepdad flung it open and jerked him inside. He flung him to the floor like trash. The air was filed with the smell of alcohol. It took a lot to get a wolf drunk. Beta Marcus was happy to take up the challenge this week.
Hayden didn’t have a chance to stand up before his supposed stepdad was kicking his ribs and whatever other part he connected with. Hayden choked down breathless screams as he felt his ribs breaking. A kick to his face had his nose broke. Blood gushed out onto the floor and his shirt.
Beta Marcus got down on one knee and yanked Hayden’s head up by his hair. “Don’t you fucking go near that Bane again. You’re a fucking embarrassment. You have one job to do here. Guard the damn cars.”
“Yes, sir,” Hayden wheezed out.
Beta Marcus threw a black t-shirt over his head. Hayden needed his help to get it on. The black covered the blood. It felt like one of his lungs was punctured. He would never call this man ‘father’ again. Especially if he lived through the night. Death would be welcomed. Just fine. Perfect.
Beta Marcus pulled him upright. “Before you go, you forgot your medication. Can’t have any more outbursts.”
“Please, no,” Hayden gasped.
Beta Marcus pulled a box out of the bag. He got a syringe and filled it from a vial and knelt beside Hayden. He jammed the needle into Hayden’s upper arm.
A silent scream wheezed up Hayden’s throat as the liquid burned through his body. Twice a month the same damn routine no matter how much the Beta had just beaten him. He had no idea what the medication was except it burned for hours and hours.
He tried to crawled to the door. But the beating Beta Marcus had just given him was extreme. He couldn’t get his limbs to move. Fire burned through his veins, through his lungs.
It was fucking time to die.
Except for Drake. His handsome face swam before Hayden’s blurry eyes. If he had any choice, he’d live if Drake asked him to.