Alpha King & his Trophy

02. Being a black sheep

HANNAH

Usually, mom was the bad cop and dad tried to reason with me, negotiate deals to ease things up. But after Steph’s engagement party, they switched roles and dad yelled at me really badly.

“You were disrespectful to your sister by showing up late. You provoked our guests by promenading around naked and shamelessly. You caused your mother another migraine and ignored all the rules of etiquette.” Dad dragged me to his office and spat the words full of fury at me.

“But dad, those rules are stupid and very obsolete and…” I tried to protest but he cut me off immediately. And I noticed mom yelping behind the doors when she heard me badmouthing the rules she helped to establish. Clearly, she was eavesdropping. Most probably, everybody was.

“You are the daughter of an Alpha and you will act like one by following the rules whether you like it or not!” Dad roared in a powerful voice, making me submit and bare my neck. Damn, that alpha voice!

“You will go to your room and stay there for the rest of the night.” He commanded, but my eyelids twitched. OK for showing some respect to parents and letting them yell at you. Another OK for admitting the mistakes and apologizing. But limiting my freedom by locking me in the room? Hell no.

“I’m almost 20, you can’t ground me anymore.” I argued. Mistake. Big mistake.

“Pardon me, madam. May the Alpha of this pack ask for your permission?” He said ironically, his fists clenched into tight balls.

“Well…” I supported my chin with my thumb when the door slammed open, and mom stepped inside. “For the Goddess’s sake, shut your mouth already and listen to us!” She clapped her palms in a praying sign, piercing the ceiling with her eyes as if the Moon Goddess was supposed to watch us from over there.

“Georgina, let me handle it.” My father glanced at her, but she shook her head disapprovingly. And I made a mental note that I must have inherited the rude interrupting of males from her. Surely, I wouldn’t dare say it aloud. I wanted to stay alive.

“No, Lucas. You are too soft with her. She should be disciplined.” Mom declared and it got me all alarmed. Disciplined how?

“Care to elaborate on that, mother?” I raised my brow at her. I didn’t like where this was heading.

“There is a special program for problematic she-wolfs. They will teach you some manners on how to be a good female. And who knows, with some effort, you could even be Luna one day. You just need to learn how to behave in the presence of Alphas.” Mom said nonchalantly and I just stared at her in disbelief. Did she really think that I would agree to such madness? Hard pass.

“Over my dead body!” I grunted and crossed my arms on my chest. Dad seemed to give up and fell into his armchair and mom started to sob quietly, cursing under her breath what a spoiled little brat I was. Were they crazy or was it really me?

“I see nothing abnormal about us. So we like to get dirty and naked. I find it only natural.” Cleo tried to reassure me, and I was glad that there was at least one living being on my side.

“Puppy, leave us please.” Dad said with a resignation in his voice, and I left without further words.

Stephanie was already waiting for me behind the door looking as pissed as a nest of disturbed vipers. “Why do you always have to behave like that?”

“Like what?” I pouted my lips.

“Like you’re hating my guts the most.” Her face twitched painfully and only then did I realize that I truly messed it up. I considered all these stupid events as a burden, whilst she gave them the highest priority. I guessed we were just too different and shared other values. Perhaps I was adopted. That would explain a lot. “This was supposed to be my evening and you ruined it completely.” She continued her speech, and I didn’t know what to say. I shrugged my shoulders, trying to give her a look of apology, but it seemed to have the opposite effect.

“You don’t care a bit about me!” She released a screeching sound and my eyes almost popped out.

“That’s not true. You are my sister.” I tried to bring some sense into her. I did care about her, but she was so serious all the time, considering all my jokes as insults targeted at her. I gave up explaining myself a long time ago.

“Well, I wish you were not.” She spat the harsh words at me, turned on her heel and left me there with my jaw dropped. Ouch.

“Well done, sis.” Hugo came forward from the opposite side of the room, clapping his hands in slow motion. The moron was watching the whole scene from the shadow like a real demon. And I rolled my eyes at him.

“Having fun watching me being despised by everyone in the family?” I snorted and he spared me a smirk.

“Leave her alone, bro.” Jackson appeared out of nowhere and I just had enough of this s.hitshow. The future Alpha looked at me with a disappointment in his eyes and that was perhaps the most painful thing my relatives held against me. Counting strikes for everything I did. Good stuff, bad stuff, it didn't matter. I was just a big disappointment, the black sheep of this family, a misfit. Maybe I should leave the pack for good.

“Hannah,” Jackson caught me by my wrist when I tried to leave my room. “Please reconsider that special program mom had suggested.” Seriously? They all knew? The entire family plotted against me?! I was in such shock that I couldn’t produce a single sentence and just resumed my walk to the room. What an unpleasant turn of events. But if they thought they could chain me in silver and simply put me in a place, they were wrong. So wrong!

“What will we do, Hannah?” Cleo was obviously sad. She also didn’t understand why everyone disliked us that much. Yeah, we were not at our best behavior at the party, but that was not a reason to treat us like deviant.

“Well, if you think about it…” Cleo supported her muzzle with her claw, looking like a wolf philosopher. “We kind of ruined every single event in the past year.”

“You too, Brutus?” I narrowed my eyes at her, and she immediately hid her tail between her legs. She couldn’t be serious with such a statement. But then I started to think. I arrived late at a War Memorial Day banquet which was hosted by our pack. I got drunk and spilled wine on the Alpha of Silver Moon pack. But at least his Luna found it funny. She was the only one, though. We were later invited to Amethyst Lake pack to the ceremony of new Luna, but I forgot about it and went shopping with Christine instead.

“And don’t forget about Hugo’s 21st birthday. We didn’t show up because Parker the patroller asked you out.” Oh, gee. She was right. I assumed I was a spoiled little brat after all. But I couldn’t help it. There were only a few things that could hold my attention and the rest just slipped away from my mind.

Apropos, Parker the patroller!

“Christine, are you ready to go?” I mind-linked my best friend and she coughed nervously.

“Aren’t you like grounded?” I must have laughed at her question.

“Oh, please…” I gave her a mental eyeroll.

“What’s the plan then?” Christine was the best partner in crime. I briefed her on how I would jump out of the window, wait for her outside the east wing of the mansion and then we would sneak out together to my car, absolutely inconspicuously.

Parker the patroller, you would get my cherry tonight.