Blood Moon Pack Series 1: XANDER

one

"Lizzy! Where's the breakfast?!" My stepmother, Caroline, shouted from downstairs. My father must have already left for his week-long trip for alpha business. If he was still here, Caroline wouldn't be shouting and demanding as she is now.

I snuggle into my warm blanket and pillow. 5 more minutes wouldn't hurt. But, I just end up falling asleep. I then get woken up with a rush of cold tingles. Then I realized someone has just poured a bucket of ice-cold water on me....in bed. I lung out of bed shivering. I look up, only to see my evil step-brother, Vince.

He looks at me and smirks, "Hurry up and get dressed. My mother wants her breakfast." He leaves me standing in the middle of my room, drenched in ice cold water, in my winter cold room. Caroline won't let me have a heater in my room. So, I made my self a thick blanket by sowing two together. My other older brother, who is the twin of Vince, walked passed my room, only to back up and face me. He looks sad when he takes in my appearance.

"Vince?" He says in a hard voice. Eddie has never really liked his older brother. Well, Vince is older by 10 minutes. Eddie has always been my protector against Caroline and Vince. My father remarried a female wolf who had twin boys of her own from her now dead mate.

Eddie quickly grabs a towel and walks towards me, wrapping the warm material around me. He walks to his shower and turns on the water. Caroline has shut off the hot water in my shower. She says it's to save money apparently which makes no sense because both of her sons have their own bathrooms and hot water. I doubt it would be more expensive if I had a little bit of hot water to. I don't even know how she did it, but she did. Eddie usually lets me use his.

After my shower I dressed in my thick, black winter jeans, a thick black and grey sweater and a black infinity scarf, then I put my hair up in a messy bun.

I make my way downstairs and into the kitchen. I start to make bacon, eggs, and chocolate chip pancakes. I learned to cook at 8 years old when Caroline first came here. I'm 19 now. So I've got some pretty good skills in the kitchen, not meaning to brag or anything.

I set the meal and her cup of black coffee with no sugar, in front of Caroline. She sits straight like how a proper lady should. She sniffs the food, takes a little bite out of everything. Then she picks up her plate calmly, turns to me and dumps her food onto my freshly washed head. I stay still. I know if I let all my anger out right, I'll regret it. All I do is silently hold back my emotions.

"You didn't put enough butter or milk into my eggs. Make me something better for lunch dearest," she turns to walk away, but looks over her shoulder and looks at me with a cruel smirk, "Oh and do clean up your mess dear, and while you're at it, clean yourself up, you look and smell disgusting."

I scowl at her, "If you hate how I cook then why don't you cook yourself?"

She stills and glares down at me, "Because I am the Luna. I have responsibilities and duties to do in order to run this pack while my mate is gone which includes taking care of you. The least you could do is make me food."

My step-brother walks in and glares at his mother as soon as he saw me standing in food, "The least you could do is treat her like she's your equal mother." Eddie says firmly to her.

She turns to Eddie and her eyes brighten, "Oh sweetheart. You look absolutely gorgeous this morning," she says with a cheerful smile, completely ignoring what Eddie said. All Eddie does is sneer at his mother, "Why do you do this? What has Lizzy ever done to you?" He says firmly. Caroline's perfectly composed face turns into a look that could kill, "You have overstepped the line son. You have no idea what that worthless piece of shi-"

"If she's so worthless why is she worth any of your time? You put quite a lot of your time and effort into making sure she's miserable."

"I treat her according to how she behaves. She is a spoilt brat, she needs to learn what hard work is." She growls at Eddie.

My brother shakes his head, disagreeing with her, "You should remember your place mother."

"And you should remember yours son." She growls.

Eddie looks down at his mother, "You were born from Omega parents, mother. Elizabeth was born from an Alpha. She was born to be a Luna, you just married into the role. So as I said before, you should treat her like an equal."

All Caroline does is growl and stomp out of the house. Eddie makes his way over to me, bends down to his knees to help me clean up silently. "Thank you," I mumbled.

Eddie let's out a loud sigh, "Lizzy, you have to stand up for yourself. You can't let my beast of a mother trample all over you like that." He says softly.

"I try to sometimes. But whenever I do she complains to dad and then he comes storming into my room, giving me lectures about how I need to change and be more submissive and respectful."

Eddie shakes his head, "I don't get your dad. I don't understand how you can treat your daughter like that."

I sat down and leaned against the wall, "Me neither. Ever since my mother died, he was never the same. He never treated me the same. It's almost like he pretended I wasn't his daughter."

"Maybe he did that because you reminded him of his mate."

I shrug, "Yeah probably. I guess maybe it was easier for him to cope if he pretended that I wasn't his daughter."

"That's pretty f****d up." Eddie said.

I smirk, "I know. I feel like a stranger in my own home." I look down at my hands and found them gripping my pants tightly, "But at the same time, I'm always trying to not be angry at him, to not feel rejected because I don't want to become this angry, bitter or cold person. But he makes it so hard."

Eddie's eyes soften as he stares at me. He shuffles next to me and gathers me in his arms, "You could never be cold Lizzy. You're too sweet for your own good." I release a little laugh. Eddie always knew how to make laugh when I'm all sad and glum, "After I clean myself up I'll bake you some cookies." When I turn around to go to Eddie's shower, I feel him do the little silent "YUSSS" and fist in the air thing. I laugh silently to myself.

***

As I was baking the cookies I felt my mood decline. I think talking about my dad was more painful than I thought. He was the only father-figure in my life and he doesn't want me, at least that's how he acts.

My step-mother hates me, my step-brother Vince has made his goal to make me miserable also. The only other person that treats me well is Eddie.

I think of my real mother. As I mix the cookie dough I close my eyes and remember my mother showing me how to make cookies. The sound of her laugh when she would find me eating off the spoon. Her warm, kind, brown eyes pouring love and comfort into my soul. I thought she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen.

My body rakes with sobs as I remember how much she loved me and how much I loved her. She was my best friend. But she's gone. Now she only exists in my memories. I haven't thought of her in a long while. It's too painful sometimes. Other times, when I desperately need comfort, I would imagine myself as that five year old again and how my mother would hold me as I would cry. Singing to me and telling me stories.

Now my own father doesn't really want me. I'm only a reminder of what he lost. Which I understand. I understand how it would've been so hard for him to lose his mate, but that still doesn't justify what he does. He abandoned me when I needed him the most. Especially after he married that witch of a woman and he never defended me whenever she mistreated me.

I cried as I felt this loneliness seep into my chest. This black and hallow room that sat inside of me, wanting to be filled with the love and comfort of a mother she lost and the love of a father that he refuses to give.

I shake my head, "Get a hold of yourself, Izzy." I said to myself. I took a deep breath.

"You're strong, Elizabeth," Says my mother in my head.

I nodded my head, "I'm strong."

"You're capable of getting through this and growing into the person you are destined to be." She said in a soft voice.

I nodded my head in agreement.

"I love you, Elizabeth." She said.

I sob, "I love you, mother."

I took a deep breath. I know I can be a push-over sometimes. And sometimes I don't stand up for myself. But what matters is that it's possible for me to do it. If it's possible then I can do it.

***

Eddie moans as the cookie melts in his mouth, "Ohhhh this is so good Lizzy. You seriously have a gift."

I laugh, "Tell me something I don't know," I joke. I grab a small plate of cookies and walk up the stairs to Vince's room. I knock on his door softly. "What'd you want?" He shouts.

I open the door and walk in, "Do you want some cookies. I just made them." Vince grabs the whole plate, puts it beside him on his messy bed. "Why're you still here?" He says annoyingly, as if I was the problem, "Go," he snarls. When he turns back around I roll my eyes as I left.

Why does Vince treat me this way? Why does Caroline? What have I ever done to them that earned their hatred towards me? They treat me differently, they look at me differently, they make me feel like an alien in my own house. I should feel at home. But this hasn't been my home ever since they came 11 years ago. Eddie was the only comfort I had now.

"Why would you offer some to Vince?" Eddie said a little annoyed.

I sighed, "Because, I sometimes try to be the bigger person."

After I wash the dishes, I take a walk in the forest. I do this now and again to try to feel connected to my mother. I still feel an empty part of my heart. Probably an after effect of her death.

As I walk through the thick trees, my thoughts wander to a waterfall. But not just any waterfall, my Nightcrowe waterfall. That was the place I met the one boy who I fell in love with. I still have his necklace. I haven't taken it off once in 12 years. The leather string is now tattered and old. I take comfort in the thought that this necklace used be around the neck of my boy, Xander and now it's touching my neck. It makes me feel like we have a bond. That's right, not had, have. I can tell the bond we had back then is still there to this day. Maybe Xander was right. Maybe his necklace really did help me. Or maybe it wasn't the necklace at all, maybe it was truly his 'act' of giving me his necklace that moved my heart. The fact that his mother gave it to him and him giving it to me. Yeah, I think that's it.

A twig snaps me out of my thoughts. I stand still. I look around. There's no one. I feel my wolf urging me to shift and defend myself. But I can't see or smell any kind of threat. Maybe I'm just a little jittery.

You should have shifted Elizabeth Crowe my wolf days in my mind.

'Shut up Marie! It was probably a dear or something. I shouldn't overreact just because of a simple twig snapping! It could've been anything!'

Girrrlll, you and I both know that it wasn't a dear. I sense that something else is with us.

My heart starts to beat louder and harder against my chest. I walk a little further into the forest. I sniff the air for a scent. Then it hits me. Wolves. But not ours. I look deeper into the bush. With my wolf vision, I can see a little dark figure running towards my pack. Then I realized, if they're heading towards my pack, that's only for one thing. Attack.