Book 1: Chapter 15

“We thank you this evening for witnessing our silliness! If anyone would like their own shot of Monte Alban Mezcal, it’s on the house tonight!” Finn yelled as someone started up the music in the corner and started the Friday night swing early. 

Quite a few more people showed up and soon enough the place was packed. Finn and I manned the bar as Noah lost it after five minutes. The tequila hit and his eyes glazed over. His shirt at some point had become a crop top as he joined the dancing group, going so far as climbing up on a table. Then promptly falling off it after a bunch of people put cash in the top of his jeans. I laughed so hard at his antics and even Charles stayed later than normal to enjoy the show. 

“You guys are going to have so much against him.”

I handed Charles another beer and pointed up to the two camera in the room. “Damn right we will. Show the kids one day.”

Charles snorted and shook his head. He finished his beer and motioned me to close him out. I did and tapped Finn on the shoulder. Leaning in, I nibbled his ear for a moment.

“Gonna take a smoke. I’ll be back in a sec.”

He nodded and gave me a thumbs up. Headed out, I wove my way through the crowd and headed outside. Charles was waiting outside, leaning against the wall. Clapping Ryan shoulder, he smiled and I nodded to him. Walking over to Charles, I held out a cigarette and he took it. Lighting both of ours, I took a drag and looked up at the slightly cloudy night sky.

“You know, I got called to the neighborhood at the most Northern part of town. Apparently, the whole streets dogs were going nuts.”

I snorted and coughed as I inhaled some of the smoke. “Oh really?”

“Yeah. It was the darnedest thing. It was like something was setting them off but no one could figure it out. Luckily, bringing them inside seemed to work but every time they go out, it’s chaos.”

I hummed, taking another drag. “Sounds like those puppers need to be trained more.”

“Solaris, if you’ve done something…”

“Am I talking to the Chief right now? Or Charles?” I eyed him and saw the smirk on his face. 

“Charles. Unless you did something crazy illegal.”

Looking back up at the sky, I put the cigarette to my lips. “Does hanging a few hundred dog whistles of the Alphas territory count as crazy illegal?”

Charles coughed and leaned over, taking a couple breaths. “A few hundred? Solaris!”

I smiled. “We can hear it. It might not mean the same but even one is annoying. Silas wanted to start a war. Asshole brought in cockroaches into my bar. We had to take the day to get the exterminator in and make sure we were completely clean.”

“Solaris! That’s illegal! You have proof unassuming?”

Nodding, I sighed. “Sure do. Some of his pack members. But what…he’s going to get a slap on the wrist? He started a war already. I chose to ignore the bullshit call of me serving underage but the bugs were too far. Finn and I managed to clean it up quickly but Noah’s absolute weakness is bugs. That’s too far when you fuck with my boys.”

“Did you hang up a hundred dog whistles on his territories?”

I shook my head. “Absolutely not. We can’t step foot on his territory without alerting Silas. We are also banned and that would actually be against laws. No no. We tied them to arrows and pegged them into trees on his territory from outside the territory.”

Charles was now wheezing through his laughter. “You shot arrows…into trees..with dog whistles attached to them…which his entire pack is going to have to hear until they take them all down.”

Smirking, I nodded. “Not a hundred though; hundreds. It was about 1200 arrows with whistles.”

This made tears come to Charles’ eyes and he just roared. His cigarette completely forgotten as he struggled to breathe between the laughter. I patted his back as he leaned over more, trying to catch his breath.

“Where…does one…get 1200 dog whistles…?” He struggled to ask. 

“I buy from this bulk item place for the bar sometimes but they have everything. Arrows and dog whistles. Worth it. By the time we were done, even our ears were bleeding. Good fucking luck finding all of them. We put one per tree and tried to get it as high up as we could. I used my longbow too. Between me and my eye…” I tapped my magic eye. “…we were getting close to 400 yards sometimes.”

He was trying so hard not to pass out. “Sweet baby Jesus, you said you could be petty but good god. This is next level of prank. I didn’t even think that wolves could hear dog whistles.”

“It’s just an ultrasonic frequency. It doesn’t mean anything to us, since it’s not a training tool but it’s annoying. Like a fly in your ear. Just…squeakier.”

Charles nodded and sighed, finally able to catch his breath. “I’m guessing I’m going to get a call from Silas tomorrow.”

Rolling my eyes, I put out my cigarette. “He can certainly try. There is no proof. However, we have proof of his shit. Even if they put their hoods up. He’s lucking I’m not reporting it. It would be a pain in the ass for him but ultimately, this is between two Alphas.”

Charles crossed his arms over his chest. “But he’s your brother.”

I took out another cigarette and lit it. “Not anymore. He’s far more like my father. A man who sold his own kind, sold his family and friends out to the Hunters. Then proceeded to tell everyone she was dead so they would give up looking for her. Silas became the very thing I hate most in this world. I’d hope Nate was able to tame him down, but Nate’s lost in his own way.”

“Yeah, lost still trying to find you. When you’re literally right in front of him.”

Grimacing, I took a drag. “I’m not letting him lose his mind just for a few months of being mated. I’ve already got two asshats who aren’t taking my lack of time left poorly. I don’t need a complete breakdown. I never intended to tell them who I was and I still stand by that decision.”

Charles shook his head. “You’re wrong for thinking that, Solaris. At the very least telling them. I’m aware of how it feels to lose someone you love, so that I can understand not wanting to put Nate through that. But not telling them at all? It just seems like dangling a steak in front of them and not letting them have it.”

“If they don’t know it’s there, what harm is there? Silas is convinced that I am for sure dead. As though, even after all these years, he still somehow believes that nugget of bullshit out of our fathers mouth. Nate still believes but he’s lost. Lately, he’s been further away from the truth over the past few years. I think even he’s giving up. I’m not just going to drop back in their lives after…” I clenched my teeth for a moment before bringing the cigarette back up.

The smoke swirled around in the darkness as though trying to find the words I refused to say. 

“I’m not their Aelia anymore, Charles. That’s not who I am. Aelia was beaten, tortured, pried, raped, and mutilated out of me. I’m not who they want back.”

“You don’t know that. I think the both of them would like any piece of their sister back. It might not be easy but that doesn’t change the fact that you are theirs.” He got up from his lean and smiled. “Goodnight, Solaris. Take care of Noah. I’m sure he’s going to be dead in the morning.”

I nodded, giving him a small smile and a wave. Watching him go, I finished off my second cigarette before heading back inside. Picking right back up next to Finn, he leaned over. 

“That was longer than a second.”

I chuckled. “It felt longer than a second.”

Finn eyed me for a second. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, it’s fine. Charles seems to think it would be better to out myself to my brother.” I pushed the six drinks out and all of them disappeared immediately. “But more importantly, where did Noah’s pants go?”

Our eyes fell onto Noah who was being encircled by a group of college-aged she-wolves. Only in his boxer briefs and his crop top. He was dancing wildly with his arms waving in the air like he just didn’t care. Finn and I looked at each other and we giggled.

“Never letting him live this down.”

“Absolutely.” I agreed. “I’m going to save he footage and put it in the vault before he can get his hands on it and delete it.”

Finn slapped my ass. “I knew we kept you around for a reason.”

Shaking my head and laughing, I finished up the last of the drinks he was behind of and started to clean up behind the bar a bit.

“When do you think we can expect our dear Alpha?”

Shrugging, I washed a few of the shot glasses in the sink. “I mean, maybe a couple days. If that.”

Finn had a lopsided grin and I couldn’t help but grin as well.

It was around two in the morning when Noah passed out completely. He was impressively draped over the jukebox, in a very glamorous arching pose on the top of it. Finn and I took a few pictures with our phones and left him there for a couple hours while we did last call and cleaned up the bar. Finn picked his limp body off the glowing neon lights and carried him up to bed while I pulled the footage and copied it over to a hard drive and locked it away.

“Hungry?”

I walked into the apartment after I finished and Finn was making some fried rice. My eyebrow rose as it was four in the morning now.

“You know drinking that much gives me the munchies. Do you want some or not?”

“Sure.” I sat down at the kitchen bar and rested my chin on my arms.

We were quiet for a while as Finn cooked before he broke the silence.

“I know it’s selfish of me, but I don’t want you to tell your mate and your brother who you are.”

My head tilted to the side but Finn continued to stare into his rice.

“I don’t want to share you. Especially now, when we…when we know your time is limited. I don’t want you to go off with them and leave us. It’s selfish, I know, but I just…can’t stand the thought.” He flipped the wok, making the fried rice flip up a few times.

“You know I couldn’t replace either of you. You are my best friends, my betas, and my mates. It will always be like that. Till the very end. Silas and Nate can’t change that. Even if I did tell them.”

Finn sighed. “I know. It’s irrational, but it’s still there. You’re ours. No one else’s.”

Getting off the stool, I stood next to Finn and cupped his cheek. Pulling his head down, I pressed my lips to his. He dove his tongue into my mouth and I held his face in my hands. Breaking a part, I leaned my forehead against his.

“You and Noah are mine as well. It would take something far more serious and far more deadly for me to leave you two. I’m not going anywhere, Finn. Trust me. No matter what happens.”

He nodded and I met him go to finish up his rice. Behind him, I grabbed two bowls and two sets of chopsticks. Piling the rice high, he placed both bowls of rice on the counter and after he turned off the fire, he sat next to me. We ate in a comfortable silence, our legs wrapped around each other. 

Every once in a while, Noah would let out a loud snore and we would chuckle. Finn and I finished our food, showered together, fucked again, and crawled to bed with Noah. With my prosthetics off, I felt lighter and it seemed that the exhaustion of the day finally caught up to me and I passed out immediately, snuggled into Finn’s warm body.