Demonic Regime

Chapter 22: Old Folks Home (Jax)

"I feel it."

"Good, good, hold onto that."

Focusing on it, I felt the energy running back from my arms and legs to my chest. My fur disappeared into my skin, and I felt the slight discomfort of my face and feet changing back to human form. I opened my eyes.

Aden smiled at me. "Where you a strawberry blonde before?"

I rubbed my head. "No. It was red."

"Mine was black," laughed Aden. He stood and puttered about. "Do you have a mirror around here?"

"Maybe in the bathroom." I grabbed one of Max's shirts and pulled it over my head. The man was huge as a human as well.

"Here we go." Aden wondered back with a smile. "Have a look."

I peered into the tiny mirror. "Oh my god." I turned my head from side to side and looked at my neck. "What the hell did he do to me?" I glanced at my arms.

"Not a mark on your body, but this." Aden pulled back his shirt to show his scar. "It takes some time to get used to."

I took in a deep breath. "Just one more thing."

Aden nodded. "Daven said you were struggling with the instincts."

I slumped forward. "It's embarrassing. All those damn alphas, and I started acting like I was five. This werewolf thing sucks. It's messing me up inside."

He patted my leg. "You're not alone. I had an alpha want to shake my hand once. I ran. I shifted to all fours and race through the caves to a back room. I had never been so humiliated in my entire life. It gets easier, though. You learn to control it."

"That's good." I rubbed my feet.

"I heard you were in a wheelchair before Max found you."

I nodded. "Muscular Dystrophy, I was in the last stages of it. I'm feeling better though. I can sit up by myself, but my legs are still too weak to hold my weight."

"Do they hurt?"

"Not anymore."

Aden's eyes went wide. "Shifting is hell. My legs were a mess. No one tells you about that when you agree to the mating."

Laughing, I smiled. "That and my jaw. Everything else was a little sore, but my face and feet just ached."

"It gets better. It's never as bad as the first time and after awhile, it goes away completely."

"So it'll hurt when I change back?"

"Just a little. Nowhere near as bad as your first moon."

I picked at my fingers. "Thanks for coming. You're making me feel a lot better about this."

"It's hard." He gripped his knees. "Werewolves run on instincts and a very strict social structure. Humans nowadays understand aspects of it, but it's still not the same as being a part of the pack."

"Is it hard to watch?"

Aden bowed his head. "I don't like thinking about it. Thankfully my parents passed away before the war. Titus never told me how long werewolves live," he laughed. "I never thought I'd still be here at my age. But then again, it didn't use to be like this. They'd live to be over a hundred or so if the pack was healthy. Midfield changed all that. You belong to a very smart pack." He gave me a smile that seemed quite sad.

Taking a deep breath, I fell back into the pillows. "I did this to give my family a better life. The farm was hard on them. They never said anything to me, but I could see what the stress was doing to my parents. The few times I've seen them since coming here, they're so happy."

"It's a world built on rank." Aden shrugged. "Everyone has their place."

"Yeah, I guess." I scratched my arm. "So what do retired alpha's do?"

He grinned at me. "Well, my mate is a beta."

"Betas, then?"

"My grandpups call it the old folks home." Aden laughed to himself. "There's a mansion up in the mountains. Northern Ridge retired alphas live there with a few exceptions." He felt his sides. "Oh, that girl took my phone." He groaned as he stood and went to the panel to push the green button. "Kailynn, Kailynn, I need my phone. Hello Kay? It's your grandpa. I need my phone, sweetheart." He threw up his hands and returned to the bed. "Someone will get her."

I laughed to myself. "What's this mansion like?"

"Like this?" Aden motioned around the room. "With a few traditional touches. My mate wasn't too thrilled to leave the cave life behind, but I was ready for it. We have an underground hot pool because heaven forbid he takes a shower like a normal person."

There was a knock on the door and the girl from early entered. "Is everything okay?"

"Yes, dear. I just need my phone."

She passed it to him. Aden started tapping on the screen.

"Everything's going, alright?"

"Baby girl"—he looked her in the eyes—"I love you, but this is my one time to bond with the younger werewolves with my rank."

Kailynn tried not to laugh and kissed Aden's cheek. "Alright, I get it. Let me know if you need anything." She left the room.

"Here we go?" He passed me the phone and moved up closer to where I was sitting. "That's my friend River." Aden pointed to the photo of two subs. "His mate was the brother of Trevor. We lost contact because our mates were so busy with their ranks, but as soon as it was time to retire, we were inseparable. He's the sweetest man you'll ever meet. He's the starting point for the Midfield beta line."

I went to the next picture.

"That's Peter. He's one of those rare pure white subs. Just like"—Aden flipped through a few images—"my beautiful nephew."

He stopped on an image of a white werewolf hugging what looked to be Daven's mate, Jesse.

"So it's like a huge hangout?"

Aden nodded. "Once you've put in your years as alpha, beta, or even a high ranking dominant, they're exhausted and just want to relax." He went through a few more images. "It's just nice to be all together. The war was really scary for us subs. We were the prime targets for the humans. The quickest way to destroy a dominant is to take their mate." He looked me in the eyes with a smile. "Maybe one day you can come and live there with us. Midfield has a few other retirement homes for us old folks, but you'd be welcome here as well." Taking the phone, he looked through images. "It's like our own little pack. It helps me forget about everything else going on in this world."

"That would be nice." I forced the lump down in my throat. "Just to be around people like me." I nodded. "I feel so out of place here with all these powerful werewolves walking around."

Aden grabbed my hand and gave it a squeeze. "Every sub has felt the same, and we'd be happy to have you."