After going through the big black gates that opened automatically when Austin's car was detected, two black cars pulled into his driveway. By the time they returned home, the sun had already set, painting the sky a mixture of orange and yellow hues.
As soon as Lairith and Thelopi stepped out of the car, their attention was drawn to the sky, where they couldn't help but marvel at the magnificent sight above them. They couldn't find words to describe the foreign sight in front of them because they'd never seen something so... warm.
"Is this what humans call houses?" Thelopi asked, squinting his eyes, "Why is it so bright?".
"It'll be annoying for a little while, but once your eyes have adjusted you will get used to the brightness," Amara explained to him.
"So is this where you have been staying Amara?"
Amara nodded her head, "And so will you,"
Lairith cocked her head, her brows furrowed.
"You two will be staying with me."
Austin couldn't help but look at her when he heard her words and sighed, knowing that he could never say no to her. It was clear to everyone that Amara had him in the palm of her hands.
"Then I'll stay as well," Jackson said. If Lairith was staying here then it was a matter of fact that he would too. It's not like he could force her to stay with him; he'd most likely die before anything like that happened.
"No." Austin firmly responded.
"Austin!"
He understood that staying by her side meant that he had to stay at Austin house but even though his best friend was mated, the thought of her sharing a home with someone who wasn't him made him uncomfortable. After all, he'd only found her not too long ago and had no desire to leave her side!
This was the most sensitive time for new-found mates, and they'd usually be sticking together like glue, but because he knew his situation was a little different, he had to use all of his strength to keep himself from caging her in his arms.
As he looked at his determined gaze, Austin let out a sigh of resignation. He kneaded his head, feeling a headache coming on. His intransigence was starting to irritate him. Normally, he would be adamant about adhering to his words, but because he understood how he felt at the moment, he was hesitant. He enjoys the time he's able to have Amara to himself, but he knows that this would no longer be possible in the future because three people would move in with them in the span of a single day.
And since he and Jackson grew up together, he knew what kind of person he was. His rowdy demeanour threatened the peace and quiet he so desperately enjoyed, but could he really refuse Jackson's desire to be close to his mate?
Naturally, the response was no.
"...Fine," he said reluctantly.
"Please Austin, you-" he suddenly paused, "What?"
Jackson was rendered speechless. He had anticipated having to convince him for much longer, and he knew his chances of getting him to accept were slim, so he was shocked to see him agree so quickly! Is this what finding love does to you?
"I said you can stay, but I swear to God Jackson, you know I like quiet so you better shut up or else I kick you out."
"Yes! Yes! Yes! You don't have to worry about me, you wouldn't even know I'm there!"
Austin shook his head. He took a quick glance at Amara's siblings before approaching Jessie and asking for her help once again. Over the last few weeks, he seemed to have relied on her quite a bit, especially when it came to Amara.
"Sorry for constantly bothering you, but can you please take Amara and her siblings to get their room sorted?"
Jessie brightly smiled at him, "It's my pleasure!"
Contrary to Austin's thoughts, Jessie had never once thought that being with Amara was a chore. In reality, she enjoyed spending time with her; after all, who wouldn't when they have the opportunity to interact with such a beautiful person every day? It was basically free eye candy, plus she was really happy being by her side, it's even gotten to the point that Felix is envious of the amount of time they've spent together.
The three men were left behind as Jessie led them up the stairwell. Jackson's gaze was fixed on Lairith's figure until she disappeared.
Once they were out of sight, Felix's expression turned several degrees colder. He handed Austin a file that contained reports about a pack a few miles away from them about members of their pack going missing. The strange thing about this was that it wasn't the pack leaders that filed this report but the citizens. Usually, this type of situation would be handled by their pack leaders, but it's been months since they said they'd investigate with no progress being made. Since then, thirteen more wolves have gone missing.
Felix was furious when he learned of the case. He suspected the alpha of kidnapping his own members and selling them to an illegal slave trafficking ring based on the contents of the report. Werewolf trafficking was extremely uncommon. They, along with the human government, were adamant about keeping werewolves a secret.
Contrary to many beliefs, humans and werewolves have co-existed for many years. Only a small number of people, known as hunters, would go out of their way to kill werewolves. Fortunately, since they had little protection from the government, these people were hunted by both humans and werewolves. And, to keep both species in line, any decision that had an effect on either side was discussed by both species.
If what he suspected was correct, and that that pack was selling their own members, the organisation to which they were sold to must have a lot of power, considering their ability to go unnoticed. Since neither humans nor werewolves took trafficking lightly, he rushed to Austin after reading this report.
"Austin, it's serious." Felix said after he handed him the file. Austin opened it and began reading. The further he read, the more his eyes darkened. Once he finished, his hand was fiercely gripping onto the file, inches away from tearing it apart.
After becoming the Vermillion pack's alpha, Austin travelled around the continent, battling against other alphas who treated their packs cruelly. Perhaps as a result of his own experiences, he had no tolerance for those who mistreated their pack. Austin became one of the most feared alpha in the world as a result of this, and his name alone deterred many packs from doing bad things.
"What pack is it?" His voice was low, his words intertwined with killing intent.
Felix fiddled with his glasses, pushing them up before giving the name, "The Ombres pack."
"And they've already reported it to their alpha?"
"Yes. They said that they would launch a full investigation two months ago, but there's been no progress and since then, thirteen more people have gone missing."
Austin's jaw locked as his eyes burned with anger.
"Aren't the Ombres pack one of the biggest packs in this continent?" asked Jackson.
One would think that the size of a pack would determine its strength, but despite the Vermillion pack having half the number of people, they were still leagues ahead of them in terms of strength.
"Yeah... but something weird is going on there, and... I think they might be kidnapping and selling their own pack members."
"Shit." mumbled Jackson, "But, why now? They haven't ever had this problem before."
"I've heard rumours that the current alpha was a money and power hound."
Jackson furrowed his eyebrows, "Who's the new alpha?"
"The nephew of the previous one."
"What about the son?"
"He died in an accident shortly after his father passed,"
As the gravity of the situation became clear, the mood in the room rapidly shifted to a more grim one.
"Doesn't alpha Elias have relations with the Ombres pack?"
Felix responded with a nod.
"Contact him and inform him of the report, as well as request that he thoroughly investigate them," Austin ordered Felix.
"And what if alpha Elias is colluding with them?" Jackson asked lightly.
"Impossible." Austin's said in a firm and confident voice. Austin has known Elias since he was a child and knew that he wasn't the type of person who would involve himself in such shady business. In fact, he detested people who did such things, so the idea of him working with the Ombres pack was unthinkable.
.
.
After leading the three siblings upstairs, Jessie walked in front of them, with the siblings forming a line behind her. Since they were all lost in their own thoughts, none of them said anything. Lairith and Thelopi's eyes could not help but wonder as they walked through the house, their eyes lingering on objects they'd not seen before.
"These legs are weak. They don't even have a tenth of my tail's power."
"...I saw how you looked at him, sister," Amara said.
Lairith paused for a moment before asking, "Who?" as though she had no idea who she was talking about.
"Jackson."
"Ah... him," she said as if realising who she was talking about. "I don't know what to say, he seemed enticing," she tried to play it cool.
"Oh please, we are neither stupid nor blind."
Thelopi gave Amara a side glance and smiled, seemingly agreeing.
"And what about you, Amara? You seem to be very taken with that man... what was his name again?"
Amara could hear the sarcasm that was laced in her question but answered anyway, "Austin..." she said softly.
"Yes, him. Why don't you tell me about that?" Her tone was cynical, with a touch of sarcasm.
Amara thought about it but she didn't know what to say. Austin was a man she met after being injured, he helped heal her and treated her with kindness, though she still doesn't understand why.
She admits that she has feelings for him, but that's where she draws the line. She doesn't see a future with him, but instead of killing him, she'll embrace the love he freely gives her as a gesture of appreciation. She doesn't mind having his offspring at all. But for some reason, she didn't feel she should tell her sister about it.
"What is there to tell?"
"Don't give me that. You hold affections for him,"
"..." Before Amara could say anything back, she was interrupted by Jessie.
"Here are your rooms," she told Lairith and Thelopi. "This is a twin room that is conjoined by the bathroom," she said as she led them in and walked towards another door. Simply lock both doors on each side to lock it."
"Where's Amara... Room?" Lairith asked.
"Amara's room? Oh, well, she shares a room with Austin so they kind of sleep together...?" She awkwardly told them.
Lairith and Thelopi gave Amara a weird look as if everything she's said them was false.
Jessie looked between them and felt that she should further explain it, "O-of course it's because they are mates. Just like you and Jackson!"
Jessie drew a curious look from Lairith. "Mates?" she asked.
A/N
Hey! I am so sorry for not updating in a while, it's been pretty hectic. So first, I got really sick, I was in bed for a week, and as soon as I was better I had all of these assessments to do (and I'm not even done yet, I have 3 more to do) which didn't give me any time to edit or write any chapters.
Anyways, so here is a new chapter and I'm super sorry if I won't be updating in a little bit xx