Brayden Riker
3 years ago...
"Hey Bray! Let's go, dad's waiting!" Jason hollered from the bottom of the stairs.
Today was the day. Jason was turning twenty-one.
You see when a first born son of an Alpha turns twenty-one, he is to take his father's place as head of the pack.
Our pack was big. One of the largest in the world. We have around seven-hundred members so there is no time for joking around.
My brother had been training all his life for this moment and it was finally here.
He gave up school, friends, and in general a social life. Lucky for me I was the second son so no one worried about me.
I mean I got general heir training but nothing as hardcore as Jason.
I got to go to high school and I was even planning on attending Harvard Law in the fall.
My life was good and so was Jason's. Our parents made a lot of money being Alpha's and owning their own separate companies, we both were doing the things we wanted.
Jason genuinely wanted to become the Alpha. He had been raised to. I on the other hand, hated the idea of having so much responsibility.
While Jason was off studying Wolven Law I was off partying. We were different in so many ways.
Even our physical features were different. I was brunette he was blonde. I had brown eyes he had blue. I was tan he was pale.
But our faces were similar and our muscular physiques definitely told wolves and humans that we held power.
"Hurry up little brother. It's a big night." He grinned.
Jason was tall, taller than me and he had an army buzz with the sides buzzed but cropped hair at the top.
He had found his mate, Isabella, who we all called Izzy, when he was 18 and they'd been preparing for the Alpha positions since then.
"Aye I'm coming, don't rush me." I snarled playfully and punched him in the shoulder.
We were classic jocks, the kind that play football and flirt with girls. I was definitely destined for fraternity.
"C'mon, we're late." He fixed his suit and I adjusted my black slacks and white dress shirt.
It was time for Jason to take his position. Him and his beta, Jackson, would be taking their positions tonight and would be introduced as the new Alpha and Beta team of Silver Stride.
"I'm so pumped." Jason was grinning as we made our way to the tents.
My parents had had this party planned for weeks. Jason becoming Alpha was huge for our family and the pack.
My father was to step down, mostly so he and my mom could enjoy the next one hundred years together.
Wolves are practically immortal, we can live a very long time. The oldest werewolf of our kind lived to the age of two-hundred and ten.
There were four large canopy tents on the front lawn. I could see people dancing and could hear the clinking of expensive champagne glasses.
Jason and I sprinted the rest of the way to the tents and to the area behind the large platform stage that was surrounded by the four tents.
All seven-hundred or so of our members were here tonight, most mingling with the Beta and Alpha families.
My father met us behind the stage. He was wearing a white dress shirt and black slacks like me. His long silvery-blonde hair was in a ponytail and his brown eyes were glowing with excitement.
"I'm so proud of you son." He clapped my brother on the back with thick, muscular hands.
"Thanks dad." He smiled.
"You too Brayden, you've done well in school and I'm so proud you will be attending Harvard." He turned to me with a smile.
That was something I appreciated about my father, he always made us feel that he was equally proud of both of us.
"Thanks dad." I hugged him realizing that soon I would be far from home and my family.
"Come on boys, your mother is up there waiting." My dad grinned.
We followed our father up on stage where my mother was standing in a light blue evening gown.
Our mother was unnaturally beautiful. She was a pure bred wolf like my father and came from a long line of royalty in the wolf community.
Her long brown hair fell to her waist and her striking blue eyes were outlined with perfect make up.
She didn't look a day over 25. My father didn't either, the only sign of aging were the few gray strands in his hair.
"My boys are so grown up!" She smiled sadly. I was a mama's boy for sure.
She reached forward and took us both in her arms. It must have been a comical sight, my 5'7 mom hugging two boys who were 6'4 and 6'6.
"I'm so proud of you both." She kissed both of our cheeks with a broad smile that reminded me of when Jason and I were little and she used to make us banana pancakes on our first days of school.
"We love you too mom." Jason kissed her cheek.
"C'mon boys, it's time." My father called.
Jason turned to me. "See ya at the reception." He squeezed my shoulder and went off to where Isabella was standing.
Izzy was wearing a short blue dress that fit her small frame perfectly. She was tall but it was still a sight to see my brother with her, she was 5'8 but next to him she looked 5'2.
Her blonde hair was in large ringlets and her gray-blue eyes sent me a smile. Izzy and I were close friends and had been since high school.
I waved and watched as he leaned down to kiss her and wrapped an arm around her waist.
Next to them was Jackson and his family. He was mate less so far and a year older than Jason but the two were best friends.
Jackson was wearing a tux like Jason's but the undershirt was a dark red.
Jackson was unusual for a wolf. His mother was from a native pack in Alaska, the Denali pack, but a few years back that pack had been attacked and destroyed.
His dad is my father's beta and he's half black half white.
Jackson was tall with light brown skin and brown eyes, but when his wolf got angry they turned a greenish blue. That's what made him strange, most wolves have black rage eyes.
"Come on Bray." My mom tugged on my muscular arm and we walked to stand on the left side of the stage.
My father stood behind a podium and called for all of our pack members to come before the stage.
"Hello everyone. I'm so glad all of you could be here tonight for my son. I know he will be successful as an Alpha and as a leader. He his spent his entire life preparing for this moment and I'm so proud of both of my son's for their achievements." The pack cheered.
He went on to talk about the history of our pack and the struggles we'd been through.
Then he announced the duties of an Alpha. "An Alpha's only job is to protect his pack. He must lead them through times of great difficulty and times of peace. He must choose his battles wisely, and make choices that benefit and protect the pack. He must learn the ways of the wolf and to protect all beneath him." My father announced.
"I believe I have done my duties as an Alpha and I believe Jason will do the same." He smiled and waved my brother and Isabella to the podium.
"And so, I would like to introduce your new Alpha, Jason Riker and your Luna, Isabella Keller." The crowd cheered and my brother and his mate waved to them.
"And my son's beta, Jackson LeCross." Jackson stepped up and waved to the crowd with a smile.
The crowd cheered and my father gave my brother a hug. I clapped for my brother and I could see tears in my mom's eyes so I pulled her into an embrace.
Jason held Izzy's hand and came up to the podium with a huge grin.
"I would just like to thank-" my brother began but was cut off by a loud and terrifying scream.
A girl ran from the tent with blood spurting from her neck.
"ROGUES!" She screamed and then her eyes rolled back into her head and she collapsed.
As soon as it registered with the crowd, wolves started shifting, enforcers guided the women and children into the pack house and down into the large pack bunker we had built a few years back.
"Mom?" I called as she pulled away and dashed down the steps. I followed her as she shifted into her black wolf.
"Stay here." She warned through our mind link.
I watched as rogue wolves began pouring onto the lawn and started attacking anyone still left. Luckily most of the women and all of the children were inside.
I watched as enforcers shifted and began attacking.
I looked to the stage where an enforcer was holding Izzy back as she screamed for Jason to stop.
He had shifted along with my father and they started to fight.
I rushed up on stage and grabbed Izzy out of the enforcer's arms.
"Go." I ordered him with a tone I had never used before. He shifted and leaped from the stage and began helping the rest of our pack members.
Izzy was crying and scratching at my arms. I tried to calm her down but she was becoming hysterical as Jason was pinned to the ground.
Her parents along with Jackson's had been ushered into one of the bunkers under the Alpha house.
It was mass chaos and Izzy's crying had distracted me from a rogue coming towards the stage.
I pushed her out of my arms as I shifted into my white wolf.
I grabbed the rogue's neck and snapped it in two like a twig. I roared and batted it's body off the stage and onto the ground.
I growled and tried to calm my worried wolf.
I heard Izzy scream and a rogue in human form was holding her neck. I snarled and attacked him, knocking her from his grasp and sent him tumbling to the ground.
I quickly ripped his head from his shoulders and tossed the body away from me.
Izzy stood up and shifted into her sandy blonde colored wolf.
"Come on." I called through our link and leaped off the stage.
We weaved through the battle, I was looking for my family.
Izzy was following close behind and when any rogue got too close to her I easily snapped their neck or batted them to the side.
"Where's Jason?" Izzy's worried voice rang through my mind.
"I don't know, let's keep looking." I replied as calmly as I could.
We continued to make our way through the crowd and I spotted Jackson's black and white wolf attacking a huge rogue.
He turned so I could see his green- blue wolf eyes.
"Where is Jason?" I questioned through mind link.
Jackson looked up and met my eyes as he had just ripped the heart out of the wolf he'd been attacking.
"Last time I saw him he was with your dad over by the fountains." He replied.
We hurriedly ran to the fountains and the sight I saw made my heart stop.
My father was on the ground, shifted back into his human form which only meant one thing.
He was dead.
Jason was pinned to the ground and a wolf was scratching at his eyes, you could hear the pain in his howls.
My mother was at my father's side, fighting off wolves with two or three of our members. Her wolf was going crazy, ripping the other wolves to shreds.
Izzy immediately went to my brother's side and attacked the wolf, which was much bigger than she was but she managed to rip its throat out with no problem.
Jackson jumped into action, helping my brother as well by protecting him as Izzy shifted back and looked into his eyes which were bloodied.
He was whining and soon he had shifted back. You could hear his screams of pain as Isabella cupped his face and held him, calling for help.
"BRAY! We need to get him inside." She screamed.
I dashed into action, and laid on my stomach beside them. Izzy used all of her wolf strength to lift a screaming Jason onto my back.
He was heavy but I would manage. She climbed on and held him in place.
"GO!" She yelled over the tearing of flesh and the cries of pain.
I dashed forward towards the Alpha house, which was closer and I knew that Jackson's mom, our pack Doctor, would be there.
It started to pour rain and I ran faster. I could hear Izzy whispering to Jason who was beginning to pass out.
"Faster Brayden!" She yelled over the rain.
I picked up the pace and finally made it to the front door which I burst through with little care for its well-being.
Izzy jumped off and pulled Jason over to the large sofa.
He moaned in pain and I shifted back and ran down the stairs to the bunker.
"Amelia!" I screamed for Jackson's mom and she appeared in front of me.
"It's Jason." I told her and we rushed up the stairs.
Izzy was clutching his hand and sobbing. "Don't leave me baby. Don't leave me here with our pup. He needs you baby." She was crying hysterically but I was too distracted to understand her.
"Get her out of here." Amelia told me and went to Jason. I hadn't realized a few of Amelia's assistants were with her and they had a few first aid kits and some were bringing in bowls of water with wash cloths.
Amelia pulled out a small container and then out of that she pulled a stitches kit.
I grabbed Izzy who was thrashing and kicking in my arms. "NO!" She was screaming over and over.
"You don't want to see this." I whispered in her ear and I dragged her up the stairs to Jason's bed room. She needed something with his scent to calm her down.
She was clutching to me now and sobbing uncontrollably. "No, no, we were supposed to tell them tonight." She sobbed.
I could hear Jason's screams downstairs and I winced at the awful sound.
"What?" I asked as I dragged her into his room and over to his bed.
"He can't leave me alone. I can't have this pup without him. No! This isn't how it was supposed to be!" She screamed and buried her face in my neck.
I held her tightly, trying to comfort her. I realized what she was telling me, she was pregnant with Jason's baby.
"Shhh..." I whispered and I tried to keep it together. I had just lost my father, my brother was downstairs dying on our living room couch and god knows if my mom made it.
"Bray... He can't leave me." She sobbed.
"Shhh..." I kissed her cheek and held her. She was my sister and no matter what I would take care of her, she and my little nephew could be all that I had left.
"Jason's not going anywhere." I whispered and rocked her back and forth. She stopped sobbing after a bit and eventually passed out in exhaustion.
I laid her out on the bed and grabbed one of Jason's shirt's and pulled it over her head.
Once she was taken care of I walked quietly to my bed room. It was just as I had left it, the picture of my family on my bed side table, my desk messy with college prep papers. My bed unmade, the comforter on the floor.
But somehow, it all seemed different now like a distant memory.
I went to my dresser and pulled out a hoodie, tee, and a pair of shorts and slipped them on.
I needed to find my mom. Once I was dressed, I went back to Jason's room to check on Izzy.
Once I saw that she was still asleep, I ran downstairs just as Amelia was removing her latex gloves and wiping sweat from her brow.
Her cream colored dress was stained with blood and you could see the fatigue in her face.
"How is he?" I asked worriedly. She sighed.
"He lost a lot of blood, his leg is broken in 3 places. I was able to put it in a make shift stent for the time being but it will only hold for so long." She breathed out.
"Not to mention his eyes are severely damaged. He may never see again." She shook her head in pity.
I felt myself take in a breath. If he couldn't see we would have no Alpha. I didn't want to think about what that meant for the pack.
But in the back of my mind I knew what it meant, at least for me.
"His wolf is having trouble healing, his smaller wounds are healing well but his bones are so severely broken it will take much longer for his cells to mend them." She told me.
"Izzy is upstairs sleeping. Can you have someone take care of her? I need to find my mother." I told her and she nodded.
"Brayden," She called and I turned to her from the broken front door.
"As of now, you are acting Alpha so don't go getting yourself killed." She told me with a serious look in her eyes.
I nodded, unable to really process what her words meant. She obviously knew about my father's death and I doubted the whole pack hadn't felt the loss of their former Alpha.
I ran out the door, it was still raining and I could hear the howls of our pack in the air.
I ran to the fountains where I knew my father was and hopefully my mother and Jackson.
As I passed, I noticed the rogues and pack members lying on the ground, some were still alive and I felt bad for not being able to stop and help our pack members.
The white tents were burning despite the rain and a few enforcers were trying to help those who were wounded and others were moving the dead into separate areas.
I ran through what used to be the front lawn of our pack house which had become more like a grave yard.
I made it to the fountains. There was no sign of Jackson but I could see my mother on the ground near my father.
I began to panic as I stumbled forward. "MOM!" I yelled as I dropped to my knees by her side.
I let out a whine of relief and tears began to leak from the corner of my eyes when her eyes opened and then I realized she was whimpering, her head resting on my father's bloodied chest.
"Bray..." She whimpered. I felt more tears in my eyes as I took my mother into my arms.
I quickly slipped off my hoodie and pulled it over her body.
"It's okay... Everything is going to be okay." I told her as I lifted her from the ground.
She sobbed and I looked down at my father. His body was torn apart and his eyes were still open.
I leaned down, still holding my mom and closed his eyes. Silent tears fell from my face and I realized that this was the end.
"Bray..." Izzy called through the mind link.
"I'm coming Izz." I told her.
"Okay but Jason is awake... But..." I could hear the fear even through our link.
"He can't see anything Brayden. He's... Blind." She whispered.
I felt my heart stop and I faltered my step, my whole body crashing to my knees, my mom still clinging to me.
"Bray... Jason says that you have to take over. He can't and Jackson is still missing." Izzy replied through the link.
I felt my heart beat faster. This wasn't happening.
"Bray?" My mom asked in a voice I hardly recognized.
"Jason is blind." I said numbly.
"And I've just become what I never wanted to be."
-
Hello family. Thank you for reading! This'll probably be it for a little bit on his book as I continue my other books. Just so you know, most of my books will end at 30 chapters maybe 35, so my other ones are close to being finished. This book could however have more chapters. So stay tuned. Unedited. Vote, comment, add to a reading list, PM me! Love ya!
Forever yours, ~Vamps