"Alisha?" Anthony frantically searched the area with his eyes, still not seeing her. "That is not possible."
"Yeah, she's..." Jacob blinked, yet mysteriously lost her in his sight. "What? I can't see her anymore." He searched, just like what Anthony and Hunter were doing. "She's gone."
Hunter was glad the attention was away from him for a while, at least.
"Are you sure it wasn't a look alike?" He questioned.
"No, I-I definitely saw her."
Anthony started the engine with a concerned frown.
"I'll call the prison to make sure she's still there. Jacob, if you did see her, be prepared. Knowing you're a God will belittle her massive ego." There is no way she could have escaped. Their werewolf prison is one of the most secure places for wolf criminals, in the world.
"I hope I was just seeing things," Jacob sat on the chair in the back of the truck. Was his mind playing tricks on him? Did he see someone who just happened to look like her?
* * * * *
After driving for twenty minutes, they approached a big metal gate. It was very grand and Anthony had to type in a code for it to open. When it did, it unlatched from the middle, allowing them to drive down the cobbled path.
"Where are we?" Jacob thought to Hunter, looking around in awe. The grass was trimmed to perfection and the flowers were simply beautiful. Pink orchids and bright sunflowers lined up in neat rows, next to plump looking roses of different colours.
"This is our old house. It looks really different," Hunter also looked around with surprise. "It never used to look this fancy."
"Wow," Jacob breathed when they parked the rugged truck outside a beautiful, big building. The first thing he noticed was a polished ruby red door. Next to it, mounted to the brick wall, was what looked like the base of a tree trunk. Carved into it was Hunter's last name.
"The Rayson's household," Jacob read out loud with excited eyes.
"Dad, why is it so... posh looking?" Hunter asked. There were two beautiful white marble pillars, sitting on either side of the door.
"It's not bad to want nice things in life son," Anthony grinned. "But your mum was very particular about what her dream home should look like. And to be honest, I'm impressed." He climbed out of the big truck when the front door opened.
Sam was first to jog through the door and down the white marble steps.
"I hope these don't get broken. I can fix wood but not marble," He chuckled.
Anthony crossed his arms, feeling a little better about this day. Seeing his home so beautiful made it worth living in the tiny studio for so long. However, it brought their family closer together and it will be dearly missed.
"Only Jacob is strong enough to break these. If he ever breaks them, I can guarantee Hunter will have something to do with it."
Hunter rolled his eyes behind his dads back and walked towards the door.
"Is everyone inside?"
"Yes. You have one minute to find a bedroom or I'm picking for you."
"Seriously?"
"Yes. But avoid the back of the building, there are painters in there, sorting out the last bathroom."
Hunter and Sam grinned at each other before running into the building, searching for the stairs. Anthony turned to Jacob who was nervously watching a body guard.
"These are werewolves, offering their services to our family. It won't be forever because we will get the wolf hunter's under control," He reassured the God. "It gives us peace of mind knowing that our home is secure and in the view of safe eyes. Is the first mission over yet?"
Jacob shook his head.
"Not yet. I don't know what else we have to do but I have a feeling it will come to Hunter soon."
Anthony nodded.
"Let us know if we can help with anything in any way, okay?"
"Okay."
"Right go on then, find Hunter and make sure he and Sam are not destroying the house already."
As soon as Jacob was gone, the twinkle in Anthony's eyes dropped, as did the light feeling in his heart. Turning to the body guard, he could only express his serious emotions.
"If anyone at all approaches those gates, do not take it lightly. Our van was vandalised today. This situation is serious."
The body guard nodded.
"Yes Alpha, we will keep your home protected."
Anthony gave a nod of appreciation before entering the house, wanting to have a look around himself.
* * * * *
"This room is massive," Sam breathed. "I want it."
Hunter opened the walk in wardrobe with wide eyes. This home was big before, now it exceeded his expectations by such a long way.
"You don't live here," He mumbled when there was a knock on the door. They both turned to see the rest of his pack looking around in awe too.
"Hey boys," Hunter crossed his arms, knowing one person was missing and he had to give them more detail. "Come in." He could invite them in because he has not yet chosen this as his territory.
"Alpha," Jonah spoke when they all sat on the floor, feeling concern for Zac. "How is he doing?"
Hunter crossed his legs and linked his fingers together.
"He's stable and hopefully, he'll make a strong recovery," He looked them confidently in the eye. "He was drugged with... I can't remember the name. It's illegal in this country and they gave him so much that he overdosed. That is why we couldn't connect our mind-links. But this could lead to all kinds of complications, especially after being clinically dead for a few minutes. He'll be lucky to return to his normal self."
The atmosphere grew thick around them.
"If he doesn't make a full recovery, will he still be in the pack?" Ricky questioned.
"Of course," Hunter nodded. "It would be wrong of me to turn my back on him when he needs us the most." They nodded, respecting him immensely. "We will visit him tomorrow. His family need time with him for now."
Just then, a figure hovered at the doorway. Hunter looked up to see Vic, contemplating turning away, not wanting to interrupt their meeting.
"Uh, sorry," He frowned and clenched his jaw. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay after..." He trailed off, not pretending to be good at expressing sympathy. "My dad is pretty torn up about it."
Sam watched his Alpha. If this happened a few weeks ago, Hunter would yell at him to go away and not question his stability. But now, he has been taught by his mate that it's okay to be emotional, sometimes.
Hunter stood up with a little sigh.
"Boys, make yourself at home, We'll have an official pack meeting after dinner."
They nodded and when he was out of sight, they turned to Sam.
"Don't throw your questions at me. I know he's being distant with the pack but he's going through a lot. Give it a week or two and all this should settle down." Sam's eye then caught someone walking past the doorway. "William!"
William stopped, took a few steps back and entered to see them sitting on the floor in a circle.
"You look like you're summoning a ghost or something," He chuckled.
"Come and join us," Sam beamed. He was still trying to do everything he could to include him into this new lifestyle. "And we're not summoning a ghost, we're summoning a demon."
William stopped and the pack laughed.
"He's joking," Harrison added. "For now."
* * * * *
Hunter and Vic walked down the corridor until they reached another empty room. Hunter went over and sat on the edge of the bed.
"Is Nathan going to be okay?"
Vic nodded.
"I think so. Seeing his parents was harder than what he thought it would be," He mumbled. This situation was incredibly awkward for them both. Being in each other's presence was hard enough, now they were alone and had no other choice but to pay attention. "Look, Hunter, I know we've clashed in the past and we have never really got on but I want to try and be friends with you. You're so cocky and arrogant most of the time, it's pretty impossible."
"You want to be friends with me, yet you've just insulted me?" Hunter stared hard into his eyes, challenging him.
"This is what I mean. You're too difficult to talk to and you think you're so superior. It's rude."
"And this is why you irritate me, always trying to pick a fight."
"Um, you started it."
Hunter crossed his arms.
"I'm gonna be honest here, I don't like you and if you were not related to Jacob, I would never make the effort to like you."
"I don't like you either. You're self-centered, your ego is bigger than this room and you're gay."
Hunter didn't expect him to say the last one, he didn't think he was homophobic, not with such open minded parents.
"Being gay is a reason you hate me?"
"Look, I'll accept it because you're-"
"Excuse me?" Hunter's anger started pulsing through him. "I'm not asking for your acceptance. I couldn't care less what you think about me but you've just made it pretty clear that you will never, ever be a part of this family."
"I already am," Vic started to look smug.
Hunter took a calming breath. Punching him felt very, very satisfying right now.
"I should have known you would be like this. I'm done with trying, there's no point." He stood up, surprisingly catching eye contact with Nathan who was standing in the doorway. He was staring at his son with a mortified expression. Vic froze like a deer in the headlights.
"Vic," He breathed. Hunter could almost see the steam pouring out of his ears. "What the hell is wrong with you?"
"What?" His voice was far from confident. "I'm just saying what I feel."
"You know what," Nathan was done with his bullying. "You remind me of my dad more and more every day. I'm so fed up of you being this judgemental. Hating someone simply because they are attracted to the same gender, is the most pathetic thing I have ever heard."
Hunter dug his fingernails into his palms, trying not to smirk.
"Dad, I-"
"No, I've had enough. You owe him an apology, right now." Nathan was deeply embarrassed.
Vic could not cope with his dad's mad side. So he crossed his arms and glumly looked at the ground.
"Sorry," He mumbled.
Nathan shook his head and clenched his teeth.
"You're not ten years old!" He yelled. Running a hand through his hair, he could no longer argue. Today has been tough for him. "Go home, Vic. We'll talk about this later."
"But-"
"Do not question me." Hunter was seeing his anger and he would not like to be in the target range. "Now go home."
They watched him stomp out of the room like an exasperating little child.
"I'm so sorry Hunter," Nathan breathed and removed himself from the situation by walking the opposite way, leaving Hunter alone in the room.
He shrugged to himself and looked around. He didn't really care, Vic was nobody to him and his words didn't even scratch the surface of his compact mind.
His eyes examined the huge bedroom with a king sized double bed in the right corner. It was bare with no character. This meant that he could do whatever he wanted, seeing it as a blank canvas.
Wondering into the en-suite bathroom, he saw that there was one huge bath and one huge shower, both sitting in separate corners of the tiled room.
There was 'his' and 'her' sinks which caused him to shake his head. He walked over and started pulling at the 'her' sign, glued onto the tile. When he was successful at removing it, a big smile spread across his face, knowing this was his room.
He turned when there was movement in the bedroom, only to see his mother hitting his father with a cushion.
"Nope, you're too late," He grinned and walked into view. "This is my room."
Margo sighed and hit Anthony again.
"I've been eyeing this room up for ages."
"How unfortunate," Hunter chuckled and handed her the plaque he pulled off the wall.
Anthony laughed.
"I'll order a 'his' plaque then shall I?" Studying him, he had a question. "Do you think Scott and his family would like living here?"
"What? You'd ask them to move in?"
"Well, I don't think they'll be able to live in their own home for much longer. Grace left a note saying that she was basically abandoning the family and divorcing Scott."
Hunter raised his eyebrows, not really knowing what to say.
"Has he told William and Jacob about it?"
Margo shook her head.
"He doesn't know how to."
Hunter was about to respond but he smelt his mate. He turned to see him approaching the doorway with a twinkle in his eyes.
Wanting to immediately change the subject, he rushed over and flung his arms around him. Jacob fell into the wall with a confused frown, Hunter was clinging on rather tightly.
"What do you think of this bedroom?" He mumbled into his shoulder, his scent filling him with pleasure.
"Uh," Jacob looked around with the limited movement of his head. "Yeah, it's nice."
"I like it too," Hunter grinned and pulled his head back. "It's ours."
Jacob moved his gaze from the huge window, looking out across the massive garden, to Hunter's magnificent grey eyes. He loved how they were so magical and full of emotion.
"Ours?"
"Well, you basically lived in our little cabin for a week. I don't think it would be much different here."
Jacob's mind flashed to what life was like only a short few weeks ago. He found it hard to sleep longer than four hours at a time. He thought he was crazy, living with a voice in his head. His mother and father were happily married. He struggled to look at people, let alone talk to them. He didn't know who he was, where he was going in life and where he wanted to be.
Having no real dream and feeling close to giving up, Jacob Jones was slowly caving in. Not once did he imagine that he would be this person in such a compressed amount of time.
Hunter watched the sides of his mouth curl into a little smile, remembering when those were incredibly rare to witness.
"I love your smile."
Margo and Anthony slowly edged towards the door. Their son had to claim his territory by filling it with his scent. Also, they had to ask Scott about Grace and when he was going to tell his boys.
"It doesn't sound so creepy anymore," Jacob used to hate it when the voice said things like that to him. Thinking back on all the odd stuff it spoke about made sense, now that he knew it was Hunter.
"I am still sorry though, for what I did to you-"
Jacob didn't want to hear it. He has forgiven him, it should not be mentioned again.
Leaning forwards, he silenced the werewolf with a kiss on the lips. Their hearts sparked together and filled with warmth. Hunter instantly kissed him back, never wanting to miss the opportunity.
"I think," Jacob whispered, only pulling his head back a few centimetres, allowing his mate to feel his breath against his lips. "We have a few things to talk about."
Hunter opened his eyes.
"What a way to kill the mood."
Jacob's eyes turned rather serious.
"Why didn't you tell me about your grandparents?"
Hunter's heart crippled at the distant memory which haunts him every day.
"Because I didn't want you to feel sorry for me."
Jacob furrowed his eyebrows.
"I don't. Well... I do a little. I can't imagine going through something so horrible. It's not fair for you to feel like you can't tell anyone."
Hunter looked down and took a big breath.
"I was a mess, Jacob. I still am in small ways I guess. I can't swim and even baths petrify me. I can't hunt because killing just takes me right back to that day. Almost killing Thomas made me feel sick. I was disgusted with myself. "
Jacob appreciated all the help he has received from Hunter. He has nursed him, given him time and patched together his frail mind. But now, it was time to step up and give something back that will make a difference.
Sliding his fingers down his arm, he took his hand and started pulling him towards the bathroom.
"What are you doing?"
"We're having a bath."
Hunter stopped walking, causing Jacob to turn.
"What like... right now?"
Jacob nodded. His cheeks were bright pink.
"I'm going to help you get over your fear of water. I think a bath is a good place to start."
Hunter's pupils instantly dilated.
"So... does that mean I can see you naked again?" His cheeky personality was shining through.
Jacob tried very hard not to roll his eyes and melt with embarrassment.
"Is that all you think about?" He turned and continued towards the bathroom, happy to see it had a lock on the door.
Hunter was now eagerly following him, slowly forgetting about the stress of today. Spending time with Jacob was enough to cure his troubled mind, only for a little while.
"So... is that a yes?"