The Shadow of Stars

Eighteen

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"Hey mom!" I yell as I enter the house, closing the door behind me with a thud. "Are you cooking lasagne again?"

"Thea!" The squeal of my younger sister erupts me from the heavenly scent as she barrels around the corner, her curls wet atop her head. She is clad in fluffy pink pyjamas and carries her tattered old bunny in her arms as she slams into me with a large hug.

"Hey Lex," I say and she just squeezes me tighter, making me laugh. "Wow, I missed you too. Where's mom?" She pulls back, her toothy grin revealing two small dimples.

"She's telling off Josh, he hit me when I just was borrowing his truck." She doesn't frown at the memory but grins mischievously, like telling on her twin brother brings enough joy to overpower the pain of being hit.

I laugh, bending down next to her. "Are you alright?" I ask and she nods. "Did you and mom go visit dad today?"

Her brows furrow a bit before she fully pouts, crossing her arms. "I don't want to talk about that. Let's play, you never play with me anymore. Everyone is always so sad and I want to play."

Lexie stops her foot for emphasis so I pick her up swiftly, making her squeal. "Oh you want to play?" Her boisterous laughs fill the small apartment and I grin widely. "How does an aeroplane ride sound?"

I make a swooshing noise as I torpedo us into the living room in an eruption of happiness. But my feet stop abruptly when I enter to see my parents both sat on the couch, a serious look on their faces. "Dad? Why aren't you at work?"

My father sends me a soft smile. "I've been given leave," he says and it hits my gut as I place Lexie down only for her to run and squash herself into his lap. His strong hands wrap around her tightly as she snuggles into his chest. "It's for a few months, fully paid, and I've got the offer of a promotion when I return."

I tentatively place my bag on the ground, furrowing my brows as I move to sit on a sofa across from them. "That doesn't sound bad, why are you both so miserable?"

"It's more about why I was given leave that concerned me. My boss said he'd had a discussion with the Alpha and ultimately decided that it was in my and the packs best interest to give me a break from work to focus on family."

"Do you think maybe he was trying to help?" I offer, though the knot in my gut remains.

"I think it was a strange sort of threat. One that was pushing me to resolve my issues with the pack house so that you were more accepting of... He reminded me of the laws, too and how his company felt about protecting its stance within the community," he says grimly and I notice how tired he looks, how his face holds barely any light. It must be so hard on the twins, to see him like this. When I was their age he had it together, he had hope of a future but now... it's like his world has come crashing down.

Lexie squirms in his arms and lets herself off the couch, bounding down the hall with her teddy in toe.

"I... I will speak to Micah. I'm sure there is some kind of misunderstanding, he told me that unless you continued suing the pack that you'd be left out of this. You guys did stop, didn't you?" I ask and their silence is answer enough, it makes my hands start to shake. "I told you to stop. If the Alpha finds out about thi-"

"We aren't suing them, we've learned that option won't work," My dad interrupts. "There was an altercation at work. I overheard one of my managers talking with my coworkers on break. His mate is a receptionist at the school and they were talking about me and you and your situation." He purses his lips, trying to find the right words.