The Love of an Alpha

Chapter Four

Harper's POV

     My boys were quiet on the way home, but it was a happy silence. I could feel it radiating from the backseat. They were ecstatic to finally get away from those monsters. I couldn't believe these people hurt their own children. In wolf packs, hurting a cub is punishable by death after a length of time being tortured depending on the severity and length of the abuse. In Noah and Aiden's case, their parents would have been tortured for at least 17 years continuously until the day they would die. A year for every birthday my boys spent writhing in pain.

     When we pulled up to the pack house, my boys were in awe of it. It looked more like a mansion compared to a house, but that was what was needed when your pack consisted of over a thousand members. Most mated pairs move out into their own homes unless they had high ranks and were needed in the pack house in case of emergencies. The other rooms were mainly for the teenagers and other mate-less members.

     I had linked Barry to get two rooms on the Alpha floor set up. I wasn't sure if Noah and Aiden would prefer to be with me, together, or in their own rooms. I gave them a general tour of the house, showing them where the kitchen, dining room, meeting room, and ballroom were. I then took them to the Alpha floor by elevator.

     "Okay, so I had my people prepare two rooms for you guys. They are right next to mine, so if you need anything, let me know. Would you guys like to sleep in separate rooms or in one?" I asked, hoping a miracle would happen and they would say that they wanted to stay in mine. But I knew it wouldn't happen. They may trust me not to hurt them and to protect them, but they didn't know about mates or werewolves and I wasn't sure how to tell them.

     "We would like to have one room," They replied in sync.

     "Okay, we have a blue room through that door or a green room through this door. They both have their own ensuite with a shower and tub, as well as a double sink with mirrors. They also have walk-in closets. What would you like?"

     They ended up picking the green room. I showed them my room and told them not to hesitate to ask for anything at all. They were so happy about not having to go home to their parents, that they completely forgot that they hadn't had any lunch. Every time we tried to offer them some of our food, they said that they weren't hungry, but we could hear their stomachs growling.

     When their stomachs started growling again, but louder than ever, they both looked down and blushed. I laughed and put my arms around their shoulders. They shuddered from the tingles of the embrace and leaned into me.

     "Come on cuties. Lets get you some food to feed those killer whales you have trapped in your stomachs. What would you guys like?" I asked, wanting to take care of my little mates.

     "Do you have any pasta?" they asked.

     "I think I can manage something. Are either of you allergic to anything?" I wanted to make sure there was nothing that would hurt them when I made their food.

     "Noah is allergic to peanuts," Aiden offered. "But we don't have any other food allergies."

     "Aiden is allergic to cats though," Noah added. "One whiff and he's itching all over."

     "Okay. Got it. No peanuts and no cats. Luckily no one here is a cat person," I informed them.

     "Yeah, why are there so many people here? Why is this house so big?" my boys questioned me.

     I knew that it was going to come up sooner or later, but I wanted to put it off for a bit. We were not going to school tomorrow, so I would have all day to get them comfortable and then I would spill the beans.

     "I'll explain tomorrow I promise, but for tonight, we are just going to eat and relax and get your room sorted out." I told them.

     They accepted it, but I could see that they wanted to know. They had been hurt all of their lives, so there were bound to be some problems we needed to overcome. I made them some beef stroganoff. It had pasta, beef, cream of mushroom and some sour cream. It doesn't take too long to make, so I thought that the sooner I fed them, the sooner my wolf would quit clawing at my mind to take over and hunt for something they could eat.

     She didn't like the abuse our mates went through and wanted to pamper them. I wanted the same, but I had the restraint to not freak them out. If my wolf had control, she would be bringing them a buck she took down to eat and would take them to her room, so that they would never leave her sight again. I think that my human mates would have an issue with both of those things.

     After they were done, I took them up to their room again and we set to work putting away toiletries and clothes that I had some pack members buy for them. The clothes they were wearing were not the best and looked as if they had never seen better days. I pulled out some comfy pajamas for them as well, just in case they got cold during the night. It was getting closer to fall and the air conditioner went out sometimes. Werewolves didn't have a problem with the cold, but now that I had human mates, I would get someone to fix it before it got too bad.

     I walked up to Noah and kissed his forehead and then did the same to Aiden. As I turned to go to the door, they called out, "Harper?" I turned around to see them with their heads pointed toward the ground. "Thank you, for everything."

     "Anytime," I replied with another smile. Tomorrow I would have to get back to work, but for now my boys needed me to stay close. They were in a strange house with no one, but me around. I was prepared for anything tonight. "Remember, I don't care how silly it is, if you need anything, call for me or come to my room. Goodnight. Sweet dreams."

     I closed their door, praying that they would be okay.

*****

     It was around one o'clock in the morning when I first heard them. The screams. I was out of my bed and running before I could think. My boys were in pain.

     It wasn't anything physical. But they were in pain nonetheless. I flung the door to their room open. I found them hugging each other close with tears slipping out of each of their eyes. They were still asleep, but it sounded as if they were begin tortured.

     Without a second thought, I jumped into their bed and gently but urgently shook them awake.

     "Hey. Shh, shh. It's me, it's Harper. You're safe now. You're safe. I won't let anything hurt you. Shh, shh, shh," I cooed at them once they woke up. They were still suffering the after effects of their nightmare. They were shaking and tears were still falling from their beautiful eyes.

     I gathered them close and smothered them in an embrace. I was going to be their safety blanket. As long as I had them nothing would touch them. Nothing would get past me. Nothing.

     Their arms wound around me as they gradually stopped quaking. They pulled me closer and nuzzled into me. As soon as their breathing evened out a little I pulled back just a bit to raise their heads.

     "It's okay. I'm not going anywhere," I assured them when they looked up with panic in their eyes. "Do you want me to stay here tonight?"

      They instantly nodded. I felt relieved, because I wouldn't have left anyway but it was nice having their consent.

     I crawled up into the middle of the bed and pulled them close again. With Noah on my left and Aiden on my right, they rested their heads in the crooks of my neck. I brought my hands up and began to rub their backs soothingly. After a while, their breathing slowed and deepened even more. I knew they were asleep.

     Rather than have them freak out wondering where I went. I stayed nestled between them. Guarding them. My wolf and I agreed to not sleep so deep tonight. If my mates needed me again I would be ready.

     Nothing would get to them while I was here. Not even a nightmare could beat me.