Twelve Steps Forward

Chapter 1

A/n: hey guys! Thank you for reading my book! Before you start I've noticed a lot of people reading them out of order. If that is how you prefer that is totally fine but, I feel there is more payoff if you read them in order. Here is the proper order for the series. I know it seems like a lot but, I promise if you saw the tags for this book and decided you were interested you will love this series.

Book 1- When the Pieces Fall
Book 2- All the Things Between us
Book 3- Lay me Down to Sleep
Book 4- Twelve Steps Forward
Book 5- Ourselves and our Posterity
Book 6- The Beginning

Eros Pov:

   The last few years have been hard. My grandmother's mind has started to go and I'm not sure how much time she has left at this rate. Ever since my brother's mate fell into a coma I've been on my own in life. Along with it, I've taken on most of his responsibilities as an Alpha. I can't complain too much though, Apex had to do everything I'm doing now from a much younger age and while also caring for me. I just wish things weren't so lonely.

  I don't know why our father chose for the Alpha family to live in the packhouse alone. I hate being in such a big empty house alone. This space would be so much better if there were other families here. It would be such a pain to get people to move back now. Everyone here has their own life. Most other packs are more community-oriented, but when you have private Alphas you get private wolves.

  In a lot of ways, I suppose that it is for the best we're alone here. If my pack had seen how our parents treated me and Apex or how Apex used to treat Diana there would have been a revolt. Still, I wish things weren't this way.

  I finish up my cooking and make up a plate for my grandmother. I have her sat at the kitchen table for once, which is no easy feat. She had a scare with pneumonia not too long ago so I've been forcing her to get up even when she doesn't want to. I set the plate in front of her and she doesn't even seem to recognize that it's there.

  "Pakiusap", I say, "kailangan mong kumain ng lola". Even at my insistence, she does nothing. She's having one of her bad days again. I pull up a chair beside her. I hold a spoonful of the chicken adobo to her lips. I sigh my gratitude when she willingly takes it. She hasn't been eating much lately and I know that it's a sign of worse things to come.

  She manages to eat about half of her plate and a few sips of water before she starts pocketing her food. I've tried feeding her easier foods to eat, but she won't take them.

  I hold a napkin to her lips, "mangyaring lumubog ito". She does as I ask and spits the food into the napkin. I throw the napkin and the rest of her food away. I clear the table and put the dishes in the sink before returning to her.

  "Gusto mo bang panoorin ang iyong mga palabas?", I ask. She smiles at me and I take it as a yes. I go over to her bending a bit so she gets her arm wrapped around my shoulders. I grab her by the back of her pants with one hand and take her free hand with mine as I lead her to the living room. She's slow and shaky on her feet and I wonder how long it will be before she can't walk anymore.

  I sit her on the couch in front of the television and turn on her shows. Her face lights up at the sound of the church hymns. she doesn't speak a word of English, but somehow I think she knows what they mean.

  I go back to the kitchen to fix myself a quick plate, the rest I put away for Apex to have when he gets home. I worry about him. He hasn't been taking care of himself. All he does is sit in the hospital room with Diana day in and day out. I think the lilacs and antiseptic smell might be driving him madder than being without her.

  I suppose I wouldn't be any better in his shoes though. I've never understood the things I've found out about him doing to his mate. Sometimes he'll have a panic attack or nightmare and tell me bits and pieces about the things he's done to her. I'm glad he's still in therapy because the guilt is eating him alive.

  When I find my mate I'm going to love her to the ends of the earth.

Aurora Pov:

   I finish with the seventh man of the night. He didn't pay much since he only wanted to use my mouth, but money is money. I wipe the remains of our encounter off my face and adjust my dress. I walk back out of the alley to join the other girls working the corner. It's freezing tonight and all of us would rather be wearing anything other than our lingerie and tiny bits of clothes. I at least had the foresight to wear a dress instead of my usual bra and micro mini. At least my stomach is covered which is more than a lot of the other girls. Wearing fewer clothes is better for advertising yourself, but I'm not too worried about the competition considering I'm one of the younger ones out.

  A car pulls up to me. I walk over to it as the window rolls down. The man inside is old enough to be my grandfather, but that doesn't matter. I bend over strategically to show him as much cleavage as I can.

  "Hey baby what can I do for you?", I don't recognize my voice as my own anymore, but that's fine.

  He smiles at me revealing his rotting teeth, "how much for the whole night?". I consider my rates for a moment before answering.

  "Fifty for everything", I say. He chuckles at this before going to rummage through his pockets. He comes out with a bag of pills.

  "Will these do?", he asks. I nod my head eager to take my poison. He laughs at my response and I hop in his passenger seat ready to take the pills. He pulls them out of my reach.

  "How about a trial run first?", he asks. I nod eagerly ready to do anything he wants. I undo his pants and he pushes my head down.