Athena

Chapter 4

Distrust.

Anxiousness.

Caution.

Those are the three main emotions I was picking up from both the men, women and wolves that stood outside the pack house. They were all stone face and tense, expecting some kind of attack no doubt.

I must admit, the house and the property were both very beautiful. There was forest all around us just like back home, but the surrounding woods were more expansive. The trees were different shades of reds, oranges, and pinks since fall is upon us which made it look more inviting but the colors weren't going to last for very long. The chill in the air was crisp and I knew in a few weeks time the leaves would all be on the ground and our first snow will come.

Kevin parked the car and the rest of the team parked right next to us waiting for my signal to get out. A single nod from me and we all stepped out of the vehicles.

I was front and center with Kevin to my right and Carter to my left. It was weird not having Erin by my side, but this felt right as well. Everyone was thankfully taking this situation seriously and as a unit, I knew we looked good.

Straight ahead was a confident, handsome man with dark black hair and a rugged, intimidating exterior who I knew was the alpha. His arm was around who I assumed to be his wife or mate- whatever it is she would be called. She's pretty, with beautiful light brown hair and hazel eyes that reminded me of the ones I once had. The alpha held her close, but she didn't seem to mind one bit. They seemed content with one another, in love.

To his right, stood a dark-skinned man, trying to look intimidating but frankly, he reminded me of Xavier. Tall, dark and full of secrets. Next to him stood a woman with fair skin and black hair. She looked serious and just by looking at her I can tell she doesn't mess around.

My eyes met the alphas and I can tell he was trying to decide whether we were all truly as young as we look.

"Welcome to Graelind Pack. We are happy to have you all." He reached out a hand and I took it, shaking it firmly. The wolves around us held their breaths, but all exhaled once I retracted my hand.

"I hope you found your way alright?" He questioned.

"We did," I told him.

He was looking between Kevin and I, Kevin clearly looking more the part of a leader but when he motioned his head to me, the alpha was shocked.

"You're the leader?"

"Yes."

Everybody seemed surprised. I felt like they were waiting for me to do or say something crazy by the way they were all staring. Like they're waiting for me to mess up somehow, but I've had training in self-control for most of my life and I've been a leader for three years, so I'm glad to disappoint them.

"Oh, well, I'm Amell." He introduced. "This is my mate, Vitallanie." The woman next to him nodded at us politely.

"I'm Athena."

"And all of you are. . ."

"Yes. We are all aeteri."

He gave us all once overs and then shook his head quickly. "It's just, you all look so young."

"We are," I say. He waited for further explanation. "The youngest here is eighteen and the oldest is twenty-four."

"That is young." He muttered. I heard a few snorts and snickers, even a few snide comments about our assumed inexperience and age. That angered me.

I didn't want them to think we are just come rookie kids with powers. They need to know the extent of our maturity and knowledge. They need to understand the things we've learned, what we've seen, and what we've done during our time in the institutes.