Beyond the Pack’s Law: My stepsister or nobody else

Hayley’s Pov

“Hayley, I have something to tell you,” Cara said in a very calm and level voice. I was stirring a pot of stew, standing next to her while she chopped up vegetables on the wooden cutting board. The air was heavy with the smell of herbs and kindled flames, incompatible when set against what had become a charged silence. I lifted my head from the pot, a blend of curiosity and concern falling over me.

“What is it, Cara?” When she set the knife down and turned to face me with all the sincerity in her eyes, my heart skipped a beat. We are not IDIOTS working for you! This story was “And you know, Jack and I-we’re werewolves too. The spoon I was currently spiralling through my fingers slipped out of them and clattered loudly against the pot before bouncing off the tabletop.Content bel0ngs to Nôvel(D)r/a/ma.Org.

“What?” I whispered, my mind reeling. “But… but you seemed so normal. How?” “Yep,” Cara added while reaching for the spoon and giving it back to me. We’ve been living as one of them for years, disguising ourselves under the human mask. But we saw something in you, Hayley. You are not some eager bever werewolf but a strong one. It is stronger than you would think. She put her head on my chest, and through choked sobs, I watched as she stared at a screen. My lungs began to hold oxygen captive. “Powerful? There are hardly any times I do what I know. And Jack, is he…?”

Cara nodded, a light beginning to come into her eyes. Jack is an Alpha. “He leads his own pack. We thought, Oh man, Hayley has it. So we have actually chosen to help you with this. We believe in your added value, but more than that, we relate. Staring at the pot, my mind was racing. There was a pause while Cara thought about her response.

“It’s like having a family. A Family Who Gets Me Like No Other We are islands of strength. With walls must be so high, we will fight for each other. There’s a feeling of family that you won’t get anywhere else. I smiled and bobbed my head as I felt the warm, radiating feeling flush through me. “I think I’d like that.” Cara’s smile widened. “Good. Training will start sooner. Making it work is learning to use things, and we will show you how. Then the door squeaked apart, and Jack lumbered in, looking solemn. The breath was fat and fleeting in his chest.

“Here is our lead,” he said. One of the regulars spotted someone who matched Aiden’s description out by that old mill on the edge of town. My heart leapt with hope. “When?” “Last night,” Jack replied. “We need to move quickly.” Cara then turned to me with a determined look in her eyes. “Are you ready, Hayley?” I smiled and felt a sudden surge of courage. “Let’s go find Aiden.”

Cara, Jack, and I all went to pick up our things when it was time to go, and as we walked out of the restaurant that day, there was this strong sense of unity between us. Something in me felt whole for the first time ever. Friends then equal something more; pack. We had countless dangers in store for you, side by side.

As I walked into the night, it was pretty clear to me that this trip has yet many voyages with itself. Except that Cara and Jack made me feel stronger and more confident than I have ever felt. We would have Aiden again in our lives, and we were going to fight the werewolf that had turned everything on its ear. Together, we would overcome. When we delved into the night, it started to speak to us. The abandoned mill on the edge of town was mysterious and risky, but I knew that under these conditions, Aiden had to be there.

Cara, Jack, and I made our way along the streets. Charging to the fields of adolescence, where shadows were the dark age moonlight. I spoke after a few seconds of awkward silence. “There is one thing I want to tell you. My own voice cracked a little, but I felt the need to tell them how it truly was. “Aiden… Aiden is also an Alpha. And… I’m his mate. His Luna.” Cara froze and spun around, and her eyes grew large.

“Aiden is an Alpha? And you’re his, Luna? WHY DID YOU TELL US THIS BEFORE?”. I was shocked to realise how little I had thought it mattered. I thought it was enough that we were friends. But there’s more to it. Aiden explained that he was on a top secret mission, and that is why he had to go away. However, I just saw him with another woman last night.”. This news left Jack puzzled.

“Another woman? Are you sure it was him?” Yes, I already knew what he was referring to, and I felt my heart squeeze as if everything had happened yesterday. “I’m sure. I saw them together, and it broke me. Australia was my refuge, the place where Aiden had fled to escape his past, and I went there searching for him, hoping he might have some of the answers. I never planned to find both of you or get tangled up in this mess with the werewolves.

Cara’s face softened with sympathy. “Hayley, I’m sorry that happened to you. However, if Aiden is an Alpha and you’re his Luna, that’s different. That means there is much more to lose here”. Jack put a comforting hand on my shoulder. “We’ll find him, Hayley. We’ll get to the bottom of this, I promise. We are losing our focus; we need to work together. She responded, taking a deep breath to calm herself. “Thank you. I thank you for a lapse of luxury. I just want to know what is really happening. We rode silently for the rest of our way, each buried in the thoughts on his mind. The old mill came into view, a shadowy figure jutting out darkly against the night sky. I felt the danger in the air as we closed.

Enemies.

Cara signalled for us to halt, her eyes sweeping the landscape. “We need to be careful. There may be others. Were-wolves. Jack nodded in agreement. “Stay close and stay quiet. We don’t want to draw any attention. We walked slowly up the path to the mill, as if our ears were tuned in for danger. Tension hung heavy in the air, and my heart beat wildly against the confines of my chest. Right as we were exiting, Cara pulled me aside and looked at me with a straight face. “Hayley, if Aiden is here, then we must be ready for whatever comes. He could have company, and we do not know what his condition is.” I steeled myself and said, in a voice level enough to penetrate the fog that was now cloaked around my thoughts.

“I’m ready.” We entered the mill through a darkened entrance. The night was black; not even a ray of light shone inside, but the dimming moonlight found its way through the tiny breaks in her glass windows, creating shadows on every wall. The silence was stifling; the only sound at times was the whisper of old wood settling on foundations. Cara and Jack led the way, each of them moving completely soundless with a well-defined intent. I followed, sensing danger but unsure of its source. Softly, we slipped through the maze of machinery and trash. More like whispers than footfalls Abruptly, we heard a tiny noise. The growl was deep, guttural, and made a shiver run down my spine. We both gave each other uneasy looks through our eyes, as we knew this was heading for the worst.

We all froze, listening hard for where the growl had come from. Jack’s eyes were wide with concentration as he motioned for us to go ahead. Cara stood beside me in a in a guarding position, her body wound up tight as a spring. With every step, the noise grew, soon becoming a raspy growl reverberating throughout the cavernous age of that old mill. My heart raced in my chest, each beat a reminder of the peril we faced from all sides. Then suddenly Jack gestured for us to stop, his eyes roving about the gloom.

“Guys, we have to go!” Jack whispered forcefully. It’s too dangerous to stick around here. It’s not too far from a safehouse. We can regroup there.” I agreed since I had complete confidence in Jack. I took Cara’s hand, which held mine with reassuring firmness, and we retraced our steps to the entrance. The tension was so palpable; every rustle in the wind and the creek of an old floor board would send shivers down my spine. We hustled right away through the heavy shrubbery; the only direct light was moonlight. We rode in silence, each mired in our own thoughts. In the zone. We finally reached a hidden glen after what seemed to be hours.

There was a small, unassuming cabin in the middle that looked like something straight out of nature itself. Jack was the first one to get up close to the front of the cabin, mumbling something. A spark-like shimmer of a barrier, so weak it almost flickered off before we could pass through “Guarded land,” Jack explained. “Accessible to werewolves and friends. The moment we stepped inside, the atmosphere changed. The inside was all warm and inviting, in great contrast to what he’d felt within the cold goods mill. The safe house was spacious, full of heavy furniture in neat rows.

The place felt like a sanctuary for me, the only sense of normalcy amidst all the chaos. Jack turned to me with a serious look on his face. “”Hayley, I know you’re looking for Aiden. In any case, you need to know something. Not only is this safe house a refuge, but it also serves as something of an oracle.””

Although the truth lies here, I was almost shivering with anticipation and fear at the same time. “What do you mean? What truth?” Cara approached, compassion in her eyes. “Hayley, there is more to Aiden missing than you… This is where the rubber meets the road. But you have to be ready for what you find.”” I steeled myself, and I swallowed a gulp of air. “I’m ready. I will stop at nothing to find the truth. Jack agreed with determination.

“Then let’s begin.” Then he pointed me towards a secret panel at the rear of the room. He tapped out a code, and the panel slid away to show an alcove. Amid the chamber was an intricate array of runes and relics, each one pulsing weakly with a light from somewhere beyond this earth. I was filled with overwhelming awe as I entered the room. It sat in a sanctuary of history and power, filled with ancient wisdom that had been taught from generation to generation. And Jack and Cara, standing on either side of me like stable things.

‘Hayley, this is where you will get your answers’, Jack whispered. But the truth is not much friendlier. I breathed in deep, knowing I was probably about to hear or see something that would piss me off even more. I’m ready, and my voice was firm. As we started to investigate the room, I became more and more certain about how bad it was going to be. I had realised that the answer was far more twisted and profound than my imagination could conjure.

And as the puzzle pieces came together, I knew my journey had just started.