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“You hear me?”
Elliot shut the tailgate with more force than necessary. “Yeah, I fucking hear you.” He came close, lowering his voice. “But things are complicated right now. The last thing we need is you coming in and stirring up shit. I haven’t survived this long under his rule to have you blow it for me in the eleventh hour.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“Mouth shut, head down.” Elliot growled before stomping to the driver’s side and throwing open the door.
He wasn’t even there, and already he hated this place.
CHAPTER TWO
“You might want to find somewhere else to stay tonight.”
Her mother’s statement pulled her from the movie she was watching. Pausing the screen, she twisted on the couch to glance at her mom. “Really? It’s a Sunday.”
“You know how the alpha gets when the Curusm comes. It’s only a few weeks away now, and Thursday is our BBQ.”
The archaic mating ritual always drew a crowd. Shifters from around the world would travel to take part. Their pack was one of the few in North America who still practiced it. And every year it made Thatcher, their alpha, act like a showman.
Which included the annual BBQ her mother was to host. Her mom dreaded it, and since Vivian had turned eighteen, she’d done the bulk of the work. Rafe had told her to find out who she was before worrying about a mate.
Well, she loved planning the BBQ and any other event her mother hosted. As the beta's mate, Susan Conners had to host events frequently. Moreso, since it had been over a decade since Thatcher had his own mate to fill the hostess role.
“Do they have a meeting in the morning?” Normally, on weekdays, Thatcher held a morning meeting with his advisors.
“I guess he canceled it.”
Vivian nodded. That was good. Her father could sleep off his hangover. “I’ll make myself scarce.”
Her mother sighed. “It’s for the best. If you need me, I’ll be at Joanne’s for the night.”
“Okay. Have a fun night.”
“I will.”
She watched her mother disappear through the front hall, her purse bursting with an extra set of clothing, a bottle of wine poking out as well.
Sometimes she wished her mother had a bit more of a backbone, that she would stand up for both of them, but Vivian knew her mother’s life wasn’t an easy one, and really, could she fault her for not stepping in whenever her husband decided discipline should include a verbal berating, or worse, a belt.
Her father cheated regularly, and likely would tonight, with whatever floozies the alpha’s friends had found for the night’s entertainment.
Vivian’s stomach churned.
After the door shut, Vivian hopped up from the couch and headed for the stairs. In her room, she grabbed an empty backpack and stuffed it with a change of clothing, a chapter book, and her tablet. Returning to the first floor, she filled her water bottle and pushed it into the mesh side pouch, then gathered granola bars and other snacks to top up the bag.
With her escape bag ready, she put it by the front door, and went back to finishing her movie. When the credits rolled, she headed to the kitchen, reheated a slice of pizza and prepared a salad.
The front door opened as she was chewing her last bite of crust. She swallowed hard when it wasn’t her father’s voice she heard, but multiple voices. Her brother Felix, and his friends.
“Hey, is Vivi here?” she heard Benjamin ask.
Hanging her head, she squeezed her eyes shut. “Fuck, no.”
She should have left when she had the chance.
The television turned on super loud as the theme song for some shooter game came blaring through the speakers.
“Found you,” Benjamin’s voice was loud, as his sneakers squeaked on the kitchen tiles.
