The Heir

by Ariana Rodriguez

  Jessica went into the bathroom and took her backpack with her.

  Lauren stood there for a couple more seconds, her head hanging; dejection beating at her door before walking away.

  Half an hour later Jessica stepped out of the bathroom, feeling clean and refreshed for the first time in days. In the room she found the bottle of pain killers where she'd been told they would be. The sight of them made her apprehensive of what was to come.

  Reluctantly she went to the dresser and picked up the bottle. Slowly she walked back to the bathroom; her heart picking up the pace with every step. In theory she knew what she needed to do and what was supposed to happen.

  In reality, she'd never done it.

  Before, whenever she'd broken a bone; her mom or Uncle Mike, if he was present, would set it so it would heal correctly. Now she was berating herself for not paying attention all those times she'd gotten hurt.

  She thought back on everything she knew about bone fractures and realized that it wasn't much. One thing she was almost sure of was that it was an un-displaced fracture.

  "If it was displaced the bone would be sticking out of her skin...right?" Jessica thought about that and worried her bottom lip. "Wrong?"

  She walked into the bathroom closing the door behind her and sat down on the floor, her back against the door.

  When she thought about it, she had three choices. Leave her ankle the way it was and hope that as time went by the spasms of pain she had with every step she took would go away. Break her own ankle again and hope that if she bound it, her freaky abilities would do the rest of the work; this time correctly.

  Then there was her last choice and what she considered the most dangerous. She could tell the Robertson’s; they could take her to a doctor and risk the discovery of her secret.

  Jessica shook her head, discarding the third choice right out of the bat she opened the pill container and upended it into her mouth, taking more pills then what was recommended. She chewed the pills, it tasted disgusting but she wanted the medication to take effect as soon as possible. She had no idea how she'd know when that would happen so she’d give it a couple of minutes.

  From her backpack she pulled out her small first aid kit. There was nothing in there that helped to deal with broken body parts, but it was better than nothing. Although it did have an elastic band she could use to keep her bones in place while they healed.

  Her two minutes were up and it was time to put her plans into action. She still had no idea how to go about breaking her own bone so she decided to just go for it.

  "OK" She took a deep breath "on the count of three"

  "One” she took a breath in.

  She couldn’t do it.

  "This is going to hurt!" she wailed and banged her head against the door. She was so scared her hands were shaking, but she had to do it and that's what she kept telling herself. "Just do it"

  So it went for half an hour. Each time, she twisted her ankle a little harder until finally she realized that she was only hurting herself more. No more deep breaths and no more counting, this last time she just snapped it. And screamed like a baby. It was a good thing she'd thought about stuffing her T-shirt into her mouth.

  With no time to cry or wallow in her misery she proceeded to snap her once again broken bone back into place. Carefully she realigned her bones as best she could. With one hand she held her injured ankle and with the other she wrapped it tightly with the band.

  When she was done she took the T-shirt out of her mouth and reached for the aspirin bottle. Again she upended the bottle into her mouth and took as many as she could in one bite.

  Completely worn out she leaned her head against the door once more and wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand. Even though she hated the taste of the pills she chewed them slowly, giving herself something else to think about other than the throbbing pain shooting up her leg.

  When she was finished chewing she took another mouth full of aspirins and then another until the bottle lay at her side, empty. Instead of fearing over dose, she feared that the pills had lost their effect so soon.

  "I hate this" She cried silently.

  She banged her head against the door once more and brought her good knee up to rest her arms and head on it.

  "I just want to go home" she whispered and allowed the tears she'd been trying to keep in check to fall.

  Then the thought of home reminded her of one more thing she needed to do. She grabbed her back pack and carefully pulled herself up, making sure not to jar her fragile foot.

  Slowly she made her way out of the bathroom, into the room and to the bed. Being extra careful she raised her injured foot up on to the bed and lay down. She was exhausted. If you asked her she would tell you that it had taken her the same amount of time to get to bed as it had taken to 'fix' her ankle.

  It still hurt and she still wanted to cry, but she had more important things to do. She pulled her phone out and dialed the first number on her speed dial.

  "What’s going on, and where have you been?"

  The sound of her mom’s voice made her cry all over again. She hated being such a baby but all she wanted was to be held by her mom and be promised that everything would be all right.

  "It’s a long story" Jessica replied trying-and failing to keep the pain from her voice.

  "What’s wrong?" Layla asked, alarmed by the sound of Jessica's wobbly reply.

  "Nothing that can't be fixed." she sniffed and whipped her tears with the back of her hand. "I just want to go home"

  The words were said quietly but Layla still heard and it broke her heart.

  "You can't go home."

  "But you told me that once I met them I could go back. I met them, now can I come home?"

  Jessica's pleas were breaking Layla’s heart. It was obvious to Layla that she was hurting but there was nothing she could do about it. "No, you are home. With your real family"

  "YOU are my family" Jessica insisted.

  “No I am not.” Layla argued, “Get to know them. Your abilities didn't appear out of thin air and until you know for sure where they came from you will be missing a big piece of the puzzle."

  "I don't care"

  "You need to care." Frustrated, Layla sighed this wasn't the first time they had this type of conversation. "You can't protect yourself properly if you don't know why you need to in the first place.”

  "If I get them to tell me everything, then could I come home?"

  "No, look Jess, There is no going back. You are where you need to be so watch your mouth and remember that I love you."

  "Love you too"

  "I have to let you go, talk to you soon."

  "Bye" she murmured to the dead phone line.

  Jessica dropped the phone next to her and looked up at the ceiling for a long time, her mind running over the day’s events. The pain from her ankle made it hard, but she finally managed to drift off into sleep.

  Chapter 3

  That same evening Nick was busy in his garage working on his project car. He was under the hood when the scent of someone who was supposed to be busy elsewhere reached him. Straightening up he banged his head on the hood, cursing and rubbing the back of his head Nick growled.

  “You’re supposed to be somewhere else.”

  “I left Christian on duty. “

  Nick walked to the counter that ran along one of the garages wall; he grabbed a towel and wiped off the grease on his hands. When he was finished he threw the towel back on the counter and leaned against it, crossing his arms over his chest.

  Quietly, he regarded his best friend.

  In a real challenge between them; Nick didn't know who would come out the winner. Matt was his second in command, his Enforcer, therefor almost, if not as strong as him.

  If ever he had a chance of losing an attack from a member of his pack it would be against him. Thankfully, it would never come to that; Matt was like his brother and he hated all the responsibilities inherited with leader
ship.

  “What’s up?”

  “Is it her?”

  Nick shook his head "I don't know, I honestly don't know."

  "Man, I have to tell you, my heart dropped when I saw you guys racing towards each other!"

  Reliving the moment in his mind, Nick felt his heart stop all over again but couldn't keep his admiration for her maneuvering skills from sounding in his voice. "She is insane, but she definitely has skills on that bike.”

  "Yeah but are they our kind of skills?"

  Frustrated Nick ran a hand through his hair. "When I pulled her up I looked into her eyes and they were just blue; nothing special there.”

  "What about her scent?"

  Nick could only shake his head.

  Confused Matt looked at him and asked "No?"

  "No scent."

  "Everyone has a scent." Matt argued.

  "She doesn’t." Not giving his friend a chance to interrupt, Nick clarified, “all I could smell on this girl was hotel shampoo, grass and motorcycle, the daily stuff."

  Nick got up and started to pace restlessly.

  "She had no unique scent,” He continued “not even with all that sweat." He wouldn’t admit it but it was very disconcerting to him. He'd never realized how much he relied on his sense of smell until today. "It was like walking into a wall. I would take a deep breath…and nothing."

  "That’s weird."

  "You have no idea. Apart from her obvious ire, I couldn't tell if she was hurt, nervous or lying-not that she spoke enough for me to want to know if she was lying but still-"

  "Bet it bothered you even more not being able to sense whether she thought you were hot or not." Matt interjected.

  Nick laughed humorlessly "She looked at me as if I was lower than dirt, it wouldn't take a genius to figure that one out"

  “So what are you going to do if it’s her?" Matts question stopped Nicks pacing.

  He looked down at the ground and sighed. "Like I said it doesn't matter. Not until we know it’s her for sure and then-" Nick stayed silent for a second. "Then I continue with the plan.” He finished flatly.

  "Ok. So what do you want to do now?" Matt asked.

  "I want to keep an eye on her.”

  Nick walked to the garage opening, lifted his head towards the sky and took a deep breath. He stepped out and stood under the moonlight. For a minute, he stood there, not moving just feeling the moon’s power course through his body.

  Then he spoke with a voice laced with power. Power he was afforded as Alpha; a voice that everyone under his leadership heard and no one could ignore. Leaving no doubt that he meant what he said.

  "I will consider it a personal challenge if the girl comes to harm due to our carelessness. A fight that will be to the death," he added menacingly.

  As a friend Nick could be compassionate and caring but as a leader, he was ruthless. A trait considered necessary to hold a position such as his.

  Nick breath out and as the air left his lungs so did the surge of power running through his veins.

  “Axel can stay with me.” He told Matt in his normal tone. “You go with Christian, keep an eye on her through the night. We’ll change shifts tomorrow.“

  Nick turned back around, walked back to his car and bent over the hood, effectively dismissing him. Matt reached into his jacket for his phon. He scrolled down and found the number he was looking for and pressed 'talk'.

  "Are you still on her?" He asked Christian.

  "Yeah,"

  "Good, where are you at? Wait for me there.”

  The next morning, as Nick was getting out of bed there was a knock on his door. Without waiting for a response Matt entered.

  "You’re supposed to be on duty. Why are you here?" Nick asked him .

  “I got a call from your sister." Matt knew that what he was about to say next wouldn't be well received so he stayed by the door. "She's on her way here" He stepped out into the hallway and then added "with your future mate."

  Matt shut the door behind him and used his super speed to hurry and make his way out of the house. He had just taken a couple of steps out the main door when Nick reached him.

  "Where do you think you’re going?"

  It took everything in Matt not to turn around and snarl at his Pack Alpha. For an Alpha male, playing the good submissive could be hard at times and his voice was a little gruff when he said, "for a run."

  Matt's tone of voice, his stance- the fisted hands at his sides and the scent of anger didn't go unnoticed by Nick. Instead of making him feel territorial, it helped him to calm down.

  "Come back inside. I figure that making you put up with those two is enough punishment -for the two of us." Nick added wryly to lighten the mood.

  "It’s punishment alright" Matt answered wryly under his breath. Unfortunately his best friend would never know how much of a pain it all really was for him. "But what am I getting punished for?"

  “Leaving your charge.”

  Matt sighed, he couldn’t argue there, “fine" he grumbled and followed Nick back into the house.

  They were in the kitchen preparing something to eat when Matt's phone went off.

  Matt answered and after listening to the quick message he hung up and directed his gaze towards Nick. "Your sister and-" Nick growled in warning which had him smirking "Kate are almost here"

  "I’m going to get dressed." Nick left his breakfast on the counter and ran upstairs. He wanted as many barriers as possible against Kate.

  The doorbell rang as Nick, now dressed in jeans and a t-shirt, made his way down the stairs. Seeing him Matt released a quiet sigh of relief; no longer dreading the thought of being alone with the two females. By the way Nick was muttering under his breath it was evident that he wasn't looking forward to the unexpected visit either.

  Reluctantly, Matt made his way to the front door. Nick followed a couple of steps behind him still muttering under his breath unintelligibly. Near the end, his mutterings turned into growls and Matt was only able to catch the last two words he said.

  "Hate her"

  As much as Matt disliked seeing their visitors, Nick hated them-her more. Hand on the door knob Matt looked over his shoulder at Nick and had to bite his lips to keep them from breaking into a smile. He could choose to ignore the smell of burnt peppers wafting through the air, but he couldn't ignore the scowl.

  "You shouldn't talk like that about your sister" he mockingly chastised barely managing to keep a straight face.

  "Open the fucking door already" Nick growled "the sooner I find out why they're here, the sooner they leave"

  Matt shook his head, now enjoying himself. "It’s a sad day when a brother doesn't want to spend quality time with his little sister. I can just imagine her face as she hears the way you're speaking about her"

  "You know I'm not talking about Sarah"

  "Still no way to talk about your-"

  Nick growled once more. This time a warning, laced with the power of an Alpha. Matt got the hint. At the blink of an eye he was back to all seriousness, no longer the best friend but the enforcer-the second in command.

  Nick knew Matt hated the whole 'Alpha' deal but the upcoming visit had him on edge. That was no excuse and Nick knew it. Nick apologized and ran a hand through his hair. "Today is not my day"

  Once more Matt glanced at him over his shoulder. He was still in 'Enforcer' mode but the flatness in his eyes was again replaced with laughter. He nodded once in acceptance of his apology and opened the door.

  As soon as he did; Sarah rushed past Matt, ignoring him like she’d taken to doing lately. She threw herself at her big brother and Nick caught her in a bear hug.

  Kate followed at more sedate pace, also ignoring Matt. When she reached the embraced pair, she coughed to get their attention. Nick released Sarah and they both turned to face her.

  "Hi Nicky" She greeted him.

  He hated when she called him that

  Without his prompting she gave him a hug, one he didn't return. Instead he
let his hands hang loose at his sides. Kate also gave him a kiss on the cheek, it had been intended for his lips but Nick managed to turn away just in time.

  "I've missed you" she murmured as she stepped away.

  With barely contained disgust, Nick rubbed his cheek with the back of his hand. Trying to remove the smear of makeup she'd left behind. Nick hated the stuff, while he admitted that it probably had its uses he just couldn't get past the smell.

  "I'm sorry I can't say the same" he told her.

  Without waiting for a response he turned away and headed for the living room. The two women immediately followed, immaculately dressed as always in their designer jeans, shoes and blouses.

  The Alphas house was decorated to fit his bachelor status, nowhere more than the living room. He had big, black leather sofas, obviously chosen for comfort not looks. The coffee and side tables were made of glass. On each side table sat a lamp that had never been used because no one ever bother to put light bulbs in them.

  On the coffee table there were empty soda cans, bags of chips and remotes. Remotes to the television, sound system and every video game console in the market. Directly in front of the coffee table sat a fifty inch flat screen television on a stand that also housed the game consoles.

  One look around the living room and it was blatantly obvious to anyone who visited, that the home owner was one happy bachelor.

  And that's the way Nick liked it. He didn’t want anyone-Kate- getting any ideas that he was ready for a mate.

  He sat on the leather chair, leaving no room for unwanted company. The girls took a seat on the sofa, not before wiping the cushions, and Matt went to lean against the wall behind Nick.

  Sarah glared at Matt before turning to look at Nick. "We're not going to attack you. Why don't you send the...mutt, outside? “

  Matt stiffened at the insult and straightened up. Anger rolling out of him in spades, he turned and took a step towards the entrance hall. If he stayed he didn’t know if he would be able to stop himself from grabbing Sarah, bending her over his knees and giving her sweet ass the spanking of her life.