Ivan's Queen

*Book 4 of The Alpha Series. Cannot be read as a standalone book. You must read 1. The Hybrid, 2. Kaden’s Luna and 3. Asher's Beloved before this.*

Amelia Reid’s P.O.V.

I stand by the double doors that lead out to the patio, watching the scene in front of me. My brother, Nathaniel, is on the ground screaming and thrashing while my parents kneel beside him and do their best to keep him calm.

Nathan had turned sixteen a year ago but it turns out that he’s a late bloomer. Dad had been noticing changes within him and knew he was going to be shifting any day now. Today is his seventeenth birthday and after his party, we had retired to our bedrooms when I woke up to the sound of my parents rushing about the house and my brother’s screams and groans echoing in the quiet night.

“Amelia! Bring another wet towel, please!” I hear my mom shout, making me run to the kitchen and spray cold water onto what is probably the tenth towel.

I rush outside and hand it to my father, watching as he wipes the sweat off my brother’s skin. We’ve been by his side for four hours and I can tell that he’s exhausted. The full moon is at its highest and Nathan is currently undergoing a shift where he will transform into a werewolf, just like my Dad.

Another hour passes before his bones start to crack, making me wince at the horrid sounds. I want nothing more than to help him but I know I must let this happen. His cries of agony echo in the night, my mom wiping tears from his eyes while my father coaxes him through the gruesome process.

After a full hour, Nathan finally shifts into his ash colored wolf. His dark brown eyes are wide awake as he takes in his surroundings. He struggles to stand at first but eventually gets the hang of it, legs shaking slightly as he moves forward. My parents smile and run their fingers through his fur, praising and congratulating him.

When he’s a lot steadier on his feet, his eyes meet mine and he immediately trots over. Nathan comes up to my shoulder in height, his head bumping mine before he licks my cheek. I chuckle softly, patting his head as he whines lowly before staring at me with saddened eyes.

“I’m okay.” I smile, glancing at his fur longingly. “I’m really happy for you, don’t doubt that.”

He shuffles his feet and nods his big head, making me laugh at how comical it is. Pressing a kiss to his head, I nod at my Dad who has shifted into his wolf too. “Go run with him, I know you want to. Tell me all about it when I see you tomorrow, don’t forget your promise.”

He seeks out my palm and licks it, almost like he’s telling me that he won’t forget. I smile as he turns and joins my Dad, watching the two grey wolves bound off into the forest for a run that I’m sure will tire them out.

Mom walks over and wraps her arm around my shoulders, tucking me into her side. “It’s okay, sweetheart. Humans are better than werewolves anyways.”

I giggle, kissing her cheek. “You keep telling yourself that, Mom.”

“It’s true! They’re just a bunch of smelly dogs.” She argues, her nose scrunched in distaste.

“Don’t let Dad hear you.” I sing, squealing as I dodge a smack to my arm.

“You won’t tell him either.” She states in a warning tone, making me hold up my hands in a surrendering motion.

“Cross my heart.” I smile when she rolls her pretty, brown eyes in amusement.

My mother is the most beautiful, inspiring woman in my life. She has brown eyes with shoulder-length, dark brown hair and the softest features. She is the Luna of our pack; The Lunar Heart Pack. Mom helps out in the infirmary since she has a degree in Nursing and used to work in the city hospital for a while, which I find amazing.

During my childhood, and even now, I always hear the story of how my father courted my mother. I wish for a love like theirs, someone who will treat me like I’m the only one he sees in a room full of people. Most importantly, someone who will accept me for who I am.

Because my father is a werewolf and my mother is a human there is no telling what gene their children will have. While I was growing up, I had been taught everything about the supernatural world and especially how to run a pack. But on my sixteenth birthday, I didn’t have my shift and change into a werewolf like everyone expected me too. I didn’t shift when I was seventeen either so I wasn’t a late bloomer and there were no signs that indicated that I could possibly shift either. I received my mother’s genes and turned out to be human.

It was hard to come to terms to, still is on some days. While every teenager around me is a werewolf, I’m a human. My parents and siblings have never looked down on me for it, especially my mother since she is a human herself. But I used to get bullied for it sometimes by the pack kids – mostly in school where my parents wouldn’t be there to protect me anymore.

My father trains me regardless, training me as if I’m a werewolf rather than a human. The more I felt confident in my abilities to fight for myself, the less shit I took from people who didn’t have anything nice to say about me. Now, two years later, I’m happier and comfortable in my body. I’m accepting of the fact that I’m not a werewolf, I’m just me and that’s what matters most.

But there are times, like today, where I feel an ache in my chest. It’s a painful reminder of what could have been. But, irrespective of my feelings, I’m happy that my brother shifted.

“Momma.” A soft voice calls from behind, making us turn.

My little sister, Evelyn, stands by the patio doors while clutching her teddy bear. Her dark brown hair is a wild mess of curls as she rubs her eye with one fist, a yawn escaping her lips. She’s in her cartoon pajamas with little ponies all over them. Mom steps towards her and bends down to press a kiss to her rosy cheeks.

“Why are you up at this hour, Evie?”

“I had a bad dream.” She pouts adorably, wrapping her arms around our mother’s neck.

“Me too!” Isaac, my youngest sibling, chooses that moment to pop out from behind the door.

“No, you didn’t. You were watching Nathan shift.” I remark dryly, smirking when he glares at me in anger.

“Isaac Reid! I told you to stay upstairs!” Mum scolds, ushering the two inside while I follow.

“But Mom, Amelia was watching too!” He whines, pointing at me.

“Obviously, I’m older.” I snort, rolling my eyes.

“So? I’m six!” He frowns, crossing his arms.

“I’m ten!” Evie pipes up, giggling.

“And I’m eighteen, glad we had this talk. Now, up to bed!” I clap my hands, starting towards them with my hands outstretched.

Their identical blue eyes widen before they run upstairs, screaming and laughing. I chase them, teasingly pulling on their pajama shirts. They jump into their beds just as I start tickling them until I’ve completely tired them out. Chuckling, I run my fingers through Isaac’s black hair before pressing a kiss to their foreheads and bid them goodnight as I shut the door.

“Thank you, Amelia.” I turn to see Mom climbing up the stairs, embracing me in a hug before we disappear into our rooms for the night.

I make my way downstairs and into my room, closing the door behind me and getting back into my bed again. Hearing two howls echo in the quiet night, I smile and shut my eyes, falling into a dreamless sleep.

The next day.

“Morning.” Nathan mumbles, scratching his head as he walks out of the hallway.

“Good evening to you too, dear brother.” I drawl, his eyes widening as he stares at the clock.

He curses before throwing himself onto the couch beside me, stealing a slice of my pizza. “Where’s everyone else?”

“Parent teacher meetings, they left thirty minutes ago.” I reply, taking a sip of my drink.

We lapse into comfortable silence, the movie I have on capturing our attention. I watch from the corner of my eye as Nathan yawns, wrapping himself up in a blanket before resting his head back against the couch with a sigh.

“Still tired?”

He blinks drowsily, dark brown eyes meeting mine. “Yeah, I didn’t imagine it would be that hard.”

“Your bones snap and realign themselves and you didn’t think it would be hard?” I snort unladylike, stuffing my mouth with more pizza.

Chuckling, he ruffles his light brown hair. “Why can’t we just faint or something and wake up as wolves? That would be so much easier!”

I laugh, almost choking on my food. That’s like me saying why can’t Mother Nature just send me a text and tell me I’m not pregnant instead of dealing with a period. Shaking my head at him, I pass him the fried chicken. He hums in satisfaction when he takes a bite, closing his eyes as he waves the drumstick around. Dad’s cooking is amazing but I would never tell mom that.

“What did you guys do after you shifted?” I ask, turning the volume down of the tv.

“We spent hours running through the forest, it was exhilarating Lia.” He smiles, a faraway look in his eyes. “Dad and I hunted too, we caught a deer. It was gross at first but my wolf took over and then it wasn’t so bad, I guess.”

“What’s your wolf’s name?”

“Kai.” He grins, taking a sip of his drink. “He’s cool, really sarcastic though.”

“I’d love to meet him. Sounds like the opposite of Dad’s.” I chuckle as I remember how loving and protective Ajax, our dad’s wolf, is.

“Yeah? When I’m not as exhausted anymore I’ll shift so you two can meet.” He grins excitedly, crossing his legs on the sofa. “He went crazy last night when we were hunting, Kai’s very bloodthirsty and always up for a fight. I bet it’s going to get us killed someday.”

He continues to talk about the link he has with his wolf and how weird it is right now to hear Kai and the rest of the pack talking to him. I listen in interest as he tells me about his heightened senses, his eyes lit up in excitement and wonder. It bums me out a little that I won’t ever have any of that but I rid my thoughts of negativity, focusing on being happy for my brother.

“I can protect you better now, nobody’s going to get within ten feet of you if I’m around.” He smirks smugly, pulling his sleeves up and showing off his muscles...that he’s only starting to build and strengthen.

“Who said I need protecting? I could still kick your ass.” I look up at him, bemused.

“Oh yeah?” He chuckles, rubbing his hands together. “You’re on, just tell me when you’re ready. I know you’ll need some preparing to do before you take me on.”

I throw a pillow at him, laughing when it smacks him right in the face. He growls, grabbing me by my hoodie and putting me in a headlock. Shouting, I punch any part of his body that I can reach before kicking him off me. He lands on the ground with a pained groan before lunging at me, making me jump over the couch and throw the blanket over him. Pulling it off his head with a snarl, he chases me through the house with my laughter and his growls echoing in the otherwise quiet home.

And that’s how our parents find us, wrestling on the ground with the whole house in chaos.

We were grounded for a week.