Riley
When I come home, discomfort immediately swirls in the most bottomless pit of my belly. The air smells like cigarettes, which can only mean one thing; my mother is dating Henrik again.
Henrik is from our pack, but he was a beta in the past. The pride still runs in his veins, and it doesn't matter that I'm the daughter of the woman he is dating. He still treats me like shit.
"Ah, so the omega is home." Henrik is standing in the living room doorframe as I remove my shoes. I can feel his eyes like a physical weight on my shoulder. "Did the weakling have a great time learning things at school?"
Three seconds and I already want to choke Henrik to death, but I wouldn't be able to take him. I'm not a fighter, but Henrik is quite formidable, even in his older days.
He is bald and fat, and there are patches of sweat on his grey t-shirt while the shirt itself doesn't quite roll down his entire belly. All Henrik does during his free time is drink beer, and it shows.
I glare up at him. "It's Riley. I have a name and a personality."
"Ever the smart mouth," Henrik growls, showing me a glimpse of his yellow, stained teeth. "You wouldn't dare to challenge me if your mother wasn't at home."
My lips turn into a thin stretch. The truth is that my mother, Ravenna, wouldn't care if Henrik beat me while she was at home. But Henrik doesn't know how rocky our relationship has turned during the two years he wasn't dating her.
"Is Riley at home?" My mother croaks. "Why is that girl so late? She should have been here thirty minutes ago!"
A shudder travels down my spine when my mother makes it into the hallway. We have a square-shaped hallway that leads into every room on the bottom floor, but my room is up the white wooden stairs.
"You're late!" My mother exclaims. We share many physical traits, except she is taller and much older with greying hair. Her alcohol consumption has also given her permanent red, blotchy skin.
"Hello..." I'm not sure what else to say. I missed the bus and had to walk home. "I'm sorry for being late?"
My mother narrows her eyes. "You promised to clean the entire top floor yesterday, but it was a mess when I walked into your room."
I didn't have time to clean my own room yesterday. I rushed through every other room upstairs, including the bathroom, and after I was done, I went straight to bed.
But I can't say that to my mother. She would get mad at me, and Henrik would realize that he could do what he always wanted; everyday access to beating the crap out of me.
"I will take care of it right away."
"You better!" My mother is glaring at me. "I let you live here for free because you don't have a part-time job to pay rent. Nobody will hire a loser like you, and I'm the nicest mother on the planet not taking paid for your stay."
Sure, she might not take paid, but I'm her literal maid, which is why I can't have a part-time job. My mother needs me around the hour, especially when she is so drunk she can barely talk.
"Alright," I head for the stairs, aware of the smug grin Henrik is wearing. He is putting the puzzle pieces together.
"Perhaps I should come up with you," Henrik says. "And we will talk, you know, for old times' sake."
Panic seizes my heart. This can't mean anything good. I turn my head to stare down the stairs and see Henrik wearing this dark expression on her face. His lips are cruel, and those eyes of his are conveying mayhem.
"I'm fine cleaning by myself..."
Henrik's lips move into an even bigger smile. "Oh, you will be cleaning the rooms alone. Don't worry about that. But we haven't seen each other in two years, and I just would like to exchange a few words with you. It's alright. It will take me maybe five minutes?"
"Go," my mother says. "Talk with her now, so you don't keep me waiting for you downstairs for too long. There are still a few episodes of our TV show left to watch."
"Yes, I know, so hurry upstairs, girl," Henrik tells me. "Get into the living room. It's nice and private in there."
I swallow thickly, already knowing where this will lead. My legs are shaking, and as I make it into the second living room, Henrik rams me into the wall with lightning speed. The old werewolf still got it in him.
"Oh, this will be fun, little mutt," Henrik's horrid breath is up in my face as he lifts me by the collar from the ground. "All those years you spent talking back to me, and now I finally get what I deserve. Justice!"
I'm struggling to breathe, but there is no escaping from Henrik. His arm is fuzzy with hair—Henrik was always great at half-transforming himself, which is how he was the beta of the Crescent pack in the past.
"You... Deserve... Nothing..." I spit into his face.
I'm already getting beaten, so it won't matter. Henrik won't miraculously put me down, and when he drags my saliva away from his eyes, it feels like a minor victory.
"You're such a freak!" Henrik slams me against the wall and then lets me fall to the ground. "I won't kill you this time, but if you piss me off again, mutt, I won't be as nice."
My hands shake, and I wipe back a few silent tears with my sleeve. I hate this place, especially if Henrik is moving back. It would probably be nicer living out on the street, but my pack would find me and rip me to shreds if they saw me alone.
"But I must admit age has made you pretty." Henrik turns around from outside the door, eyeing me with a twisted smile. "You're beautiful with big doe-eyes and a petite frame, perfect for great fun inside the living room when your mother is gone."
I freeze and stare up at Henrik.
Wait.
What?
Is he sick?
Or is he honestly threatening to rape me when we are alone?!
Fear travels like ice in my veins when I process his word, and Henrik gives me a sickening wink. He is much older than me, red in the face from all the drinking, and I'm not attracted to him. The bastard is with my mother and is now checking me out? That's disturbing.
"I will head downstairs, darling," Henrik says, licking his dry lips. It makes me shudder thinking about kissing that mouth. "It was nice having this little conversation with you. Oh, and since your mother is out-of-town tomorrow to see her friend, I believe you, and I will have plenty of fun together. Why don't we meet up after school?"
Henrik laughs when he sees my paling face. Tears are prickling behind my eyelids, and I fight a sob when I realize I need to choose between Josh and Frank tomorrow.