As I walk back to the house, I can help but think about how Asher will react.

He'll probably be mad. Even if he wasn't Kia's biggest fan, they were still siblings. Well half-siblings, they have different mothers. Just another example of how Leon was a man-whore. Like father, like daughter apparently too.

I walk up the porch steps and am about to open the door when I hear loud voices inside.

"Go faster!" Zaine's voice says. "Come on, Flash, faster!"

"I'm going as fast as I can!" Killian's voice replies.

"That is not fast! Press the button harder!" Zaine shouts.

I roll my eyes and walk inside. "You two better not be doing it in the living room!"

"I'm offended you'd think we'd do that," Killian says, looking at me standing in the doorway. "We may kiss and cuddle all over the place but we keep that in the bedroom."

I hear Chase giggle and see they're playing Mario Kart on the TV. Apparently there's a Wii U connected to it. All four of them-Zaine, Killian, Chase and Rhea. Clove must be out on her date with Raiden-are playing. Zaine is in the lead right now, followed by Killian, then the twins. I would've thought they'd let the twins purposely win but I should know better when it comes to Zaine and Killian.

"Flash, pay attention!" Zaine whines, elbowing Killian in the ribs. "Come on, I want some competition. Winning this is almost too easy."

Killian turns back to the race, so I head into the kitchen to start making supper. I think mac and cheese will be good enough, I'm too tired and lazy to make something fancy tonight.

When dinner's almost done, I hear my phone ringing on the table.

"Who is it?!" Rhea shouts from the living room, as if she were answering the phone.

I pick up my phone and groan, seeing the contact name on the screen. "Just King."

"Ooo, what's he want?" Zaine asks as I answer the call.

I roll my eyes and shout back, "How am I supposed to know when I haven't talked to him yet?"

As I put the phone up to my ear, I hear Thatcher chuckling at my sass.

"Hey King," I say.

"Queenie," he replies. "Long time no see."

"It's only been two weeks," I say, walking back into the kitchen and grabbing five bowls from the cupboards.

"That's too long," Thatcher whines. "A King needs his Queen."

"And the Queen needs a break," I reply, "A well-deserved break."

"Where are you, Queenie?" Thatcher asks, his playful mood suddenly disappearing as his voice turns cold. "Did you go off without telling me?"

"Would you be mad if I did?" I ask.

Thatcher growls, "Yes."

I use my shoulder to hold my phone to my ear as I start scooping noodles into the bowls. "Well then in that case, no. I've just been playing extreme hide and seek with the rest of the Royals."

"Where are you, Rei?" Thatcher hisses.

I know he's getting really pissed because he used my name. It's fun to get people riled up but with Thatcher, you have to know when to stop.

"Just visiting my old home," I reply. "My rogues are still active, if that's what you're worried about, and so are the Royals. We just made a temporary relocation."

"Rei, I told you to tell me beforehand when you go on a long trip," Thatcher growls. "And that pack? Really? After what Alpha Asshole and the rest of them did?"

"I had to see my family again," I say. "And sorry I didn't tell you, I just... wanted to do this without you breathing down my neck."

"I won't just breathe on your neck," Thatcher replies, a grin now in his voice and his seriousness disappearing as suddenly as it appeared. "I'll bite it, leave a few hickeys. All you have to say is yes."

I roll my eyes. "How about no."

"Oh come on, Queenie," Thatcher whines.

"Sorry King, but you won't get anywhere with me."

"We'll see, Queenie," Thatcher replies. "We'll see."

"We will," I say. "Oh and tell Max his half sister was still Queen of Bitchopolis. Now she'll be looking up at us from her place in hell."

"You killed her?" Thatcher asks, amused. "What brought down the axe?"

"She went after Changeling," I reply.

"Ooo," Thatcher mutters. "I wouldn't want to have been her."

I hear Thatcher shout away from the phone, "Max, Queenie says your sis Queen Bitch was still on her throne and is now burning next to your dad and Satan!" While Max shouts something back, I take the phone away from my ear and shout, "Dinner's ready!"

"Woohoo, food!" Zaine cries, running to the table as I bring over the bowls of mac and cheese.

Chase and Rhea come sit down as Killian turns off the TV and joins us. I hold the phone back up to my ear, continuing my conversation with Thatcher.

"Max says thanks for getting rid of her and that he knew she'd never fall off the throne," Thatcher says. "He also said, and I quote, 'why do you think I chose to stay with my insane rogue of a father instead of living in the pack with my prostitute of a mum and her whore daughter?'"

I chuckle. "I would've chosen the rogue life over living with Kia too."

"Bro, you wanna join the Killers on an attack?!" Daring shouts in the background. "I'm bored and Four's no fun!"

"Of course!" Thatcher shouts back. "Talk to you later, Queenie."

"Bye King," I reply.

I hang up and set the phone on the table beside my bowl.

"Oh King," I say softly. "Still not getting the idea that nothing will ever happen between us."

"Poor guy," Zaine says. "I bet he's looking for someone to move on to since Pearl died."

"Probably," I agree, eating some of my noodles. "But that someone isn't me. He needs to see that."

Killian and Zaine both nod.

"He'll see it eventually," Killian says.

I sigh. "Eventually."

➵

"Quira."

"Rei."

We hug each other briefly before pulling away. Chase and Rhea are already playing with their friends from the Unity group. The adults and the older kids are talking with the omegas wanting to join the choir and getting to know them. We're all in the front yard of the pack house, Quira and the choir just got here.

"Killian, Zaine, Clove," Quira says with a smile, "Nice to see you all again."

"You too," Clove replies, returning the smile.

"I think it's a good idea," Quira says to me. "The choir gave the kids a family, I bet it'll give the omegas the same. The kids have been pretty excited to have new singers."

"How are the ones from the orphanage attack a few days ago?" I ask.

Quira smiles. "They're doing great. Getting comfortable with us and getting used to their new lives. I think you'll need to make more Chains for the storage though."

"That's great they're doing well," I say.

"Rei!"

Hearing Riley's voice, I turn and see him walking over, a wide smile on his face.

"Hey Riley," I say. "What do you think of the choir?"

"I think it's amazing," he replies. "Though I was wondering if they would be willing to sing for us? I want to hear what they can do and so do some of the others."

I look at Quira.

"I think the kids would love to show you," she says. She puts two fingers in her mouth and lets out a shrill whistle. "Places, Unity!"

The kids in the choir look at her then start moving, getting into the places they always stand in when rehearsing or performing. The older and taller kids in the back and the younger, shorter ones closer to the front. I notice Chase and Rhea joining the choir kids, both of them shooting me big grins.

"What song have you been teaching the new kids?" I ask.

"That one from The Polar Express," Quira replies, taking out her phone, "When Christmas Comes To Town."

She searches through her bag for a few seconds before pulling out a small Bluetooth speaker. She turns it on and connects it to her phone and starts playing the instrumental version of the song. The kids don't need to be told to sing, they know and start on their own though Quira does do the hand moments she's taught them so they do them at the right time.

Not everyone sings the same lines, a group of them sing the background vocals and another group sings at a slightly different pitch. The main singers are the younger kids, all of them wearing big smiles as they sing.

"La La La La La La

La La La La La

La La La La La

I'm wishing on a star

And trying to believe

That even though it's far

He'll find me Christmas Eve

I guess that Santa's busy

Cause he's never come around

I think of him

When Christmas comes to town

The best time of the year

When everyone comes home

With all this Christmas cheer

It's hard to be alone

Putting up the Christmas tree

With friends who come around

It's so much fun

When Christmas comes to town

Presents for the children

Wrapped in red and green

All the things I've heard about

But never really seen

No one will be sleeping on the night of Christmas Eve

Hoping Santa's on his way."

"Wow," Riley says. "They're good."

"They are."

Asher appears beside me, a smile on his face as he looks at the choir. Raiden, Scott and Dean join us, all of them looking at the choir with awed expressions.

"Quira, right?" Asher asks.

She nods. "Nice to meet you, Alpha."

"I'm fine with just Asher," he replies, smiling warmly. "These are my besties, Denny, Scooter and Winchester."

The three glare at Asher, who is smirking mischievously.

"Ignore that idiot," Raiden says, rolling his eyes. "I'm Raiden, this is Scott and Dean."

"Took you long enough to get out here," I say. "Where were you four?"

"We were looking into something," Asher replies, his voice suddenly more serious. "Rei, can I talk to you alone and in private?"

I nod, already guessing what this is about. "Sure. Where do you want to go?"

"How 'bout my office?" Asher suggests.

I nod again. "Lead the way."

I follow Asher inside the pack house, down the halls to his office. I sit in one of the chairs while Asher leans on his desk in front of me.

"I'm just gonna be blunt," he says. "Did you kill Kia last night?"

"Yeah, I did," I reply. "I won't try to hide it."

"How'd you do it?" Asher asks. I can tell he's trying not to let his anger out. "How'd you turn her to ashes?"

"I said I have another power, besides necromancy and telepathy," I say.

"Destruction?"

I shake my head. "Fire. 'Gave her a taste of hell before she actually gets there."

Asher growls. "What about the blood message? That was your blood, not hers."

I shrug. "Just leaving a mark on my work. You don't mess with the Royals."

"'Royals?'" Asher repeats.

"The name of my rogue group," I say. "Clove, Killian, Zaine, the twins and I."

Asher's eyes narrow. "Why'd you kill her?"

"She crossed me too many times," I say, the memories making me scowl. "She deserved everything I did."

"All she did was hurt Killian and bully Zaine," Asher growls.

I can't help but laugh coldly. "Oh Asher, if only you saw my side of the story."

"Then help me see it," Asher replies lowly. "What really happened?"

I growl softly, anger boiling up in me as I think about it. "She went after Raiden. She faked years of friendship with me just to try and get him. She talked to my mother and wrote the note banishing me."

"And that makes her deserve what you did?" Asher growls.

I think his anger might be taking over his thoughts.

"If Raiden betrayed you, said everything was a lie and he only wanted power in the pack, what would you do?" I reply, gritting my teeth and trying to stay calm. Asher hesitates. "Exactly. Kia deserved what she got, I don't really see the big deal."

"You should!" Asher says, anger flaring in his eyes as he stops holding back. "You fucking killed my sister!"

"Why do you care about her so much?!" I shout, my own anger surfacing. "I doubt she cared about you!"

Asher glares at me, his eyes flickering between brown and amber as his wolf fights. "She may not have been much but she was blood. You can't just go around killing my family!"

"Wouldn't be the first time," I hiss quietly, not intending for him to hear.

"What was that?" Asher says loudly.

By the furious look in his eyes, I know he heard me.

"I said it wouldn't be the first time," I say, growling as Leon starts pushing in my mind.

"And what's that supposed to mean?!" Asher growls.

I look at him, a slight sneer on my lips. "You know what it means, you're not stupid, Asher. I killed Leon, and Brianna."

Leon pushes in my mind more, causing a headache to start to form.

Asher growls loudly and glares at me, eyes narrowed. "You fucking did what?!"

"I killed them!" I shout. "They deserve to rot in hell even more than Kia does! Your horrible father and my bitch of a mother!"

"My dad was a great person!" Asher growls.

I laugh harshly, the pain in my head growing. "He was once maybe, years ago. The last three or four years of his life however..."

"Your mom, I can understand," Asher hisses. "But why my dad? What did he do that's so bad he deserved death?"

Brianna joins Leon in trying to reach me. That only increases the pain in my head, making me clench my teeth. Images of my past flash through my mind. I remember walking in on the two bastards snogging, the abuse they put me through, Asher's bullying and the moment my old life started crashing down.

I suddenly feel like the walls are moving, closing in around me. My breathing quickens as my eyes dart around the room. The pain in my head only worsens and I start feeling a little dizzy.

I need to get out of here. I need to get outside.

With that thought, I turn and run out of the room. Ignoring Asher calling my name, I run down the hall, almost crashing into a few pack members and the wall. When I get outside, I don't stop to look at the choir and omegas, who've already started getting the omegas started. I just bolt past them and into the surrounding forest, shifting into my wolf form along the way.

Leon and Brianna stop trying to reach me, making most of my headache fade away. There's still a dull ache, one that throbs every few seconds so it's not exactly much better.

I hear Zaine shout my name in concern but I don't stop. I just want to be alone for a while with nothing but my own thoughts. I don't really know where I'm going, I just know it's away from Asher and everyone else. I need silence.

Trees fly past me. Snow kicks up behind me as my black paws carry me through the forest.

Eventually, I stop. I'm close to the edge of the territory, I know that much. Looking around and seeing no one, I lie down at the base of a tree and close my eyes in relief.

Silence.