The blood pack (book six)

Chapter five

~Paul~

“Maybe they are not coming.” I offered, the sun slowly starting to light up the sky even though it was still out of sight.

Jonny let out a small chuckle. “I doubt that. Diana could have used her favors with Ste to bend us over a barrel, instead she only asked that we take on two lone wolves and let them have a place at the shelter once it is built, which they probably would have gotten anyway.”

I could tell from Jonny’s tone that he thought something was off about the request. I had to admit it was a bit fishy as well. Not that I did not think that the Blood pack had a lot to offer, but surely they had more to offer than giving two wolves an early ticket to the shelter. Before I could voice my concerns though, Jonny leaned forward, his head blocking the view from his window.

He leaned back, sending me a strange look as I gazed past him, seeing two small she wolves walking down the street laughing with each other. My heart skipped a beat as I stared at them, noticing that they were twins like me and Peter, although one of them had a streak of blue in her hair. I had been expecting some nefarious type, someone who may have been turned away from the shelter if they tried to gain entrance through normal means, but they seemed harmless.

Jonny’s hand went to the handle of the door, giving me a small nod before the two of us got out. I quickly made it round the truck, standing by his side as the two she wolves quickly stopped laughing, their eyes looking from me to Jonny. I could not help but stare at the brunette, her eyes looking at the ground as if she was afraid to keep eye contact.

“You must be Jonny.” Her twin gritted out, my eyes moving to her to see that she was not having the same issue as her sister as she seemed to be locked in a staring match with the man himself.

Jonny let out a small huff. “It seems you know my name, but I don’t know…”

“Oh, I know more than that.” The girl smirked, her eyes moving to me as they ran me up and down like I was under a microscope. “You are Paul, ex enforcer for the Moon pack.”

“How the…” I stared, but Jonny sent me a glare telling me to stop.

“So Diana told you who we are.” Jonny stated, his voice level.

The girl with the blue stripe in her hair crossed her arms, planting her feet shoulder width apart. “You thought she wouldn’t?” She asked with a raised brow.

There was a thick tension between the two of them, like they were caught in a battle of wills, neither one of them willing to back down. “I’m Julie.” A small voice said beside me, making my eyes move back to the brunette. She had a small smile on her face, her grey eyes looking up into mine.

For a moment, I froze. She was beautiful, simple as. And just like me and Peter, there were slight differences between her and her twin, and not just the hair colour. Julie’s eyes were paler, clmer, her nostrils slightly wider and a few less freckles dotted on the bridge of her nose. She was wearing a winter coat, the pockets slightly ripped and the colour faded in places, but none of that detracted from my curiosity of what she was hiding underneath.

I smiled back, giving her a small nod before the angry voice of her sister made Julie look away. “Tell them our life story while you're at it.” The girl with blue hair gritted out, her eyes flashing wolf before she shook her head and took a deep breath. It seemed that she was having trouble with her wolf, which I knew could happen if a wolf was without a pack for too long. “Sorry Julie.” She whispered, wrapping her arm around her sister and pulling her to her. She let out a long sigh. “I’m Elliot.”

“Elliot?” Jonny repeated.

“Yes, Jonny.” Elliot hissed out. “What type of name is that? You want to be referred to as a nickname for a condom your whole life?”

A small growl escaped Jonny, making me look at him with shock. He was always so level headed, but it seemed Elliot was finding a way to get under his skin. “Look, we have to work together for the next few months on the shelter. If we are going to be at odds this whole time, tell me now so I can tell Diana the favor is not worth the hassle.”

Elliot’s eyes flashed wolf again, the side of her plump lips that matched Julie’s lifting up into a snarl. Julie tugged on her sister’s coat, grabbing her attention before shaking her head. “Fine.” Elliot sighed out. “I’ll behave.”

Jonny smirked slightly, shaking his head. “Whatever.” He turned to the front door of the old building that had been designated for the shelter. Alpha Ash was not joking when he said the place was more than a fixer upper. A lot of the windows were boarded up or broken into, some of the walls looking unstable, the ground around it was overgrown, the frost clinging to the blades of grass and weeds bending them slightly.

He pulled on the handle, finding it locked. He muttered a curse word pulling harder before slamming his hand against it. Turning back towards me, his eyes scanned the area. “Where had she gone?”

I turned slightly, seeing Julie still standing by my side but her sister nowhere to be seen. “She will let us in.” Julie smiled, walking up to the front door.

“What do you mean?” Jonny gritted out.

Julie started to tap out a pattern on the door before it opened up with a creak, Elliot on the other side doing an over exaggerated bow. “My lady.” She smiled while Julie laughed, the sound like music to my ears.

Julie walked in, Jony right behind her as he looked around to try and see if something could have been placed against the inside of the door. Finding nothing, his eyes turned to Elliot with an accusatory look. “And you just happened to know a way in here?”

“No, me and Julie used to call this place home before you took it from us.” Elliot growled, turning to walk further inside.

“I didn’t decide the location, the council did.” Jonny gritted out.

“You and your council, it’s like the boogie man that you can blame for anything you want.” Elliot muttered. Jonny looked ready to retaliate, but then he looked around the nice large entrance hall.

Sure, it needed work, but the bare bones of the place looked good and solid. The boards creaked as we walked further inside. Two large rooms either side and a large staircase running up the middle of the entrance hall, splitting into two about half way up and branchin out either side. The banister was broken in places, the stairs sagging slightly.

“There is an old kitchen at the back that has seen better days, but it is the right size for feeding a lot of hungry mouths.” Julie said, walking over to her sister. “As far as we can tell, this used to be a meeting hall of some type.”

“Or an old w***e house.” Elliot chuckled, making my eyes snap to her. “Some of the rooms upstairs are a bit fifty shades of grey if you know what I mean.”

I shook my head, looking at Jonny. “Don’t ask.” He sighed through the link.

“So you two squatted here?” He asked, his voice taking on a sharp tone.

“Squatters have rights too. Plus, we vacated when you put your little sign up.” Elliot huffed.

Jonny huffed, seeming not to fully trust the sisters. “Anyway, we need to decide what to do with the place to get it ready for people to live here properly.”

Elliot did not miss the small dig in Jonny’s words, her posture defensive. “Well, maybe we could make some suggestions.”

“Like?” I pushed before Jonny had a chance to say anything else. Considering he was the one that said they needed to get along and was usually Mr.Calm and collected, I could not tell what the hell had gotten into him today.

“Well, for instance, the sleeping arrangements.” Elliot started.

“Yeah, this place could get busy quickly.” Julie nodded.

“You really think there are that many lone wolves that would come here?” I asked, my eyes on Julie as she stared back at me, nodding her head.

“If we do this right.” She smiled, the sight making my wolf swish his tail. There was definitely something about Julie that had us both interested, more interested than we had been in anyone for a long time, although that may just be because she was not prattling on about herself, and there was no pressure to impress her, although I wanted to.

“You should have some rooms reserved for families, mates and those with pups...” Elliot said, walking up the stairs that creak slightly under her small weight. She only got a few steps up before Jonny ran over, wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her off them, making her kick out and hit at his arm. “Hey!” She shouted.

Jonny put her down, folding his arms as she whirled on him. “No wandering around until we have made sure everything is safe.” He calmly said, seeming to have got a handle on himself.

“Excuse me. I have been walking around this place for longer than you, I think I know which parts are safe.” Elliot hissed, poking a finger into his chest.

“That was before we got here, Love.” He shrugged. “You can try and go up again if you like being thrown around like a rag doll.”

Elliot seemed taken back by his pet name and the offer of throwing her around, taking a step back from him and muttering under her breath. “f*****g wolves.”

“Anyway.” Julie spoke up. “You should also have some dorms for the unmated wolves, one for men and one for women. Preferably on different floors so that they feel more comfortable.”

I could not help but smile at her, watching as her cheeks turned slightly red and she looked away, but still had a smile on her face. We went over how the rest of the place should be set up. Multiple bathrooms for each floor, some in blocks and some private. The room to the left as we came in would make a perfect playroom, a set of old boarded up doors leading out onto the overgrown forest out back and to the right would make a nice day room, the room light and airy if it wasn’t for the boards on the windows.

The girls were right that the kitchen had seen better days, the water not even switched on anymore yet the counters were rotten and moldy. The floor in there was particularly creaky and we were not in there three minutes before Jonny ordered us all out.

“The attic could also be made into an office s***h bedroom for whoever you get to run this place. They will probably have to keep records of who comes in and out of here for your precious council.” Elliot sighed as we made our way back to the entrance hall.

“Considering you two seem against this place, you sure have a lot of ideas.” Jonny commented.

Elliot shrugged. “Just because I am not a big fan, does not mean I want the place to fail.”

Jonny nodded, his expression unreadable. “Well, we will need a few days to draw up plans and then we will be back to start on the work.”

The sisters nodded as I walked closer to Julie. “Do you have somewhere to stay?” I whispered, her breath hitching slightly as she turned to me.

“We are fine.” She smiled, her eyes dilating slightly. I could not help but take a deep breath, her scent like a wild forest making my wolf let out a howl in my head. Oh yes, there was more to my attraction to her than just my eternal loneliness.

“Come on Julie.” Her sister called, already standing at the door waiting for her.

Julie gave me a small wave, her cheeks slightly pink again as she ran off to her sister's side, the two walking outside leaving me and Jonny alone.

“Stay here.” Jonny said after a moment. Not waiting for me to respond as he headed towards the door seeming to head after the twins.