Ivory

SEVENTEEN*

Seventeen

"Come along, Beth," I said the next morning while pulling Beth out of the kitchen. Everyone looked at me with astonishment, and some looked smug. Apparently there was a rumour going around that she had gotten on my bad side and I was going to be teaching her a 'lesson' about respect today. I had no idea who had started it, but it was a fairly good cover for her being away all day.

We had almost made it to the door when I heard a voice behind me.

"Brooke, where are you going with Beth?" he asked, and I turned around to see Kieran standing behind me with his arms crossed over his chest, which looked bigger than what I remembered.

I copied his gesture, by crossing my arms over my chest and staring him down. "I'm teaching her a lesson," I answered vaguely. It was the truth and it would make them actually believe that she had done something wrong. Bless the person who came up with the rumour, it made my job that much easier.

He glared down at me. "You will not take my pack members without permission," he ordered, with a power in his voice that had my veins tingling.

I returned his glare at full force. "You will not use your Alpha voice with me," I ordered with power in my own voice. Yeah, I got the Alpha voice, but I hated to use it on people. He had used it on me so much when we were kids and I didn't want to take any ones freedom to make their own choices. But for Kieran I could make an exception. "If you want me to do something, you ask in a normal voice and I'll make the decision."

He looked at me shocked and stunned. I spun around on my heels and walked out of the house with Beth right behind me.

"Did you just-" she began.

"Yup," I interrupted, popping the 'P'. I didn't look back or stop my pace, there was he risk that he would come after us and then I would have to explain things, which was fairly unappealing.

"Why do you-" she tried again.

"I'll explain later," I interrupted again.

The first time I had used it was when I had been thirteen, after I had shifted for the first time. I was supposed to be at the pack house, but instead I was sitting behind the library where no one would dream of going near. It was far away enough from the street that the sound of the traffic was muffled and no one in this city around my age ever used the library, so it was basically there as a town decoration.

Out of nowhere three older boys that were in my pack walked around the building, laughing hysterically, and passing a joint between them. When they noticed me huddled in a corner, between the wall and the green garbage bin, they came towards me and pulled me out.

They circled me like sharks and looked at me like they were sizing up their next meal. I was completely terrified. The next thing I knew I was being pushed against the wall and one of the guys had their hand in my, one had their hands roaming the upper half of my body and the other was exploring the lower half. Needless to say, I was petrified and bawling like a toddler.

What triggered me was the feeling of a hand slipping into my pants and past my underwear. I mustered all the power that I had and yelled at them to get off me. To my utter shock they did, and they looked at me with awe. And with the same amount of power in my voice I told them to leave me alone.

I hadn't seen the three of them ever again. I knew that they were still around though. I could still smell them, but I had yet to lay eyes on them. That had been the first and only time I had use that power before today and I hated the power that it made me feel.

Actually, I hated all the powers that I had. No one should have this much power in the body, yet I did. It was terrifying. It made me a target, not an easy one, but a target no less.