From The Ashes.

Chapter 13

Brian groaned as he pushed himself to his feet. As it turned out, he'd smacked into one of the plush chairs and was now holding his head as though it hurt. I scowled, I knew perfectly well that simply hitting his head wouldn't hurt someone like him.

"What happened here?" Llewellyn asked, he seemed calm and level, looking over the scene with a sense of objectivity. The red faced man, however, now seemed to be trying to become a purple grape.

"What do you mean, what happened?" He shouted, pointing dramatically at me. "You human pet just struck my son! He is an Alpha-Heir, she should be punished for disrespecting him." Llewellyns eyebrows creased as he looked at his fellow Alpha.

"Travis, I think you may be jumping to conclusions. There has to be a reason why Teranika struck Brian." I was about to open my mouth when a screeching voice cut me off.

"What possible reason could she have? They were gone for two seconds, what could he have possibly done in that time for her to attack him?" Susanne demanded, not looking at me. I chewed my lip with agitation, glaring at the smirking Brian who looked mightily pleased by this turn of events. I turned to the only witness and frowned when I realised Zak was so pale it almost seemed like he was going to pass out.

"I only spoke to her and then she punched me in the chin. I wasn't expecting it." Brian was still holding his chin and I quenched down on the urge to roll my eyes at his mother as she began to fuss over him, her other son precariously balanced on her hip.

"We're not going to put up with this Llewellyn. We demand that the human be punished for this unprovoked attack." Llewellyn eyed me, his lips pressed into a line. My brain started working at a million miles an hour as I realised he was being backed against a wall. I didn't want to be punished for something my first day here, who knew how werewolves punished people. I tried to think of a solution but every situation I could think of was based on if these people were normal, however the realisation that they weren't, held me back. It was clear werewolves lived by some kind of hierarchy and the people in front of me had an expectation of how they were to be treated. I swallowed. If I stood up for myself, I could accidentally insult them or make my situation worse. However, if I didn't, it was clear what was going to happen. I shot a look at Zak, trying to ask him what I was supposed to do but it was no use. He had his eyes closed and seemed to be concentrating on breathing.

"I would like to question her about her motives first." Llewellyn was trying to keep his voice level but I could still hear a bite of distaste under his words. And if I could hear it, the others could to.

"Don't patronise us, Llewellyn! There's no reason for any human to strike my son. You are delaying the inevitable." Travis looked like he was attempting to turn into a blueberry as he spoke. Brian stood beside him, nodding with his arms crossed in front of his chest.

"It's not fair to Teranika to punish her for something she may not have known not to do."

"Even in the human world, hitting someone unprovoked is frowned upon." Susanne cried, tapping her foot in agitation. Llewellyn ground his teeth and ran his hand through his salt and pepper hair, I could tell he was annoyed, frustrated at not being listened to. He set his jaw and opened his mouth.

"ENOUGH." Every pair of eyes in the room turned to me and I steeled myself for what was about to happen next. "I refuse to apologise or be punished for protecting myself from this boys attempt to violate my mind." Brians expression instantly fell at my language as the room fell deathly silent. I glared at the people around me as Travis finished his transformation into a blueberry.

"How dare you-" He started but I cut him off.

"You're going to question me? How about asking your son why, the moment he found out I'm human, he decided to use the Alpha Voice to make me bow to him?" Brian paled as everyone turned to look at him. His mother frowned with wide eyes before scowling and turning to me.