I returned to my room after Axel and Oliver left for dinner. When I was sure that they were near-finished eating, I quietly linked Axel's younger sister, Hannah.

Hannah was a smart and clever girl, even being as young as she was. She wasn't an entitled brat like some of the others in the pack. If I wanted a fresh, useful opinion on something, I'd ask her.

Hannah, what do you think of Oliver? I asked casually.

Oliver's amazing, she half gushed. Seriously, I wish he was my mate. Annabella likes him. He even likes anime too!

Annabella likes him? I asked, surprised. Annabella was shy. She was quiet and withdrawn, except to her family. She was barely warming up to me.

Yeah, she's sitting in his lap, she licked his cheek! It was adorable, and Oliver laughed. I can see why Jamiette has a crush on him. She paused. ...I wasn't supposed to tell you that.

I huffed a laugh. Of course the younger girls would have crushes on him. To them, he was the perfect sweet, kind prince. Or to us wolves, the perfect mate.

Don't worry, I won't tell. I was just wondering what you thought of him, I haven't got a chance to speak to him much yet. It wasn't a lie. I hadn't got to speak to him much, other than that one conversation.

Hmm, Hannah thought. Well , he's really likeable, Hannah started, getting more pensive as she continued. I think he's definitely a people-person. Even though he didn't smell very strong, he was really friendly to everyone. 

I hummed, encouraging her to continue. Axel had mentioned that too. Oliver's scent didn't waver much, regardless of circumstance. It was interesting that Hannah thought that made him friendly, whereas I found that suspicious.

He's good with grown-ups, he calls Mom Mrs. Reaper instead of 'mamma Cindy' or whatever weird shit she said, and calls Dad 'Sir' or 'Mr. Reaper'. It's like he knows Dad's position in the house, or something.

I frowned slightly. Oliver did try to question the pack house in the car, but I wonder what he thought of us. If he already caught on to how Uncle Reaper was the leader of this place, I'd have to make sure he didn't think we were a cult or something, he'd just get scared off. What else? I asked.

Uh, he wants to go to Uni somewhere far away, he's smart I guess. Seems smart to me. He's got a nice voice and he's pretty funny. Mom thinks he's adorable. I kinda feel like he's... Hannah trailed off for a moment. No, it's probably just because we're with Mom and Dad.

What?  I urged.

Well, I kinda get the feeling he's being maybe a teensy bit fake or something-- but that's actually probably normal, considering he's dining in this fancy-ass place with adults he doesn't know, y'know? It's only natural for him to feel a bit uncomfortable in this setting. I'm sure he'd be fine elsewhere, he's pretty chill, after all. Seems like a good guy. Hannah paused. I hope he relaxes here soon. He's gonna be Axel's mate, right? I can't wait to see him around.

Hearing Hannah's streamf consciousness was fascinating. Just as I thought, Oliver's fake personality worked for him because what inconsistencies or mistakes he did make were so slight that people created their own explanations to justify them, because they had an overall good impression of him. 

I was glad to have asked Hannah. Her observations were interesting especially because she was a bystander. Axel's younger sister, who had little connection to or interest in Oliver, was now his fan. It happened right in front of me, and I had to applaud Oliver's skills.

Right. Thanks, Hannah.

She cut me off without saying anything, which, being fair, is a normal thing when you can contact people anytime with the mind link. Most wolves didn't bother with hellos and goodbyes.

I resumed my work, and after a while one of the elder ladies in our pack linked me down for dinner. I went into the fourth dining room and sighed, looking at the Italian food with distaste. Not to sound ungrateful, but... when would Aunt Violetta get off pack-cook duties? We were tired of Italian. I'd have to bring that up to Mrs. Reaper, somehow.

Mrs. Reaper, as Luna, was the reason our pack was as organized as it was. 

And surprisingly, I was quick to realize as I started Beta training, the hardest parts about running a pack this size wasn't getting enough training or money or defensive equipment. 

No, the hardest shit was the small shit. Making sure everyone was fed. Keeping the floors clean. Getting Aiden off drugs. Making sure the kids got their homework done. Keeping Axel's dick in his pants. Buying the toddlers new clothes when they ripped theirs. Dealing with fights over who used up all the hot water. Getting everyone in bed on time, accounted for, and safe.

With so many members, coming and going, dying and popping out babies left and right, things were hectic. The majority of our wolves lived on the grounds, but not all as humans. 

Some preferred spending their time in their wolf forms, becoming one with nature and only returning for their kids' birthdays. Some worked desk jobs at our parent company, some preferred working on the pack house itself as manual labour to have the freedom to be in whichever form they wanted as long as they got their assigned jobs done. 

Some wolves owned their own cottages not too far away, on our pack grounds, or in the city, living independently from us -- except for when they got too lazy to cook their own dinner, and wanted to bum off of us at the main pack house. Those guys were a real pain in the cooks' asses, coming in last minute, all cheeky.

But coordinating everyone's daily lives to be harmonious was difficult. It was even harder if we wanted to have a true pack connection. Some people didn't work or associate with us for the most part, and had other jobs in the city. Others, like Axel's older sister, our ex-future Alpha Emilia, were traveling abroad, abandoning their posts to be free. 

To keep everyone connected, but not constraining them so much they resented us -- that was a tricky balance to find. Mrs. Reaper had created and coordinated our current system, and for the most part, it was as effective as one could hope for. 

Those who wished to do housework and packwork instead of getting a human job took care of all the things such a large house needed to truly be a home. And with the community support, everyone was able to do their part.

For example, on Mondays, Aunt Jemma did laundry at noon with three other ladies, taking care of any laundry that had arisen since the past day. The routine grocery deliveries were unloaded by some of the wolves overnight, so that on Tuesday morning, Aunt Jemma could help out on breakfast, and later, dinner duty. On Wednesday, she helped cooked lunch for those who were at home, and babysat in the nursery. On Thursdays, she vacuumed the 4th, 5th, and 6th floors, and changed the sheets. 

And on Sunday she helped do the dishes, which was actually one of the best jobs if you asked me, I liked joining in and hanging out with everyone when I had free time. Aunt Jemma was a nice lady, and knitted in her spare time. She made me a wool scarf that used mostly for fashion purposes, since I was a wolf who didn't actually get cold. If she went into heat, her duties were given to somebody else. It was a cycle, and her part in it helped the pack run as it did.

But that was only the housework. To keep a place this large running, you had to pay monthly bills higher than most people's yearly salaries. That's what Reaper's Firms and its subsidiary companies were for. A part of a multinational conglomerate, most of the wolves that wanted desk or office jobs could easily find blue or white collar jobs there. 

It wasn't easy to have a working, running pack. It took a lot of work. Alphas were crucial to keep the running order. I had it bad enough as a Beta. It wasn't, by any stretch, easy to be the Alpha. I didn't blame Alpha Greg for not passing down the Alpha role to Axel, Axel wasn't ready for that kind of responsibility.

I quickly ate dinner with a bunch of other wolves. Lots of people came, inhaled a bunch of food, thanked the cooks, and left in under a couple of minutes, walking out with three dinner rolls in their grubby-ass paws. I stayed and took my time because I didn't want to go back to my books.

 My dad, the current Beta, was going to quiz me on current wolf affairs and I had to be ready. But the subjects he was covering were very, very broad, so I had been stuck reading books for the past long while.

Van, Axel linked. Fucking rouges. Shitty mate, ugh!

Axel, you're human. Use words. What's wrong?

I could feel Axel's annoyance. Since we my birthday party, these piece of shit rouges here are under the impression that I gained the Alpha title, and for some stupid fucking reason, they think we're WEAKER and want to attack! What the fuck, these stupid fucking shits. Why would me being the Alpha make the pack weaker?! They don't know shit. Me and my dad--

My dad and I, I corrected instinctually. Trust Axel not to know third grade English.

Fuck you, my dad and I are going to deal with them. We've got a bunch of us getting ready, they're out on the west border right now, so we'll lead them to the south side of the lake, trap them there and get rid of these stupid shits once and for all! Me, being Alpha, making the pack weaker?! I'll show them who's fucking weaker! Axel growled, getting increasingly angry.

What should I do? I asked, immediately thinking of plans. Do I join?

No, they're insignificant. Max 12, we can handle it--I can handle it. I'll show these fuckers... But I was going to drop Oliver off, and well, now I can't. Can you do it?

I was quiet a moment. Drive Oliver home? That's it?

Yeah, dad wants him out of the way quickly. You'll have to take the far route away from the forest.

This would be a great opportunity to get some dirt on Oliver. If I could get him to break character or say something incriminating, I could record it. Then if he manipulates somebody into doing something dangerous, I'd have some dirt on him to expose him.

It wouldn't be enough, but it would be a start, a crack in his perfect appearance. And you can't fix a cracked egg shell.

Okay. I said. I'll do it. 

Oliver, here I come.