Chapter Ten.

I could feel Logan's breath lightly tickling the back of my neck as he stood behind me while I sat on the hospital bed with my legs swung over the side. My head was tilted back with my mouth open and Doctor Luke stood in front of me shining the small flashlight into my mouth.

It had been a few days since I had first woken up in the hospital and learned about my life. I was still coming to terms with the fact that I was some sort of hybrid, a cross between a human and a werewolf. The fact that I was tainted with the blood of my dad made it all possible for me to learn about the werewolf world and how I was now a part of it. I didn't like that I wasn't who I had thought I was for so many years but I was slowly coming to terms with it.

The concept of mates was still confusing and I had yet to understand the bond or how it was possible. I hadn't given Logan an answer and I knew that he hadn't been expecting one as after he had confessed his feelings he smiled and let go of my hand as if it hadn't ever happened. I had found myself thinking about mates a lot and although I could see why mates were important, especially for werewolves, I just felt I wasn't meant to have my own.

Logan had been patient with me and I knew that he was trying. I would sometimes see his wolf surface behind his eyes when I would flinch away from him or pull my hand back when he tried to hold it. I couldn't get past the fear that would consume me whenever Logan went to touch me, it brought back too many memories and instead of seeing Logan I would see my dad stalking towards me.

I felt bad for Logan. He had been waiting so long for his mate, his other half, and I knew that when he had pictured her while growing up, that she wasn't me. I came with a past that was no doubt chasing after me and I didn't want Logan or anyone else to be brought into the mess that was my life.

I still had my heart and mind set on leaving. I wanted to explore the world that had been hidden from me for years and I knew that if I stayed with Logan and his pack that I wouldn't be able to leave. I would once again be trapped and controlled. I didn't want that for myself and not for my mum who deserved a lot more.

My mum had spent every day with me in the hospital; she would sit at my side and tell me about her day and what had happened. She had met a group of people within the pack and I could tell by the smile on her face when she spoke about them that she had finally made a group of friends that she could trust. I was pleased that she was slowly getting over her trust issues and socialising as I hadn't seen her happy in a long time.

Logan and my mum got on well, as did my mum, Alpha Paul and Gemma who had also found time to visit me at least once a day. I was unsure how to act around them and it didn't help that I was still unable to form a complete sentence. Alpha Paul and Gemma would stand at the foot of my bed and ask me how I was feeling before making small talk with both my mum and me. I had been introduced to Oliver and Jason who were both friendly despite their intimidating forms. I surprised myself when I had found myself warming up to the non-identical twins and I enjoyed being around them, even while they insulted one another as they were prone to do.

"The swelling has almost gone and the bruises have disappeared completely. If you keep exercising your throat ten times a day your voice will be back in no time," Doctor Luke said with a smile on his face as he stepped away from me.

Doctor Luke spent the majority of his time in the hospital with me and those that were visiting me. I had learned that he was one of the many doctors in the pack though treated many members by himself. I had been given exercises to get my throat used to talking and the strain that it would cause. I was able to say a few words before I would be in pain. It was an improvement from a few days ago.

"Thanks," my voice was hoarse and raspy. It sounded like I had spent my entire life screaming as loud as I could.

"Thank you Luke, you may go." Logan dismissed the kind Doctor.

The pack was formal. There was a set of rules and each rule was followed by every single pack member no matter their age or rank. Logan being the son of the current Alpha was treated with respect as people bowed their heads to him. The pack was polite and caring, every member that I had met when they came into the hospital ward would smile politely and introduce themselves. It was refreshing to be treated so nicely, it made me feel normal.

I watched as Doctor Luke left the room with the clipboard in his hands. I slowly slid off the bed so that I was standing and I reached high above me and stretched. I had begun to walk around the hospital room and pack house for short periods of time during the day with someone by my side. I was beginning to get sick of being indoors and I wanted to go outside and smell the fresh air.

"You know that Luke said you should be resting." Logan informed me as I looked over my shoulder to see that he was giving me a pointed look. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes as I continued to walk around the hospital ward aimlessly. I had showered and changed in the bathroom attached the room before Luke had visited as all I had been in before was Logan's T-shirt.

"Esme," Logan growled my name softly as I turned around so that I was facing him head on. I stared directly into his chocolate brown eyes that seemed to be focused completely on me.

The sound of the door opening caught both of our attention as I slowly peeled my eyes away from Logan and looked to see who had come in. Oliver and Jason walked through the door with an air of confidence surrounding them as they grinned at the situation that they had caught me and Logan in. I was pleased to see the twins as I was sure that I would have been bored all day without their regular visit.

"Hey Esme," Oliver greeted me with a bright smile on his face.

Logan growled softly at his younger brother's friendliness as he began to stalk his way towards me. I began to slowly back up and away from Logan who was radiating anger and jealousy.

"Oh, mates," Jason sighed dramatically as he clasped his hands together and brought them up to his chest, directly over his heart while he smiled at both me and Logan.

I had learned that Oliver was the more reserved twin. He was nice and friendly but he would match his brother's insults and witty banter. Jason was the more playfully one of the two, he was more confident and enjoyed winding his brothers up whenever he got the chance.

I would never have known that I was in a house full of werewolves if I hadn't of seen Logan shift right in front of my eyes. The few werewolves that I met were civilised, well-mannered and they looked like the average human. I wouldn't have known that they were different if I hadn't been told. I had lived with a werewolf for the past seventeen years and I had never known that he had the ability to turn into a giant wolf at will. It was comforting to know that they weren't completely controlled by their inner animals.

Logan reached my side as he stood a little too close for comfort. He had tried to stop himself from touching me so that I could get used to his presence and the fact that he wouldn't hurt me. I could see his hand twitch from the corner of my eye and I knew that he was having a hard time stopping himself from wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me toward him. I appreciated every effort that Logan put into making me feel comfortable as I couldn't imagine how hard it was for him to have to constantly restrain himself and his wolf.

"What do you want?" Logan asked his brothers. His tone expressed how irritated he was at his brothers' presence. I was curious as to why the twins had suddenly made an appearance, it was early morning and from what I knew the twins didn't like to get up any earlier than noon.

"We were wondering," Oliver began as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously, while looking between me and Logan.

"If we could take Esme out for the day," Jason concluded with a clap of his hands.

"No." Logan said immediately.

I frowned at his blunt response. I longed to get out of this house and into the outside world. I didn't like that Logan had taken it upon himself to make my decisions for me as I wanted to go outside with his brothers. Logan's reply had brought back memories of the many times that I had asked my dad for something and he had said no.

"Logan," Oliver frowned at his brother.

"You can't keep her in the house all day every day, its suffocating and boring. All I'm asking is that you let me and Oliver take Esme out for a few hours just to show her around the territory, stretch her legs and give her some breathing space." Jason retorted as he folded his arms defiantly across his chest with a raised dark eyebrow.

"Jason," Logan growled lowly as if warning his brother not to push him too far.

"I'd like to go," I whispered with a wince as pain laced through my neck.

Everyone's head in the room seemed to turn to face me. Jason had a huge triumphant grin on his face. Oliver was sending me as small smile as Logan narrowed his eyes a little while he scanned my face for any sign that I was hiding anything. I knew that he was worried if I would run away and as much as I may have wanted to I wouldn't run away without my mum.

"I don't think it's a good idea." Logan muttered quietly to me.

"We will have her back mid-afternoon which means you can get on with some pack business while we are out," Jason said trying to convince his brother.

"We promise to keep her safe and at our sides at all times." Oliver said.

I watched as Logan's eyes seemed to glaze over as he was concentrating on something else. I looked at Oliver and Jason to see that their eyes were also glazed over and I guessed that they were talking to one another though the pack link. I waited patiently, silently hoping that whatever Oliver and Jason were telling Logan was enough to convince him to let me go with them.

I heard Logan sigh loudly from my side as I looked up to see that he was running his hands through his hair while squeezing his eyes tightly shut. I could tell that he was having a battle within himself and no doubt his brothers were giving him a headache.

"Fine," Logan growled out while letting go of his hair and opening his eyes, "You can go with them."

I couldn't help but smile widely as I hurried over to the hospital bed next to my own that had my suitcases on top. I pulled out my coat from the middle suitcase and quickly pulled my arms through the armholes. I was already wearing a jumper and a pair of skinny jeans. I grabbed a pair of old shoes and quickly put them on before standing proudly with a big smile on my face.

"I want her back before four, no later. If anything happens you are to contact me straight away and you are not to leave the territory." Logan listed off to his brothers who were both nodding their heads eagerly.

"Got it!" Oliver nodded.

"Ready Esme?" Jason asked.

I eagerly nodded my head as I began to follow them both out of the ward. I couldn't help but look back as I saw Logan standing where he had been with his eyes on me. It looked like he was debating whether or not to come after us. I was grateful that he had given in to his brothers and allowed me to go out with them both. I sent him a small smile and wave before ducking out of the room and catching up with Jason and Oliver who were shoving each other down the stairs playfully.

"Are you ready to explore?" Jason asked with a grin as he slowly pulled open the front door for a dramatic effect.

"Just let us out," Oliver growled from behind me as he reached around and yanked the door open with a sharp tug.

"No fair," Jason grumbled under his breath as he walked outside with us trailing behind him.

I breathed in deeply through my nose feeling the cold air make its way through my entire body to where it settled in my lungs. The wind blew gently around us as I pulled the coat further around myself and looked up at the grey clouds above us. Summer was long gone a winter was fast approaching. I loved winter and everything about it; I enjoyed the rain and the calming effect it seemed to have on me.

I had thought that the small werewolf community looked impressive at night but it was even more beautiful during the day. I couldn't help but stare at the houses as we walked past them. I could see the care and detail that had gone into each and every house, the gardens decorated nicely with different flowers that were slowly withering in anticipation of winter. I wondered what the houses would look like in summer with the sun shining on them and the flowers in full bloom, but I knew that I wouldn't get the chance to see them.

"Come on Mae," Jason called out to me as I looked to see that he was making his way towards the forest that surrounded us, "there's something we need to show you."

I was unsure about going into the woods with two werewolves. I looked over my shoulder at Oliver who was nodding his head in the direction of the woods encouragingly. They had both promised Logan that they would keep me safe and I knew that if Logan trusted his brothers then I should too but I still felt uneasy about it.

"It'll be fun," Olivier spoke from behind, "I promise."

I slowly nodded my head. I knew that nothing was going to happen and that I was just being silly. I began to stray from the pavement and follow Jason into the woods with Oliver behind me.

We continued to walk along an invisible path with Jason leading the way. He would often hold back branches and prickly bushes for me before letting them go so that they would hit Oliver. They both helped me over fallen logs and large tree stumps. I sometimes found myself tripping over tree roots or my own two feet and all those times I was caught by one of them.

"Where are we going?" I asked after what seemed like hours. My feet were sore and my legs were aching. Jason and Oliver both seemed fine while I panted to catch my breath. I wasn't a werewolf and I didn't have the ability or the stamina that they had and I was struggling to keep up with them both. It didn't help that my legs were only little and I was unfit.

"Just this little place that we like to hang out," Oliver said from behind me as he gave me a gentle push forwards. I frowned at the lack of information but said nothing as I continued to trail behind Jason who was whistling a cheerful tune.

I was tripping over my own feet by the time we broke through a wall of branches and into what looked like a clearing. I could hear the sound of rushing water as I looked to see that there was small stream through the middle of it with a waterfall at the end. The clearing itself was beautiful, filled with wild flowers and overgrown grass. It was wild and unkempt and yet it was beautiful.

I gasped as I stepped further into the clearing. The grass came up high and tickled my fingertips as I lightly ran them over the tops of the stalks. A small smile made its way onto my face as I allowed myself to bathe in the beauty of my surroundings.

"Do you like it?" Oliver asked from behind me.

"It's amazing," I wheezed as my throat protested.

"I'm glad you like." He grinned.

A breathless squeal escaped my lips as freezing cold water was splattered across my face in small droplets. A laugh followed shortly afterwards and I blinked rapidly to see that Jason was kneeling down by the stream with his hands cupped together under the water. A growl sounded from behind me, I twisted my head to look over my shoulder at Oliver who had water dripping down his face and on the jumper he wore.

Jason's action seemed to start off a small water fight. I would squeal and gasp as water was thrown at me. Oliver and Jason would growl whenever water splashed them. I cupped my hands and threw water at Jason who was kneeling down beside me. A breathless laugh escaped me as he spluttered with water dripping from his face. Oliver laughed from my other side and we grinned at each other. Oliver had teamed up with me a while ago after Jason had gotten me soaked.

My teeth began to chatter as I ran my freezing cold hands over my arms to keep myself warm. Jason and Oliver seemed unaffected by the cold and I guessed that it had something to do with the fact that they were werewolves.

"Oh crap," Oliver spoke from behind me as I turned to see that he was shrugging off his jumper, "I forgot that you feel the cold."

I only nodded my head as my throat was sore from all the squealing I had been doing. Oliver quickly helped me out of my coat so that I could put his surprisingly dry jumper over my head. It was warm and inviting and I hugged my arms around myself to keep the warm in.

"I think we should get back and warm you up," Jason announced as he stood from the stream.

I nodded my head in agreement as I walked in between them both. Their bodies seemed to radiate and unnatural amount of heat and I made a note to ask Logan or my mum about it later. The wind seemed to turn as it blew around us causing my hair to blow across my face. I tucked the locks of hair behind my ear to see that both Jason and Oliver had stopped walking and their bodies had become tense; their heads were tilted upwards as they sniffed the air.

It happened so fast that I missed it with my human eyes. I had been standing shoulder to shoulder between Jason and Oliver moments ago and I now found myself sandwiched between them. Jason had his back to my own while I faced Oliver's, t-shirt covered back; I could see his muscles tense and contract. They began to slowly move around me in a circle, both of them touching some part of my body as their heads rapidly moved from side to side scanning the trees around us.

"What's going on?" I croaked managing to find my voice.

Jason growled loudly while Oliver sneered, "rogues."

My heart seemed to stop in my chest as my entire body froze in fear.