Never Mess With Grandpa

"I was under the impression that Jenny was Head of House Gypsy," sneered Alpha Stephan as he looked at me. "And I have never heard of House Tesalor."

"Well now, if you haven't heard of House Tesalor, then clearly, it must not exist. And Jenny has been dead for a little while. I suggest you update your contact list accordingly." Okay, maybe I was a bit bitchy about not being in bed after a seven-and-a-half-hour flight, but that didn't mean that this Alpha didn't have it coming.

"We are here to tell you that Mathew White will be in your territory for as long as I deem it necessary. You can get the burr out of your ass and move on. Ignore him, and I promise you, he will ignore you," I continued, not wanting to draw this out any longer.

"Just who the fuck do you think you are to give orders in my House?" snarled the Alpha, and I could see the muscles rippling under his skin as he fought not to change and attack me. Huh, I guess he was somewhat smart.

There was a commotion behind him, and I turned my attention to see a little old man shoulder his way through the other wolves gathered around us. He was leading heavily on his cane, his arms and legs shaking from the strain of having to rush.

As soon as he pushed through the last of the wolves, he went up to Alpha Stephan and used the handle of his cane to hit him on the forehead. I suppressed the chuckle that wanted to break out at the big, bad Alpha being treated like a young pup in front of me. I didn't want to get the old wolf in trouble that he let outsiders see something like this.

No Alpha that I knew of would put up with that disrespect.

"Grandpa," whined the Alpha, and this time it was impossible to hold back my smile. If the wolf was that old now, then he would have been that old when the curse was first put into effect. The curse essentially stopped time at whatever age they were on that fateful day.

Or a wolf bit an old man and transformed him that way. But I highly doubted that.

"You have grown, Princess," said the old man as he turned around, ignoring the Alpha, and looked at me.

"No one stays young forever, Elder," I said with a tilt of my head. There was no way that I was going to be rude to an Elder, no matter how tired I was. Despite my Mother's best efforts, I was raised better than that.

"Isn't that the truth, Weaver? What brings you into our territory?" asked the old man as he pushed Mathew aside and took my hand to lead me into the pack house. I smiled at the look on Mathew's face and followed the Elder.

"Many things, Elder," I answered with a tilt of my head as I gripped his shaking hand a touch harder so that he could use me as support. I also slowed down our pace without it being overly obvious to him. There was no point in rushing, no matter how much I wanted sleep.

"Then start with the first one on the list and then work your way down," advised the old man as Alpha Stephan quickly got in front of us and opened the door to the mansion. I looked at him and nodded my head in thanks. I could let a lot of things slide for someone that treated his elders this way.

"Well, I am from New York, so the most important reason why I am here is to get away from the snow," I joked lightly as I subtly moved him to the head chair and helped him sit down. I didn't care if it was the Alpha's chair—age before assholes and all that.

The elder refused to let go of my hand, so I could only choose the closest seat to him in order to sit down.

"A good reason," nodded the man with a smile. "My wolf loves to frolic in the snow whenever he can, but it hurts our joints after a while, so this is the best place for us. Snow when we want it and warmth to defrost us after." He chuckled over his own joke before his chuckle turned into a coughing fit.

I looked around and nodded my head at Mathew to get him a glass of water. Before Mathew could move, the Alpha came out of a side door with a glass in his hand.

"Calm down, Grandpa. She isn't going anywhere with that grip you have on her hand," laughed the younger wolf as he gave his grandfather the water. The older wolf's hand was shaking as he brought the cup up to his lips and took a sip.

"Bah, shows you what you know. Clearly, your father didn't teach you anything," sneered the Elder as he handed the glass back to the Alpha. "You should bow in the presence of royalty."

"I don't think you understand, Grandpa. There are no more members of the royal family left," said Alpha Stephan as he tried to reason with his grandfather.

"Stupid pup!" replied the Elder as he clipped the Alpha upside his head. "She is the last one. Natalia Nadezda, the birth of hope."

He looked at me for confirmation, and I only smiled and nodded my head. Clearly, this wolf was older than dirt if he remembered my name in that context.

"I was good friends with your father," said the Elder. He started staring off into the corner and nodded his head. "Yes, your father was a good man, no matter what anyone thought. It was your mother, Queen Pandora, that was the true rot of the Gypsies. But no one would ever listen to me."

"Yes, Father was a good man," I replied, trying to fight against the feeling of overwhelming sadness as I thought about my father and brother. They seemed to be more and more in the forefront of my mind lately.

"You know, not all demons are evil; they aren't all tainted," continued the older wolf as he seemed to be lost in his own memories. I could feel the men around us stiffen at those words, but I only nodded my head. It was nice to have someone echo my own thoughts.