Love Times Four My Stepbrothers Are My Mates (Alayah) novel Chapter 115

**Chapter 115: Four Words**

**Noah’s P.O.V.**

Elder Mathass had been entirely serious when he mentioned that a multitude of individuals would seek Alayah’s assistance in severing their Mate-bonds. The moment we stepped through the door of our home, we were greeted by a stack of requests waiting for her attention. However, we made it abundantly clear that she was not to dive into that chaos just yet. Instead, we insisted she take the remainder of the day off, and we devoted ourselves to spending quality time as a family.

The excitement radiating from Uncle Josh and Aunt Mable was palpable when they discovered that Bastian had found his Mate. Aunt Mable, in a moment of sheer surprise, posed a question that caught us all off guard: would she soon be a grandmother to Grandpups or Grandkittens? It was a thought none of us had entertained so far. Bastian was completely floored when Janina chimed in, suggesting that their offspring could very well be a delightful mix of both, with each pregnancy potentially yielding something different.

Janina’s parents had gone above and beyond, ensuring we were armed with all the information available from the Crystal Blood Pack regarding shifters. The atmosphere turned a little tense when Alayah read aloud the section about Bear shifters, revealing that their cubs typically shift at the tender age of ten. This newfound knowledge illuminated the significant differences among various shifters, and I felt a flicker of excitement at the prospect of learning even more in the years to come.

Alayah was sprawled across the bed, nestled against Nathan, Nero, and me, with one hand affectionately gripping Nikolay’s arm. It never ceased to amaze me how, each morning, without fail, she managed to be in contact with all of us. Today, we planned to sift through the files pertaining to the Bronze Crest Pack, and I was acutely aware that we would take decisive action against anyone whose name appeared in those documents.

Just then, our bedroom door creaked open slowly. With Alayah’s head resting on my chest, my view was obstructed, so I reached out to link with Nero, curious about the identity of the intruder. “Just our little monkeys, both of them are walking now,” he murmured sleepily. Before I could process his words, he shot up in bed, startling all of us awake.

“What’s happening?” Alayah exclaimed, her voice laced with confusion as she struggled to sit up straight. Once she managed to untangle herself, her jaw dropped in disbelief. “Oh my God, they’re walking,” she whispered, and in an instant, we all sprang from the bed, our eyes darting to the foot of the bed where our little monkeys stood, beaming up at us.

“Maxwell, Cassandra!” Mom’s voice echoed from down the hallway, and I quickly made my way to the door to catch her attention. “They aren’t in their room!” she said, her voice tinged with panic. I couldn’t help but smile at the irony of the situation.

“They’re in here, Mom. They somehow managed to escape their cribs and made their way into our room,” I replied as Maxwell waddled out to greet his grandmother, eliciting gasps of astonishment from everyone around us. Cassandra, curious about the commotion, followed suit, and I noticed Dad’s face light up with delight as she approached him.

For a while, we were all captivated by the sight of our Pups exploring the living room. Mom had decided that breakfast would be served in our private dining area, and as the door swung open, Maxwell and Cassandra halted, their little heads tilting to the side in unison as they spotted Harper and Janina.

“Kitty,” Maxwell declared, taking a few steps towards Janina. The room fell silent at his first utterance—a word that wasn’t quite what we had hoped for, but I was more than willing to accept it. Janina knelt down, arms wide open, and Maxwell eagerly rushed into her embrace, lifted high as she stood back up.

“I really had my heart set on the first word coming from our Pup being ‘Mom’ or ‘Dad.’ I guess this will have to suffice,” Alayah mumbled, her gaze fixated on Cassandra, likely wishing for her to utter ‘Mommy’ as her first word. I, on the other hand, found myself secretly hoping it would be ‘Daddy’ or something equally endearing.

As we stepped into the meeting room, I was met with the sight of seven crates lined up neatly. I couldn’t help but wonder if we would be facing the prospect of taking down another Alpha or if this time we could leave a leadership intact. We had already taken down three Alphas, including the one from the Crimson Moon Pack, in one instance successfully handing the Pack over to the Alpha’s younger brother.

In another case, we were forced to pass the Pack to the Beta, as it wasn’t just the Alpha who had broken the law. His Mate, the Pack’s Luna, and their son, the future Alpha, had also committed serious offenses, leaving Alayah no choice but to sentence them all to death.

After sifting through a few files, Alayah decided to categorize the information, keeping the files on each Wolf separate. Once that was settled, we would scrutinize the crimes they had committed. Bastian diligently ran every name through the system, ensuring we were fully aware of their current status—whether they were still alive or not.

Before lunch, we had amassed several stacks of files. The ones in front of me contained information on those who were still alive, while the files of Pack members who had perished lay on another table, largely irrelevant to us at this point.

Lunch unfolded in the main dining room, with Pack members bustling in and out. Every so often, we would hear someone reminding the twins to stay in the dining area, prompting Grandma or Mom to rise and bring them back to our table.

Despite our efforts, they continued to wander around the dining room, and I could sense we had resigned ourselves to the idea that it might be a while before Maxwell and Cassandra would utter the words ‘Mom’ or ‘Dad.’ At this moment, their vocabulary consisted of just four words: Kitten, Bear, Wolf, and Lycan.