I sit nervously in the chair in front of Alpha Leander’s desk. Jessie rests her head on my chest with her legs on either side of my waist, and I gently rub her back.
It didn’t take as long as I thought it would to arrive at Greenrock, but too long at the same time. I was so worried about Mum and Mike realising we’d gone and come after us that I almost threw up a couple of times.
Mum was taken straight to the infirmary, but Jessie and I weren’t allowed to follow. Of course, I protested, but Kit told me it was for the best. Mum needs to be taken care of, which can’t happen with her children there.
We were then ushered into the Alpha’s office by his Beta. Kit explained what he knew to Leander and asked that he allow us to stay. Kit said he’d explain everything to Alpha Lorcan, but Leander was displeased. He said Kit should have informed Lorcan right away. Perhaps he should have, but Kit wanted to get us out of Silver Paw asap.
As Leander now stares at me, I know what he’s going to ask, but I’m unsure how to answer him. I guess I’ll have to tell him the truth, and I only hope he understands. Not just Leander but Lorcan.
“Kit and Frankie have explained why you couldn’t stay at Silver Paw. However, I’m not sure why you never spoke to my brother, your Alpha, about what was happening at home. Did you not think he would help you?”
I shake my head.
“It wasn’t that, Alpha Leander. I knew my Alpha would help, but my father is a scary man. I couldn’t risk him killing my mother before help arrived. No one has any idea how much she has suffered.
“I know many will say that I could have sought help, and they would have rescued us before that happened. But unless you’ve lived with an abusive man or even a woman, you have no clue what it’s like to be so scared you barely breathe.
“My father kidnapped my mother from her pack when she was fifteen.” Leander stares at me, his eyes widening a little. “I’m not trying to feed you a sob story, but my mother’s life was hell with that man. He raped her, beat her, and left her pregnant with me.”
Luna Sara and Alpha Leander share a look.
I know what they’re thinking.
Do I have the figure 8?
The truth is, I do have the figure 8 etched into my skull – the sign of rape. It will never be removed, and no one will ever love me because of it.
“The little one is a product of rape also?”
I shake my head at Sara.
“All I can remember for as long as I’ve been alive is my father angry and my mother sad. Dad ran our house like a concentration camp. He abused us and tortured my mother every damn day, especially if I did something he didn’t like.
“Then, one day, Mike said he had to go away for a week. He gave my mother orders, told her he had eyes everywhere, and said he’d know if she defied him. Deep down, I knew he wouldn’t know anything; he wasn’t my mother’s mate. They had no mate-link, though they did have a link through the pack thanks to Alpha Lorcan accepting Mum. Alpha did so because Mike somehow convinced Alpha Lorcan that Mum was his mate.”
I hear Kit sigh.
I look at him, and he shoots me a sympathetic look.
I look back to Sara and Leander.
“When Mike left on business for Alpha, Mum decided she wouldn’t waste that time wallowing. She wanted to leave the house, even though Mike forbade her from doing so. I was scared that he’d find out, and we’d both be in trouble. Mum promised she wouldn’t let anything happen to me, and I wasn’t to worry about her. Didn’t we deserve a little happiness?
“We spent the first day together, just us, then she decided we’d go out the second day. Mum plastered makeup on her face to cover the bruises, dressed in her best outfit, and then took me off packgrounds.
“I’d never been anywhere but Silver Paw before that day. We had so much fun, but then Mum suddenly stopped walking, her chest was heaving, and her eyes had clouded over. I turned to see what she was looking at, and this handsome man was staring right back at her.
“Quicker than I could blink, he was in front of my mum, and they were kissing. I was shocked because I didn’t know what the hell was going on. My parents never kissed like that in front of me, but then I doubted they kissed at all. Then the stranger picked Mum up and dashed away with her, forgetting all about me.
“I stayed where I was, realising my mother had found her mate. I could only wait for her to return, which she didn’t for three days. I’d made my way back to Silver Paw, hoping she’d know to come there to me.
“When she did return, she was so upset. I didn’t know how to comfort her, though I tried my hardest. In the end, she explained what had happened and then told me how she’d rejected her mate after they mated.
“Mum was so afraid of what my father would do that she had no confidence that her mate could protect her. I don’t believe she thought her mate weak, but my father and his abuse altered her mind so much that she couldn’t see past it.
“Mum covered the mark her mate gave her with heavy makeup so my father wouldn’t see it. But it didn’t work, and the moment he caught sight of it, he lost it. He’d scented another man on Mum, and her punishment was so bad I thought he’d killed her. But something kept her from leaving this world.
“Then Mike, suddenly, out of the blue, said, ‘I realise how much you actually love me, Alison. Sure, you cheated on me with your so-called mate, but I understand that couldn’t be helped; he tricked you. But you rejected him and came home to me, so I forgive you.’ Then Mum explained that she was pregnant by her mate with such terror in her voice. We both thought Mike beat the child out of her, but he didn’t.
“Mike allowed Mum to keep the child, hoping the baby was a boy. Mike thought he could mould the child and make him a monster who would help him overthrow the Alpha.
“Sadly for Mike, Jessie was a girl, and my mother paid dearly for that. Mike wanted to get rid of Jessie, but I managed to mind-link Luna Gianna as soon as Mum went into labour. Much to my father’s annoyance, Luna came over and delivered my sister. He couldn’t do as he planned after that, though Mike kept mumbling that he should have kicked the baby out of Mum.”
Leander shifts in his seat. “Did your mother’s wolf never fight back?”I cough a little, scared of what Leander will think when I tell him the truth.“My mother isn’t a wolf.”Leander squints his eyes. “She’s human?”I shake my head. “No, she isn’t human. I found out when I was five that my mother is a hybrid. She has a wolf, but she’s also a feline.”“Wait, what?” Sara gasps. “You’re mother is a feline shifter?”“Yes, a Lion shifter.”“Wow.”“How is that your mother happened to mate with a wolf? That doesn’t even make any sense.”I shrug my shoulders.“I really don’t know; I just remember my father screaming how my mother would never find her way back to the King of Lions. I’ve never seen my mother shift into her animal form. She told me she had a wolf but was too weak to shift. With what Mike said about the King of Lions, I assumed Mike meant that Mum was also a lion.”Leander and Sara seem to be mind-linking, so I sit quietly for a moment.I sigh just as Jessie lifts, sniffing the
“I didn’t know Lorcan was coming today.”I shrug my shoulders at Adam because I didn’t know either. My uncle Lorcan isn’t one for dropping by unannounced unless it’s an emergency. As Dad didn’t mention anything, and Lorcan is smiling at the little girl in his arms, I’m clueless.“I wonder who the kid is,”“Yeah,” Adam answers me, seeming miles away.Adam is my father’s cousin; their fathers are brothers. The man is your typical tall, dark and handsome prick. He holds himself like a wolf, dresses like a vampire, and has eyes women seem to get lost in. Dad always said that had more to do with Adam’s ability to hypnotise people than women falling at his feet.Not to be confused with Adam forcing anyone to be with him, he would never do that. Although, Adam is known for hypnotising people to watch them make fools of themselves for fun.Weirdo.I’ve always felt sorry for Adam, he may look to be in his twenties, but he’s, in fact, in his fifties. Adam is the same age as my father, but Adam
“Adam!” I yell after him as he walks with purpose, but he doesn’t listen.“Adam, what’s wrong with you?” Dad asks.Adam stares at Lorcan, eyes still wolfed over, chest heaving. “Give me what’s mine,” He mumbles.Lorcan narrows his eyes. “What are you talking about? I don’t have anything that’s yours.”“Come to me, little one.” Adam holds his arms out to the child, who giggles while jumping out of Lorcan’s arms and into Adam’s.Dad, Lorcan and I all stare open-mouthed as the child lays her little hand on Adam’s face. He smiles, eyes returning to their usual brown.“What the hell is going on?” Lorcan looks at Dad while asking the question, but Dad shrugs his shoulders.“Hello, Daddy,” The little girl says, causing us all to gasp.“What the hell?!” Lorcan bellows.“Hello, Jessie,” Adam replies while pressing his forehead to the child’s.When he finally pulls away, he presses a kiss on her forehead. She giggles, then lies her head on his shoulder.“Adam, what the hell?”Adam lovingly stro
“Give her to me right now!” I snatch Jessie from the stranger’s arms.He hisses at me, eyes turning red and scaring the shit out of me.I take a step back with Jessie in my arms.I sat down for ten minutes because Luna Gianna made me. I came out for some fresh air to find that Lorcan had passed Jessie off to a stranger. Now they’re all looking at me like I’m in the wrong!How do they think I’d react?I’m too shaken to acknowledge my wolf yelling ‘Mate’ inside my head. Goddess, I hope this stranger isn’t my mate; he’s scary!“Hand back my child, girl.”Oh, Goddess, even his voice is bone-chilling!Wait. . . “Your child?” I look from the stranger to Jessie.She cups my cheeks and giggles. “This is my daddy, Mel.”“What?”Jessie kisses my cheek and then reaches for her father, who takes her with a smile.“Melinda,” I turn to look at Lorcan. “This is Adam, my cousin and your mother’s mate.”I look closely at Adam, realising that he’s the handsome stranger who swept my mother off her feet.
Adam and I arrive, and the doctor tells us to take a seat. They’re doing some tests on Mum, but we can go in shortly.Jessie has fallen asleep in Adam’s arms, and I smile to see how contented she looks.“You should give Jai a chance, you know?” Adam tells me after a moment of silence.I ignore what he said about giving Jai a chance.“What kind of a name is Jai, anyway?”Adam chuckles.“His mother liked the name. When he was growing up, people called him Jay. He’d get annoyed and tell them, ‘My name is Jai - like J-eye, like Kai, but with a J.’ People knew his name, but they liked how annoyed he got.” Adam laughs to himself.Okay, so Jai, like Kai, but with a J. As names go, it’s not a bad one; I think it suits him.“Are you going to forgive my mother?” I ask instead of replying to what Adam just said.Adam sighs. “She rejected me, Melinda.”“She didn’t want to,” I admit. “Mike is not a nice man, Adam. He kidnapped my mother from her pack when she was fifteen years old. He tortured her
“I can’t believe you’re here,” I mumble while stroking her white blonde hair back from her forehead.As soon as I walked into the room, I almost fell through the floor. My beautiful mate is battered beyond recognition.I’m going to kill the motherfucker who did this!I understand now why Alison rejected me, and it breaks my heart. So much pain suffered by one woman at the hands of a madman.She birthed his child, one she didn’t even try to deny when we met. I wasn’t angry with Alison; it’s not like I haven’t had my fair share of women in the past.But if she’d told me about her life with Mike back then, I would have saved them both. I would have loved Melinda as though she were mine.Then there’s the fact Alison had my cub without my knowledge. But I couldn’t be angry with her when she had no way of getting away from Mike.How would she have been able to seek me out?Sure, she could have gone to Lorcan. But I understand that if Mike had found out, he could well have killed my Alison b
It’s been two days since we arrived at Greenrock pack, and Mum is back to full health. Thanks to Adam and Mum taking back her rejection, she’s finally happy.Jessie is beyond happy to have her Mummy and Daddy together. Yet I’m still worried that Mike will find us. Adam swears that Mike can do nothing to hurt us and that he’ll protect us all. But I’m still scared.Mum informed me this morning that they’d be moving to Dalgaard Mansion, where Adam lives. We’ll be safe there with Adam’s parents, siblings, grandparents, and even great-grandparents, not to mention the King and Queen of wolves. Then Mum laughed and said that she shouldn’t have said that. Mum knows about Jai, thanks to Adam telling her. Mum said that as she knew I’d be staying with my mate, I best visit often.I hadn’t the heart to tell Mum that I still hadn’t spoken to my mate. I haven’t once seen him since that first day.Of course, I’ve wondered about talking to him. I need some closure, and so does Jai; I know that. I mul
“Are you for real?” Melinda asks while snatching her arm from my grasp. “I haven’t been avoiding you, Jai; you’ve been avoiding me!”She’s right; I have, but only because Dad told me to give Melinda time to come to me. But Melinda didn’t seek me out, and it’s finally driven me mad!I run my hand through my hair.“I gave you the space you wanted, Melinda. I thought you’d calm down and come to me, but you didn’t. I got sick of waiting,”“I was coming to talk to you, Jai; I just needed time. So,” She folds her arms around herself. “How do we do this? Do I just reject you, and you accept? Or do we reject each other? I’m not quite sure how it all works.”I think I’m in shock.I stare at my little mate and wonder why the hell she doesn’t want me. I thought she just needed time, but it’s clear that it’s me she’s itching to get away from.I don’t think I can breathe right now!“Why the hell would we reject each other? You’re my mate!”Melinda rolls her eyes to the sky while shaking her head.