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WHEN I GOT UP, I COULDN’T shake the feeling I wasn’t being told the whole truth about last night. It was pretty damn clear Hawk hadn’t jumped out of my warm bed to go racing outside and watch a falling star. A falling star happened in a split second. I wasn’t an idiot, and I hated the fact that they were treating me like I was. Who did they think I was?
When I went downstairs, Hawk was the only one in the kitchen. Everyone else had already gotten their coffee and were doing errands or chores. “So are you going to tell me what was really going on last night?” I asked him.
“What do you mean?”
“Did my mom use her telepathy to call you out there?”
“No.”
“Hawk, something happened. Why won’t you tell me what it was?”
“Nothing happened. I’ve got to run. I am headed into the city to pick up supplies.”
“Alone?”
“With Berrion.”
He was being short. I knew something was off. I could feel it. Before I could ask again, he left the kitchen. I heard the front door shut a few seconds later. I carried my coffee into the living room. Sky was on his knees with a screwdriver. “What are you doing?” I asked him.
“This outlet has been loose. I thought I would fix it.”
“Isn’t that dangerous?”
“I shut off the electricity,” he said.
“Do you know what it was?”
“Just a loose wire.”
“No, not that. What bothered Winter and Hawk last night? Please don’t tell me nothing because I know it was something.”
“I don’t know,” he said. “You’ll have to ask them.”
“You know I did ask them. I asked them, and they won’t tell me anything.”
He got up and dusted off his knees. “Azalea, you need to talk to them.”
“So you know, and you are not going to tell me.”
“I’m headed out back to mow the lawn.”
I threw my hands up. This was crazy. They were shutting me down. I wasn’t used to such behavior from them. It was like one step forward and five giant steps back with them. Why couldn’t we have just a little peace? I wanted that normalcy we had last night. It had been incredible. I craved that kind of intimacy with all of them again.
Kya came into the kitchen looking fresh and chipper. “Good morning,” she greeted us.
“You’re in a good mood.”
“I am in a great mood. I feel like this is the first day of the rest of my life. Everything is brighter. I can smell the trees and the grass. There’s this freshness about the day that I love. It’s a beautiful morning.”
“Did you get laid last night?”
“What? No! Why would you ask that?”
“Because you are glowing. You have that look in your eyes.”
“No, I did not get laid, but I did get kissed. A lot. Great kisses. I really like kissing. I wasn’t sure I would, but I do.”
“You’ve never been kissed before?”
She shrugged. “Not like a kiss kiss. I’ve never allowed myself to get close to anyone. I have preferred to keep things at a safe distance.”
“Oh wow. This is a big deal. Caden is really special then?”
“Do you think it’s because he’s the first guy I’ve let myself get close to? I am new to this, and maybe I’m just experiencing the excitement of dating. It isn’t actually him, but the thrill of dating in general.”
“I think Caden is really great, and I don’t blame you for crushing on him. I think it’s real. Caden is hard to resist.”
“He’s pretty hot,” she said with a grin. “And did I mention he kisses really well?”
I had to laugh. “You did mention that. I’m happy for you. I’m glad you have found someone you can be close to.”
“Thank you for giving me the chance to be a part of this pack. If it wasn’t for you, I would never have met Caden. I owe you a lot.”
“You owe me nothing, but if you did, there is one thing I would want as payment.”
“And what would that be?”
“What did your mom see last night?”
She looked confused. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. See? Like physically see or a vision?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Why do you think she saw something?”
“Because she and Hawk were both standing in the backyard. They saw something. When I asked what it was, they said nothing. Now no one will tell me what it was.”
“Are you sure it’s anything?”
I slowly nodded. “I know it is. I can tell something is wrong.”
“I wouldn’t worry about it. Your guys are not going to let anyone hurt you.”
I wasn’t going to get anywhere. “Where’s Mom?”
“She was ordering a new bed for you.”
“What? Why would she do that?”
“She was ordering several new beds. She said the ones we’re using have been here since she was here.”
“No one has complained,” I said.
She grimaced. “Because they are too nice. I have Berrion’s bed and that thing has lumps for days. Lumps on top of lumps. Wouldn’t you like to have a big California king bed?”
I thought about the cramped conditions last night. “That would be nice.”
“She wants to do this. She’s trying to take care of you.”
I shrugged. “All right. I guess I could let her take care me of a bit.”
“Yes, you can. She wanted to go into town and talk to that one old lady.”
“What old lady?”
“I don’t remember her name. Really old.”
“Mrs. Lincoln?”
“Yes! That’s her.”
I grimaced. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea. Mrs. Lincoln is not on board with Mom returning. I think she will eventually, but I’m very close to Mrs. Lincoln. I guess in some ways, she was my surrogate mother.”
“Ah, that explains why she is not thrilled to have our mother back.”
“It’s good she wants to talk to Mrs. Lincoln. I think Mrs. Lincoln will appreciate that as well. Facing her head on is exactly what she needs to do.”
“I agree,” our mother said as she came in from the back patio. “Honesty is my new policy.”
“Good to hear. Now you can tell me what you saw last night.”
“I saw a falling star,” she insisted. “My goodness, you are like a dog with a bone.”
“I know you are lying. I’ll let you have your lie for now, but I know it is going to come out eventually. Now I’m going to dress, and we are going to town for a ladies’ day since my council is all suddenly too busy to hang out with me.”
By the time I was ready to go, my mother had already started deep cleaning the living room. Everything was off the built-in bookshelves and stacked on the floor. “Thank bloody goodness,” Kya muttered. She put down the can of wood polish and tossed the dust rag on the chair. “I thought you would never be done.”
“This place is clean, but a good deep cleaning would really make it shine,” Winter said.
“Are you saying we’re bad housekeepers?”
“No, I’m saying I’m an excellent housekeeper, and I know how difficult it was to keep this huge house clean. I look forward to taking care of some of those little jobs that are always forgotten.”
I wanted to be offended, but she wasn’t wrong. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d dusted those bookshelves. “Thank you, but we aren’t keeping you here to be our maid.”
“Of course not, but I like to do these things. Do you know how long it has been since I’ve had a home to clean? We had awful apartments but never a home. I’m not taking over, but it makes me feel good to stay busy doing such normal things, like dusting.”
“Knock yourself out,” I said with a laugh. “There’s a drawer of silver that hasn’t been polished in at least a decade.”
She smiled and clapped her hands. “I can’t wait.”
“Let’s go get his over with. If we can win over Mrs. Lincoln, we are good to go.”
“That old woman didn’t like me when I lived here. She was certain I was going to corrupt Anton. Little did she know he did the corrupting.”
“Gross, Mom. I don’t want the details of you and my father and how I came to be.”
She laughed. “I’ll spare you the details, but he was a different man behind closed doors.”
“All right, all right,” Kya groaned.
We left the house, Radolf briefly stopping us before allowing us to go on our way. When we got to Mrs. Lincoln’s house, she was sitting in her rocking chair on her front porch. “Hi, Mrs. Lincoln,” I called.
She looked at my mother. “What are you doing here?”
“Mrs. Lincoln, can we sit down?”
“You can.”
I gestured for Kya and Winter to sit down before I took a seat next to Mrs. Lincoln. “I know you have some reservations about my mother coming back to town. I would love it if we could clear the air about those things. I don’t want there to be any hard feelings.”
“You left that girl,” Mrs. Lincoln snapped. “No real mother would leave a perfect little girl. That girl needed her mother.”
“That girl grew up just fine,” I said. “And that is all on you. You helped me. You made me into the woman I am today, but she’s back. She’s my mother, and I want her in my life. I would appreciate it if you could give her a chance to prove herself.”
“She proved herself just fine,” she said.
“Mrs. Lincoln, what I did to Azalea and Anton was wrong. You weren’t at the park, and I don’t think you heard what happened.”
Mrs. Lincoln waved a hand. “I heard your ridiculous excuses.”
“It’s true, Mrs. Lincoln,” I said. “You know Decker’s strength. You saw what he did to me and our pack. What he did to my father. The Ironclaw pack knows how strong his charm power is. They are still suffering the consequences. Do you think it’s too much to believe that he used those same powers on my mother?”
“Why did you leave?” Mrs. Lincoln asked her directly.
“Because I was ashamed of myself,” Winter answered. “I was ashamed of what happened, and I didn’t want to hurt Anton. I didn’t want him to be humiliated. Mostly, I didn’t want my daughter to bear the brunt of my mistake. If Anton knew I was pregnant with another man’s child, he would have challenged him. It could have ended in bloodshed.”
“It took him eighteen years, but he ended up killing Anton eventually,” Mrs. Lincoln said in a whisper. “I’ve always hated that man, but that doesn’t mean what you did was right. There were choices. You didn’t trust your husband. You didn’t trust your alpha. You chose to run away like a coward.”
I heard my mother suck in a breath. “I’m sorry,” she said. “You have no idea how sorry I am. I’ve made a lot of mistakes, but I want to correct them. I am going to have a relationship with my daughter. Both of my daughters.”
“Do you know how lucky you are to have gotten the chance to have two daughters? Do you know so many of our kind don’t even get one child, let alone two?”
My mother nodded. “I do. I know it is a miracle and not one I should take for granted.”
“Then don’t!”
“Mrs. Lincoln, we are working out our problems. Kya, my mother, and I are all trying to build our relationship. My mother is a member of this pack. She was never banished. Kya is my sister, my mother’s daughter, and therefore she is also a member of the pack. I am asking you to accept them as such.”
Mrs. Lincoln stared at me. I hated to be so domineering, but I had to do something. “Are you asking me as Azalea or are you asking me as my alpha?”
I took a deep breath. “Your alpha,” I said in a quiet voice. “I am telling you and any of the other members of our pack that refuse to accept her or them, that as alpha, they are officially members. They will be treated with the same respect as any other pack member.”
“And if I don’t?”
“Mrs. Lincoln, I love you dearly. I love you like a mother, but if I have to, I will enforce this. This is my will.”
No one said a word. “Fine, but I don’t like it. You watch your back, young lady. You guard your heart against this one.”
It was all I could ask for. “I will do that. Now everyone here respects you and will follow your lead. I’m asking you to get out the word that I will not hesitate to banish anyone who refuses to go along with my edict.”
Mrs. Lincoln looked disappointed. It killed me to think I’d disappointed her, but I hoped she would be okay with it soon. I respected her and loved her, but I was loyal to my family.
“Mrs. Lincoln, I can never repay you for your kindness. You were absolutely amazing to Azalea. I did watch, and I saw the way you took care of her.”
“You saw?” she asked and then slapped a hand to her head. “Your invisibility.”
“Yes.”
“You checked up on her?”
Winter nodded. “I did.”
That seemed to soften Mrs. Lincoln a little. “Well, good. We took good care of her. All of us did. We helped raise her. We look out for her like she was our own child. Don’t you ever forget that.”
“I will never forget it,” Winter said. She got up and hugged Mrs. Lincoln. Both Kya and I were stunned. Mrs. Lincoln went completely stiff, but she didn’t push her away.
It was a small step, but it was a step in the right direction.
