Chapter 166: Chapter Thirty

Mason

I jolted awake to see my mate covered in ash from head to toe, her eyes blinking, but not really seeing. “Serenity?”

She shook her head and then looked at me as if with new eyes. “Your father, he was very tall?”

“Odd question, but around seven feet. Why?”

“Do you have pictures of him?”

I brushed some ash from her cheek. “Is there a reason you’re asking about my father after having sex? Is this a vampire thing? You need to know I have good breeding stock as a wolf. I know I can—”

She smiled and pressed a hand to my face.

I was embarrassed as I felt my chest rise and fall like it was puffing up with each word that fell from my mouth.

“Stop. It’s not that.”

My frown deepened as she turned her attention to the fire and whispered. “I looked at the flames.”

I sat down on the ground and pulled her into my arms. “And what did they tell you?”

She looked down at her dirty hands and shook her head like she was still in disbelief. “What do you know of Danu?”

I jerked at the name.

The very name my father often talked about with affection as if he was close friends with a being so different from ourselves.

I wasn’t sure how to respond. Wolves knew all the ancient texts; we knew secrets only The Creator knew. We knew of realms created only for certain purposes.

For her to have knowledge of that was unfathomable.

“Please, Mason?”

I nodded and hoped Cassius wouldn’t put my head on a pike for saying anything. “Danu was one of the twelve goddesses of earth, originally an angel from the Garden of Eden, set to watch humans.” I shifted uncomfortably. “After the fall, The Creator had no use for those angels. Creation was finished, and the angels were in a way more powerful than the rest of the Heavenliness. It set them apart enough to cause jealousy, and The Creator had already seen so many of his children fall that he did the only thing he knew to do. He sent the chosen to a separate realm to live out their lives. Some even worshipped them as if they were true gods and goddesses. Only twice a year are they able to enter into the human realm, with one job and one job only. To help nurture the earth and keep it whole for the human race. They are powerful beyond measure, able to destroy with a single word, to create with a flip of their hand. Their beauty knows no bounds, and they are as dangerous as they are good. Nobody has seen a goddess of the earth since—” I swallowed the lump in my throat. “—since my father did.”

“I did,” she said quickly. “I saw them.”

My head swiveled to her. “What now?”

“In the flames.” Her voice shook. “I saw them. I saw him—your father. I think…” She pressed an ashy hand to her face. “…I think Danu’s my mother.” Her expression darkened. “Is that even possible?”

I opened my door to speak, to tell her no, to say she was dreaming. That a goddess wouldn’t choose a human mate or an immortal one.

They simply did not mate because they were fine within their own angelic state. Perfect, except for one thing.

Missing their purpose in life, which was always to guard the garden.

And when an immortal no longer had a purpose, a part of them died inside.

The part meant for something extraordinary suddenly turned ordinary and was always subject to fall just like humans had and the angels before them.

The door slammed, jolting me out of my slack-jawed appearance and my jumbled thoughts and justifications. Alex strolled in with Hope. Ethan and Genesis soon followed with the twins.

Once Genesis placed the twins in a playpen, the rest of the group addressed us, as if they wanted to make sure everyone was safe, that the house was safe before they did anything.

“The deserters are back,” Alex announced spreading his arms wide. “Heard we missed a great party with some Watchers, but I had to keep my mate safe so… we went to a hotel downtown, had the best steak, Mason. Ah, you would have orgasmed on the spot from this—” Alex stopped talking and looked between us. “You guys been rolling around in the ash?”

I put up my hand and looked to Serenity. “Are you sure that’s what you saw?”

She nodded. “Positive. Your father, at least I think it was him, made a pact. They talked about you. They talked about us— as if they knew.”

Alex raised his hand. “How about you guys fill us in? Because I thought the only remaining drama here was good ol’ Mason growing a pair of balls and marching back into his clan and claiming his spot as king.”

I growled. As if I needed to think about that, now that I was staring into the eyes of my mate, a would-be goddess, for howling out loud!

She shrugged. “Maybe it was a hallucination. I’m a vampire, clearly a vampire. I crave blood.”

Ethan stared at her briefly and then looked to Alex, his expression damning.

Alex let out a long sigh. “You ever heard of a glamour, sweetheart?”

“Of course.” She clung to me tighter.

Alex shrugged. “Could be that. I helped do it to Steph. She thought she was a siren for hundreds of years. Nope, all Dark One.”

She wasn’t there to yell at him.

He snorted. “She wishes she were a siren. We get all the nice tricks.”

Hope rolled her eyes.

“How could you tell?” Serenity asked the question I didn’t want anyone answering.

But Alex had a ginormous mouth, so he simply said, “Cassius would know. Or any angel for that matter.” His smirk grew when he nodded to me and asked, “You dye your hair? She got a little angel fantasy.”

“No, you jackass,” I threw a pillow at his face. “Apparently, I’m housing a Watcher! But thanks for caring!”

Alex paled. “Seriously?”

“No, I like red and black. They look good with my CLAWS!” I roared. “Yes, so not only do I crave blood like it’s my only chance of life, but when I turn into a wolf, I turn white now, and to top it all off, I look like a freaking psychopath!”

“You don’t look like a psychopath,” Serenity said helpfully, patting my arm as if I was a child.

I hated how it calmed me, her touch, the way her fingers grazed my skin, making my wolf rumble inside with the need to smell her neck, to taste her tongue.

I stood.

Alex backed up.

Ethan put an arm around Genesis and pushed her out of the way.

I rolled my eyes. “I’m not really one of them. I’m me—”

“Just taller,” Hope added with a wink.

Alex elbowed her.

Ethan grumbled out, “Insanely strong and angelic-like sure, but it’s still you.”

“Any more Watcher bodies who need a hand? Because I gotta say I could totally dig a nine pack.” Alex patted his stomach and winked.

I was ready to rip his head from his shoulders when Cassius entered with Stephanie, looking way too pleased to make me comfortable.

Alex coughed and looked away.

Cassius ignored us completely and stared down Serenity. “So now you know.”

She nodded. “I guess. I mean, what am I really?”

“You’re you,” he said vaguely. Not helpfully.

“Is this a glamour?” She pointed to her beautiful body.

I would have been disappointed if it was. I loved her body, loved that it took care of her soul for so many years for me, despite my stubbornness and arrogance.

Cassius jerked his head to me. “Ask Mason.”

“Mason isn’t an angel,” Alex pointed out dumbly.

“He may not be Gadreel in soul, but he has his memories and all the other attributes that made the Watchers special. He would be able to tell.”

“I haven’t seen anything.” I lifted my hands into the air. “Only her.”

“Because you only want to see her. You don’t want to see beyond what your eyes tell you.” Cassius, again with the vagueness.

I scratched my head in frustration then braced Serenity with both hands, looking deep into her swirling eyes.

And. Saw. Nothing.

“Maybe kiss her,” Alex joked. “Always works in the fairy tales.”

“He’s been doing more than kissing her,” Ethan said in a hushed tone.

“Could all of you please just—” I took a deep breath and tried to focus on what Cassius said. Her, I need to see beyond what I wanted to see.

What I wanted to see was my mate.

~Don’t look at her like your mate.~

Impossible.

I squeezed my eyes shut then opened them, focusing in on her smooth skin and straight hair. A small movement near her heart caught my eye.

I reached out and touched the ripple in the air.

And every single window in the entire house blew out.