Chapter 58

I stand in front of the door of my childhood home, memories rushing back to me. It's always hard to

come here because, growing up, this house was just not warm. There was love here, not love that

included me. My mom loved me as much as any mom could love their child, but that love tended to

be stifled by my dad. He only had eyes for my sisters and often tried to keep my mom from

focusing on me. She did what she could whenever she was able, but there were many times that she

had to pretend as if. She had to pretend as if my pain wasn't important, as if my feelings didn't

matter, as if I was less than a member of this family.

If I hadn't had Mark and Lynn, along with their parents, I'm not sure how I would have gotten

through. When my mom couldn't be a mom to me, I would go to their home. I was like the second

daughter to them, their third child. I loved every moment that I spent in that house and the love

that they showed me.

I'm sure many would wonder why I didn't just move into their home when I graduated high school.

If I was such a part of their family, why didn't I join them officially? To be honest, I did consider

doing just that, but I never followed through. I didn't want there to be any more tension in this pack

surrounding me. The truth of the matter is that showing interest in me caused tension in the ranks.

Since my dad is the head warrior, he always works closely with the ranked members. My dad would

be hateful toward anyone who showed me any interest, including Beta John and his family. I felt it

would be better to break away from the pack so everyone could live comfortably. My decision hurt

Mark and Lynn, but they understood.

I gather my courage and knock on the door, holding my breath. I know my mates said mom should

be here alone, but you never know. I wait impatiently, shifting from foot to foot. I hope mom is here

and I don't have to search the packhouse for her. I finally hear rustling behind the door and the click

of the knob. The door opens slightly, and I can see darkness on the other side. My mom's head

pops through and gives me a solemn look.

I don't say anything; I take in her appearance. She has dark circles around her eyes and looks a bit

ashen. Her lips look dry, and her clothing is disheveled. Mom steps back and opens the door wider. I

cautiously walk into the house, taking in the dark room. There are no lights on and no curtains

open. I step to the side and allow mom to close the door. She takes a few awkward steps until she is

standing in front of me.

Mom starts to wring her hands and looks around the room, taking care not to catch my eye. I don't

really know where to start or what to say. I'm hurt by the fact that mom canceled on me, but this

wouldn't be the first time. In the past, when we did things like this, important bonding things, it was

often when my dad was distracted or away. We had to be loving mom and daughter silently in most

cases. I never understood why, but I never asked either. I always took, for a fact, that my mother

loved me unconditionally and left it at that.

“Mom, I-"

“I'm sor-" We both try to talk at the same time and quickly stop. I chuckle uncomfortably, not

understanding why this is so awkward. I walk to the living room and have a seat on the couch. I

notice a glass filled with an amber liquid on the coffee table, but I don't comment on it. Mom

follows me into the room and sits in an armchair.

"You met your fated mate? What happened? Why aren“t you with him?” My laughs a bit.

"I chose your father. We had a family and I couldn't ignore that. Besides, my fated mate had a family

of his own. We decided to stay in our present lives and reject each other. While I was there, I felt sick

and when I went to the clinic, I found out I was pregnant. When I came back and told your father, he

was angry. He accused me of sleeping with my fated mate and swore the baby was his. I denied it,

telling him that if we had slept together, he would have felt it. I got a DNA test when you were born

and showed him that you were his, but that didn’t change anything. He never paid you much

attention, always doting on your sisters. I honestly think he believes that I had the test results

altered. He doesn't truly believe that you are his child.”

"Why didn’t you tell me that you and dad were chosen mates?” Mom shrugs her shoulders.

“I didn’t think it mattered. We chose each other and love each other. There was no reason to tell

anyone the truth.” I nod and say nothing. Mom continues to stroke my hand, and we sit in silence

for a while.

“We have to tell the twins. He can't get away with this.” Mom shakes her head; fear flashes across

her face.

"You can't tell your mates that what your dad did. They will have him locked up. He's the head

warrior, and that would be bad. This is the worse thing he has done to me, but I don’t want to make

it a thing. I know he was wrong, but I love your father.” Dad has always had a bad temper, and there

has always been a lot of yelling in the house. He would get angry and break things, and yell at

people. The most he would do, physically, is slap you or punch a hole in the wall by your head.

None of that is okay, but it happened so rarely that we all just dealt with it. By us all, of course, I

mean just my mom and me. He never lost his temper with my sisters. Dad stabbing mom in the

hand is worse than he has ever done before.

I take my mom's hand in mind and rub it, checking it over. “Are you okay?"

"Yes, it healed a couple of hours ago. You don't need to worry about my hand.”

“Mom, you can't stay here. You have to come with me. I know you don’t want me to tell my mates,

but I can't let you stay here. Please, tell me you will come with me.” My eyes are pleading with my

mom. She sighs and nods her head.

“Let me get some things together and we can go.” I watch her walk out of the room. I don’t know

how I will explain to Lincoln and Landon without telling them what happened. I have to figure out

how to keep mom safe without blowing things up.

Mom returns to the living room with a bag in her hand. I stand up and hold my hand out to her.

Mom takes my hand, and we head to the front door. Before I can open the door, it opens in front of

me, and I step back in shock. Aida stands at the door looking between mom and me. She notices

the bag in mom's hand and looks up at her. “Where are you going?”