Chapter 16 Avoiding The Elephant
Kristen's POV
It's been two days since Alpha Calhoun left. I thought he only didn't show up for the rejection and was somewhere around, only to find out the next day that he just went AWOL. No one knows where he is but they seem unbothered. Everything else is going smoothly even in his absence.
He's in the wrong.
Wanting to stay mated to me will only lead to disaster.
Mom getting mad and hating me when she learns the truth.
Their marriage crumbling to the ground.
Why did he disappear after asking me to meet him at the council hall for the rejection? It's just insane.
Can he not be man enough to do the right thing irrespective of his emotions and the connection we share? I've been anxious and restless since I stepped foot in here.
Avoiding Mom lately, staying out until midnight because I'm afraid she'll show up in my room and try to hurt me. And I always have a hard time falling asleep because she might just burst in, damage things and yell the roof off.
She's a good person but she has three stages of anger; Crying, shouting, and smashing things.
And her reaction two nights ago is because she felt I was trying to seduce Alpha Calhoun. The thought of her finding out that truth forms knots in my stomach.
It's morning now, I am waiting for her to finish having breakfast with prominent people in the Greyhound pack. It's her everyday routine. She leaves the house and goes about with her duties as Luna. That's the only way I can leave my room.
A soft knock on my door makes me pause from brushing my hair.
"Bruce?" I call out because I can feel goosebumps rising in my pores just from the thought of it being my mother.
The person doesn't respond, they just push the door slowly and make it creak as it opens.
"Kristen," the familiar feminine voice swamps my body with cold like I am thrown in a bathtub full of more ice cubes than
water.
"Mother," my throat contracts and burns as I stare at her reflection in the mirror. Her black hair is pulled up in a bun so tight that I'm left wondering if her scalp doesn't hurt. Her face is make-up free and she's wearing one of those expensive suits, which gives her this business-like look.
"I came to talk to you," she walks in and shut the door behind her. The click-clack of her stilettos on the floor aligns with how fast my heart is racing in my chest.
"You've been avoiding me," Mom stops in front of my desk and folds her arms across her chest.
I want to reply and tell her it's because she's already mad at me but my lips stubbornly hold themselves together, not even letting me release a breath.
And to leave me utterly confused, her eyes start welling up with tears.
"I am so sorry for yelling at you like that. Jealousy got the best of me when I saw Calhoun pull you up in his arms, it made me scared that I was way too old for him and then he fancied you instead." Mom confesses and casts her head down as she sniffs.
Okay.. I'll admit that this was the last thing I was expecting. I want to get emotional like her but it's not working, even though I'm frightened. My wolf doesn't want me to feel remorseful because she thinks Mom is standing in the way of Calhoun and me.
"I feel so ashamed of myself right now, I never should've spoken to you in that manner, you did nothing wrong. I'm so sorry," she sobs.
Right now, she looks very different from the upset woman two nights ago.
Leaving my chair, I near her side and hug her even though a part of me is against it. She's my mother after all and not everyone out there is perfect.
I sigh heavily as I stroke her back. The need to leave this place is strong, I can't wait for Alpha Calhoun to return and reject me so I won't spend any more nights here. I am not fit for this pack. Things got fcked up at me at Calhoun's first meeting.
Mom is trying to bond with me again. She took me out to spend the day with her and even dismissed her driver because she wanted just the two of us in the car.
We drove through the Greyhound pack with Mom showing us tall buildings, towers, and sculptures. There are even a two hundred feet statues of the moon goddess and Mom told it was all Alpha Calhoun's doing.
I am left awe-stricken because Calhoun is even more renowned than I thought. They even have him on billboards. Why didn't I ever ask my mom which pack Alpha she was marrying? I was sluggish enough to not search for him up on the internet when his foundation paid for my tuition fees.
Mom doesn't even show it that she's unhappy her husband left without a word. Can it be that the two of them are communicating on the phone or something? I'm more than curious to know and I don't even know why.
She stops the car in front of a hairdressing salon and runs her fingers through my hair before playing with the tip.
"Let's go do something with our hair," she smiles sweetly at me.
I throw her a quick fake smile that she thankfully doesn't notice. When we leave the car, people are already paying their respect to my mother from both near and afar. She's the Luna after all.
"Welcome, Luna Natalie," the manager of the hairdressing salon beams at my mother.
"Thank you," Mom nods at her before, throwing her arm around my shoulders, "My daughter and I would like to trim and add a tad of coloring to our hair."
"It's good to see you, Kristen. Emerging as the winner of the pack run, you did great," she's still smiling and it's with her teeth this time.
I can't help but notice the way Mom's arm wavers on my shoulders.
"Thank you," I give her a small smile before going through my bag because my phone is ringing.
It's a strange number.
And because my mobile data is turned on, I can see the caller ID.
It's Calhoun!
With my heart jumping in my chest, I drop the phone back in my bag.
How did he get my mobile number!?
Why the fuck is he calling me?
The phone continues ringing even when I sit on the chair next to Mom.
"Who is it, Kristen? And why are you ignoring them?" Mom looks at me innocently.
"Just a boy from school, I don't want to talk to him," I lie after taking a hard, hurtful gulp.
"Oh." Mom doesn't say anything else.
I take this as a hint to stop his calls because he's rang my phone over six times and he's still doing it. Not close to relenting until
I pick up.
Pushing my hand through my bag once more, I slide the red button and switched off the phone.