CHAPTER HUNDRED SEVENTEEN

Vincent pov

I accompany Melinda to the kitchen and show her where she can find anything to her liking. Like her daughter, she complains that she is allergic to basil, which makes sense.

However, a few details confuse me, and I hope Melinda has the answers I'm seeking. "Melinda, can I ask you a few questions?" I turn to her, but I see half of her body peeking out from behind the refrigerator door.

She closes the door and grins at me. Melinda's mouth is covered in frosting. Yeah, a true lady there. I roll my eyes, and my attitude doesn't go unnoticed. "Sure thing, Pussysaurus-Rex." She bursts out laughing. "Sorry, I couldn't resist the temptation to use that brilliant nickname. And don't look at me like that; I've been complaining about being hungry for weeks- my prayers have been answered, and I'll gobble up food like an animal. Besides, the lemon cakes are bomb; you should try them." Deep down, I wonder how Blade dealt with this woman day after day. The more time I spend next to her, the more I understand the accusations that Blade was crazy. Only a madman could put up with all of this in such a small package.

I pinch the bridge of my nose and groan. "Okay, first of all, you mentioned being hungry twice in ten minutes. That's not weeks. Also, I don't blame you, but please don't ever remind me of those nicknames again, especially not in front of the members of my pack." I hope I sound as annoyed as I feel. Mother-in-law or not, Melinda has a knack for getting on my nerves. So does Enya, sometimes, so it's clear the apple doesn't fall that far from the tree.

Melinda offers me her hand and grins, "Deal if I get the lemon cakes." I never offered a deal, certainly not for food, but if that's the only way I can get information- I'm about to max out my cards at the grocery store.

I groan but take her hand and shake it, "Darn it, deal."

Melinda turns on her heel, rushes back to the fridge and grabs the leftover lemon cake. She sits down across from me, so I'm forced to watch her stuff her cheeks like a hamster while we talk. After a moment, she remembers we were in the middle of a discussion, wipes her mouth, and grins, "So, the questions?"

I look at her in shock. Come to think of it, I take back what I said-the apple has fallen far enough from the tree. I clear my throat, trying to come back to my senses. "Yeah, right. My main question is whether Enya could have a wolf if she's a half-breed." It's unheard of, but no one knows the ways of the Moon Goddess. Anything can happen, and I'd better be prepared just in case.

Melinda drops the spoon and points her finger at me. "Okay, first of all, my baby is a pureblood badass, and you'll have to fight me if you want to prove me wrong." There she is, the lioness in her, protecting her cub. She takes a deep breath and carries on, "Yet, I don't think she can have a wolf, at least that's what Blade thought. He said that while our daughter might have heightened senses, the best of his world, she'd be missing an important part of her soul. Honestly, I believe that you are her missing piece of the puzzle." I watch her explain everything with such ease; I wonder when the moment will come. The exact moment when she breaks down and lets her emotions run wild. After all, she just found out her daughter killed her mate.

To avoid bringing up Blade's name, I quickly change the subject. "If that's the case, do you have any ideas or guesses as to why the Alliance pumped her system full of wolfsbane? If she doesn't have a wolf, they have nothing to try to restrain, right?"

Melinda thinks for a moment and hums, "Right and wrong. Dirk has no idea how werewolves function, especially if they have only one shifter parent. I can only assume he thought Enya would get a wolf after reaching a certain age, and he was trying to kill the part she never had. If there were dangerous amounts of that substance in her blood- again, if there were a wolf in her, Enya wouldn't be alive today." When she points out things like that, I get that she has a point; besides, if Enya had a wolf, it'd appear a while after her system came clean of the wolfsbane.

"Allergic to basil?" I add the next question more to make sure my assumption wasn't wrong.

She chuckles and sets her plate aside. "My fault there, probably. I'm allergic to that plant. I swear basil grows out of the Devil's butt cheeks, right next to the damn lettuce. I hate lettuce with passion."

I stand up and run my fingers through my hair. Sometimes it annoys me that I have so many questions but never enough time to find the answers. "You mentioned that Enya would get the best of her father's world, but why does she have such poor vision?" I don't think Enya mentioned details about that, but maybe it just runs in the family. Blade was pretty much the scariest yet clumsiest Alpha I've ever met. Perhaps he had the same problem.

"Pussy..." Melinda forces her hands over her mouth just as a low growl forms in my chest. God, that woman and her daughter will make sure I have grey hair before I turn forty. "Sorry, I mean Vincent. I don't know; I just met her for the second time in my life. I haven't exactly been the most present mother. I wish I had the answers you are looking for, but some of these questions are as much a mystery to me as they are to you."

I get as much information as I can, but once the questions run out, we sit in silence. Two guards approach me to tell me that Enya has demanded the key to Dirk's cell, but once I hear the agonising screams of pain, I'm not surprised that she did. Whatever my mate deems to be the best way to deal with the pain, I won't stand in her way. Enya is a fighter; she knows how to stand up for herself and how to kill with ease- that man has nothing on her.

Screams fill the packhouse, some of the pack members mind-link me to ask what's going on, so I open the link to everyone and explain that their Luna is dealing with the founder of the Alliance. A few women bring up a possible celebration for the occasion, but I leave them to deal with it- that's the least of my worries. I don't forget to tell Aros to keep Brent in his room. This isn't the best time for a pregnant person to come downstairs. And on a side note, I need to install better sound isolation in the cells. Whatever Enya's doing down there, it sounds awful. Even I have goosebumps.

I look at Melinda and notice the look on her face. I don't want her to think her child is a monster, but there's not much I can do since we all hear what's going on. However, I'm still way too curious as to why she's not freaking out about what that asshole said, so I decide to go straight to the attack. "Do you believe him?"

"Huh? Who?" She raises an eyebrow.

"Dirk. About Blade and Enya," I look down at the floor- I don't have it in me to watch people suffer like that. Especially not a woman who had lost her mate.

"Nope," Melinda drags out the word. Her attitude leaves me speechless, and though I want to ask why- she doesn't give me a moment to come to my senses. "Blade died nearly two years after our daughter was born. Do you think a man like my Blade could be killed by a two-year-old? Oh, stop it, Dirk only said that to hurt my child and me," Melinda giggles like a schoolgirl. I swear, this woman is not in her right mind.

Her cheerful behaviour forces me over the edge. "So why the fuck didn't you say that when we were downstairs?" I don't notice myself raising my voice, but who gives a fuck anymore?

She rolls her eyes. "Isn't that obvious? To hear those screams, of course. He had it coming- making my baby into a monster and then running away like it was nothing? Yeah, no way." Melinda sticks out her tongue, proving her point like a proper three-year-old.

I'm not sure what to feel or think anymore. I gather my thoughts, and at the exact moment when I'm about to go off- something collides with the floor. I glance over my shoulder and notice that Enya's standing behind me and has dropped a knife. Her body is covered in blood- she looks like a whole mess.

I turn around and try to get closer, but she immediately backs away and raises her hand. "No, don't come near me, please," she pleads. I raise my hands and back up.

Enya's gaze focuses on her mother. "I don't know you for a day, and you're already as bad as the asshole I just killed. To everyone, but Vince, his dad, and the pack, I am nothing more than a weapon to use against enemies. Have you thought about how I'd feel if I had to spill more blood on myself for the sake of your revenge? I would leave it to someone else to take care of him, so I'd never have to stand near that man again! You could have told me I didn't kill my father! Down in those cells, all I could think about was how I killed my father and how I was going to kill the only parental figure I've known- the imposter I thought was my father. And why? Why would you do this to me?" Tears stream down Enya's cheeks. All my instincts are screaming to run to her, to take her in my arms and tell her everything will be okay, but I can't. I can't be there for her unless she wants me to be.

Melinda steps forward, and this time, Enya doesn't move. A moment ago, my mate's mother was playful, but now, she's dead serious. "I never thought of you as a weapon. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but one day you'll understand that what you did was something you had to do. Not for me, your mate, your dad or anyone you know. For you, and you only. Dirk hurt many people, but he abused you. You wouldn't get rid of the fear and the nightmares unless you fight your fear. The moment you stood up for yourself, faced your greatest fear and took the life of a man who caused it- that's the moment you set yourself free. I may be human, but a few things your father taught me will stay with me forever. One of them is to kill the root of fear, and yours was Dirk."