53

Leana stood there, a mix of guilt covering her otherwise youthful features. “Nel, I just need you to understand…that back then, things were different and…we didn’t realize what we were doing until…until it was too late.”

“Okay,” said Nel. “I hear you, mom.”

“Yes, you hear me,” Leana quipped adamantly and then grabbed her daughter by the shoulders. “But do you understand me?” There was a concern in her eyes that she could not hide. “Nel, I don’t…I don’t want our relationship to change. I don’t…I don’t want you…to judge me too harshly for the sins that I’ve committed against the Lycans. Against…” she exhaled. “What could very well be your people.”

“Mom,” Nel squeezed her mother’s hand. “I just want to know the truth.”

Whatever it was that Leana Larken had to tell her daughter, it was quite obvious that what happened that night affected her in ways that even now she wasn’t prepared to deal with.

“Okay,” she finally gave in. “But not tonight,” she said. “This…” she looked around. “This place is not the setting for this story.”

“Why?”

“Because love. You say that you just want to know the truth, and I believe that you feel that way now.” She paused for a prolonged minute and then said, “but after the story, there is no telling how you will feel, and I don’t want you to act to brashly that you do something that you regret. Though flawed they may be, the Mystic Cove pack wolves are my people, and I would be remiss in my title and duty as a pack member not to at least give them a head start to your potential havoc.”

“Mom,” Nel replied disbelievingly. Did her mother really think that she’d be so angry? And if that was, indeed, the question begged to be asked; what did the Mystic Cove pack do? Suddenly, Nel was starting to wonder if she really wanted to know about what truly happened that night.

“Whether we wish or no longer wish to know the truth of what happened that night, does not matter anymore, Nel,” Onyx intercepted the conversation in the back of her more human counterpart’s mind. “This has morphed into something of a necessity for us now. As frightening as it may be,” she added before going silent.

She left Nel to consider the importance of what her mother had to say. “You’re right,” Nel murmured under her breath. “Tomorrow,” she said and then looked up at her mother for confirmation.

“Not tomorrow.”

“If not tomorrow then when, mom?” Nel retorted impatiently. “You can’t avoid talking this time, mom. More than any other time before this, this is my life that we’re talking about here.”

“I know, Neliyah, I know,” Leana said. “And I swear to you, that we will talk about it. Just…just give me a day or two. That is all I’m asking of you.”

Nel glanced at Manari who carried an expression of understanding. She met Nel’s gaze and nodded, wordlessly telling her friend that she should give her mother time to build up whatever needed to be built up to speak about what seemed to be a traumatic past; not just for Nel’s potential family, but for those involved as well.

“Okay.” Nel finally agreed.

The night wore on and it was only after Nel’s conversation between her mother and Manari that she realized how incredibly exhausted she was. Shortly after, their talk, each, one by one, showered and made themselves comfortable in the room.

“Mom,” Nel said as they all huddled in the bed. Leana next to Nel while Manari conjured herself a small day bed by the bay window. She liked being as close to the moonlight as possible.

“Yes, love,” replied a tired Leana.

Nel faced her mother, “Do you still have a room here? In the pack house?”

Leana nodded against the pillow. “As a matter of fact I do.”

“Where is it?” asked Nel.

“It’s…it’s not too far from yours actually,” she confessed.

“Well, when’s the last time you’ve been in there?”

Leana smiled and ran her thumb across her daughter’s cheek, a loving expression coupling the exhaustion that set in. “I used to go in that room every single time I was tasked to come here.” she said to her daughter. “It’s hard to completely cut oneself off from what one has been born into. That room has always been my space of peace. I still-“ she was cut off by a yawn. “I still go in there from time to time to think.”

“When did you stop going in as much?”

Before Leana gave in to the tiredness of the day, she said, “When I found you.”

Nel watched her mother slip into slumber with a smile on her face. It was at that moment that she promised herself that no matter what it was that her mother would tell her in two days’ time, she’d never turn her back on Leana Larken. The woman who raised her. Her mother.

It two o’clock in the morning, and while Nel felt a comfort in being next to her mother, sleep eluded her.

There was simply too much on the girl’s mind to find a good night’s sleep. Too much had gone on that day for her to just rest as if her life hadn’t taken a turn that she never could have imagined.

Unable to take just lying there in silence and tired sleeplessness, Nel carefully sat up in bed. She glanced at her mother, and then swiftly slid out of bed. On her way out of her room, she glanced at the day bed where her best friend should have been asleep. When silence followed, Nel slipped out of her room.

Nel descended the stairs as quietly as she could muster, and then finally got to the first floor of the packhouse. It was then that she heard the excitable sounds of whispering.

At first Nel hesitated, not wanting to disturb or interrupt whoever it was that was having what seemed to be an important conversation. Still though, she did want a snack from the kitchen.

Quickly Nel slipped into the kitchen and poked her head into the fridge. Her sweet tooth was kicking into high gear that night. Fortunately, there were quite a few sweet treats to choose from.

Nel quietly pulled out the step ladder and opened it, pushing it against the counter. She wasn’t the tallest of girls, so even with the step ladder, she had a rough time getting to the package of cookies at the top cabinet.

“Who the heck puts cookies this far up?” she hissed under her breath. With a slight tip-toe and a jump, Nel finally got to the cookies and grabbed five of the large freshly baked chocolate chip cookies from the packaging. “You really could have made this easier on yourself, weather monger,” she said sarcastically, as she reminded herself that she could have used her powers to get the cookies down.

From the depth of the shadows, he watched her from afar as she tip-toed in those little shorts and that cropped loose t-shirt. Her deep exuberant, red hair was pulled up in curly tendrils atop her head.

He could inhale the sweetness of her scent from where he stood. Oddly, she didn’t seem to notice him, however. Admittedly, this was amusing to him. She must really want those cookies, he thought to himself as he silently admired every curve of voluptuous, smooth body.

“Now is as good a time as any to talk to the girl,” his wolf reminded him as they stood in silent desire.

“You’re right,” he agreed, and then decided that it was time that he make his presence known.

He started toward the door to the pantry suddenly swung open. Not loudly, but definitely with aggression. And the one who was storming out was in an obvious hurry to get away from whatever situation she was in. The girl clumsily bumped into him.

“Alpha!” she gasped, and then quickly turned her gaze to the ground. “I…I’m so sorry, I…”

As Colsin stood there taking her in, the young alpha immediately recognized her as Neliyah Larken’s best friend.

Before he could even register what she was saying, the pantry door opened again, and out came another. His best friend, and Beta.

“Reece?” Colsin’s brow cocked with curiosity. He then glanced at Manari again and noticed a grimace appear across her otherwise beautiful features. Colsin returned his gaze to his friend and noticed that he was frustrated but unwilling to display to what extent. “Everything alright?” Colsin finally asked.

Manari swallowed but didn’t say anything, leaving it up to the young Beta to answer Colsin’s question.

“Everything’s fine here.” He touched the small of Manari’s back with subtlety and she winced only slightly before Reece asked. “You good?”

Colsin, with his eyes steadily on the vampire hybrid nodded his head. “Yeah.”

“Well, then I guess we’ll leave you to it, then.” Without another word, Reece ushered a seemingly reluctant Manari Coven away.

Colsin watched them disappear into the various shadows cast around the Mystic Cove packhouse. He could tell that they weren’t done with whatever heated conversation that they were having.

He already knew Reece’s situation, so Colsin wasn’t too surprised when he saw his best friend surfacing from the pantry door behind Manari. He figured Reece would tell him what he wanted him to know when he wanted him to know.

Colsin pushed the incident aside and continued toward the kitchen to have a little conversation of his own.