Page 83 of Ruined Wolfsbane

“I met Evie when Abbie was seven months pregnant with Xander and Bastian. She came to Wolves Hollow for college. Evie crashed into me when I was at the store for ice cream for your mom,” Uncle Vale says with a smile. A ghost of a grin crosses my lips, because that sounds exactly like Mama. She was the clumsiest person I knew. “I was simultaneously elated and devastated to find her. After I invited her over for dinner, I rushed home to tell your mom what happened. She was upstairs packing?—”

“And crying,” Aunt Abbie interrupts with a watery smile.

“And crying. Your mom planned to take you, Kai, to go live with her parents. That way I could start over with my mate. Evie wouldn’t hear of it. When she arrived, Kai was the first to greet her. Evie was so angry when she asked if Kai was my son. I thought she was going to demand I never see him again. Instead, she asked to meet my wife. When she saw how pregnant Abbie was, Evie said to me, ‘Valentine, whatever the hell your last name is, you better not be planning to abandon this sweet woman and your adorable child for me.’”

That sounds exactly like my mom. She was always putting the needs of everyone else above her own. Mama would never dream of breaking up anyone, especially not a couple with children.

“We were both shocked, to say the least,” Aunt Abbie informs her sons. “Evie refused to come between us. She only stayed in Wolves Hollow for a semester, but we both became very close to her during that time. Evie quickly became my dearest friend.”

“She left because it was hard on her and me being so close to each other. She moved to Hawthorne Grove, fell in love, and had our Bumble Bee. We visited every month when they lived there. When they moved here, we saw them every week.” Uncle Vale’s voice is wistful as he remembers my mom.

Xander swipes a tear off my cheek when his dad finishes. I hadn’t even realized I was crying. It’s bittersweet talking about my mom again. Patrick banned any mention of her. Not discussing Mama made it easier to hide away from the grief all these years, but it felt like I was drowning in sorrow all alone without anyone to talk to about my mom.

“What’s a mate?” I ask. While Uncle Vale was talking, I got the gist—some sort of romantic connection—but I’ve never heard the term before.

Uncle Vale and Aunt Abbie glance at each other in confusion. The Wyldhart brothers trade looks of reluctance. Malachi finally breaks the charged silence. “It’s a… wolf thing. It’s kind of like marriage.”

His answer jogs my memory of Patrick turning into a wolf. “Oh, holy fuck. You’re wolves! You turn into massive wolves!”

I dart my wide eyes between each of the Wyldhart brothers. They’re also looking at me in shock. Xander’s the first to recover. “Who told you that?”

“Patrick. He turned into a motherfucking wolf to prove that he wasn’t crazy!” I’m aware that I’m shouting, but this is all just so wild. My hot-as-sin professors can turn into forest creatures. I’m both mildly terrified and super intrigued.

“What are you talking about, Bee?”

“Oh shit, did I just out you as wolves to your parents? That’s awkward. I’m sorry. I’m literally the worst at keeping secrets.” I cringe as I apologize to the Wyldhart brothers. That’s one heck of an awkward conversation to have with your parents.

Oh hey, Mom and Dad. We like to howl at the moon and chase our tails now. No biggie.

Bastian laughs at my wordy apology. “No, pretty girl. Wolf shifting is genetic. Dad and Mom are both wolf shifters too.”

“Bee, you know that we’re wolf shifters and that your mom was one too.” Uncle Vale tilts his head as he talks, assessing me like I’m a puzzle he can’t quite figure out.

“No, I never knew that,” I insist.

“You did, honey. Your favorite activity as a kid was riding around on Vale’s back. Your dad was so nervous the first time Vale shifted for you. He was ready to take him out if he so much as breathed wrong in your direction.” Aunt Abbie laughs as she recounts my dad’s overprotectiveness. With Malachi, Xander, and Bastian huddled around me, she moves from her perch on my bed to stand over with Uncle Vale.

“I don’t have any memory of that. You knew my dad? I don’t remember him either,” I say in a small voice. I always thought he knocked up my mom and skedaddled. Aunt Abbie makes it sound like he really loved me.

I would remember that, wouldn’t I?

“What’s going on here, Vale?” Aunt Abbie asks him.

He shakes his head and frowns at me in thought. Uncle Vale rubs a hand over his short black beard. It’s sprinkled with more gray than it used to be. “You don’t think Evie would have taken her memories, do you?”

Aunt Abbie’s eyes widen, and her mouth drops open. “Evie could have taken Briar’s memories to keep Patrick from knowing what she is and keep her safe.”

“Fuck! If Patrick was a danger to them, why didn’t she come to us?”

“I don’t know, Vale.” Aunt Abbie puts her hand on Uncle Vale’s chest to comfort him. She’d probably try to stroke his face, but she’s so short she can’t reach. “Is there anything Evie gave you before she died, Briar?”

I shake my head before remembering the weird dream I had. Mama didn’t give me anything, but I did manage to snag her locket before Patrick could. “Maybe her locket? I haven’t been able to open it though. I had the strangest fever dream before waking up, so I might know how to now.”

“Give it a try,” she encourages.

My hands go up to my neck, hoping Patrick didn’t take the locket when he tried to kill me. I sigh in relief when I feel the familiar chain hanging around my neck. Reaching up, I’m about to unclasp it when the door slams open. Ava rushes in, her strawberry-blonde hair billowing behind her. She’s followed by a woman with vibrant red hair.

“Rosie!” she screeches as she launches herself at me. I grunt as she collides with my battered body. Ava throws her arms around my neck, and I hug her tightly around her middle. “I was so scared. I thought you’d never wake up.”

---