Page 65 of His Fate

"You're not a dragon." I stare at her longer and breathe in, watch as she fidgets in her seat then I see it clear as a bell in my mind. "You're a black panther. But you have spots."

Three sets of eyes snap in my direction as Janet's go saucer wide. "I do. I am. I mean, yes. Yes to all of that."

"How did you—" Kai starts, but I throw him a middle finger.

"Nope. I get to do the talking now. I get to ask questions, I get to choose who speaks. No one says anything, with the exception of Janet because maybe she knew you guys were asshole dragons but she didn't tell me she loved me while keeping huge fucking secrets from me."

"Posey, please—" Kai tries again.

I turn and narrow my eyes. "Shut. Your. Pretty. Mouth."

So he does but not without glaring at me and sending anI can still speak to you like thisinto my head. Which only makes me flip him the bird again and threaten to withhold sex. Kai shut up after that.

"I don't know how the fuck I knew that and judging by the way the four of you reacted, I shouldn't have been able to figure it out." I turn to my dad and park my hands on my hips. "Start talking, old man. I want the whole fucking story, starting with the fact that you have kept a massive secret from me for thirty-two fucking years."

Dad sighs and nods. "Ok, sweetheart. Ok." He takes a deep breath and straightens his back. "Just promise me you'll listen to everything I have to say before you fly off the handle again."

I just scowl.

He nods. "Right." Then my dad proceeds to blow my goddamn mind. "My name is actually Håkon but Hank has been easier since my clan, what was left of my clan, came over to America about two hundred and fifty years ago. There were only about ten of us and we were the remnants of the Rød Drage Clan, the last of the dragon shifters in Scandinavia. Our clan was plagued with one of the few diseases that could kill shifters. We—myself, along with our king, queen, and a few others sworn to protect them—made the decision to leave our home and start over somewhere new. Shortly after we migrated, the king contracted a disease, one which is much like a shifter form of tuberculosis and he passed on. Our queen took her own life at the loss of her mate. They had already lost their children in Norway and she felt there was nothing left. Our clan scattered but kept in touch and I wound up here where I met your mother." Dad shifts uncomfortably before adding. "Your real mother."

My jaw practically hits the floor. "My real mother?"

"Claire Timmons."

"I don't understand. What do you mean my real mother? I thought Anna was my mother?"

"Technically she was your step mother. Claire was my mate, my fated mate and she was half shifter but never shifted or knew what kind. She didn't know her parents. But Claire was my mate and we were together for one hundred and fifty-seven years before you were born."

My head is fucking spinning.

This is completely insane.

My whole life has been a lie.

"What happened to her?" I finally spit out through more emotions than I can process.

My dad looks sad, hurt etched across his features. "Your mother died shortly after childbirth. It's a rare thing but because she was a half-breed she was more susceptible, and unfortunately the complications were too great." His eyes water and he blinks rapidly. "We had only a short time as a family before we lost her."

"Which is why I never felt any kind of connection to Anna, why she was such a critical bitch and didn't hesitate to abandon us when we needed her most?" A fresh set of tears roll down my cheeks. "She wasn't your mate and she wasn't my mother so she had no problem leaving either one of us."

Dad nods.

"Fucking hell." I bury my fingers in my hair and tug at the roots then aggressively throw the mess of curls up into a bun. "So everything I've known, right down to your actual first name has been a goddamn lie. Am I even thirty-two-years old or were you able to glamour me cause yeah, I know what that shit is too, into only thinking I'm in my thirties when really I'm older than shit?"

My dad has the decency to look sheepish and a tad embarrassed. "You were born in 1927."

I immediately plant on my ass and Kai jumps from the chair, joins me on the floor but is smart enough not to touch me.

"But you were with Anna my whole life. I don't understand."

"I glamoured both of you into believing that, changed your memories to match the age you believed you were. Anna really did leave us twenty years ago but you were as you are now, we really were together the twelve years prior but not in the way you remember it. She had no knowledge of what we are and I imagine that made things that much harder."

"So not only has my reality been a lie but my memories are too? This is so fucked up. I can't even wrap my head around it. I had a whole different existence without having a clue." I wipe my tears and avoid looking him in the eye. "Will I ever get that back?"

Slowly my dad nods. "I've already lifted the glamour. Your true memories will come to you as dreams first, before they return fully."

"Why?" I look up at him. "Why did you do it? Why did you lie and hide things from me, change my entire life?"

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