I groaned, “Why me?” Buttercup laughed. Paige urged, “Do continue.” Buttercup cackled, “Jase will be into if Addison did it too.” I muttered, “I’m being punished….and I have been SO NICE to every single person in this room.” Avery snickered now.
Buttercup nodded at her, “Dakota too. They have been waiting for their mates. Let me just say they pout every time a new one was found.” I hummed, “That’s true. People in good packs often go looking and those of rank tend to be more of the type to pout… because they want their partner.”
Paige teased, “Is that in a study you read?” I answered, “Yes.” They all laughed. Buttercup asked, “Do you read a lot of studies or something?” Paige snorted, “She reads an inordinate amount of them, but that pales in comparison to the ones she does herself.” I stuck my tongue out at her.
Eventually a knock came on the door and Buttercup opened it. Zoe, Dana Conners mate, was there. She announced, “They are ready for you guys to come back.” Buttercup stood saying, “Thanks, Zoe. Everyone, this is Zoe, Alpha Dana Conners mate.”
Paige linked, “Gosh, if only we could say we knew that.” I shot her look, nearly laughing. I admitted, “I’ve heard you cook…. I like cooking too.” Zoe asked, “Really? That’s so great! We can cook together sometime.” Uhh what? Did she mean that?
I hummed while Sierra squeezed my hand. Zoe was probably just being nice. No one liked cooking with me… In fact, they were ordered not to. Well, Mason and Hendrick liked cooking with me… but that was it. So, she was being nice. Conclusion made. Freya said, “Not made.” But it was.
We walked back into the living room. Xander held his arms open, and I walked right into them. I linked him, “Is everything ok?” Xander answered, “Yes, it is.” It did not seem like it. There was a lot of tension in this room…and I was not usually good at noticing that…so it was definitely bad.
Tristan cleared his throat, “Now, I would like to ask my question.” He glanced at Xander then added, “Please.” I shrugged, hedging my bets on how badly he wanted to ask his question to get what I wanted. I countered, “If I get to ask one back.” Tristan agreed, “Fine.” I was right…I did like being right.
I made a ‘go ahead’ gesture. He asked, “Why the in damn HELL did you not report Trevor McCann to the Werewolf Council?” Did he have to start with such a hard question? There were several reasons. One was even standing behind him.
I locked eyes with Alpha Kyle then looked away. Dylan squealed, “I got you future adoptive daughter Melashley. You see Beta T, love that name by the way. It’s so approachable. I think what’s happening here is clear. According to that letter we saw, my buddy Peter was impersonated. The impersonator said he didn’t want to see her. She didn’t file because….”
Alpha Kyle yelled, “ME?! Are you fucking kidding me? You let a man claim to be your mate because of me?!” I raised an eyebrow instantly debating that claim, “I did not LET him claim to be my mate. I told everyone, INCLUDING him, many… MANY times he wasn’t my mate. It was annoying how much I said it….and I say that under the lens of knowing…I can be annoying…so…it was a lot.”
“Which was NOT my fault… because he kept saying he was… so that was on him… when you think about it. That piss poor, pathetic excuse of an Alpha blood and man in the dungeons here doesn’t know how to do his job. HE KNEW Trevor wasn't my mate.”
I growled, “He MUST have known that more than I thought he did. He said he couldn’t do anything because I didn’t have a wolf. Which now that I think about it... of course he knew I had one. He’d just helped hide her from me… he wasn't going to announce that. That’s whole…thing a box right now.”
“Back to the points which is….that I told Trevor A LOT I wasn’t his. So, to be overly and abundantly clear, I did not LET Trevor walk around claiming to be my mate and just accept it. I fought him about it ALL the time. Just ask Sierra, Addison, Avery, Paige, Cayden and Micah.”
Tristan grumbled, “I don’t need them to tell me anything right now. I need to talk to my little sister. You still should’ve filed.” I shot back, “Why? So I could screw up Jason’s life?! If the Werewolf Council came, they would ALL come. Which means Alpha Eric would’ve come!”
Alpha Eric spoke, “I will get a look for interrupting, but please just call me Eric. We are family.” I shrugged, “Ok… Eric... would’ve come. I didn’t know what anyone knew about my situation or why I was gone. I knew I’d never met him, but he’d absolutely know who I was if he saw me.” He nodded. See?
I added, “They all would. I didn’t know where Red Run said I was. All I knew is that if I set foot in a pack that was allied with Red Run, I was to be imprisoned if I was caught. I was told I had to pick a different name so none of you knew I was me.”
I grumbled, “The name I chose was obvious enough though…. Not that ANYONE outside Black Mountain reached out to me. I picked it so Jason would know it was me. I wanted him to know. I wanted him to be proud of me.”
Jason said, “I am proud of you, Mel. We just don’t understand what you’re saying.” I glared at him then yelled, “OH COME ON! You do know…you don’t want and that’s not the same thing but I can spell it out if that’s what you’d like.”
“Eric is known for being a fair man. I didn’t know if he knew you kicked me out because you blamed me for the deaths of the rest of our family. I did know if he didn’t have that information… he’d see me and know who I was.” Eric nodded again. I was so right! Freya snorted.
I continued, “He would’ve asked me why I was there, and I am a horrible liar! Everything I know says he’s good at getting answers. He also has a wife and daughter who can MAKE people tell the truth. He would NEVER be ok with me being treated as I was there. Or that I was sent away from Red Run, if he didn’t already know.”
Eric interjected, “No, I would not have.” I nodded, “Exactly. He’d have ended the alliance with Red Run. Then you wouldn't have been safe, Jason. Black Mountain disbanding an alliance would’ve caused basically everyone else in an alliance with you to do the same. I couldn’t do that to you. Mom, Dad and T wouldn’t have wanted that.”
Before anyone could say anything. Melinda and MaryBeth ran into the house. They squealed and ran to me. Every hurtful and hateful letter they’d written disowning me played in my mind. They’d both wished me dead at one point or another.
I stood and stepped away from them and my friends jumped in front of me crossing their arms. MaryBeth and Melinda frowned. MaryBeth whispered, “Ladybug, what’s wrong?” Grandpa Ben said, “Girls, we didn’t get to explain everything. Just take a beat.”
Dane and Landon pulled their mates back into their arms. Both shot me a questioning look. I didn’t have the answers… and that was an odd place for me to be. Technically, both men were my Uncle’s…. I was closer to Dane because he was in our pack. I’d never even met Landon, but I protected him.
My Grandpa Ben asked, “What did you think about us? You clearly didn’t think I was dead. Since you’ve not mentioned it.” I acted like it didn’t hurt when I said, “You all disowned me….but before that you were mad and didn’t want to see my face. It’s my turn to ask a question.” Grandpa Ben opened his mouth, but Xander growled. Grandpa Ben sighed and nodded.
I looked at my dad and pushed my fear down. I asked him, “Are you my dad? I mean… you are my dad…I know that…you were always there for me…I just mean… are you like my biological dad?” My voice broke.
My mom gasped, “WHAT?!” My dad growled, “What are you talking about?” Alpha Kyle sighed, “In my letter, that is still not from me, it said she wasn’t your daughter Drake. That she didn’t shift so her father was a Hunter.”
Dad roared, “EXCUSE ME?!” Pepper’s voice mixed with his as tears were falling down my cheeks. I whispered, “Are you though? I have a wolf now… .so you have to be my biological dad... Don’t you?” Micah whispered, “Oh, Mel.” He must have practiced that since he didn’t say Ashley.
Xander wrapped me up in his arms. My dad vehemently declared, “There is NO question that you are MY daughter in every way. There was NEVER a question about that. Your mom has only ever been with me. For god’s sake, we look alike. WHO DID THIS? Who convinced MY DAUGHTER I wasn’t her father?” A sob bubbled up from my throat.
