Page 40 of Beta Hybrid

Zenna’s mouth falls open. I watch her blink her own blue eyes several times, dumbstruck.

‘What?’ Jana snaps. ‘You’re Zenna’s birth mother? The one who abandoned her?’

For once, I’m inclined to agree. I loose a low growl, but the woman doesn’t seem bothered.

Zenna blinks. ‘Wait. I thought… I thought my father was fae. That’s what the journal said…’ Her voice trails off.

The woman smiles. ‘That’s partly true. I am like you, my girl. Part witch, part fae.’

Through the bond, Zenna shudders with shock.

‘Come.’ The woman holds out a hand. ‘Aldrich is waiting for us.’ Her tone is smooth and calm. As though she had been expecting this reunion.

The woman glances at me. ‘You will have to climb in your human forms. You won’t make it up as you are.’

Zenna swears down the bond, purely in shock.

I shift, then place Zenna behind me. ‘Why are you here?’ I demand.

Not a crease of her brow. She is utterly calm and unaffected by my threats. ‘I am here to take you to the Origin. He would like to see you.’

Zenna splutters. ‘Okay, but you’re not—you can’t be… are you really my mother?’

For the first time, she looks slightly sad. Uncomfortable. But her pale features smooth out again. ‘Yes. I am.’ She holds out a hand. ‘My name is Andrea.’ Her lips twitch into a smile. ‘I know there’s much to talk about, but I’m afraid this meeting comes first.’

When Zenna doesn’t take her hand—simply stares at it as though it’s going to bite her—Andrea turns, looking entirely unaffected, and wades gracefully into the woods, up the incline of the mountain. ‘Follow me, please.’ Her airy voice drifts back to us on a breeze, soft yet perfectly audible.

I grab a pair of pants from our packs, Vale and I covering up. I watch my mate, feeling her heart pounding down the bond and a thousand emotions tearing her up. I wrap an arm around her as she looks at her mother, pale hair swishing as she walks. Zenna twirls her own hair around a finger. Tears well in her eyes, desperate to reach out to this stranger, at the same time as hurt and anger stomp all over her insides.

I wish I could protect you from this, I tell her.

My mate nuzzles into my chest as we walk. Me too. She holds onto me tightly, slightly digging her nails into my side. Please don’t go.

I kiss her head. Never.

Andrea leads us to the base of three large tree trunks, woven together. As we catch up, she tilts her head back. ‘Welcome.’ She sets her foot on the bottom rung of the ladder and starts climbing.

Chapter Seventeen

Zenna

‘No. I’m not going anywhere until you tell me what you’re doing here.’ I fold my arms over my chest, letting her know I’m serious.

My… mother’s lip kicks up. ‘Stubborn, I see.’ Andrea removes her foot from the ladder and faces us. ‘I understand. You’re curious, of course. What I’m doing here is a long story. Ask me what you really want to know.’

I swallow. Where to begin? For a moment, I forget the others, except Cai at my side. ‘Why did you abandon me as a baby?’

Andrea’s blue eyes, just a shade or two darker than my own, grow sad. ‘It… it’s complicated. That…’ She looks down at her folded hands. ‘It was the right thing to do at the time.’

‘For who?’

‘For you. For your father and I.’ Andrea’s steady gaze meets mine. ‘We didn’t intend to have a child. Honestly, I didn’t know that I could. Faerie children are rare. When I realised I was pregnant… we were in the middle of a lot of dangerous things. We couldn’t stop what we were doing, and we couldn’t stand the thought of you in danger.’ She sighs, but her posture remains perfect. She’s graceful like I’ve heard full faeries are. ‘It… wasn’t what we wanted to do, Zenna. I found a local coven and gave the High Priestess my baby girl.’ Her voice cracks. ‘I needed you to be safe. This way, you were.’

‘What were you doing that was so important you had to give me up? Is my father here?’

‘Not at the moment, no. And… that, my dear, is a longer story than we have time for right now.’ Her voice is smooth again. She blinks away unshed tears. ‘I have cared for Aldrich since his return. He’s like a father to me. A better father than my own was. Please, come.’ She starts climbing the ladder without a backward glance.

I’m a moment behind her. My grandfather? The others are all waiting, I realise.

---