The Wolf and the Natural ✔️

~•33•~

Everyone was rigid. We didn't move, our bodies were to tense and frozen to do anything other than blink and breathe.

Nobody spoke for several long seconds. My mom continued to eat, the only sound in the room was her silverware hitting the plate.

I tried to see Arlis's reaction but he was facing too forward and I was scared to turn to my head to him.

"You think I'd be just okay with any man taking my daughter? No no no. But Alpha Arlis Barron? And his mate, my daughter. I trust you." She was acting like none of this was spooky. She just kept on eating her dinner while the rest of us looked like deers caught in headlights.

"H— how did you know that?" Dalia asked, the first of us to speak.

Mom rose one eyebrow. "Because I'm Linda, maiden name Partain."

"No." Anthony's fork dropped onto the floor and he made no attempt to pick it up.

"She had one sister." Iris said.

What the fuck is going on? Who's she? What the hell. I'm so lost. I'm in the desert without a map.

"Who had two kids. My cousin is Becker, if he were here he'd greet me like an old friend." Mom stabbed her turkey. "I'm surprised none of you recognize her." Mom pointed at me with her turkey fork.

I recoiled back. "Mom, I'm out of the loop. What the hell is going on on?"

"Your mom is Sisca Partain?" Arlis asked.

Sisca? Sisca who? My mom's parents are dead. I've seen their graves and my grandmother's name was not Sisca. It was Cassi.

Mom nodded however, sighing. "Yeah. I might've disowned her and all. I didn't want to be a witch. I didn't want to subjugate my children to that life. I had human blood put in Chance and Kadelyn." She rolled her shoulders back. "Have none of you seen Kate?"

I stood up from my chair, knocking it over. "Mom!? You explain things without rhetorical questions. I want answers now. What are you talking about!?"

Mom stood up too, just as angry. Her chair didn't knock over though, and somehow she made the movement seem more fluid. "Becker called me, asking why some girl who looks just like his mom is mated to Arlis and I had to explain. Oh, that's not Polyphema that's my daughter. Who yeah, is related to her. Polyphema is your great Aunt, and you take after her looks in near perfection." Mom explained.

She reached inside her pant pockets and took out a photograph of a woman who sort of looked like my mom— my grandma I suppose— and a woman who looked just like me. "That's Polyphema."

Iris and the others looked back and forth from the picture to me, back and forth back and forth.

"Oh. Okay cool." Arlis went back to his food. "Everything makes sense now."

I widened my eyes and picked my chair back up, sitting back down. "No. Nothing makes sense. Am I a witch? Becker is my second cousin? Why are you just now telling me this? Mom!"

Arlis cleared his throat. "Okay not for you, but things make sense to me. When Becker was drunk and was saying, "you're dead. You died." The fact that you, not you, called Konrad husband in my vision. I'm fine. I'm learning things."

I huffed out a deep breath. "Mom?"

"No. You're not a witch. I'm assuming Arlis bit you so you'll be a full blood werewolf. Becker is your second cousin. I didn't want you to ever know." Mom said plain out and simple.