Talons

Chapter 27: The Liar

Rhea’s POV

A few weeks have passed, and my mother has been pressing me about my urges. She is extremely curious about what goes on between my legs, and while I know it's because she is hopeful my wolf is returning; it bothers me completely.

She has even sent Raven and Robin to investigate, but both my sisters are terrible at doing my mother’s dirty work. They know how to talk to me, but they haven’t been groomed the way I have. I can’t even tell you how many times my mother sent me to spy on them before I realized it was wrong for me to rat my siblings out for a rock crystal growing kit.

“Good morning,” I say, this time giving both my parents a tight hug. We will be moving out soon, and I feel guilty for being mean to them. They have been nothing but loving parents, and even when they were too busy to pay attention to us, we never felt neglected; especially me.

“Jacques is here.” I shove a few spoons of food into my mouth, and dash toward the door, but my father stops me. I look at him incredulously, and he shakes his head in pity.

“You lied?” I say, turning to face my mother in shame. She simply points to the chair and I stomp back to it as my father collects his things and promptly makes himself unavailable.

“So, instead of muñeca (doll), should I call you mentirosa (liar)?” I flinch, the name wouldn’t be too far off. I lie a lot, but because I am good at it, I do not get caught.

“No,” I reply, doing my best to look submissive. “What do you want to know?”

“What do you have with Jack?” My mother asks, and I roll my eyes. I’m not exactly sure what it is about him. He is handsome, but I do not feel a ‘stomach roll’ around him. Would I like to see him naked? Absolutely. Do I need to see it? No.

“I don’t have anything with him,” I admit.

“And if you were sixteen?” My mother has me stumped there. I can say no, but that would be a lie, and if I say yes, that would also not be entirely true.

“I can’t answer that question.”

“So, you are telling me that you can tell me what kind of caca I stepped in based on its visual appearance, but you can’t tell me if you are interested in a boy?” I giggle, and I hear Raven giggle as well. The nosey jerk must have been spying for my father. “Might as well join the conversation if you aren’t going to hide well,” my mother shouts and Raven reveals herself. She had been super busy with preparations for our move, which is good because I don’t have the time with all my schoolwork. “So?”

“Mommy, I don’t know how to explain it. I don’t feel the rolls that you described, or the flipping that Robin described, or even the throbbing that Raven described.” I cast a glance toward my sister, who knows I pulled her into the conversation to lift some of the heat off myself. “I like to look at Jack, I like the way his voice sounds, and he is easy to talk to.”

“Like Luke?” I make a face and shake my head from side to side.

“Different from Luke, but not exactly.” My mother sighs, and my sister kisses her cheek before reminding her that I have always been different. She grabs an apple and leaves the room. I know she is going shopping based solely on the shoes she is wearing, and I now understand what my mother meant. I should be able to confirm my feelings, but I genuinely don't know what they are. 

In the time that Jack visited, he was mostly with Luke and Lark, so I only got to see him around dinner time. I think the most refreshing part about him for me was that he did not make any assumption, and although I kept my glasses on, he never commented on them or made me feel bad about them the way others did.

“Okay, I believe you, but then there is Colt.” I look at my mother with a face that screams ‘what the f*ck?’ and she laughs maniacally. “Do you see the difference?” I nod, realizing exactly what my mother means. 

She thinks I see Colton as scary because he is extremely tall and his eyes are a very bright green that, if I am being honest, go well with the golden blonde of his hair. When I was younger, I used to think he was a vampire, especially because his skin was so fair, and my mother still believes that I am put off by him because of his physical appearance, not because of his actions.

“I see the difference, but I don’t feel anything physical for either of them.” That is a lie; I am equally repulsed and terrified of Colton, but with Jack I am conflicted. Everything about him is warm to me, while everything about Colton is cold.

“I think he likes you.” My eyes light up, but I quickly control them.

“He was just being polite; Jack is very approachable.”

“I’m not talking about Jack.” Once again, my facial expression shouts my outrage and my mother giggles. “I saw the way Colt was looking at you. He wanted to see what was behind your glasses. I think he is starting to realize that all of this is an act.” My mother uses her finger to circle around my form, and I know she is talking about my style.

“I don’t wear anything for Colton’s sake,” I say a little too aggressively, and my mother draws her face back in mock indignation. 

“Cálmate, mija. It was a joke. I can see that boy still terrifies you, but I told you, I knew his mother well; he is not a vampire.” I resist the urge to roll my eyes. Vampires exist but they don’t typically mess with our kind because our bite is harmful to them. It’s not fatal, but it does weaken them to near human levels.

“Can a vampire be mated to a wolf?” I ask, and my mother nods.

“It is possible.”

“But like… has it ever happened?” I see my mother begin to look uncomfortable and I know she is hiding something. “Dime, (tell me,)” I say.

“No,” my mother replies resolutely, and I am shocked.

“Why not? Do you not trust me?”

“I trust you, but not Jack.” My mouth hangs open. 

“Why would I tell him?”

“You tell him everything else.” My mother stands and walks away, but I follow her. 

“Did you go through my phone?”

“No, your sister did. She said you weren’t yourself and she was worried he was feeding you lies.”

“Which sister?” I find myself growing angry as I try to figure out who had access to my phone because I am never without it. I cannot mind link, and as an omega I probably never will, so my phone is my lifeline. “You're lying!” I shout excitedly. “Mommy! That is not funny.”

“So, you and Jack have exchanged numbers?” She asks and now I can't even deny it.

“Yes, but you can look through my phone. We do not speak about anything other than music and school.”

“Does he know you are a minor?”

“Yes.” ‘You can thank Lark for that,’ I think bitterly.

Colton’s POV

I know from Mandy, of all people, that Jack is no longer visiting with the Claw pack. I have already reached out to Lark and told him what I know, and he was livid. Unfortunately, there is nothing he can do about Jack, and while Luke was disgusted by the story, he was not surprised. He tried to tell me that the man had changed, but I disagree. 

Brain is not just a minor, but she also has special needs and what he is doing is wrong; what I did was wrong. I hope that she doesn't hate me further for stepping into something that doesn't concern me, but every story I have heard about her from Carter or Mandy tells me that she deserves better.

It has been a few weeks since then, but Mandy is still stomping around the pack grounds in a bad mood. I have to admit though, she has been kicking ass in the gym and my father has finally acknowledged her. She will rank easily within our pack, but she isn't interested in fighting. Mandy likes making money, and she spends a lot of time investing online. Carter says that he has watched their savings grow at a rate he thought was impossible, and I now know who I will be putting in charge of the pack finances when I take over.

"Look, I know you don't like me, but as your future alpha, I can't have you walking around scaring people." Mandy shrugs.

"A few of these b*tches ought to be afraid of me," she declares boldly, and I agree. Carter has had a few pack flings and they like to flaunt around her. She usually ignores them, but I don’t know if she will show restraint for much longer.

"How about you tell me what's wrong, and I promise I will look the other way.” Mandy smirks and I immediately regret my offer.

“It's nothing that concerns the pack. My mother called saying that Titi Mavis says that Baby B is texting Jack, but she doesn’t get a good vibe from him.”

“I have handled it on alpha Lark’s end. Even if he visits, they will never be left alone.”

“Why?” Mandy has stopped punching the bag she was going at long enough to actually look at me.

“Because I was an ass to your cousin for years, so I’m making amends… and I don’t like Jack.”