The signal came, Nathan’s howl, echoing down the hill, and we surged forward, a wall of muscle and intent, streaking through the trees with a precision no army could match. The first rush was always the best. Air cold and wild in my lungs, paws slamming earth, Bryce’s giggles vibrating down my spine as he whooped and hollered, "Faster, Mom! You’re the fastest, go!"
I obeyed, flying over downed branches and through bramble, every step a memory of the life I’d almost lost to exile and mistakes. The others fanned out beside me, Rissa, lean and black-furred, always three steps ahead. Tavi, a cinnamon-banded wolf, snapping playfully at my heels. Even Elle, still learning her stride, biting at the back of the pack.
We ran for miles. The route wasn’t about distance, but about shedding everything that weighed us down. At one point, Rissa cut left, and I followed, dodging a thicket, the wind full of moss and raw growth.
I let the wolf drive, instincts guiding me, until the world narrowed to speed and light and the sound of my son’s heartbeat against my spine. For the first time in days, I didn’t think about Zaden. Or the spell my mother had sewn into my bones. Or what would happen to me, or Bryce, when the magic unraveled.
When the run ended, the pack tumbled into a shallow creek at the bottom of the ridge, all of us panting. Bryce slid off my back to splash water at the others. Elle tackled him in wolf form, and for a moment they were nothing but kids, wild and unburdened.
I watched them, content.
After a while, the adults shifted back. I changed slowly, letting my human shape settle before pulling on the hoodie and jeans. One of the adults who'd stayed in her skin to help watch the kids had brought all of our clothes to the creek.
We plopped down, sweat cooling on our skin. Bryce darted between us and the water, orbiting me as always.
"So," Rissa said, nudging me, "what’s been going on with you?"
I thought about lying, but I was too tired for it. "My own mother placed a spell on me so I ‘could make better choices’ and it blocked my ability to recognize my mate."
Tavi stared at me open-mouthed. "She didwhat? Does Nathan know?"
I glanced around to see how close my uncle was. He was a few yards away, playing with a group of kids in the water. "No, hedoesn’t, and I don’t really want to tell him because he’s gonna go all Alpha on my mother."
Rissa whistled under her breath. "That’s… a lot."
Tavi’s jaw clenched. "It’s a violation, Krys. No witch should ever cast on family without consent. No wolf, either."
I shrugged, trying to make it a joke, but my hands wouldn’t stop shaking. "I guess Eleanor wanted to keep me from making stupid decisions."
Rissa put a hand on my shoulder. "You never did anything stupid. Not even once. You took care of your boy, you found a place for yourself. You didn’t lose your mind."
The silence sat between us for a minute, but Tavi broke it with a snort. "What does this mean for you and Zaden? I assume he is your mate, right?"
I didn’t answer right away. Bryce was playing chicken with the freezing creek water, daring himself closer every time. He glanced over his shoulder, checking to see if I was watching.
I said, "I don’t know. I think about him all the time, but now it’s worse. Or better. Or I don’t know what it is. It’s like the feelings I had were just ghosts, and now they’re real. Too real."
Tavi nodded. "You want him?"
"Yes. But it scares me. I don’t know how to be this person. The one who feels everything. What if I become this emotional mess once she lifts the block?"
Rissa squeezed my arm, her face all soft. "You get to decide what you do with it, Krys. Not your mom, not the pack, not anyone. We’re here, no matter what."
Tavi grinned. "And if the dragon breaks your heart, I’ll rip out his spleen."
I laughed, and it felt like the first true one in weeks. After another brief span of silence, I whispered as quietly as I possibly could, "Zaden is Bryce’s dad." I was pretty sure nobody but Tavi and Rissa heard, even with all our advanced wolf hearing.
Rissa and Tavi stared at me, both with mouths hanging open. It was Tavi who finally spoke. "He’sthe one-and-done?"
I nodded. "I need to tell him now that I know. But I also need to tell Bryce, and I don’t know how."
Rissa nodded. "Yeah. Wow, that is tough. But you have to be honest and hope for the best."
They had a million more questions about how Zaden could possibly be the Nashville one-night stand, most of which I couldn't answer. The coincidence of it all was overwhelming. "I guess fate brought us together even before he was able to feel the mating bond. If he couldn't feel it, I couldn't, even if it was before my mom put the spell on me."
We sat together until the kids started to shiver, then herded them back up the trail. I dried Bryce’s hair with the hem of my shirt, ignoring his complaints. He grabbed my hand, swinging it as we walked back.
"I like being the only kid who gets to ride you," he said. "Will I get to run when I’m older?"
