“There is,”Anassa agrees, hearing my thoughts.
“Stop,”I tell her.“We are not planning a mutiny on our day off.”
By the time we arrive at my mother’s house, I’m sick with dread. There it is—that tiny, drab house.
But… the sagging roof is no longer sagging. The walls have been properly patched up for once and finished with new stucco. The crooked front gate has been installed upright. And there aren’t any holes in the porch awning anymore.
Killian. He hasn’t been just checking in on my mother; he’s been putting her world back together, piece by piece, in my absence.
Heat builds behind my eyes and I take a deep breath of the cold air, clearing my throat. I am not going to weep in the streets like a child.
As Anassa halts outside the gate, her bulk casting one long shadow that swallows the whole front of the house, the neighbors stare from their windows.
I don’t look as I dismount and head for the door. I don’t want to see the awe in their faces—or the resentment. I don’t want to see myself reflected as a stranger in their gazes.
My heart thrums in my ears as I approach the door. I pause on the stoop, gripped by a sudden confusion.
Should I knock? Or just walk in? This is my home, but somehow, it doesn’t feel like home anymore.
Before I can make up my mind, the knob turns. The door opens.
And I close my eyes, terrified to find out which version of my mother I’m going to get today.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
“Meryn!” Mother cries, and my eyes fly open. She stands in the doorframe with warm firelight glowing behind her. Her dark, graying hair is neatly combed and plaited down her back. There’s a healthy glow to her olive-toned skin, her cheeks flushed. She’s wearing a dress that looks freshly washed.
And her eyes—they’re bright and clear. Gone is the vacant stare.
She throws her arms around my neck and pulls me in as I blink in confusion.
“Blessed Goddess, I can’t believe you’re here!” she cries. I don’t know whether to hug her back or pull away and inspect her, so I pat her on the back. “Lee had told me you’d get a day off, but it’s still a wonderful gift to hold you in my arms.”
Eventually she pulls away and I notice she has an apron on, smeared with flour. She’s beenbaking.
“Mother?” I hear myself say, staring in complete disbelief. “Is that really you?”
She laughs. “Who else would I be?” Her gaze snags behind me and her eyes go wide with wonder.
She’s spotted Anassa.
“Oh,” Mother breathes, stepping past me, “this must be your direwolf.”
“Right, yeah,” I turn and say awkwardly, “Mother, this is Anassa. Anassa, this is my mother.”
I expect the direwolf to be her usual self: aloof, standoffish, maybe even a touch threatening. To my utter astonishment, Anassa turns to face my mother… andbows.
The fuck?
Mother gasps as Anassa goes down on her haunches, lowering her enormous head to rest on her front paws.
“Oh, she’sbeautiful, Meryn!” Mother gushes softly, stepping closer. “That fur… and those eyes!” She lifts a hand as though to touch the wolf and then thinks better of it, shaking her head in quiet awe. “She is special, isn’t she? A queen among wolves.”
Anassa just blinks her yellow eyes at my mother in silent agreement.
“That’s all it takes to win you over, huh?”I drawl through the bond.“Flattery? You don’t even bow for the king.”
Anassa’s mind ripples with irritation.“I give respect where respect is due.”
