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He nods slowly. “She poisoned herself.”
Another unexpected death. Clearly, there is more than one reason why chimera are not over-running this world. They do not seem to be very good at self-preservation.
“Then we can let the children back inside,” I realize.
The shifter kids were not afraid when we woke them.
They reacted as if we were their guardians, not asking any questions as we ushered them outside.
We did not have to make up a lie to get them out here. They simply came with us when we asked.
It is bad that they do not question anything, but tonight I cannot complain.
The woman who was sleeping in the same room as many of the children is talking to Scratch.
She had questions, but she didn’t hesitate to follow him, either.
He moves over to the front path where I am standing with Scar.
“Fox,” he starts, looking vaguely awkward.
“What is it?” I ask, wondering why the woman is looking at me that way.
Surely, Scratch told her we have a mate.
“It is your mother,” he blurts, glancing back at the woman.
“My mother?” I ask, as the memory of Scar’s mother telling me my mother is alive floods back to me.
I blink at the woman with renewed interest. She is short and slim with long, auburn hair.
She smiles as she approaches. “I’m told your name is Fox. Could we talk?”
This woman is my mother. I am astounded by the emotion that rising up in me on recognizing that truth. Of course. I was told she worked here, and here she is.
“We can talk,” I tell her, not asking Scar.
He will understand. All of my brothers will understand.
“I can’t talk for long,” she tells me, as Scratch begins to let the children back inside. “I have to get back to them.”
“Of course,” I tell her, as we move off to the side of the garden.
“I thought about you a lot,” she says, her eyes misting up with unshed tears. “I felt in my heart that you survived. I tried to go into the woods many times at night, and I was always caught and dragged back to town. Eventually, I stopped trying. I knew if I persisted, one of those monsters would drain me.”
“You know about them?” I ask, barely able to let it sink in that I had a living parent who cared about me the whole time while I was being raised in The Abyss.
“I knew Maria was something evil. I had a … well it was described as a heart attack, not long after you were born. I knew she’d done something to me. I felt it when she put her hand on my shoulder.”
It makes me angry to hear that the chimera hurt her, but if I am honest, it is more surprising that she survived their treatment. It seems likely that Scratch and Snake’s mothers were subjected to the same thing. The chimera probably did not want anyone left alive who might oppose them.
“Can I hug you?” I ask, not sure if it’s appropriate, but wanting to touch her to know she is real.
She smiles at me. “Of course.”
She steps closer and I wrap my arms around her.
She is real. She is my mother, and she is alive.
