The moment of truth

The talk with Eve, Adam, Crissie and Joshua went well. It’s a bit clearer who we are facing, right now. But there's a lot to do. I’ve promised them that I will try to find more information about the disappearance of Ethan. Besides, I’m still wondering who gave the Shadow Pack the information about Eve. You know, Thomas being her father. Also the place where they’re living right now, it all started with that.

I’m picking the end of my braid, a habit of mine since I was a little child. It calms me down and helps me think. The only ones who knew about Eve are Bonnie and James. And me, of course. I think about it, but I can’t think of anybody else. Who benefits from chaos in our pack? I don’t know.. We don’t have enemies, well, not that I’m aware of.

I pick my phone and decide to ask mom. She and dad ran this pack before me, maybe she knows something about this. Now that I think about this: I asked mom for advice about this matter at that time. She maybe still remembers it.

“Mom? It’s me, how are you?”

“Oh darling, nice that you’re calling! I’m fine, thank you. Is everything OK in the pack? I can hear the worries in your voice.” mom answers me, with her lovely soft voice.

I chuckle, mom will never change. She always knows what’s going on when it comes to me.

“I’m fine too, mom. But indeed, something is going on over here..” and I explain everything that we faced the last weeks. Of course, with a little less details. Her heart couldn’t take it if she knew every detail. Although she’s still young, for a grandma, she’s born with heart problems. Werewolves can heal easily, but it’s different when things are not developed correctly in the womb. There’s nothing that we can do about, we’re still part ‘human’.

“... but darling, that sounds like you can use my help! I’ll be there in three hours, maybe four if I need to pick up Victoria as well.”

“Mom! NO! Stop. This is where I was afraid of. You’re not coming here, not yet. But I indeed can use your help. Listen: do you remember Bonnie and James Evans?” I ask mom.

“Hmmm. Oh of course! James is your Beta, right? How could I forget those people? Bonnie is so sweet and kind. And I like their children...”

I nod, immediately recognizing my mistake: mom can’t see that..

“Yes! Well, their children are called Joshua and Eve. And you missed a lot, lately, to be honest. Uhh.. James betrayed me, so I had to mind control him. Now his son, Joshua, is my new Beta - with the help of his mother: Bonnie. Oh and Eve happens to be Adam’s fated mate, and she’s a chosen one too. Actually: Bonnie is one too.”

I’m incredibly nervous right now. I call mom every week, but I’ve hid this information. I didn’t want her to worry about it. I was planning to tell her everything, but dosed. She can’t take much at the time. But now I’m worried about her reaction.

“And you couldn’t tell this before? Avery WhiteMoon, this is not how I raised you! I’m very disappointed in you, how could you hide this from me? This pack is my baby, too!”

Mom’s voice started like she could cry, but now she’s yelling. I can tell she’s angry now.

“.. you know what, child, I’ll call you later.”

And before I know it, the line is dead. She really hung up on me. I sigh, I fucked up. I know it. What’s next? Well, a talk with Bonnie isn’t a bad idea, I guess.

---

“NO! This can’t be!” I’m yelling in Bonnie’s face. “Where is he now? How could you do this, Bonnie? I trusted you!”

I’m running through the packhouse, searching for James. Apparently, his mind isn’t controlled fully anymore. Bonnie found a mage who tried to dispel it. Although it did not fully work, it was enough to gave James a bit of his free will back. I try to control his mind, but like Bonnie said: it’s not working. Not the way it should be.

I stand still, trying to catch my breath and to refocus. I look at Bonnie and a pair of shocked eyes stare back.

“I’m so sorry, Avery. I…”

“STOP! Call me Luna, Bonnie. I’m not your friend right now.” And I can feel how my aura is bursting. Too bad it isn’t working fully on Bonnie, knowing she’s a born Chosen One as well. But me being her Luna is still doing enough to let her step back.

Bonnie looks down at her feet, defeated. She continues: “You have to know, I only did it to take revenge. The moment you mind controlled him, you took away the ability to punish him for everything he did to me! But how could I take revenge on somebody who isn’t able to know why and face me, because he’s not himself?” Bonnie looks up again, her eyes full of tears and hatred.

“He raped me, Avery! He raped me!” yells Bonnie, completely ignoring the fact I wanted her to call me Luna. But I don’t give a shit right now, I’m shocked.

“He did whát?” I ask, shocked.

Bonnie sniffs and nods. “Yes, he raped me. After years of searching, I couldn’t find my mate. James had always been a fan of me, and proposed to me a couple of times. One day, I had a weak moment and I said yes. I wanted a family, too, you understand? I wanted to feel loved, I wanted to be cared for. So, we married. But it went downhill from then. He was not good for me, he belittled me and I couldn’t have a penny to buy me some new clothes or something. I started to refuse his attempts to get laid and already planned to divorce. One day, he got drunk and chained me to the bed. I couldn’t go anywhere! He raped me, and I got pregnant with Joshua. That was the moment I could not leave him anymore. I wanted to give my child a family...”

Bonnie starts crying out loud, her shoulders are shaking. I walk over to her, and hold her to my chest. Because she’s shorter than I am, I can easily hug and comfort her and still be able to talk above her head.

“It’s alright, Bonnie. I’m here for you. Let’s find a solution, together. How does that sound?” I ask her. I feel her nod of confirmation against my chest. “Good. But please, tell me. Have you any idea where he is right now? We need to find him, he may have answers for all this...”

“Maybe our old house still exists, the one we had before we came here..” she whispers.

“Well, let’s go then!”