A Howling Heart
Chapter forty-six

Fae's POV.

Matias groans and breaks the kiss first. "We must stop." His words are filled with pain. It must physically pain him to stop touching me and kissing me like my mate should, but he exercises saint-like control. "W-why?"

"I cannot have you until tomorrow. If we don't stop now. I won't be able to. I need to wait." He sighs and gently helps me back into my seat before he presses his forehead against the steering wheel, and I frown. "I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."

Yes, you do...

It's still there...

You still want him. You're just downplaying it.

I firm my lips so I don't groan.

He pulls back out onto the street.

"Tomorrow will be..." He doesn't finish his sentence, and I'm thankful because the closer we get to my house, the more worried I become.

If I know my mom disapproves, it might take away from tomorrow...

I have to convince her.

"My Fae..." He scratches his brow for a moment like he's struggling to converse.

It's probably because it's caused many arguments over the past few days. "I hope she accepts you for your sake. She is your mother. I want you to be happy.

When we finally arrive near my house, our eyes narrow at why all the lights are on so late. Every single light in each room of the house is on. My gaze shifts to the boxes beside the van, the open trunk and all the stuff already shoved in it. What the heck?

What is going on...

Where's my mom....

I don't understand.

Matias remains quiet as he parks the jeep, and I hop out. I peer out, infuriated at all the packed boxes, before I spot my mother carrying a box to the van.

"What is going on, Mom?"

I know before she answers, but I want to hear it from her mouth. We've done this plenty of times, boosting and moving when things get tough. She loves to run from her issues instead of confronting them or, God forbid, compromising on them.

She stops, eyes moving from me to Matias standing beside me on the sidewalk.

"We are leaving. For good."

I feel Matias's anger before he's even spoken. It's like a blast of air that twists my insides and hardens my muscles as my vision turns red.

Oh no. No, no, no.

This can't be happening...

Are we moving?

The air around Matias is thick and electric. One wrong move from my mother and he will explode.

"Fae is not leaving," he says calmly at first, but the darkness in his gaze says he is anything other than calm.

"Mom, let's talk about this," I say, hoping to intervene and steer this conversation to a more hospitable area, but she is not having it.

My mother's eyes shift to him, and disgust curls her lip upward before she shoves another box into the back of the van.

"Fae, this town is not good for you. I should've never brought you here, and I'm sorry," she replies.

I move toward her, but Matias grabs my arm and pulls me back. "She is not leaving!"

I manage to turn and press a hand against his chest. I let my fingers stroke gently and give him a small, encouraging smile. "It'll be okay. I can handle this."

Turning back to my mother, I take a deep breath and prepare for an argument. "But M-Mom -"

"No buts! We're leaving!"

I step forward, reaching out for her shoulder when Matias yanks me back again, his hand grasping mine, before he inserts himself between me and my mother. I know the tensions are rising, and with fear, it'll spill over. "Matias, please-"

He jabs his finger angrily at the ground. "Anima mea, no! I will not let her take you away from me."

My mother whips around, eyes bloodshot and bulging as she steps toward him. "You have no claim on her! I am her mother!" Venom flies from her lips.

"And I am her Alpha! Without me, she will die!" He meets her with an equal amount of venom.

"It's still a better fate than being a filthy wolf!"

Her utter disgust of the Lycan kind floors me. My mouth falls agape. I'm unable to hide the shock coursing through me. She despises something that's even a part of herself.

Matias growls, his chest heaving up and down. I'm stunned by my mother's outburst, never having seen her foam from the mouth like this throughout my life. Veins bulge from her head and throat, an aggression gleaming in her eye that frightens me and makes my heart pick up pace in my chest.

I hate having to choose!

Why can't she just accept me?

Why can't they both stop fighting?

"Wolf blood runs through her veins - it runs through your veins! You cannot deny it! And she will not deny me."

Her eyes flickered toward me.

I can't tell her.

Matias's voice fills my mind. "You must."

I cannot! It'll break her heart, Matias.

His growl of frustration makes my temples pound. "Fae, she needs to know. We will be one. I know you want your mother in your life. Be honest with her. Be proud of your bloodline, Anima Mea. I am proud to call you mine. I am proud to be your Alpha."

I contemplate what he's said, apprehension turning my blood cold as I level my gaze with my mother. She narrows her eyes, suspicion in her expression as she awaits, but I can't find the words.

I can't find the words that will ultimately destroy her.

Matias huffs. He pulls me against him intimately and gives her a hard stare. "She's agreed to mate with me. Come midnight, we will be one."

It's as if her whole world comes crashing down. She screams. It's a frustrated, strangled sound that morphs into one of agonizing pain.

"Mom!"

I lurch toward her as her torso twists, and the sound of a painful crack echoes in the still night. "Mom!"

"Fae! No!" Matias shoves me back, and I watch with devastation as my mother's mouth widens, but no noise comes out at the sound of another bone cracking.

Her skin becomes beaded with sweat, and I'm tugging my hair from my skull as I scream.

What's happening?

What the hell is happening?

"She's changing."

His voice is startled. He holds me back, unwilling to let me near danger as my mother drops to the floor. Her limbs shake and jerk until they're distorted.

I can't move. I'm frozen to my spot as I watch the woman I've grown up with contorting into an animal.

But I thought she couldn't. She hasn't mated. As the Luna, you can't change until you've mated with your Alpha, according to the Lycan curse.

"I don't know what is going on. This..." He lets out a deep breath. "Has never happened before. Ever."