Her Brother, Her Mate

“She is going to find out, Vince. Why not just tell her now? I could help prepare her for what’s to come,” Simone tilts her face curiously at her husband.

“It’s not our place to tell her, sweetie. And there are other circumstances that should be dealt with first.”

“Like what?” she furrowed her brows, “Don’t they just have to break it to her and hope she believes them? It would be easier for her if we softened her into it.”

Vincent sighed, combing his fingers through his hair.

“What the hell are you two talking about?” I glared between them, not liking being talked about like I wasn’t here. They were starting to freak me out.

“Vincent takes a long swig of his drink, resting it on his knee. “Hadley, how much do you know about the supernatural world?”

“Supernatural world?” What the hell? “What are you talking about? Like voodoo and zombies and stuff like that?”

Vincent chuckles with light humor, “Let’s start with witches. What do you know about witches?”

I shrug, “That they have warts or lightning bolts on their heads.”

“They don’t. I assure you,” he chuckles, “At least not any that I have met.”

“Witches are real? Is that what you’re trying to tell me?”

“We know witches?” Simone asked before Vincent could answer me.

“Yes, my love. It’s not my secret to tell, but since you think it’s best for Hadley to know the truth tonight, I’m letting the proverbial cat out of the bag. We know witches. We know them quite well.”

Vincent’s eyes clouded over slightly, freaking me out.

“But they’re werewolves? How can they be witches? Are you sure?”

“What the hell!” I yelled above Simone’s many questions. She must get chatty when she drinks. She was more poised earlier today. “Witches and werewolves? Are you both crazy?”

“And vampires,” Vincent smiles at me, then fangs slowly protrude from his canines, making me yelp in surprise.

“You’re both vampires?” I asked in terror.

“Oh no. I’m a werewolf. A pretty one, but I hardly get to shift anymore. I don’t like the dirt and I can’t really go for runs through the city streets.”

“If you want to, my love, I can make it happen for you,” Vincent smiled lovingly at her.

“Aww, that’s so sweet, but I’m okay for now, baby.”

“Okay, I’l leaving,” I start to stand up, but Simone reaches out, grabbing my hands and pulling me back down .

“Hadley, you need to hear us out before you leave. This has to do with you. If you’re going to be a part of this world, then-”

“She’s already a part of this world,” Vincent cut her off. “Hadley, was your father’s name Zachary and your aunt, I mean, Mother’s name Safarah?”

I brought my hand up to my mouth in surprise, “How do you know that? Can vampires read minds? Is this like Edward Cullen?”

Something about that makes Simone burst out in a fit of giggles. Vincent laughed dryly, like he had heard that joke a thousand times.

“I can’t read your mind, Hadley. I just know about your parents. They’re witches. Well, Zachary is one, along with Fadel Demir and his son. There is an entire coven Fadel is over and I’m sure you know most of the members personally. The woman you know as your mother isn’t a witch, but she’s related to the founding members.”

What is he talking about? If my parents were witches, I think I would know. Wait….”When you say the woman I know as my mother, do you mean she isn’t my mother?”

A sad smile graces his lips, “She is your aunt. Your mother was a friend of Micah’s, your mates’ father. She was what you are, my dear. She was a seer.

“We don’t know what happened to Sabrina, your real mom, but Sakarah has been raising you in her place. Zachary is your real father, though, if that makes you feel any better.”

It doesn’t. It actually makes it so much worse. The one person in my family I actually miss is not who I think she is, and my father doesn’t seem to care about his daughter’s happiness.

“My dad’s a witch and I’m a seer? What is a seer?”

“A seer is a hybrid of sorts. You are descended from fae royalty and can help energize a witch with power from the fairy realm.”

This is all too much. If he didn’t do the teeth thing, I would think he was entirely insane. Maybe he is? Maybe I’m drunk for the first time ever?

“Now, this is where Mark and Mitch come in. Like me, they’re werewolves. The security team that Mark works for is actually not a security team. It’s our pack’s warrior center. Matt is the pack’s Gamma. He and our Luna, Carli, are overseers to all our warriors. Carli is mated to Parker, our Alpha. He is like the leader of our entire pack. His word is law to my kind.”

“And he even has influence over me as Simone’s mate,” Vincent chides in.

“You guys keep saying mates this, mates that. What is a mate?”

“Oh,” Simone gasped softly like she had forgotten, “That’s the important part. A mate is like a soul mate on steroids. Our moon goddess assigns us to be with our perfect pairing, called our mate. When you find your mate, you mark and mate them. It’s like marriage, but unbreakable. You can’t divorce your mate. They are yours for life.”

Vincent nods, unbuttons the top few buttons of his shirt, then pulls his collar open so I can see a faint, silvered scar on his neck.

“I am Simone’s mate. We aren’t just married. We are marked and mated as well.”

“And sired,” Simone giggled at him.

“Another time, my love. Let me explain what is going on with her first. I’ll let you tell her about everything else later.”

“Yay! Another sleepover,” she squeals softly, making her mate chuckle. I’m not sure I want another sleepover if it’s going to be like this every time. I haven’t decided if they’re crazy yet, or if I am.Property © of NôvelDrama.Org.

“I can sense your unease, Hadley. That is a freaky Edward Cullen trick I have,” Vincent says.

“I think that was more of a Jasper thing, though,” Simone tilts her head at him, making him roll his eyes.

“Love the Twilight references,” I mutter, “So, a mate is a soulmate you are stuck with the rest of your life?”

Simone hums. “Hmm, well, you know how the wolves in that movie had someone they would imprint on and that was their person for life? It’s the same concept. It’s all consuming. You would die for your mate. They become your everything.”

“Like me and my Simone.”

That explains their freakishly great relationship.

“So what does that have to do with me?”

“Well,” Simone bites her l*p, looking at Vincent to answer.

“You are a mate, Hadley. Mark and Mitch, since they share the same DNA, they have the same mate, and it’s you. You are their mate, my dear. You are a seer and their mate, and Mitch and Mark are not just wolves, but wolf and witch hybrids.”