“I figured since you’re his mate, he’d have told you. I haven’t seen her in years since she doesn’t live at the stronghold anymore. It was too big for her to navigate, but it was sad to see her go all the same. She kept Donovan coming around, even when he was busy. He never misses his yearly visit with her…”

Oh my God. The woman was rambling and my fingers itched to grab her shoulders and shake the information out of her. Yearly visit? What the hell was she talking about? “Francis. Who is she?” The words came out a little crisp, my frustration clear.

She stumbled a few steps. “Oh. Sorry. It’s just… I mean… I just thought you’d know.”

For the love. Donovan. Who. Is. Riona?

Why?

I was going to kill someone. Please.

She’s my mother.

All the air whooshed out of me. I never would’ve guessed that. Not in a million years. I stopped walking again as questions ran through my mind. The first one was most important. Is she still alive?

Yes. Of course. You didn’t know?

How’s that possible? Your father’s dead. Usually when one of a pair died, the other didn’t last long. Every Were knew the story of Donovan’s father. He’d died battling an evil fey queen. It was a legend.

Aye. But my mother has some fey blood in her. Even though she started aging after Da died, it’s been much slower than your average Were. She looks to be about early-seventies in human years now. She’s still spry enough but has issues living with the pack. Too many fragile feelings. So she decided to move to a home with—

A horrible realization hit me. Does everyone know she’s alive?

In my pack? Yes. ’Course they do.

Do they know where to find her?

Yes, but no one reaches out to her. They know she craves her privacy.

We need to get to her. Now. I raced down the hallway and swung open the closest window. A blast of icy air chilled me to the bone. I longed for a thick coat, but I didn’t have time for that. Meet me at the cars.

Two stories up wasn’t that bad. Tessa had done worse. I gripped the edge of the window as I climbed out.

“What are you doing?” Francis asked as she looked down at me from inside the window.

“Wish me luck.”

I let go. The wind froze my skin as I fell, and I had a second to think that this might not have been the best plan before I hit with a thud. The landing rattled my teeth, but after a second, I was up and running around the castle to the garages.

I just hoped we weren’t too late to save Donovan’s mother from the beast.

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Nineteen