Chapter 206: Maverick’s Story - 2

"I can remember it all like it was yesterday..."

Aria swallowed, saying nothing. She could feel they had finally reached the part of the story Maverick had been dreading, and whatever came next was going to be difficult for him to say.

"The, uh... event..." Maverick cleared his throat. "It was for displaced and vulnerable half-breed kids. Most humans think there’s something exciting about marrying a werewolf and having werewolf children, but sometimes reality doesn’t turn out the way they imagined."

"Not every half-breed inherits a wolf. Some are born without one at all, while others inherit one so weak they might never be able to shift properly. And unfortunately, there are parents who don’t take that well."

His fingers found the small strip of bare skin at her stomach, tracing idle circles there as if he needed something to occupy them.

"Most of the time, it’s the fathers. Werewolves who can’t stand the thought of their offspring being a runt because they consider it a disgrace to their bloodline. Sometimes, though it’s rarer, the abuse comes from the human mother. Women who wanted the pride and status that came with having a werewolf child, only to end up with the exact opposite of what they expected."

Aria didn’t say a word, but anger burned through her for those children. They hadn’t asked to be born that way. They hadn’t chosen whether a wolf would come to them or how powerful it would be if it did. How the hell could a parent look at their own child and punish them for something completely beyond their control?

"Werewolves usually come into their wolves at eighteen. Some come into them earlier at seventeen, and sixteen is even rarer, but there are almost always signs before then. The strength. The speed. Faster healing. Sharper senses. Little things that become more obvious as they get older."

Maverick paused. "With those kids, the signs are either barely there or missing completely. A few are sickly. Others are simply much weaker than they should be. Their families usually know long before the child is old enough to shift."

Aria’s jaw clenched as Maverick said, "Some of them get thrown out. Others endure the abuse until they eventually run away on their own. Werewolves live by a strict hierarchy, and forcing parents like that to take their children back doesn’t solve anything. You might as well send the kid straight back to their death."

There was no humor left in Maverick’s voice now.

"So my mother stopped trying to reunite every family. She focused on giving the children somewhere safe to go instead. The younger ones could be placed with families who would love them for who they were rather than what they could do."

"And the older ones?"

"A lot of them don’t want another family." Maverick’s voice softened. "Some have spent so long being controlled or hurt by adults that the last thing they want is another person claiming to be their parent. Mother understood that too. So there are homes where they can stay while they finish school, and programs where they can learn a trade or whatever skills they need to support themselves. They help them find work when they’re old enough, teach them how to manage money, and find them somewhere to live. Basically, everything they need to build a life that doesn’t depend on the people who abandoned them."

"There are therapists too," Maverick added. "For the ones carrying wounds that don’t disappear just because they’re finally somewhere safe."

He sighed. "She just wanted to make the world a better place, you know. But I think sometimes she forgot she had enemies too. Not that I blame her, I mean, who would be stupid to go against my mother unless they were courting death. My fathers alone was willing to die for her. But she took advantage of that.

There was a sudden pause, and for over a minute, neither of them spoke. Had it not been for his finger still caressing her stomach, Aria might have thought he’d fallen asleep or something. Eventually, curiosity got the better of her, and she turned. Or tried to.

"There was an explosion..." Maverick finally said, and Aria immediately stopped trying to turn.

"I was with a bunch of the kids when it happened. My parents were the real targets. The culprit had given a gift to one of the children and told her to take it to my mother. Violet, ever trusting of a child, accepted it from her with a smile. It was my father Asher who heard the ticking inside, but by then it was too late. The blast happened almost immediately."

Aria felt Maverick’s breathing deepen as he went further into the memory.

"It rocked the entire building. Good thing my mom could manipulate fire because she took the brunt of it. Otherwise, my fathers might have died." His next words came slower. "The child who delivered the gift wasn’t as lucky."

Aria’s stomach dropped.

"Pandemonium broke out. There were screams everywhere. People shouting. Smoke so thick I couldn’t see where I was going. And their thoughts..." He paused. "Goddess, their thoughts were so loud they nearly drove me mad. Everyone was terrified, and I could hear all of it. All I wanted was to get to my family, but every time I tried to reach them, someone shoved me back or the crowd carried me farther away. Then I stumbled into someone..."

He hesitated.

"That’s the last thing I remember. Everything went black."

Aria’s heart began to race. She had already suspected where his story was headed, but hearing how it had begun made the dread crawling through her much worse. The finger tracing circles over her stomach had gone still. Maverick’s hand remained there instead, his palm pressed flat against her skin as his breathing grew heavier behind her.

"When I woke up, I was somewhere I’d never seen before. There were no windows, just a door. But that wasn’t even the strangest part."

Maverick drew in another breath. "There were pictures of my family everywhere. I mean everywhere, Aria. They covered almost every inch of the walls. That bitch had been following us. Photographing us. Collecting moments from our lives without any of us knowing."

Aria felt cold despite the warmth of him behind her.

"But most of them were of my father Asher. There were photos of him from his days at Lunaris Academy. Ones even I had never seen before. Some had hearts drawn around him or little love notes written across them." His voice hardened. "And then there were the ones of my mother. She’d painted her like the devil."

When Maverick fell silent again, Aria didn’t move. She could barely breathe anymore, and she wasn’t sure she could bear to hear the rest of this story.

"Her name was Elsie Lancaster."

White-hot anger tore through Aria. Now she had a name. One she could put to the piece of shit who had done this to him, and God help that woman if Aria ever found out what prison she was rotting in.

Maybe having his mate there with him gave Maverick the strength to keep going.

"While I was in captivity, she told me she’d gone to school with my parents. She said my mother had stolen everything from her, especially the love of her life, my father, Asher Nightshade."

Aria felt sick.

"She looked me in the eye and said, ’Violet thought she’d won, but that’s where she’s wrong. Aside from that miserable purple hair, you look just like your father. If I can’t have Asher, then I’ll have you instead.’"

Goosebumps broke out across Aria’s arms as her heart began to break for the boy Maverick had been. No. God, no. She didn’t want the story to go there. She already knew that it had, but knowing didn’t make hearing it any easier.

"And then she..." Maverick stopped. "She..."

The words wouldn’t come this time. Aria could feel his chest rising and falling against her back, each breath deeper than the last, but eventually, he forced them out.

"She made me do things to her body." His voice had gone frighteningly even. "And she did things to mine too."

Aria turned around so quickly that his arms fell away from her.

Her heart shattered.

Tears were running silently down Maverick’s face. He wasn’t sobbing. His voice hadn’t even broken. He was simply sitting there with them slipping down his cheeks as though his body was grieving while his mind remained trapped somewhere far away.

"Maverick..."

Aria reached for him and cupped both hands over his ears, her own tears spilling as she shook her head.

"You don’t have to tell me anymore. I understand, Maverick. Don’t say it anymore. Please."

But Maverick didn’t seem to hear her. Or perhaps he couldn’t stop now that he’d finally started. His gaze remained fixed somewhere beyond her, no longer seeming to see the woods around them, and when he spoke again, his voice carried that same terrible calm.

"She said I would be hers forever..."