68. Chapter 68

Chapter 68

L ayla was out the door before she could think, following the scent to the woods behind the house. And just past the treeline, she saw the woman who had birthed them, dressed in a casual summer dress with her arms around.

"You know I can't do that, darling."

"Get away from her," she growled.

Both Britney and Rebecca turned with surprise on their faces. Surely her mother had sensed her coming?

‘Get away from my sister!' she screamed in her head.

Rebecca winced and stepped back from Brit as if she'd heard her. It was one thing to appear out of the blue to traumatise her but to approach Brit? That was a different story. Rebecca had said she was watching Brit the last time they had spoken, but she didn't think the woman would dare to make contact.

Fury raged through her veins, so much that she had to force her emotions down so Brit wouldn't see them.

"Are you going to make this decision for me, too?" Brit snapped.

She looked from her mother to the moody teenager with a frown. Where was all of this coming from? She had never imposed anything on Brit in her life.

"She's dangerous, Brit. You can't—"

"She's our mother!"

Since having Hope, she understood how Rebecca would have had to abandon them to save their lives. But forgiveness was a process she wasn't quite ready to start yet, and she wasn't prepared to risk Britney's heart if things went wrong again.

"Can we talk about this later? Please go inside, Brit."

"See what I mean?" Britney said, turning to Rebecca again. "She's not the same. I can't be here any longer; just take me away like you promised."

Her eyes blazed when she met Rebecca's gaze over Britney's head.

Like she promised?

Rebecca thought she could take Brit away from her?

"It was just in case," Rebecca said quickly. "You know things got a little hectic. I was going to keep her safe."

"You've been speaking to Layla?" Brit asked, stepping back from her mother. "Am I the only one who doesn't know what's going on?"

Britney's anger returned as she turned around and glowered at her before she marched back into the house.

"She's been getting erratic mood swings. Insomnia. She's taken up running in the middle of the night," Rebecca said.

She faced her mother again and tried to reign her emotions in. Hope had started to fret again; she was convinced the baby knew when she was angry.

"I think you have to start preparing for your sister to join you," Rebecca concluded.

"Don't make plans for us," she growled. "Don't promise Brit things you can't give her. You broke her heart enough when you abandoned her the first time."

"And I know I broke yours. I'm sorry, Layla. I will never stop apologising for hurting you like that."

She looked away from Rebecca to the little girl in her arms. Would these be the conversations she would have with Hope years down the line? Her anger disappeared, and she was left deflated.

"She's very beautiful," Rebecca whispered. "I hope you get to watch your babies grow, Layla. I hope you fight harder for them than I did for you."

But how could she do that?

"They saw me, Rebecca. The Hunters saw me."

Her mother stepped back, and her fear almost knocked her back.

"What did you do?" Rebecca whispered.

"I had to lead them away from Hope. I had to save my baby."

And that was the same excuse her mother had given for never coming back home.

She felt like crap. Her shoulders slumped, and Hope started to fret again.

"We'll figure it out. I told you I'd watch over you," Rebecca said, stepping forward again. "I won't leave you girls alone again."

She wished she could trust that, but she had to admit, it was nice to hear. She had been starved of affection for so long that her heart thawed a little even though she wasn't ready.

"I have to go. Hope needs a change," she said.

"That's a beautiful name," Rebecca smiled. "Maybe one day you'll introduce me to her."

She didn't know if she would go that far.

She turned away from Rebecca without another word and walked back into the house. Jackson was sitting at the island, looking sombre. It was obvious he had heard the conversation.

"Where's Britney?"

"She went upstairs the moment I came into the house," Jackson answered.

He stood and looked down at his baby before he met her gaze.

"We will figure it out," he whispered. "Why don't I take Hope, and you can start mending fences with your sister. We have an eighteenth birthday party to plan, after all."

It was great that Jackson could walk around as if anything in their situation was normal. She knew she would never be able to really sleep again. But she handed over the baby and nodded. She couldn't control any of the things that were happening, but she could fix things with Brit.

Upstairs was just as impressive as the ground floor. Layla only peeked through the doors that were open as she followed her nose to Brit's room and then knocked gently.

"I'm too upset to speak with you right now," Brit said, her voice muffled as though she had her face buried in her pillow.

"I know. I'm sorry I've changed our plans without discussing things with you. You were right; you'll be eighteen in a few days, so I can't make decisions for you."

She heard the sound of the mattress dipping, but Brit didn't give her permission to enter.

"I fell in love, Brit. I never thought I would find anything like this, so I won't apologise for that," she said honestly. If Jackson was listening, he would have heard that, but she was pretty sure she hadn't been hiding her feelings. "Can I come in?"

There was silence on the other side of the door, and then Brit finally told her she could go in. She walked in to find her sister sitting on the edge of a big bed. The room was spotless and smelled clean, so she had to wonder if the insomnia her mother had spoken of was why she'd cleaned so well.

"Why him? I told you they're all weird, but he seems..."

"He's a big softie," she smiled as she walked across the ample space to sit beside her sister. "You'll like him once you get to know him."

If the threats somehow disappeared, they could be like a real family. She knew Jackson would be as nice to her as he was to all the kids in his pack.

"I don't know. He makes me uncomfortable," Brit said with a resigned sigh. "When did you see Mum?"

"I spoke to her after I saw you at the hotel, but I didn't want to get your hopes high in case she disappeared again."

"It wasn't your decision to make."

"I know. I'm sorry."

If Brit shifted, she would be able to explain things better. All she could do until then was hope that Rebecca understood that she had to give them time to process things.

She put her arm over Brit's shoulder and put her head against hers.

"It will be okay," she assured her gently.

"I don't know. Dad stopped trying to see me at school, and you went off and got pregnant and had a baby without telling me. I feel like things are just spiralling out of my control."

"Do you feel anything else? Do you hear voices in your head?"

Brit pulled out of her arms and pulled a face.

"If this is your way of asking if I've got suicidal thoughts, then no," she answered.

No voices, then. If anything odd was happening in her head, that question would have made her pause. So did that mean her sister would be okay? Had she escaped the curse after all?

"Good. Now, why don't we talk about your birthday? This year I can give you anything you want. The biggest party, a car, name it."

It would be Jackson's treat. It was the least the man could do for keeping them apart.

"I don't want a party. And I don't want a car," Brit sighed. "I just want to go home."

"This is home, Brit."

At least until she went off to college.

Brit made a face and looked away. "I live with strangers. It's not home."

"Things seem pretty cosy here to me."

Brit's cheeks coloured. So she was right; something was going on.

"Where's your baby?" Brit asked, changing the subject.

"With her father. Do you want to see her?"

Brit nodded. She smiled and stood, pulling her little sister up with her. In a way, Brit had been her first baby. She was the only mother figure Brit had had since she'd been a little girl, so she hoped she would love the new addition to their little family.

"When will you tell me what's really going on?" Brit asked as they walked out of her room. "Even mum doesn't say anything."

"Because there's nothing to tell," she lied.

As they walked down the steps, Jackson came out of the sitting area holding a freshly changed Hope in his arms. Brit stopped, and then her gaze lowered, just like the other wolves did.

Could that be a sign? Was the wolf inside her instinctively recognising Jackson's strength? She had been on the fence about how she would feel if her sister shifted, but she couldn't hide that having Brit with her would make things much easier. And since her sister preferred to work with facts, perhaps the truth would be easier to digest.

"You're not here to get close to any of the boys. Do your school work as we agreed, and then go to college," Jackson said. "I'm sending Josh away."

And then Brit lifted her gaze full of fire, and any hopes she'd had that she had a wolf inside her died.

Brit turned around on the stairs and then marched back up.

She sighed and looked at Jackson.

"Do you not know anything about teenagers?"

"She can't get attached, Layla. Not until we know for sure."

They had a few days until she turned eighteen, and there was absolutely no sign of a wolf inside her sister. Jackson's statement sounded like it was a warning to her, as well. The thought of having to cut herself off from her sister for good brought her mood down.

"We'll figure it out," Jackson said again.