Revelations and a Funeral

Lizzy

           “I’m so sorry about your momma, honey. Maggie was such a sweet lady.”

           “Thank you, Miss Betty.” I said through a forced smile as the older woman embraced me.

           I expertly removed myself from her grasp. The woman had been around since I was a baby and had been like a grandmother to me, but what I wanted was the comfort of my siblings. I made my way through the crowded house and the murmured condolences and comments on the service. My mother had been well-loved by the community, always willing to lend a hand or an ear in their time of need. I breathed a sigh of relief as I caught sight of my sister, Annabelle, making her way outside.

           “Need a break from the well-wishers too?” She asked softly as I stepped beside her.

           “It’s a little overwhelming.” I replied. “Everyone loved mom, they’re hurting too, but I just want to grieve alone with you guys. Is that selfish of me?”

           “You could never be selfish, my sweet Lizzy.” She said, hugging me gently. “Grief can be a very private thing. I’d be lying if I said it didn’t bother me having all these people in the house. I know they loved mom; they love us, but it feels like they're all gawking at us, and I can’t stand it.”

           We sat on the front steps in silence, our arms around each other. Neither of us could stand the thought of wading back into the sea of people dressed in black. Our own grief was crushing enough without adding the weight of our friends and neighbors. They seemed to understand our need to be alone together, none of them coming to bother us as we sat holding one another.

           “I should probably go in and play the proper hostess.” Annabelle sighed, breaking the silence of our momentary refuge. “Momma would kill me if she were here to see me letting the two of us sit out here with guests inside.”

           “I think I’ll stay out here for a bit longer, maybe try to find the boys.” I replied as she moved to head inside.

           I hadn’t seen Deven and Adam since we returned home from the graveyard. The pair had slipped out the front door shortly before the guests arrived, making themselves scarce. There was something bubbling under the surface between them, but I wasn’t sure what. I stood from the steps with a sigh, deciding I should find them and give them a scolding for not making an appearance. Momma would have been livid if she knew they had left Annabelle and me to deal with grieving guests alone.

           I slowly wandered around the property. It was a large piece of land with a huge house situated in the woods. Momma had rented it before I was born, and we had spent my entire childhood in the same place. She always said after Daddy was killed, she just wanted a safe place for us kids to grow up. I had never met my father, he died before she even knew she was pregnant, but momma had shown me all the pictures she had managed to salvage when she ran from Cerathe with my siblings.

           “I didn’t mean for this to happen!” Deven’s voice carried over the wind.

           I caught sight of him and Adam, tucked beside the small garden shed near the far end of the property. From the look on their faces, it was clear they were arguing. Quietly, I crept closer, hoping to hear enough to mediate their fight and get them back to the house.

           “Mom would be alive if it weren’t for your stupid cons!” Adam snarled. “You did this. You may not have pulled the trigger, but you did this. All mom ever did was take care of you and clean up your messes.”

           Adam’s arm pulled back, preparing to swing. I stepped into his line of sight, letting him know they weren’t alone. He growled as his fist shot forward, cracking the siding on the shed next to Deven’s head. I watched, wide-eyed, as he stormed away, leaving Deven staring at the ground in shame. Making a snap decision, I followed Adam. Of the two, he seemed to be the most in need of comfort.

           “Stop!” I called, catching up with Adam just at the tree line. “There’s a house full of people here to say their goodbyes to momma and offer condolences. You can’t just take off into the woods for a run right now.”

           “We shouldn’t even be here!” He wailed, whirling around to face me.

           “I know.” I whispered, lowering my eyes to the ground. “Momma should still be alive. Whoever broke in knew we’re werewolves.”

           “That’s not what I mean, Lizzy. He sighed. “We shouldn’t be in this town at all. We shouldn’t be living as rogues among humans. We should have a pack. You should have a pack.”

           “Momma did what she thought was best, moving here.”

           “That’s not what I meant, Lizzy. If your father hadn’t taken back that fucking assassin, we would still be with the pack.”

           I stared at him dumbfounded. What he was saying didn’t make any sense. Our father had been murdered by assassins in Cerathe. I knew the story. Momma had told me that she had run in fear for her and my sibling’s lives, not knowing she was pregnant with me at the time. Adam studied me for a moment before squaring his shoulders as if he had made a decision on something I wasn’t privy to.

           “Lizzy, Nathanial Devereaux isn’t your father. He’s ours, but your father is Alpha Lucas Montgomery of the Dark Moon pack.”

           The ground beneath me swayed, and I plopped to the ground, trying to get a handle on the spinning world around me.

           “I don’t believe you.” I whispered.

           “You don’t have to believe me. It’s the truth. Your father is an alpha. Why do you think you’re stronger than me now that you have your wolf? Or that you can make us submit? You were meant to be the next Alpha of that pack. That fucking Alpha chose an assassin over our mother, and she ran to protect us. That bitch would have killed us rather than let another woman’s child take over instead of her own.”

           I wanted to claw my way out of my own skin. To shift and run as far away as I could from what my brother was claiming. My breaths came in gasps as I tried to calm myself, my arms wrapped tightly around my waist. It couldn’t be true. My mother wouldn’t have lied to me about my parentage.

           “Ask your wolf. I know she feels it, the difference between you and us. Even if she doesn’t know why she knows she’s an alpha wolf.” Adam continued.

           “Momma wouldn’t have lied to me.”

           “She would, and she did, to save all of our lives.” He said, squatting down in front of me. “You’re almost eighteen now, and mom is gone. It’s time for us to return to Dark Moon pack so you can take your rightful place as heir to the Alpha.”