So he had lied to me in the hall. He had known.
It hurt deep in my chest when he admitted he was part of this entire scheme to keep me in the dark about my family. When I was a little girl, I asked him all the time why Mom had left us, but he’d never say anything. It was from others in the community that I’d heard the multitude of rumors of why Lienda abandoned us. I figured Jonathon was too heartbroken to speak of it. They were a true-mated pair and losing Lienda would have felt like losing his heart and soul. I’d never understood how she could leave her mate, hence my immense hatred for her. Jonathon had been a dark man for my younger years, but over time he seemed to heal a little, until finally I had a father again. But for a long time I was alone, except for the Compasses. The way they rallied around me, keeping my spirits high, nurturing my wounded soul – not to mention their stupid shenanigans – gave me countless opportunities to laugh my ass off. For all of that they had my eternal gratitude.
Jonathon’s voice was low as he continued. “This is not the place for this discussion though.”
There was definitely no hiding anything in this hall. We were under more scrutiny right now than the human president at election time. Yeah, we didn’t vote, but we watched television.
Lienda leaned forward. “Let’s take a walk through the forest.”
I tilted my head to the side, still not meeting anyone’s eyes. “I’m not quite finished with breakfast.”
I heard a few cleared throats. Tyson was actually squirming as he tried to contain his laughter.
Jonathon was either hiding a grin or fighting the urge to throw me across his knee and smack me, but since I wasn’t a kid anymore he was going to struggle with that. “I’m sure you’ve had enough, Jessa.”
What was he talking about? Okay, yes there were three empty plates, numerous scattered tubs, three mugs, two glasses, and two dessert bowls stacked in front of me. But … breakfast was important.
With a sigh I stood, slamming back my chair with my calves. It screeched across the floor, drawing even more attention in our direction. “Let’s get this over with, then we can all resume our normal viewing stations.” Something told me I was kidding myself. These interruptions were permanent and my life would be forever changed.
We walked in silence, just the four of us. I’d made the boys stay so they could finish their food. Braxton had shot me hooded eyes; he wasn’t happy. Oh well, he’d give me grief when I got back but that was okay, I knew how to handle him. Despite the fact the quads were my pack, I knew Dad wanted to do this with just the four of us. His wide grin when I stopped the Compasses was a bit of a giveaway there.
The deeper we went into the silence of the forest, the easier it was to breathe. The cool, earthy scent surrounded us. The canopy was thick in some places and let in beams of sunlight in others. Wolves don’t like crowds – too many avenues for attack, too many scents disturbing our sensitive noses. Out here felt right and safe. Reaching a small alcove, Jonathon stopped and, reaching out, linked hands with Lienda. I choose to be a mature person and ignore it.
I sucked in a deep breath and almost had myself convinced that I could handle anything that came out of his mouth. Right up until he said:
“You two need to know the truth. You’re not just sisters, you’re twins.”
My mouth fell open. Well … that was unexpected. Why had he not just said that when he’d first introduced Mischa?
He continued before I could ask: “No one knew we had twins. The moment both of you were born, Lienda and I recognized that we had to protect you.” Jonathon didn’t fidget, except for his head swiveling in my direction. “Twins are rare in our world, about one per a hundred thousand supernaturals.” He already knew what I was thinking. “Quads are almost unheard of. It has happened only one other time in our history. That’s how we know the Compasses will be the strongest, and the leaders.” Lienda was silent, letting Dad do the talking, but I could feel her examining me.
“So what if we’re rare?” Mischa said. She’d moved and now stood side-by-side with me, facing our parents. “Why would we have to leave? I’ve spent my entire life running from city to city with Mom, all the while thinking I was a freak. Just to hide the fact we’re twins? That makes no sense.”
Yeah, what she said. Because the quads hadn’t had to run or be separated. Why would we have to just because we were twins? I crossed my arms over my chest, my bare feet scuffing at some of the dead leaves.
Jonathon continued to move his head, listening and scenting, making sure it was safe to keep speaking. “It wasn’t just that you were twins, it was that you were twins born with the dragon mark.” The last two words were said so softly I only just heard them.