“Let’s go see,” I told him.
He led me through the maze of corridors to the transport room. When the door slid open, he saw the woman standing there, but didn’t enter. The door was about to close, but I stepped through it. I took his hand, tugged. Ryston was right behind.
The collar helped me now. I felt so much. Love, anger, betrayal, frustration, coldness, joy. It was overwhelming.
“Mother,” Maxim said.
This woman was Maxim’s mother? Yes, now that I looked closely, I recognized her from her call to our suite. She looked quite like her son.
Her eyes were on Maxim momentarily, but rested on me. I felt her scrutiny. I didn’t need the collar for that. I was the female her son mated and surely she would be critical.
“What are you doing here?” he asked, pulling me into his side. He wouldn’t have me harmed or intimidated, not even by his own mother. Love flooded me, love for this strong, protective warrior, and I made sure he felt it like a blast of heat through our collars.
“You were right, when we spoke last. Your life is here. I did not wish you to remain on the Colony simply because you were banished. The moment the decree changed that, I wanted you home. But I realized your home is here now.”
Maxim pulled me in closer. “My home is here with Rachel. And Ryston.”
She glanced at Ryston over my shoulder. He came and put his hand at the curve of my neck.
“Yes. It is. What I’ve heard of the Colony, your base in particular, you are a very good leader.”
“Thank you.”
His words were monotone, but I felt his relief, a slight thaw in Maxim’s demeanor.
“I also realized the transport center works both ways. You can return to Prillon Prime, but I can come here. I wanted to meet your mate, and soon, your children.”
When Maxim didn’t speak, I saw a vulnerability in her eyes.
“Is that all right?”
“Yes, Mother. That would be perfect.”
She smiled then and I saw how lovely she was. She wasn’t cold, she’d been hurt by the Hive as only a mother of a veteran could. Combined with the banishment, things had been harsh for them. They had a chance now to be a family again. All of us.
I felt Ryston’s grip on my neck tighten, a hint of jealousy flaring bright and hot.
“I did not come alone,” she added. Turning her head, she looked to the corner where another Prillon female stood.
Ryston’s hand dropped from me and I felt his panic.
I swung about to look at the female full-on, placing myself between her and my second mate. Whoever she was, she’d hurt Ryston. Deeply.
He cleared his throat. “Mother.”
Oh god. This was the woman who’d abandoned him. Given up on him.
Tears streamed down her face.
“Look at you,” she whispered, taking a step toward him and holding out a hand.
I stepped away and Maxim pulled me back into his side, leaving Ryston to face his mother on his own. We were nearby, but this was a confrontation they had to do on their own. No matter the outcome, Maxim and I would be waiting.
“So big, so brave.” She cleared her throat, looked at the floor. “I’m sorry.”
I felt the tear in Ryston’s wall around that part of his heart. It ached and throbbed, and I clung to Maxim.
“I have no excuse. None. Maxim’s mother came to me. She practically beat me on the head to see sense. I should have had it on my own, but sometimes we need help from others.”
“Yes. I found that with Rachel,” Ryston said, his voice almost rusty sounding.
“I do not wish to remain on Prillon Prime, but with you, my son.”
“What?” he asked, stunned. “What about Father?”
Her eyes met his, the same pale color. “He will come, too, but I…I needed to see you. To know if I would be rejected or not.”
“We are the rejected ones here on the Colony. We would never do that to others,” Ryston countered.
“If you will have me, us, then we will come. My family is with you. Wherever you are. If there is room?”
I ached for the woman, for Ryston. Circumstance tore them apart. Just as the cruel accusations on Earth destroyed my life. And yet that ruin brought about my life here. Joy. Mates. Love. It could be the same for them as well.
“Yes. There’s room. For Father as well. For everyone.”
They closed the distance and Ryston took his mother’s small form into his tight embrace.
Yes, there was enough room for all of us. A family, lives intertwined. Different than I’d imagined, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.