Page 114 of Rejecting his Mate

“Good; neither did I.” I reach for the potatoes, even though my appetite has fled. I need something to do with my hands.

I pile some on my plate before putting some on Cade’s. He’s too busy glaring daggers at the woman he doesn’t trust to pay attention to the pile of food gathering on his plate.

“What do you know?”Cade glares at Hester.

I glance at him before turning to look at Hester. She doesn’t give anything away when she speaks. “I don’t know anything. I just find it interesting that a father wouldn’t want his son to be in a mating that seemed perfect on paper.”

Placing the dish back on the table, I lick my lips. “Klaus didn’t know what I am. He would never have let me stay if he did. He killed his own sister for being a hybrid.”

“What if he wasn’t trying to protect his precious son,” Apryle says, chewing on a green bean, “but Red from him?”

I arch my brow at her calling me Red. “Firstly, it’sHalle, and secondly, why would he need to protect me from Dalton?”

“Aside from the fact your ex-mate is a maniac?” She smiles as she says this. “I can’t imagine a single reason.”

I snort as I reach for the casserole. “Trust me, my alpha did not care a jot about me being beaten by his son. Everyone turned away from it, including my aunt.”

Cade growls low in his throat.

“Klaus knows something about Dalton. Something that might have made him a threat to a mate,” Abel says, speaking for the first time.

I frown, but I can understand why he might think that. “Klaus would never have put up with his son being anything but perfect. He killed his own sister for her so-called ‘faults’.” I air quote the word faults. “He threw me out of the pack when he found out I was latent—is that a tau thing, by the way?”

“It’s a tau thing,” Tessa assures me. “Though Roux can shift for short amounts of time, she’s the only one of us who can.”

“Most of us are screwed on that front,” Apryle says, still eating, the only one who is. My gut feels heavy and unpleasant. “It depends on the wolf-to-witch ratio you have.”

“So, we think Dalton is what? A hybrid?” I shake my head. “I’ve seen him shift. I know he can do it.”

No one speaks again, and Cade takes over filling my plate with food. “Eat,” he tells me when he’s done.

I stare at the mound of food, unsure I can get it into my stomach, but I pick up my fork anyway.

“Is your cabin okay?” Tessa asks, trying to breakthrough the quietness that has gathered as each person around the table has gone deep into their own thoughts.

“It’s fine.” I smile reassuringly at her. “Maybe we should tell the others to come and eat,” I say to Cade.

Roux freezes, and I feel bad for making her uncomfortable, but if we are staying, Sawyer and the guys have to be welcome too.

“You can take them a plate.” Tessa’s offer doesn’t surprise me. She seems like the peacekeeper in the group.

“Dinner is at six.” Hester shuts down that idea, and I notice Apryle’s brows climb up her face even though she doesn’t look up from her plate.

“Is this a sanctuary or a dictatorship?” Cade mutters.

“With so many people, rules help keep everything running smoothly and without issue.”

“Why are there so many here?” Cade asks, and oh boy, I hold my breath, waiting for Hester to blow up at this question, but she sets her knife and fork down on her plate and gives Cade her full attention.

“For years, I was hunted down like a dog by the Order of the Crescent Moon. I was scared every moment of every day that I was going to wake up with a pair of teeth or a gun in my face.”

My stomach twists, sympathy rolling through me. I saw how scared my mom had been when we were running in my memories. I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.

“That kind of constant fear can drive you to madness. I needed something to focus that energy on, soI created the sanctuary. A place where no one had to fear being killed because of their DNA. You may not like how I run things, but you also don’t have to stay. There’s a whole world out there for you.” Cade says nothing, but he doesn’t unlock his gaze from her either. “The truth is, being what we are is a lonely road to walk alone. And we are more powerful together than we are apart. To stand against hunters, there is strength in numbers.”

“So, you want them here as an army against an invading force of hunters?”

The smile that spreads across Hester’s face is not warm or kind but derisive. “Is it not better to fight together than die alone? I’m not sure why you distrust me so much, considering just a few generations ago, your own kind was hunted down and slaughtered by the very animals who want us dead now.”

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