Page 39 of Shifters Unifying
“He does, Mom…” I paused to brace myself for her reaction. “But that’s because he’s a shifter, too. It’s something we have in common.”
She gasped. “Are my grandchildren going to be animals?”
My boisterous laughter made her jump. “Would that be so bad?”
“I mean… uh… Can I put in a request for human grandbabies, Emma?”
“Nobody learns how to shift until after puberty, so any babies are always just babies, Mom.”
She visibly relaxed. “That’s a relief.”
My phone buzzed again.
Jasper: On our way.
I climbed to my feet. “They’re on their way back from lunch, so I think we’re going to take those four newbie shifters back to Logan’s place. They’ll at least get some training about how to use their new abilities.”
Mom stood up, wringing her hands. “I wish you didn’t have to go,” she whispered. “I miss you, and I want to know about all of this newness…” She gestured toward me. “With you.”
I crossed the room and wrapped my arms around her. “I miss you, too, Mom, but I just need to take care of this right now. It’ll be okay.”
It was the most I was willing to tell her. I wasn’t ready to drop the Acheron bomb on her—not unless it became absolutely necessary.
“I’ll bring Logan into town to meet you as soon as I can,” I said.
She took a step back and patted my cheek. “That sounds great. Love you.”
“Love you, too.”
We made it outside as Jasper and the others pulled into the driveway with their music turned way up.
As Jasper pulled to a stop, he rolled down the window and waved. “You ready?”
“As soon as we can go,” I called. I hated we were leaving my mom so soon after she’d learned my secret, but I didn’t have a choice.
John and Izzie climbed out of the rear of the SUV, under the guise of sharing a cigarette. Between the recent proposition and my screaming mother, they probably didn’t want to miss a word our conversation.
Jasper hopped out and offered his hand to my mother. “It was a pleasant day to meet ye, Ms. Sophia. Ceviche wasn’t something I knew I favored, so I thank ye.”
She pulled him into a hug. “You take care of my daughter, now, and tell Logan I tell him the same.”
“Aye, he’ll appreciate that, ma’am.”
I gasped as a sensation struck the fated mate bond in my head like a bolt of lightning in the middle of my brain, and arumble of thunder rolled through Willow Creek. What the hell was…Logan!It had to be. Something was happening to Logan.
“Oh, god,” I rasped, spinning to face Jasper while fighting the overwhelming rush of sensations in my head. “Did you feel that?”
“The tingle in the air?” he asked.
Mom’s eyebrows knit together. “What is it?”
“It’s… It’s…” My explanation trailed away, falling flat. Flashed of Logan’s dead body burst through my mind, and I shuddered. What was he doing? I was too far away to bring him back to life from here.Shit. Shit. Shit.
“Shifter business?” she ventured.
“Yes, that’s it exactly,” I answered. Then I shared a look with Jasper. “We’ve got to get back to Six-Mile right now. Something’s going on with Logan, and it’s got to be Acheron.”
“Good or bad?”
