ROTTEN LOVE

PAST| 44

No one spoke on the drive home. Once inside the compound, Jason spoke first, "That was exhilarating."

I give him a small smile. He is trying to cut the tension. He places his hands on my arm, "Don't fret tonight, sis. Tomorrow we will figure it out." He places a kiss on my forehead.

I missed his comfort. By the kind gesture, he missed me too and I'm glad to be together again. He is in the same situation.

They might want me but it could be him. He could fulfill the hex too. He is aware.

I hear a scoff from the side. Maddie's legs shake as she crosses her arms. She is impatient.

The blatant display of dissatisfaction ticks me off. "Any words for me," I ask her.

"None that you would want to hear," she rolls her eyes and looks away. Jason leaves my side to go to her. He places that same gentle kiss on her temple.

Zain eyes the interaction but remains quiet like he did the whole drive home. Jason questions, "I assume I can take the same room."

Maddie answers, "Follow me to my room. Well, ours now."

A single-word reply is heard from Jason, "Sweet," as he obeys her.

Before they disappear, I hear Maddie's remark, "Savor the last nights you have with your mate, witch. We both know you won't stay here long."

I'm upset at the judgment. This isn't easy. It's easy for her but she isn't the one in the middle.

I could reply but I'm mentally exhausted. I turn to look at Zain who has been quiet, standing by the door. His silence pisses me off.

"What," I make a face to him.

He eyes me. His gaze scans my body then leaves like I was not worth his time. "Not tonight, Helena."

"Hey don't leave," I pull his arm back.

"Not today. I got to see how my mate-eyed fucked a vampire and remained quiet. How my other half consider leaving and mothering a child that was not mine. Not fucking now, Helena." He aggressively pulls his arm back.

"This isn't fair. I didn't ask for this," I yell. "Do you have any idea what I am feeling? I just left my entire life back there with those aristocrat assholes." I flail my arms.

He steps into my face. "That's the problem. The Malfattos should not be your life." He motions around us, "This should be it. This home. This pack. The land. This should be your life. Your mother had a clue, too bad you can't seem to take the hint."

I scoff, "You weren't saying that about a day ago. You hated her."

"That's before I found out the sacrifices she made to help this pack thrive. She tipped the balances to the werewolves," he argues.

"The only thing she sacrificed was me and my brother," I start to get angry.

I've been keeping it in for so long.

"It shouldn't have been a sacrifice. She probably was aware of it. She expected the bond to help. It should be pretty fucking easy. You follow your mate. You fight for them. She didn't see it as a sacrifice," Zain replies.

"Everything is easy then. I'm supposed to completely abandon my best friend. Throw away years of love and servitude because you say so."

"If your mom would have cursed us, and the only way to have another werewolf baby is for me to sleep with another she-wolf, then you are telling me you will be okay with it. Now, mix in the fact, what if I knew this she-wolf my entire life, at one point I even loved her. Would you still say go Zain, fuck her, for the good of your kind? Even if you understood the logic, the importance of such an act, you would not allow it, Helena..."