Accepting Fate - (Slums to Riches, Book one)

Chapter 53

Ty sat gaping for a few seconds, then said, "Wow. I have a grandmother? Wait. If Cook is my grandmother, does that make me like you?"

"Yes and no. You're not a witch like Michael, Cook, and me, but you do have some magic. It's why your voice soothes us when we're stressed. It's how you help me focus when everything goes to shit around me."

"Annie," Jenny scolded.

"Sorry, it slipped out," Angelique said. She turned to Cook and said, "By the way, it carries over into his recordings. That makes his ability a little more advanced than yours."

Cook started to say, "Amazing," and then cried out in fright when she hung a foot off the ground in a bear hug.

"I always wanted family who wanted me. I know why she sent me away, but it hurt. Now I have you."

Cook tapped his back and then said, "Put me down, you silly boy. You'll make me cry and then there will be trouble."

"Only if I can call you Grandma, or just Ma. Oh, how about Nana? I like Nana. I think that's what I'll call you now."

Cook swatted him, but she could not hide the joy in her eyes. "Go sit down. Angie's not done yet. Silly boy. That's what I'll call you now."

Ty grinned as he lowered Cook to her feet and then helped her into her chair, before returning to the couch. He and Andrew barely fit together in the two-seater.

"Okay. That covers the bear, the lion, and the water-shifter. It leaves the wolf, the tiger, and the mythical shifter," Ben said.

"And the elder witch. If you do the calculations, you will notice we have an extra person. Andrew and Cook have a decision to make, so I'll leave them for last. Now. There is something no one mentions in their stories of the mothers. Because of this, we need to keep what I tell you next to ourselves. Michael is the son of the tiger shifter. Not the one banished to hell. The mothers chose a new elder; the first tiger born to the lion elder."

Ty clicked his fingers as he thought and then said, "Didn't you say the lion elder was Jamie's grandmother? That means Michael and Jamie are cousins."

Angelique sat up straight and stared at Ty. "Huh, I never thought of it, but you are right. Jamie's grandmother is Michael's grandmother."

"So why do we have to keep that a secret?"

Angelique turned to look at Ben and Logan. "You never mentioned the second tiger in your story, but did either of you know about her?"

They both shook their heads, so she turned to Cook.

"I didn't know either."

Turning back to Andrew and Ty, she asked, "What do you think people will say when they find out Michael is the son of the tiger elder?"

Ty slapped his hand to his forehead. "Of course! They will think he's evil like the one sent to hell, because no one knows about the second tiger. Okay, I understand now."

"I get that you can't tell us more about Jenny, but she was barely a year when she came to us. How could she protect herself like that?"

"I'm sorry for bringing this up. I do not want to unsettle you all over again. But think about what happened to you when you arrived at the Harlows," Angelique said. "Except for that, what do you think Patricia and Thomas would have done to her if they felt her powers? She's not like us. She's not a shifter. Her gifts are magical, mystical in nature. When she's ready to change into her true form, too many people will try to kill her for her abilities."

Ty and Andrew jumped up, but Angelique raised a hand to silence them.

"We will take extra precautions to protect her. I just need to read up on what I can do to help her. For now, she is safe in the house."