The Summer Moon
Chapter 17 -

Tyrese

I felt more nervous than I had in a long time as I stood on John's front porch. I wanted to project confidence as an alpha, but when it came to Malia, I was weak. I was grateful to know that John accepted me as her mate, but I was so anxious to know if Malia was a wolf or not. If she was, it would surely make everything easier. If she wasn't, I'm sure my father and many pack members would be in an uproar, but in the end they would have to learn to accept her. She was my mate, and I wouldn't have any other.

"Tyrese, come on in," John nodded to me as he greeted me at the front door. I followed him into the house and we took a seat in his office. Old maps my father had given him in desperation to replace Jordan were scattered all over his desk. Several X's covered the maps to show all the areas they had searched with no luck. I sighed to myself, this search was starting to seem useless. It was horrible that my father was taking so much of John's time up with this. As much as I wanted to replace Jordan, our pack needed to move on. Jordan was gone, and we were wasting our resources at this point.

"So I'm sure you have a lot of questions about my daughter and her sudden appearance in town," John began the conversation as he took his seat. I nodded, but that didn't even begin to compare with how I was feeling. "How much does she know?" I asked first, sitting in the chair across from him. This was the most important thing to me. From her reactions to my pack mark on that first night, I could only assume she didn't know much. John confirmed my fear as he answered, "Nothing."

My heart pounded in my chest. "Is she-" I started but John cut me off by raising his hand. I felt my wolf growl inside but quickly pulled him back. I had to focus, I had to listen to what John had to say. Ever since I had become an alpha though, my wolf had been becoming more aggressive, he didn't like to allow other people to control anything, even just a conversation.

"I think it's best I start from the beginning," John cleared his throat and I took a deep breath, willing myself to stay calm. "I met Malia's mother Joanna when I was still a young wolf. We went to high school together. I was just being dumb messing around. I was irresponsible and she got pregnant. I hadn't met my mate yet, but I did enjoy Joanna's company and I wanted to be in my baby's life. Malia was born, Joanna and I moved into this house together. I managed to keep the fact that I was a werewolf from her for 4 years. Shortly after Malia's fourth birthday, I met Savanah. I had to end things with Joanna, and I felt horrible but Savanah was my mate. I had to be with her. I never thought Joanna would actually leave though. I told her she could have the house. We would share custody of Malia. But one thing led to another and Joanna ended up replaceing out about werewolves. She hated me for my relationship with Savanah, she hated werewolves, but I never thought she would leave. Then, in the middle of the night, she packed all her belongings, took Malia to the airport and they were gone. I was devastated. Malia was my daughter and she just disappeared into thin air. It took me nearly 6 months to finally catch Malia's scent in New York."

Suddenly, I understood why John continued to look so hard for my brother. Losing Malia was probably what had made him such a good tracker in the first place. He must sympathize with my father's loss of a child. But Jordan's disappearance wasn't like Malia, he was a grown wolf, he was an alpha. "I'm guessing that's why Malia never came to visit here before, why she had to lie to her mother to come now," I stated.

"Joanna only let me visit once or twice a year. I begged her to let Malia visit all the time, but Joanna would never allow it. Finally, this year I showed up and it wasn't a question anymore. Malia was coming here. I took plane tickets, I begged Malia. She's old enough to make her own decisions now. I figured she had to lie to her mother to get here, but I'm grateful that she did." John explained, his eyes hung heavy.

"Do you think Joanna would have told Malia about werewolves?" I wondered next, if Joanna hated the wolves so much she could raise her daughter to hate them as well. But Malia had told me her favourite animal was a wolf. That couldn't be true if she'd been taught to hate werewolves. A thousand questions ran through my mind and I couldn't possibly work through them all.

"I honestly don't know, she's not the same woman I once knew," John admitted. We sat in silence for a moment, but I couldn't tolerate it any longer. I needed to know the answer to the question I had come here for.

"If Malia's mother is human, and you're a werewolf, what does that make her?" My heart was racing in my chest. I was eager to know, but terrified to replace out.

"That's why she's here now, she's turning 18 this summer. I haven't been able to do any training with her, to watch for any signs. I don't know if she's a wolf. She definitely has some characteristics, she's strong, she's a gifted athlete, at times she has quite the temper and is very strong-willed, but I can't know for certain," I nodded. I had noticed the same traits, although it made me laugh a little to imagine Malia with a temper. She always seemed so gentle and innocent. "She looks so much like her mother, I can't help but think she's inherited everything from her and nothing from me. I'm hoping to figure this out before her 18th birthday so that I can tell her about our world, I can prepare her. This isn't how I wanted her life to be, I wanted her to grow up here, to know everyone, to train by my side. There was no arguing with Joanna though, and I couldn't separate Malia from her mother. I could never hurt my daughter like that."

John was running his hands through his hair. I could tell how hard this whole situation had been for him. "I never expected you though, for her to become your mate. Perhaps that could mean that she is a wolf, she's meant to be here after all." I had been wondering the same thing. Why would the moon goddess mate an alpha with a human? But then again, I was never supposed to be an alpha.

"I've been watching for signs that she might be a wolf, but I haven't seen any. There's still time though." I looked down to the floor, everything was becoming so complicated. If Joanna hated the wolves so much, I worried about what would happen to her relationship with Malia if she became one. As much as Malia seemed to be a little at odds with her mother right now, I couldn't imagine her wanting to entirely break that relationship off. If Malia wasn't a wolf, I could also always use my abilities as an alpha to change her, but would she ever accept that? What if she hated the wolves the same way her mother had? What if she took off just like her mother? This was different though. Malia and I were mated. I could feel her presence, her scent was a part of me. I could replace her anywhere in this world now. My mind was racing again and I willed myself to calm down. Answers would come only with time, so I had to learn some patience even if I didn't want to "I will let you know if anything appears, but I'm sure you'll be spending more time with her than I will be. You'll probably know first," John stood up from the desk and began shuffling around the maps. He cleared his throat again but didn't speak.

"When should we tell her? What if she hates us the same way her mother does?" I asked the questions I now feared most. John's eyes looked up to meet mine and I saw his fear as well. We were both desperate to keep her here, desperate for her acceptance, desperate for her love.

"I wish I knew," he came to stand at my side and set his hand on my shoulder and gave it a squeeze. "This will work out Ty, you will know when the time is right," and I couldn't help but feel like no time would ever be right.