Page 56 of Her Reborn Mate
“You went to the kitchen without me?” I asked as I sat up and rubbed my eyes. “What time is it?”
“Go back to sleep, Lexie,” Will said. His mood was completely different from how it had been before we’d fallen asleep. “I’m going to join you soon.”
“Will. What’s wrong? You’re worried. What is it?” I asked. “You have to confide these things in me.”
“Fine,” Will said, only this time, there was no jubilation in his voice. It was a grave voice, a haunting reminder of how his voice used to be before the potion. “There I was, fast asleep, when Maurice visited me in my dream. Well, more precisely, his words. Do you remember what he said? He’d said something about someone being against me for more than seventy years. I had forgotten about that. Fate seems to have reminded me that one of my foes, other than Blair, is still alive and out there, potentially plotting something against me. No matter how much I think about it, I end up drawing a blank. You’re my mate. What do you think it is? Who is out there?”
This version of Will was a much more natural version compared to how he was just a few hours ago. I realized how stupid I had been in thinking that there was something wrong with him. There had been nothing wrong with him. He had only drunk too much wine. That’s why he was being so over the top earlier. Now that he was drinking his coffee, he was sober, and with such sobriety came the realization of sobriety.
“The puppeteer,” I said.
“Why would you say that?” Will asked, frowning.
“There is someone in the shadows, operating from behind curtains of darkness, pulling the strings of the people that we came to know as our foes. Blair, Maurice, Ralph—those were all puppets,” I said.
“It couldn’t be Edward. I killed him with my hands,” Will sighed. “And the only other person who still lives from seventy years ago is Fred. But he is my brother, and look at his state. He’s old, withered, and can’t even move without his walker or his wheelchair. Do you really think that Fred is capable of creating such a fine syndicate of crime and horrors?”
“Fred is senile,” I agreed. “Even when I was a kid, he was senile. He cannot talk properly. Most of the time, he’s not even thinking straight. If you walk past him in the town square, you’ll find him mumbling nonsense. Most pack members just respect him because he’s one of the original Grimms. He cannot be the puppeteer.”
“Is it me?” Will asked.
“What?!” I rose from my bed, utterly perplexed at his question.
“You know, like how in those movies and TV shows that you showed me, the main character develops a split personality disorder where one personality is the hero, and the other is a villain. LikeMr. RobotorFight Club,” Will said.
“Okay, putting aside the fact that I’m more than impressed that you’ve somehow retained the plots ofMr. RobotandFight Club, that kind of thing only happens in movies. Besides, you spend countless hours by my side. We’re always in front of each other. Don’t you think if you had a secret split personality, I would be the first to know of it?”
“You’re right. I’m just thinking around in circles and getting nowhere,” Will said, shaking his hand. “Hey, do you want some of this coffee? I don’t want anymore. I’m as sober as one can be.”
“Fine. Give it,” I said, reaching out. He handed me the cup. I drank from it to clear my head, then went to the window and sat by him on the sofa, both of us staring out into the darkness.
“Was Maurice lying?” Will asked. “You know, he might be lying just to fuck with my head so that even in death, he would have the last laugh.”
“Come to think of it, that could be it. Just look at the town yourself. It’s all so calm now that Maurice and Ralph aren’t there anymore. Even Blair has left the city and has holed up god knows where. If there were a true villain plotting things against you for seventy-plus years, wouldn’t they be out there trying to bring you down? Instead, you’re enjoying a nice mini-vacation with your mate out here in Vermont,” I said. “Now come back to bed, and let’s go to sleep. We do have to go back to Fiddler’s Green tomorrow.”
I held Will’s hand and beckoned him to come back to bed. He did not struggle.
“Paranoia does not suit you, Will,” I said, holding his head in my arms as I cradled him to sleep.
***
“Oh, my Lord, that is one big fat ring!” Vincent gasped as I held my hand to him. “Tell me all the details. How did he propose? What was that place like?”
“Calm down, now, young Vincent,” Will said, coming from behind me. We had just entered the Grimm Abode after hours of traveling. I was overcome with joy upon seeing Vincent back in the commune and couldn’t wait to show him the ring.
“Will! Buddy, so good to see you!” Vince said and gave Will a deep hug. “Congratulations are in order—an engaged man. Soon you’ll be a married man. God, this calls for celebrations. I’m going to alert the entire commune!”
“Before you do any of that, tell me about yourself,” I said, holding Vincent’s hand and taking him to the side. Will followed us with his hand resting on Vincent’s shoulder.
“I had to go away for a while to clear my head. You know? With dad dying and everything, it changed things for me. Now, I’m the head of my family. Grandpa Fred is there, but he’s not really all there, is he? Every day he grows older and more senile than before. I have to take care of all the land that we own, the resources, and so much bureaucratic stuff that dad had lying around in his mayoral office. But that’s just business. I traveled quite a bit just to compute what had happened and process it all. What I came to realize at the end of my travels was that my father was his own man, just as I am my own man. He was responsible for his choices. I get to make my choices. And that makes all the difference,” Vincent said. “With that said, I’m back, and I’m going to take charge of things, starting with an engagement celebration!”
Will hugged him, and so did I. Vincent was in quite a positive spirit, and it reflected in the spirit of everyone in the commune. People were happy, walking around with smiles on their faces. Vincent kept running from person to person, telling them that Will had proposed to me.
And then it began, the deluge of people coming to me one by one, congratulating me on landing such a fine young man and wishing me the best of luck in my future life. Even though I was tired as hell, I stayed outside and greeted everyone who came to me, bearing congratulations.
Once it was all done, two hours had passed. It had never taken me two hours to interact with my pack members before. This was the first time they had greeted and treated me with such fondness, making me truly feel like a part of the pack instead of just an outsider.
I held Will’s hand and took him to our home, eager to get out of the sight of all the people. We were tired, and we needed to rest. More importantly, we had to get ready for whatever shindig Vincent was going to throw in light of the news of our engagement.