Chapter 9
Nine
Miles
"It's not a long drive, so we should get there in about an hour.
Nash didn't have a phone number for Duckie's mom, so there's no way to warn her about our arrival," I said, and Mateo hummed in thought.
We were both in the living room, waiting for Duckie to finish up in the bathroom so we could get going.
He hadn't wanted to delay seeing his mom, and I understood that.
If I hadn't seen one of my dads for years, if I'd thought for years that they were dead only to be told they weren't, nothing would've stopped me from going to see them.
Mateo opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, the sound of soft footsteps jerked my gaze to the hallway, and I froze as my brain screeched to a halt.
"Um," Duckie said, shuffling in place. "Do you have some clothes I can borrow?"
He was wearing a bathrobe that swallowed him whole, and he was... His dark eyes flicked between me and Mateo, and my twin spoke up as I still struggled to wrap my head around this.
"Sure. I'll get you some of mine," Mateo said, cheerful as ever, then hurried up the stairs while Duckie and I stared at each other.
He had dark, wavy hair that reached below his shoulders and had a greenish shine when the light hit the strands.
His face was angular, his skin pale, and he was a few inches taller than me.
His lips looked soft, and inviting and..
. was that a mole below his lower lip? I had the sudden urge to lick it, and I shook my head, pushing the thought away.
His eyes had slid to the floor at some point while I was ogling him, his hands fisted into the robe as he held it closed, and I already missed his new and yet familiar face.
It was the first time I was seeing him in his human form, and yet it felt like I was still seeing the same person I had for the past two weeks.
"You are beautiful," I blurted out, and heat raced up my cheeks as Duckie's head jerked up, his eyes wide as they met mine, his cheeks pink.
Mateo reappeared then, and his eyes slid from me to Duckie before a wide grin spread across his face.
"Here you go." He held out a small stack of clothes—including underwear still in its packaging—and Duckie grabbed them before hurrying back into the bathroom.
Mateo waited until he'd closed the door before turning to me, grin still in place. "You look positively smitten."
I reached over and grabbed his shoulder, then pushed him as hard as I could, making him laugh. His smile softened as he got his footing back. "I'm happy for you, My."
Nodding, I glanced back at the bathroom. I wasn't sure if Duckie had shifted because he was going to see his mom or because he knew those awful men were dead, but either way, I was glad. Duckie might shift back later, but I'd be okay with that, like I had been before today.
A big part of me wanted Duckie to stay in this form. I wanted to have a proper conversation with him. I wanted to go on a date with him. I wanted to touch him, to kiss him. But I wanted those things when Duckie felt comfortable giving them to me, and not a second before.
The door opened again, and Duckie stepped out. While Mateo's t-shirt was a little wide on him, his pants were a little short. Yet, even with the ill-fitting clothes, Duckie looked stunning.
Mateo whistled, making Duckie blush again.
"I think you broke my brother, Duckie," Mateo joked, and I glared at him, though the soft laugh that escaped Duckie's lips made me forgive the brat.
"If you want, we can go buy you some better-fitting clothes before we visit your mom," Mateo offered, and I nodded in agreement, searching for my voice that had eluded me. It had been a long time since I'd struggled to speak.
"Would it take long?" Duckie asked. His voice was so soft; it felt like a caress every time it reached my ears.
"Not at all. We'll go to TOSS and have Kezan work his magic."
Duckie tilted his head in question, and I found my voice as I answered his unspoken question, glad to have a safe topic to speak about.
"TOSS is short for The One Stop Shops. It's a shopping mall in the town center.
Kezan is Micah's boss, and a djinn. His shop runs on his magic, and it always finds the perfect clothes for you. "
Duckie blinked at me, a look of wonder on his face. "That sounds amazing."
Mateo grinned. "It is. You'll love it. Let's go."
Mateo insisted Duckie sit in the front since I was driving.
The rain had calmed down, telling me all of the baby dragons had hatched, and were okay.
I hoped we'd get to see them soon. Veron was an adorable baby dragon, and I was excited to see the other four as well, and to see what Veron looked like now.
After a pit stop at Wish For It, where Duckie insisted on buying a single outfit, despite our—and Micah's, who was in charge of the store in Kezan's absence—protests, we made our way to Tacoma.
Keeping my eyes on the road and not on the man beside was a struggle, but it became easier when Mateo smacked my face to keep us from crashing.
"Sorry," I mumbled once I'd steadied the car, and Mateo snorted.
"I should've driven," he said, and I couldn't argue with him. I was way too distracted to be driving.
Duckie shifted in his seat, drawing my gaze to him once more, and Mateo sighed.
"That's it. Stop the car. We're switching places."
It was for the best. While we wouldn't die in a car accident—not unless the car went up in flames and we were trapped inside—that didn't mean it wouldn't hurt, or that we couldn't hurt some innocent human who was passing by.
Duckie
In the end, shifting into my human form hadn't been as terrifying as I'd thought. Maybe it was because I knew those horrible men were long gone, or maybe it was the excitement of seeing my mom, or because I didn't want her to know how I'd spent the last twenty-one years.
Maybe it was a combination of all those things that gave me the courage I needed to shift, though it still took me a few minutes of standing in the bathroom before I could do it.
Once I'd shifted, I'd stood in front of the mirror for a full five minutes. It'd felt like looking at a stranger, but then I'd seen the tiny mole below my lower lip, and my face was mine again.
I'd been nervous about how Miles would react.
I'd known Mateo would take it in stride, but that was also because our relationship was quite different to the one I shared with Miles.
Mateo was becoming my best friend, but I didn't feel the same way with him that I did with Miles.
Miles made my heart go crazy. He made me speechless and feel shy.
I'd wanted him to like my human form, so it was gratifying to realize he'd almost crashed the car because he couldn't stop looking at me. And he'd called me beautiful. I liked that. I really, really liked that.
"So, are you excited to see your mom?" Mateo asked, and I hummed.
"I am. I wish I'd known. I wouldn't have..." I wouldn't have wasted years of my life existing like a common duck.
"Yeah, that sucks. But it's good that you know now, right?"
"It is," I agreed, then turned back to look at Miles. "Miles, I never thanked you for looking into it in the first place. Thank you. I never would've known mom was alive if you hadn't done that."
Miles's eyes sparkled, and I could almost feel the warmth that filled them. "I'm glad I did it too. This is much better than any closure I'd hoped to give you."
"It is. I'd like to meet your cop friend at some point and thank them too."
Miles nodded, and I turned back to face the front.
Mateo kept me chatting, trying to keep me from getting worried.
How was it that I'd known these two for two short weeks, and they were already such an important part of my life?
I supposed it was partly because of the bond I shared with them. But mostly, it was them.
When Mateo stopped the car in front of a house that looked so very similar to the one I'd lived in as a kid, I'd almost forgotten where we were going.
"Come on," Miles said in a soft voice, and I nodded, though I didn't move as they left the car.
A moment passed, and then Miles opened my door, peering in at me with a warm look on his face. "Come on, Duckie. You've got this." He held his hand out to me, and I grabbed it like a lifeline.
The three of us walked up the porch steps, and Mateo pressed the doorbell as I tried to regulate my breathing. I squeezed Miles's hand in a tight grip, and all he did was give me a gentle squeeze back, letting me use his hand like a stress toy.
Footsteps approached the door, and then it was pulled open. I stared at my mom as my breath caught in my lungs. She looked the same as she did in my memories. Her long black hair was in a messy bun on top of her head, and her dark eyes were wide as she took me in.
"Duckie?" she whispered, voice hushed and oh so familiar, and I nodded as my eyes watered.
A soft sob escaped her lips as she grabbed me, pulling me into a tight hug right there in the doorway.
I let go of Miles's hand to hug her back, squeezing her to me as I dragged in a breath, the familiar scent of her settling into my bones as all the fear, anxiety, and grief I'd held onto all these years fizzled away.
I knew it would be back. Dad was still gone.
But for now, I was happy, and I clung to that feeling.
"Every year I visited the police station, they told me I needed to move on. But in my heart, I knew you'd come back to me one day, my sweet Duckie. I'm glad I never lost hope," Mom whispered as she held me tight, and I squeezed her, struggling to say anything.
I wasn't sure how long we hugged while Miles and Mateo waited behind me, but Mom finally pulled away, wiping the tears off my face with the edge of her shawl like she had when I was a kid. Then she wiped away her own tears before looking at Miles and Mateo.
"Sorry about that. Please come in. I'm Heather."
Mom kept a hold of my hand as she led us into the house, and to a living room that looked very much like the one from before. This wasn't the same house, but she'd decorated it just like our old one.
"It's nice to meet you, Heather. I'm Mateo, and this is Miles."
Mom waved them toward the armchairs as she pulled me onto the couch with her.
She cupped my face, her eyes roaming all over as if she was trying to compare every little detail to the eight-year-old she'd known. I hadn't been able to see myself in the bathroom mirror, in this face I hadn't worn in ages, but could she?
"Where have you been, my sweet child?" she asked, and I shrugged. I didn't want to tell her I'd spent the last twenty-one years hiding in my duck form because I'd been afraid those men would hunt me down. Men who'd been dead for years.
"All over. I thought you were dead. That's why I never came back. I'm sorry."
Mom shook her head, then kissed my cheek. "It's not your fault, sweetie. You were so young. I can't imagine how horrible it must've been for you to... to witness that."
I swallowed hard. The memories of that night were burned into my mind, but I didn't want to think about that night. Not now.
Shaking her head, she cleared her throat, then turned her attention to my mates, who'd been quiet this whole time.
"How do you two know my Duckie?" she asked, and Mateo's eyes flicked to me.
"You know, I thought Duckie was just a name you told us because you're a duck shifter," he teased, and I winced, knowing what Mom would say next.
"Actually, his name is Mallard," Mom said, shooting me a smile.
"But when he was five, he declared that his name was 'stupid' when I explained to him why I'd named him that.
By that point he knew he wasn't supposed to tell anyone about being a shifter, and he said I might as well have named him Duckie if I wanted to be that obvious. So I did."
I groaned as I covered my face with my hands as my mates laughed, but I couldn't bring myself to be annoyed by Mom. I knew it would wear off at some point, but for now, I was sure I'd let her get away with anything.
"You never answered my question, boys. How do you know my son?"
Miles raised a brow at me, and I nodded, loving that he was asking my permission before telling her.
"Mateo and I are his mates, ma'am."
Mom was silent for so long I wondered if she hadn't heard them, but then she cleared her throat. "How long have you been together?"
"We met two weeks ago," I answered, and she turned to look at me, her brows furrowed.
"So your bond hasn't fully formed yet?"
I shook my head, and she sighed. What was that about?
Before I could ask her, she turned to my mates. Giving them a smile, she said, "Would you two mind giving us some privacy? I need to talk to my son about something."
Mateo's brows furrowed, but Miles glanced over at me. I didn't know what she wanted to talk about, but she was my mom. I could spend some time alone with her. It would be nice.
I nodded, and Miles regarded me for a moment, then got to his feet. "Come on, Mat. We'll drive around town for a bit."
Walking over to me, he handed me his phone. "Call Mateo's phone when you're ready for us to come back."
The unlock pin is 1609, he added through the bond, and I nodded as I stuck the phone in my pocket.
"Thank you," I said, knowing they'd understand I was thanking him for more than the phone.
Miles nodded as Mateo winked at me, and Mom stayed quiet as they left, but it wasn't until they'd driven away that she spoke. "You need to break up with them."