15. Maya
Maya
Istepped into their house and wrapped my arms around myself, suddenly feeling an immense amount of pressure to answer the questions I knew were coming my way.
Deciding to take a moment for myself, I went upstairs to my bedroom.
Well…not my bedroom. The bedroom they put my stuff in.
I changed from my school uniform into a pair of leggings and soft slippers, then decided to go back downstairs to place my backpack by the door.
Marco was sitting in the formal living space, and Atlas was leaning over a laptop with Anani.
Sai watched me with a nervous vulnerability while Ledger handed me a cup of tea, even though I really didn’t want one.
Henry patted the seat next to him, and I sat down, crossing my legs in front of me and taking a deep breath.
“Her father is claiming she was off her medication,” Atlas stated. “She’s going to get the help she needs, but I’m filing a restraining order.”
Oh yeah. Becky. I lifted a hand to the back of my head, feeling the dry flakes of blood on my scalp. I had to give her this, I suppose—she knew how to do some damage. My mother would like her.
A nervous prickle went over my skin, but I didn’t think it was only because of the Becky situation.
A flush ran over my body, and my insides felt like they were heating from my ribcage out.
What the heck was going on with me right now?
I tightened my hands on my legs as I tried to breathe through it, because now wasn’t the time to not feel well.
“Maya,” Marco said, but I cut him off when he opened his mouth to speak again.
“I really don’t know what you want me to say, Marco,” I whispered. I didn’t.
He stilled as everyone watched my expression, tears filling my eyes.
“Maybe this isn’t a good idea,” Henry stated, his voice filled with concern.
“We need to know,” Marco insisted.
“Why?” I snapped, asking for the millionth time.
“Because we are your goddamn mates, and you arrived into town bruised and fucking battered. We need some answers,” Sai snapped out, causing me to growl in frustration.
“You still haven’t even explained what this mate thing is!” I exclaimed, sitting forward. “And don’t give me that bullshit line about being friends.”
The room went quiet as Sai rose a brow. “You swore.”
“Yes I did.” I blushed in embarrassment, and Sai’s eyes flashed with amusement before turning dark again.
“We need to explain,” Ledger stated, intertwining his fingers with mine. I fought the urge to pull away, because I knew my frustration was misplaced. I was angry that I had to tell them the truth.
Atlas closed the laptop as Anani said, “Who wants to explain?”
“Someone please start talking,” I begged.
Marco heaved a sigh. “Alright, Maya.” He sat forward, and I tried to give him my best attention.
“We’re shifters, as you know—dragon shifters—and you’re most definitely some type of shifter.
One that we’ve narrowed down to two possibilities, but we can talk about that later.
The point is, shifters have mates. Mates are your fated partner, or partners, that the part of your soul connected to your animal matches.
Once you find them, you stay with them for the rest of your life. ”
I swallowed nervously. “That makes sense.”
“Yeah, that was the easier part,” Sai muttered.
Marco frowned. “Maya, you’re our mate. You would’ve realized it yourself on your eighteenth birthday, but leaving you in the dark, I understand, is unfair.”
The first thing that hit me was the spark of joy in the center of my chest because holy crap, they really weren’t just my friends.
Then that was smothered by the reality of my situation, part of which was the fact that this was fated.
An obligation. They didn’t have a choice; they were stuck with me.
Secondly, they deserved better. Fate was cruel for putting someone so damaged with a group of men so perfect.
“All six of you?” I whispered.
Henry nodded cautiously as I nibbled my lip. “And you said this was fated? As in, there really wasn’t a choice on how you would feel about me?”
Everyone stilled, Atlas stating, “It’s not like that, Maya.”
“But it sort of is.”
“Maya,” Marco started.
I shook my head and stood up, walking to distance myself just a little bit. Space. This was good. Which was why I wanted to cry, right? Good one, Maya.
No. This was okay. I just needed to tell them what was happening. Just needed to explain what a freak I was, because they deserved so much better.
“I was locked inside a church basement from as early as I can remember,” I stated, my voice sounding distant. Enough so that I didn’t notice the serious shift in the room, my eyes trained on the forest greenery outside.
“My mother never directly stated that I was adopted, but as I got older, it became more clear that I wasn’t her or Pastor Malcolm’s biological child.
She said they tried to baptize me, but that I set myself on fire because the devil didn’t want my soul cleansed.
From that day forward, I was locked in the basement year-round.
“My father, Pastor Malcolm, would come down each day and read scripture to me and provide me with school material.
Once he died, my mother took me away and began calling the church a cult, which is when I began to realize that my situation growing up was far from normal.
Before that, I thought every child was isolated and beaten.
Although, I think a part of me had instinctually known what I was experiencing wasn’t normal.
“Mother said that the reason I kept healing was because of the devil, because the devil fixed me. Whenever her punishments drew blood, I would heal almost immediately, so she began to bruise me instead. I don’t know why she keeps me around if she hates me enough to always want to hurt me.”
I inhaled and continued, “I’m a freak.” My voice sounded strangled.
“I’m never going to be normal. I’ll always be playing catch-up to where I should be in life.
I can’t even say my mother was wrong, because I do have the devil inside of me.
Why else would I keep being friends with all of you when I know that I shouldn’t?
When I know I’m not even good enough to have friends like you? ”
I sniffed and wrapped my arms around myself. “I turn eighteen this Saturday, and when I do, I’m gone. My mother doesn’t care where I go or what happens to me. And I know you mentioned me staying with all of you, but I don’t think that’s a good idea. I’m sure you understand, now that— Henry!”
My back hit the wall as a pair of furious silver eyes peered down at me, the oxygen leaving the room as I shivered against his body heat. I had never felt colder in my life, especially because the man in front of me was vibrating with heat.
Remember the other part of Henry I had mentioned sensing? It was very much out to play.
“I need you to listen to me, Maya,” he said softly, his voice sounding dangerous. Tears welled in my eyes, knowing that he was going to tell me to leave. I was shaking so hard that he had to hold my shoulders to stop the impending panic attack.
“You. Are. Not. Leaving.”
What?
“What?” I voiced aloud, tears leaking down my face.
“I said you’re not leaving. You aren’t leaving tonight, and you sure as hell aren’t going back to your mother. I understand, sweetheart”—he inhaled, a furious light in his eyes—“I understand that your mother has convinced you of some really fucked-up shit?—”
Oh, he swore. He must be really upset.
“—but I need you to hear me when I say you’re not a freak. You deserve a hell of a lot more than we can probably ever give you, but even so, you’re not leaving. You belong here, and if you want to be our friend?—”
“Mate,” I corrected immediately, and warmth filled his gaze.
“If you’re okay with being with us,” he whispered, “then we want nothing more than for you to stay.”
I examined his face and voiced my last concern. “But what about the fated?—”
“I don’t think that matters. I think that if I was a human, I’d feel this way about you, Maya. You’re absolutely perfect.”
Perfect?
A pained sound came from my throat, and I buried my head in his chest. He ran a soothing hand along my spine, another body joining and pressing from behind.
“Say you’ll stay, Maya,” Marco said softly.
“I’ll stay,” I whispered in a tortured voice between quiet tears.
I felt my knees break in relief, but Henry never let go of me. I could hear the other men talking, but I was losing my ability to think rationally, so thankful that they wanted me.
They wanted me to stay. With them.
“They’re going to send for the police again,” Anani said, and I looked up and found his gaze red and slightly glassy. I slithered out from between Marco and Henry, wrapping my arms around him, his nose buried in my hair.
“Screw Jed,” I muttered. “He’s a creep.”
“A creep?” Sai asked.
I nodded, because at this point I might as well get it all out. “He’s always trying to touch me and rub on me.” I cringed at that last part, but I had no other word for it.
The room might as well have turned into a tundra.
“Who hurt you the night I came to visit you?” Atlas demanded, his voice sharp.
“My mother, because she saw me with you. But then the next morning, Jed left bruises on my neck.”
“Fucking shit,” Anani muttered.
“Why didn’t you say anything?” Ledger asked roughly.
“I’ve known you for all of four days. I may be naive, but sharing my abusive mother problems right off the bat seemed like a bad idea,” I muttered.
“I want him taken care of,” Marco said in a calm, lethal tone, his body frozen with tension.
“Not tonight!” I whipped my head back to look at him. “Please not tonight. I don’t want to escalate anything until I can legally leave the house. Please, please, Marco.”
He inhaled and searched my face before nodding. I rested my cheek against Anani’s chest as my dry and sore eyes closed, a sigh full of relief leaving me.