Never Leave, A Human Mate - (Book 2 The Mist Series)

~Chapter 26 - Reece’s Daughter~

~Dawn~

The rain hammered against the thick canvas of my rain jacket, a relentless drumming that mirrored the frantic beat of my heart. Reece stood beside me in nothing more than a white shirt. Seeing his muscle beneath it was a bonus. The sun, which had blessed us only hours ago, was now a forgotten memory behind the storm clouds. I adjusted the hood, pulling it tighter around my face, trying to ward off not just the chill, but also the unease that coiled in my stomach. He’d asked me to meet his daughter, Matilda. Not just meet her, but visit her in the underground jail cells beneath the packhouse. The request had been jarring, a discord in the harmony we’d been building over the last few days. Why did that make me so nervous?

“Ready?” Reece asked, his voice a low rumble beside me. His eyes, usually so warm and inviting, were shadowed with worry.

I swallowed hard, forcing a shaky nod. “As I’ll ever be, I guess.”

He offered a small, reassuring smile, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. Tonight was a big step, a leap of faith I wasn’t sure I was ready to take. Beyond the s*x and brief conversation, I barely knew Reece. And now he was inviting me into this… this hidden, unsettling part of his life.

We walked towards the rear of the yard behind the packhouse. Reece stopped before what looked like a simple hatch in the ground, almost hidden by a mound of grass. He heaved it open, revealing a dark, gaping maw that seemed to lead directly into the earth’s cold heart.

“This was here before I was,” he explained when he saw my unease. “But it’s well maintained and safe. Built into the ground itself.”

Taking a deep breath, I descended the narrow stone steps, with Reece behind me.

The air grew heavy, damp, and carried a faint, earthy smell that clung to the back of my throat. The only light came from the caged lights embedded in the walls, casting long, dancing shadows that played tricks on my eyes.

My mind raced, trying to make sense of it all. Jail cells? Underground? What kind of life had Reece been living before I came along, clueless and stumbling into his world? I realised that there was so much I didn’t know, so much he hadn’t told me.

We finally reached a small opening where two men stood guard. They were built like brick walls, all muscle and stoicism, and their eyes narrowed as they took us in.

“Reece.” One of them grunted, stepping aside to allow us passage. “Here to see Matilda?”

Reece nodded in acknowledgement, his jaw tight. “Everything alright, Pete? Has she been any trouble?”

“Quiet night,” Pete replied, his gaze unwavering. “Matilda barely speaks, so she’s no trouble.”

Beyond the guards, the passage opened into a circular chamber. The air was thick with a sense of despair, a tangible weight that pressed down on me. Cells lined the perimeter, each one shrouded in shadow. But only one was occupied.

In the cell to our left, a girl sat on a simple cot. She was pale, almost ethereal, with a cascade of white hair that fell around her shoulders like liquid moonlight. Her face was a perfect miniature of Reece’s, the same strong jawline, the same high cheekbones, the same intense blue eyes. Except, on her, the features were refined, delicate, almost painfully beautiful. She was the spitting image of him, but somehow… softer. More fragile.

“Matilda,” Reece said, his voice hoarse.

The girl didn’t react at first, seemingly lost in her own thoughts. Then, slowly, she lifted her head, her eyes locking onto Reece. There was a flicker of something in their depths, a brief spark of recognition, quickly extinguished by a wave of resentment.

“Matty,” Reece stepped closer to the bars, his hand reaching out, as if to touch her. But he stopped short, his fingers curling into a fist. “I wanted you to meet someone.”

She scoffed, a harsh, bitter sound. “Wonderful. Just so you can rub your freedom in my face?”

“Matilda, that’s not fair,” Reece said, his voice pleading.

“Isn’t it? You wouldn’t know fair if it bit you on the ass,” she retorted, turning her gaze away from him.

I wanted to disappear, to become invisible, to avoid witnessing this raw, agonizing exchange. But I was trapped, caught in the crossfire of their fractured relationship.

Finally, her eyes landed on me. They were cold, assessing, dissecting me with a single glance. “So, this is her, then?” she asked, her voice dripping with cynicism. “The one you’ve been mooning over? The one you finally dragged down here to see your pathetic little secret?”

My heart lurched. Mooning over? A wave of dizziness washed over me, threatening to overwhelm me.

“Matilda, please,” Reece pleaded, his voice thick with emotion. “I saved your life by keeping you here. You know that.”

She ignored him, her attention fixed on me. “Is she as clueless as she looks? Does she even know what we are?”

The words hung in the air, heavy with unspoken meaning. What we are? Was this about a past he was ashamed of? A secret life? What had this poor girl done?

I opened my mouth to speak, to ask, but no sound came out. Instead, an intense brain fog blurred my thoughts.

Matilda smirked, a cruel, knowing expression that sent a shiver down my spine. “I bet she doesn’t. You always were good at keeping secrets, weren’t you, Daddy?”

Reece closed his eyes, as if warding off physical pain. “Matilda, that’s enough. I came here because you’re my daughter, and I care about you. And I wanted you to meet the woman I care about. Don’t do this.”

“Don’t do what?” she asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Expose your carefully constructed facade? Show your little girlfriend the real you? The monster you keep hidden? That we all keep hidden?”

Monster. The word echoed in my mind, bouncing off the damp stone walls of the jail cell. Was that what she thought of him? Was that what he was hiding?

I looked at Reece, really looked at him. At the lines of worry etched on his face, at the pain in his eyes, at the way his hands were clenched into fists at his sides. He looked… tormented. But there was also a strength there, a resilience that I admired. He was in pain. Coming here and confronting his daughter was showing me the raw side of him. His secret.

I turned to Matilda. “Matilda, I don’t know what happened, but your father brought me down here to you shows he cares about you… and me enough to introduce us. He speaks about you a lot. I know he misses you. The pain in his eyes talks of open wounds.”

I faced him then; the words ringing true in my head. He cared about me.

“I honestly do, Dawn.” He breathed, taking my hand. “I want to show you all of me… And I want you to stay in Mist.”

That uncertainty returned. Stay? With my illness, how long would I have?

“But what about the leukemia?” I asked, my voice a low whisper. “I don’t even know how much longer I have…”

He pulled me into him, holding me with affection. “I’ll look after you, no matter what.”

Matilda watched us, her expression unreadable. The animosity seemed to have lessened, replaced by a curious stillness. Perhaps she saw the genuine connection between us, or perhaps she was simply tired of fighting.

“What did I do?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. “Dad?”

Reece flinched, his grip on my hand tightening. “Matilda…”

“No, tell me,” she insisted, her eyes pleading. “What did I do to deserve this? To be locked away like a common criminal?”

The question hung in the air, unanswered like a weight between them. It was a question I wanted answered too.

Reece sighed, running a hand through his hair. “You know why, Matilda. Because you betrayed the… family. You threatened Louise’s life!”

“But…But, Dad!” Matilda stammered, her voice cracking. “She… she took him away from me!”

The air in the cell seemed to thicken, the weight of unspoken emotions pressing down on us. I looked at Reece, confusion swirling inside me. Matilda, this innocent-looking girl, had tried to kill someone?

He closed his eyes, a muscle ticking in his jaw. “Matilda, that’s not how things work. You can’t just… threaten someone because you’re jealous. Louise and Joseph are deeply in love. That would never change.”

“Jealous?” Matilda laughed, a hollow, broken sound. “It wasn’t just jealousy, Reece! It was about… everything! About you, about the pack, about the future! She’s not fit to be Luna! She’s weak, she’s vulnerable, and she’ll lead us all to ruin!”

Reece flinched at her words. “Matilda!”

I finally found my voice, the questions bubbling up inside me demanding to be answered. “Wait, hold on. What exactly is going on here? Reece, what is she talking about? What does Louise have to do with any of this? Pack? Luna? I don’t understand any of this!”

He looked at me, his eyes filled with a mixture of guilt and desperation. “Dawn, this is… complicated. It’s a family matter. Something I can’t really get into right now.”

“Can’t or won’t?” I challenged, my patience wearing thin. “Because it sounds like it has something to do with why your daughter is locked in a cell, and I think I deserve to know what’s going on.”

Matilda snorted. “Oh, you have no idea, human!”

Reece shot her a warning glare. “Matilda, enough!”

But the dam had broken. The secrets were spilling out, one painful drop at a time.

I turned back to Matilda. “What do you mean, human? What else would I be?”

She hesitated for a moment, as if debating whether or not to reveal more. Then, with a defiant glint in her eyes, she spoke. “Don’t you find it a little strange that Reece lives in a gigantic house with many people? Don’t you think it’s strange that none of us seems cold? What about Dad’s strength, his supernatural ability? And has he ever called you mate?”

My breath caught in my throat. Was that what this was all about? Had I been so naïve, so blinded by attraction, that I hadn’t seen the manipulation?

“What are you suggesting?” I asked, my voice barely a whisper.

“I’m suggesting that maybe, just maybe, you’re not here by accident,” Matilda said, her voice dripping with venom, taking my hand, the contact searing the back of my hand. “Maybe you’re part of some grand scheme… or maybe… maybe you’re something else entirely…”

“Enough, Matilda!” Reece demanded, his voice rumbling the ground.

She leaned closer to the bars, her eyes boring into mine. “Maybe you’re not just a sick human, Dawn. Maybe you’re something… more… Freya!”

Her words sent a shiver down my spine. Freya! That was what Alda had called me. Something more? What did that even mean?

Suddenly, a sharp pain lanced through my head, a blinding flash of light behind my eyes. I stumbled back, clutching my head, a low groan escaping my lips.

Images flooded my mind, fragmented and disjointed. A battlefield, a blue goddess, a sacrifice… faces I didn’t recognise, voices I couldn’t place. Wolves! No, werewolves. They were running with me. I was one of them! It was like a broken film reel, flickering and fading, leaving me disoriented and confused.

“Dawn? What’s wrong?” Reece asked, his voice filled with concern. He reached out to steady me, his touch sending another wave of dizziness through me. “Don’t take what Matilda says to heart. That’s why she’s down here.”

I pulled away, my head spinning. “Stop! I… I don’t know. I feel… strange.”

Matilda watched me. Her eyes narrowed, a knowing look on her face. “Freya’s waking up,” she whispered, almost to herself. “It’s starting.”

“What’s starting?” I demanded, my voice trembling. “What are you talking about?”

But Matilda didn’t answer. She simply stared at me, her eyes filled with a mixture of fear and fascination.

Reece stepped between us, shielding me from her gaze. “We need to go,” he said, his voice urgent. “Now.”

He took my hand, his grip tight, and led me away from the cell, away from Matilda, away from the secrets that were threatening to unravel my world.

As we walked back through the underground passage, the weight of everything that had been revealed pressed down on me. Reece and everyone here were werewolves. Matilda was imprisoned for threatening the Luna—Louise. And I… I was no longer a human….

The rain was still falling when we emerged from the hatch, the sky a bruised and angry grey. But the storm within me was far more violent, a tempest of confusion, fear, and a growing sense of unease.

I looked at Reece, his face etched with worry, and realised that I barely knew him. He was a stranger, a mystery wrapped in layers of secrets. And I did not know what I was getting myself into.

“No!” I pulled my hand away from his, my heart pounding in my chest. “I need some space,” I said, my voice barely audible above the rain. “I want my car! And I want to leave!”