Between Gods and Lycans

2 - Mom's secret

Viggo

“Mom, I’m heading out.”

Mom turns away from her baking to look at me. ‘Where are you off to?’

My mother very rarely speaks out loud. Mom has a severe stammer and finds it easier to speak through the mind-link. I grew up not knowing any different. But I will admit that when she speaks out loud, it can take a while for her to get to the point of what she’s trying to say.

I love my mother more than anything in this world. She’s always been my biggest supporter in life. Being mated to Fenrir meant that Mom only carried me for five days. When I was born, Mom protected me with her life. She even allowed my father to take me to Thor while they fought the Goddess Nyx. My mother loved me so much that she wanted to keep me safe.

I grew much faster than other kids. By two, I looked and acted five. When I was ten, I looked, acted, and felt like I was twenty-five.

That wasn’t easy for my mother. I never really had a childhood because I grew so fast. My parents tried to keep me a kid for as long as they could, but I fought against them because I wasn’t a child in body or mind past the age of seven.

My younger brother, Finn, also grew twice as fast as other kids. But it didn’t last long. By the time Finn was four, he looked eight, but then, he stopped aging. Finn was a child and stayed one until he was no longer one.

My only sister, Melody, grew at a normal rate for her age, as did my youngest brothers, twins Rune and Raidar. At least Mom has been able to watch them grow up at the typical pace for their actual ages.

But now that I'm in my thirties and my siblings are in their twenties, Mom misses having little ones around. I’ve told her she could have another one, but Dad grumbled and told me over his dead body.

Being the son of Fenrir hasn’t always been easy for me. Not that I had a terrible childhood because I had anything but. It was the fact that I couldn’t tell my friends who my father really was. Our pack has no clue who Dad really is, and that’s the way he wanted it. Dad said people would treat us differently if they knew, and he wanted us to have as normal a life as he and Mom could give us.

Why is the Mighty Fenrir an Alpha of a Lycan pack?

Because Dad built this place for Mom when he realized it was almost time to collect his mate. He gathered lost and abused Lycans, changed their memories, and gave them a home. Being the Lycan Deity meant it was only too easy for him to do so. Dad knew that Mom wouldn’t want to live in his realm forever, so Dark Moon Pack became one of the biggest and most prominent packs in Lykos.

I love it here, don’t get me wrong. But I have never felt like I completely belong here. Not because I don’t fit in, but because I have to hide my true self. However, with the Wild Pack, with my grandparents, and the rest of Mom’s birth pack, I feel at home. I’m free there to be who I am because they all know who my father is. Dad never felt the need to hide his identity because my grandfather is the Moon Goddess’s grandson. Fenrir figured that if the pack knew that, then there was no need to hide. Besides, it’s not like many outsiders ever come calling at the Wild Pack, and the pack rarely ever leaves that place.

My wild Alpha grandfather taught me how to hunt with his pack. My uncle, Kayson, Mom’s younger brother, taught me so much about living in the wild. He’s fifteen years older than me, but thanks to my accelerated growth, by the time he was twenty-five, I looked and acted that way also. We’re best friends, and we did everything together until the day his mate came for him.

My uncle Kayson is my mother’s brother, but he mated with my father’s sister. Hel is my only biological aunt because my mother doesn’t have any sisters. I don’t see Kayson as much as I’d like because I’m either here at Dark Moon or in the Wild Pack, and he’s in Niflheim with Hel most of the time.

But Kayson just mind-linked me to let me know that he would be visiting Wild Pack today. So, I’m going ahead today, not tomorrow as originally planned. We’ll be able to hang out again. It’s crazy, really, that I want to hang out with my uncle so much when his kids are only ten and nine years younger than me. There is Ingrid, but she’s over twenty years younger than me. I always felt too old to hang out with Kaiden, Mason, and Helena. Not so much now they’re in their twenties, but I feel like their uncle and not their cousin!

“Wild Pack,” I tell my mom as I wrap my arm around her shoulders and kiss her head.

‘How long will you be gone?’

I chuckle. “Mom, I’m thirty-three years old. Does it matter how long I’ll be gone?”

Mom squints her eyes at me. ‘You’re thirty-three and still live at home with your mommy and daddy. Yes, it matters! I’m sorry,’ she whispers while hanging her head. ‘I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I didn’t mean to speak to you like that.’

My mom’s problem is that she’s never learned to let go. She doesn’t treat my siblings and me like children, but she still thinks she has to do everything for us. We love her for it, but sometimes, I wish she’d let go a little.

“It’s okay, Mom. I understand. But you know I can take care of myself. I’m Viggo Fenrirsson.” I chuckle. “I’m strong because you and Dad made sure of it.”

Mom cups my cheek. ‘I know you are. You’re my world, Viggo. You’re the boy who made me a mother. I know I should cut the apron strings, but I just love you and your siblings so much that I don’t want to let go.’

I shake my head. “You’re the best mother in the world. You don’t have to let go, just understand that we’re all adults now.”

None of us has a mate yet. I thought at least one of us would have, but it seems the Moon Goddess, or rather Fenrir, has decided he hasn’t found anyone worthy of us yet. It’s not easy having the Lycan Deity as a father. Yes, Selene gives out mates, but if Fenrir decides he doesn’t want us to have one, then we won’t get one. Selene won’t interfere with Fenrir’s children; she made that very clear after he threatened to behead her if she tried. Not a very nice thing for one’s father to say to one’s great-great-grandmother, but that’s Fenrir for you.

My siblings and I are part Werewolf thanks to Grandpa Kai. The Moon Goddess is also our great-great-grandmother, and she would do anything for us. However, she won’t go against my father. She’d rather avoid the trouble. She loves us, but she once told me that Fenrir is my father, and we should respect his wishes. No one should interfere with someone else’s children, especially not Fenrir’s. It’s a pity Selene doesn’t take her own advice when it comes to other people’s kids, including Ava. Mating my cousin to Triton when she was thirteen was hardly wise. But whatever, it all worked out in the end.

Not having mates is why my siblings and I still live at home. I know that’s a pathetic reason. But it is what it is.

‘Can I tell you a secret?’ Mom asks, looking me in the eye.

I nod at my mother. “Of course. What is it?”

‘Don’t tell your brothers and sister yet because your dad and I are still trying to get our heads around it.’

I furrow my brow. “Okay.”

‘I found out this morning that I’m pregnant.’

My eyes grow wide in shock, and for a moment, my breath catches. I was not expecting that! A sharp mix of surprise and awe hits me, and I realize Mom hid her pregnancy so none of us would sense it too soon. She wanted to keep it hers, just a little while longer.

“Wow,” I blow out a breath. “I thought you and Dad didn’t want any more kids?”

Mom shrugs as I drop my arm from her shoulders. ‘Neither of us thought it would happen this many years after Rune and Raidar.’

My thoughts spiral.

What am I supposed to do with this?

Unease and hope collide inside me, making my pulse race.

‘Grow up, you fool.’ My Lycan snaps. ‘You’re a grown man. Mom’s only fifty-one. Even in human years, that’s still not too old to have more children. Okay, maybe that’s too old for a human. But Mom is a Lycan, Werewolf, Goddess, who still looks twenty-five. She could be having kids when she’s a thousand years old! Besides, if Mom is having another baby, she might back off on babying you so much.’

‘Alright, Bard!’ I snap. ‘I get it. I’m just a little shocked here.’

‘Well, get over it!’

I’m not unhappy that my mother is pregnant. Hell, I told her to have another baby. I just wasn’t expecting it to actually happen.

I cut Bard off and cup my mom’s cheek. “Are you happy about this baby, Mom?”

She sighs. ‘I don’t know, Viggo. Your dad didn’t react very well when I told him.’

I squint my eyes. “Did he say something to upset you?” Because I’ll be having words if he did!

Mom chuckles. ‘No, baby boy. Your dad was just shocked. He asked me if I was sure I wanted to go through with the pregnancy. He didn’t mean anything bad by it; he was just giving me the choice to continue the pregnancy or end it. When I told him that the baby was coming either way, because I would never terminate any pregnancy, and that I knew we could love this child as much as the rest of you, he held me and told me everything would be alright.’

“Then, what’s wrong, Mom?”

‘Hormones.’ She laughs. ‘By the time you get home from the Wild Pack, the baby could be born.’

I forgot momentarily that Mom could carry this child for no more than five days. But it’s not definite. Her pregnancy with me was five days, but with every child that came after, her pregnancies were longer.

“Do you want me to stay? Just in case.” I ask.

Mom shakes her head. ‘No, Viggo. If I do go into labor early, Dad will mind-link you, and you’ll be here within seconds with a snap of your fingers. I’m just worried what the others will say.’

I shake my head. “The boys will be happy for you. Especially Finn. You know what he’s like with you.” We both laugh. Finn has always been and will always be a real Mommy’s boy. “Melody might have a breakdown if the baby is a girl.” Both Mom and I laugh again. We all know that Melody is a Daddy’s girl. “But seriously, Mom. I love you, and if you’re happy, then we all will be.”

‘Thank you.’ Mom wraps her arms around my waist. I chuckle, kiss her head, and hold her close.

As I hold my mother, a voice fills my head. ‘Viggo?’

‘Grandpa?’ My grandfather can call me through the mind-link this far away from his pack because he’s a Demi-God.

‘Yes. I need your help, but don’t say anything to your mom. I don’t want her to worry.’

‘Okay. What’s wrong?’

Grandpa Kai sighs. ‘Kit and some of the others came across a woman in the forest. They brought her to me, but she refuses to speak. Kit said she ran from them, but she tripped. He helped her up, but she seemed to think he was dragging her to her doom. I’ve tried speaking to her, but I can’t tell where she’s from or what language she speaks because all she does is scowl.’

Gods and even demigods can understand every language in existence. However, if this woman refuses to speak to my grandfather, he won’t know where she’s from. He’s calling me because I have ways to make you talk without hurting you.

‘Does Kit know anything about the girl at all?’ I ask.

‘Other than she’s dressed like a Viking Maiden, no. As you’re our resident Viking, I thought I’d call you.’ He chuckles.

I close my eyes and shake my head. Prick!

Everyone calls me a Viking, but I’m not one. My father is Norse, not a Viking! But it doesn’t help that I look like my dad and dress like a Wildman with furs wrapped around my body while I’m in the wild with my family. I don’t have superlong hair like every man in the Wild Pack. It’s tradition for them. However, Dark Moon pack is completely different. My hair is cut to my shoulders. My dark hair used to be much longer, but an accident put an end to that. But that’s another story. Anyway, I look like an ancient Viking, apparently.

It didn’t help when Björn, once Neil, son of Hades, and his mate, Sigrid, came to visit. Björn and Sigrid were once the Viking King and Queen, reborn over and over for a thousand years until they found their way back to one another. I didn’t dress much differently from Björn, so the Viking gibes got worse.

‘I’m on my way.’ I tell him and cut the link.

I hope this woman isn’t going to give me a whole hip of trouble. I have nothing against women, but some of them are real demons!