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Mrs.Kane was an Alpha. She always had been. Leader of her pack. Mother of strong children. Proud to have raised them with iron discipline and silent love, the kind that isn’t spoken, but shown. She was a weathered wolf, hardened by loss, tough decisions, battles won, and the scars that only leadership can leave behind. She was used to giving orders, to being obeyed. To things being done her way.
Raising her first children had been challenging, yes, but not impossible. They had all been obedient, strong, quick to learn. Not exactly a walk in the woods, but at least they didn’t give her gray hairs.
And then, in a moment of impulse… or madness, she decided to have one more.
That’s how Mason was born.
She doesn’t hate him. She couldn’t. Never. He’s her son, her blood, a piece of her soul. But by all the old gods and the new, that boy was hell on legs.
Raising Mason was like going back to war. Every day with him was a battlefield of personality, stubbornness, and uncontrollable chaos. A silent war, where no one surrendered but everyone came out wounded.
Of course there were beautiful moments. She kept pictures of him from when he was just a pup: chubby cheeks, spontaneous laughter, eyes like suns. He looked like a little angel. Sometimes. Because at other times... he was a little demon with an unbreakable will.
And everything got worse as he grew older.
Adolescence came like an ancient curse cast by some vengeful witch. Mason became more rebellious, more obstinate, more... strange. Even for an Alpha. Sometimes, Mrs.Kane wondered if something was wrong with his head, or if the gods were punishing her for some past life.
She had been the same way when she was young, and yes, she had laughed more than once when her parents told her: "You’ll see when you have a pup like you." She laughed. Loudly. Now she understood.
Karma.
And oh, did it hit hard.
"I don’t know which god gave me the strength to raise him... but I owe them a dinner." She thought it often, especially during those sleepless nights caused by Mason induced headaches.
As the years went by, she thought the worst had passed. Mason matured. A little. She allowed herself to relax. Big mistake.
Mason brought a human girl home. Marcella.
Sweet, shy, charming. Mrs. Kane watched her for days: discreetly sniffed her, interrogated her with her eyes, analyzed her like a mother wolf examining a future mate. And she liked her. A lot. She was convinced that she would be her son’s destined one. Perfect. Finally, someone capable of straightening out the disaster she had given birth to.
But no.
Mason didn’t stay with Marcella.
He stayed with a vampire.
Kieran Callisto.
Just thinking about him made her frown. The first time she saw him, she thought: "No. Impossible. Not in a million years." Serious, distant, with that eternal gaze only immortals possess. Cold, reserved, unacceptable.
A vampire? With her son, a werewolf?
Her blood ran cold the first time she saw them holding hands. Mason was lost. Dazed. In love.
And she… she only thought: "Is it too late to cry?" She asked herself many nights, in silence, staring at the ceiling of her house.
But time passed.
And against all odds, the relationship persisted. Worse yet... it worked. Quite well.
Mason was more stable. More focused. More… grounded.
Was that thanks to Kieran?
She didn’t want to accept it.
That day, the forest was especially serene. The fresh air carried familiar scents: damp earth, bark, moss... and a distant hint of spices she recognized immediately.
She walked the path that led to her son’s cabin, without a clear plan, more out of impulse than intention.
—What’s done is done...—
She murmured to herself as she shook off the dust of doubt.
The cabin looked different. Better cared for, dried flowers hanging from the porch, decorative stones lining the path, and a strange feeling in the air. Homely, unsettling.
She knocked on the wooden door with two sharp taps.
Her senses were immediately alert. She sniffed.
Nothing. No scent of vampire anywhere.
Was Mason alone?
She didn’t have time to speculate further. The door opened almost immediately.
—Mom...?—
Mason’s voice was rough, sleepy. His hair was tousled, he wore a sleeveless shirt, and his eyes were still half-shut from sleep. He looked confused… but not annoyed.
—Hi...—
She replied, and stopped there. She didn’t know what else to say.
Silence fell like a thick blanket. He, half asleep, looking at her with a mix of surprise and curiosity. She, observing her son’s face… no longer a pup. A man, an Alpha through and through.
—Mmm… And your boyfriend?—
She asked with feigned nonchalance, though her tone betrayed her.
—Partner.—
Mason corrected with calm, as if the distinction mattered.
She frowned, not even pretending to hide it.
—Yeah, that… he’s not here?—
She insisted, not giving up.
—Kieran went to talk to his father or something like that.—
He paused briefly, then added:
—You want to come in?—
He didn’t want to be rude, but he also didn’t want to keep talking at the doorstep while his breakfast got cold.
—If you want, there’s food. We can talk while we eat.—
He offered, almost begrudgingly.
Mrs.Kane blinked. Food?
Her frown deepened with suspicion.
—Food? Made by you?—
Her voice sounded almost… hopeful.
—No.—
Mason replied naturally.
—Kieran got up earlier. Said if he didn’t leave me food, I’d probably starve or burn down the kitchen. So he left a hot breakfast... plenty of it.—
The hope deflated like a balloon. She huffed quietly.
—Wait... he cooks?—
—Yeah. Learned to survive. Or to keep me alive. One of the two.—
Mason smiled fondly, remembering the grumpy vampire who, despite not needing to eat, cooked like his life depended on it.
—Oh, God...—
Mrs.Kane entered without asking permission. Walked straight to the kitchen, like someone checking a vision.
She inhaled deeply. Baked bread, homemade jam. Something with cinnamon. And a hint of… clove?
Mason closed the door with resignation and went straight to pour himself some coffee, like this happened every day.
And then she said it. Without thinking. Without a filter.
—Damn it... Am I really at the point of wanting to offer that vampire something better? One of my other sons?—
Mason choked on his coffee.
—Hey!—
—I say it with love.—
She replied, shrugging.
—Sounds more like betrayal.—
—Not my fault Kieran can cook, clean, and doesn’t cause fires.—
She said it like each of those traits was a lovingly stabbed dagger.
—At this point, I don’t know what to think.—
Mason rolled his eyes and dropped into one of the chairs.
—Lucky me.—
—Don’t exaggerate.—
She walked through the kitchen, casually exploring. Touched jars with handwritten labels. Opened a cupboard. Found spices arranged alphabetically. Rosemary? Thyme? Sea salt in a recycled glass jar?
—He did this too?—
—Who else would?—
Mason replied with a mocking smile.
She clicked her tongue.
—And he’s still a vampire.—
She muttered to herself, more defeated than critical.
—And he still loves me.—
Mason added softly.
The phrase made her pause. Her fingers froze on the edge of the counter.
"Loves me."
He didn’t say it arrogantly or dramatically. He said it as a fact. Simple, unmovable. Painfully real.
—It’s hard to believe, you know?—
She finally said, still not meeting his gaze.
—That someone... not only endures your fire. But embraces it.—
—Kieran doesn’t just embrace it. Sometimes he stokes it.—
Mason joked, though his smile was softer now.
She looked at him. Her son. The stubborn little demon who once bit people, now spoke of love. Of stability. With eyes that no longer burned, but glowed.
—You know I still prefer Marcella? I would’ve loved for her to be your Soulmate.—
—Yes, mom. You’ve told me. Three times. Once for every month I’ve visited this year.—
Mason replied, not losing his humor.
—She was just so... sweet. Had that little scared-bird laugh.—
—Kieran is sweet too. His laugh’s just... scarier.—
She laughed. A sharp, unexpected laugh.
—I noticed. He looks at me like he wants to kill me.—
—No. He looks at you like you want to kill him, but he’s not afraid anyway.—
That comment left her in silence.
Kieran wasn’t afraid. That unsettled her more.
Mrs.Kane finally sat down with a sigh that sounded more like surrender than rest. She looked at the plate Mason had served her: warm bread, thick jam, fruit cut with precision.
—It’s hard to admit…—
She began, lowering her voice.
—But that vampire… isn’t as bad as I thought.—
Mason looked at her like he couldn’t believe what he’d just heard.
—Was that a compliment?—
—Don’t repeat it. My pride is already trampled.—
She growled, lifting the coffee with theatrical flair.
The silence that followed was different. Warmer.
She observed him carefully. Mason looked good. Calm, grounded, whole.
Maybe Kieran had something to do with it.
Maybe everything.
—Are you okay, Mom?—
He asked unexpectedly.
She blinked, shaken from her thoughts.
—I don’t know. I came to see if you were.—
Mason smiled, that sly grin he still kept from childhood.
—And what do you think?—
She looked at him for a long time. Then she got up, walked over to him, and with a deep sigh, ruffled his hair like she used to when he was little.
—You’re still a pain in the back… but I don’t worry as much anymore.—
Mason smiled. This time, for real. Not a sarcastic smirk, not a defiant grin. A real smile. Calm.
—Thanks... I think.—
—Just don’t make me a grandmother anytime soon. Though of course... you’re both men… but hey, you could adopt. Or steal a baby, if you're up for it.—
—Mom!—
Mason choked on his coffee, laughing.
She raised her hands like she was defending herself.
—What? Just saying. I’d love to spoil a little creature without having to raise it myself.—
—Please don’t plan international crimes before nine in the morning.—
—No promises.—
They both laughed. The kind of laugh that comes after many battles, many unsaid words, and years of built up tension. A laugh that cleanses, even if it doesn’t fully heal.
They stayed in the kitchen a while longer. Ate in silence. A silence full of things that didn’t need to be said.
The cabin smelled like home. Like the forest, cinnamon, and bread. A
nd something else… something Mrs.Kane had never believed possible.
Peace.
She wasn’t ready to say she liked Kieran. Maybe she never would. But for the first time, deep in her mother wolf instinct, she didn’t reject him.
And that, for Mrs.Kane, was almost the same as saying: "I accept you."