"How can I contact them? Gus took my phone," I said, deliberately trying to make myself sound as petulant and immature as possible, while my mind was practically twisting itself into knots trying to adapt to this new change of plans.

No matter what, I had to contact Damon and Blaise to let them know where I was, but I could not let them come to see my mother. Even if my mother meant no harm — something I was severely doubtful about — I could not let Blaise and Damon wander into a city full of hunters unknowingly.

"You aren’t able to contact them telepathically even though you are mates?" she asked.

"No," I admitted. "Mom, I don’t have a wolf, so I can’t do that. I’m only a normal human being at best."

I was going to downplay my own abilities as much as I could. Hopefully, that would cause my mother and Gus to drop their guards around me.

"How fascinating," my mother purred out, cocking her head to her side as she examined me more closely. Suddenly, I felt like a specimen pinned under the eye of a microscope, instead of my mother’s beloved daughter. "I guess there are some drawbacks after all..." she murmured, presumably to herself.

"Huh? What did you say?"

My mother laughed. "Just mumbling to myself, dearest. Werewolves are fascinating creatures."

"What’s so fascinating about that?" I grumbled, inwardly bristling at how she called werewolves ’creatures’, as though every werewolf I met was nothing more than a ravenous beast. "Mom, can I have my phone back now?"

My mother chuckled. "Gus, do you have her phone?"

"Yes, Madame," Gus’s voice came through loud and clear from outside. He popped his head through the door, my phone tucked securely in his hand. "Do you want me to give it to her?"

My heart sank. Mom didn’t raise her voice, but Gus could still hear her loud and clear. His enhanced hearing would make escaping a lot more difficult.

"Yes please," I said, beginning to walk towards him, but my mom held out a hand, stopping me in my tracks.

"There’s no need for that." I froze, as my mom smiled at me benevolently. "Just extract the numbers of her mates and we’ll call them from our house line."

"Got it, Madame," Gus said, and he turned back to my phone, jabbing at it.

"You don’t know my password! Give it back!" I protested, storming towards him, my heart beating frantically in my chest. If he managed to unlock my phone, he would see―

"Oh ho ho, what have we here?" Gus exclaimed theatrically. I watched in horror as my phone had been successfully unlocked, revealing a multitude of missed calls notifications. Two names featured prominently out of all of them― Damon and Blaise.

"Madame, please take a look. This is very unprecedented." Of course Gus would be able to piece the puzzle together.

"Pray tell, what has gotten you so excited?" My mother asked as she strolled over, an indulgent smile on her face. "It better not be my daughter’s nude photos or something similar. I will have you drawn and quartered for that."

Gus pretended to shudder. "No Madame, I would never. Despite being an undead creature of the night, I’m quite attached to my life as it is. See for yourself."

"There’s no need―" I protested, trying to snatch my phone back but I might as well have been a gust of wind for all the good I did. Gus cheerfully deposited my phone into her hand.

"Alpha Damon is Harper’s second mate! Isn’t that incredible!"

"You are joking." My mother’s mouth dropped open and she quickly clicked on Damon’s contact, to view the multitude of messages we had exchanged throughout all the times we were apart. Her eyebrows climbed higher and higher above her forehead the more she read.

"I would never joke about this," Gus said. "I could never have come up with something as... as ludicrous as this! I’ve never heard of twin brothers sharing a mate!"

Suddenly, I was profusely thankful that Damon and I had not talked about our... sexual desires over messages. If my mother read those, I would have flung myself out the window anyway, just to avoid the awkwardness.

"Harper, do you know how this could have happened?"

"No," I said flatly. "Can I have my phone back now?"

"Not yet. We still need to contact them, since they are so terribly worried about you." She clicked on the call button. The line barely went through for a second before someone picked up.

"Harper! Where are you? Are you alright?!" Damon’s voice sounded wrecked from the other end of the line. If he had looked so wretched from my troubles in Thunderstrike, he must have been hanging by a thread now that I was effectively missing for days.

I could only hope Thunderstrike was still standing, and Blaise and Damon were both alright.

"Damon, I’m fine!" I hurriedly yelled out. "I’m safe!"

I was, it was the werewolves that were in trouble.

"Hello, Mr. Damon Valentine," my mother said into the phone, grinning widely. "Sorry for interrupting your reunion, but I had to speak with Harper privately so I made some... arrangements. Apologies for the inconvenience caused."

"Who the hell are you?! What did you do with Harper?!" Damon raged from the other end of the line. "I swear to the Moon Goddess, when I get my hands on you, you’ll be sorry!"

"Is that any way to speak to your fated mate’s mother?" my mom asked, and I could hear the noise of something falling in the background, along with a multitude of curses in the background. I guessed Damon had dropped the phone.

"Hello, Ma’am, you do realize that kidnapping and identity theft are both crimes?" This time, it was Blaise’s voice that came from the other end of the call. His words were jovial, but his tone was bitingly sharp. "Especially when one is impersonating a dead person. There are strict laws against this, no matter what species you are."