Dimitri’s POV
Maddie was shaking from top to bottom and I started doubting my decision to let her tell him.
“We don’t have to do it, Maddie,” I said as I rubbed her back gently. “He doesn’t have to know yet.”
She looked at me and shook her head.
“He has to know, Dimitri,” she said. “He deserves to know. I can’t keep this from him.”
I sighed and glanced at Will. He was looking at Maddie with a mixture of worry and anger on his face. I could tell that he wasn’t too happy with her decision. I wasn’t happy with it either, but I didn’t want to be a jerk. Mike was her dad and if she wanted him to know, I wasn’t going to do anything to stop her.
But I wasn’t sure about his reaction. How would he react once he found out that she was a Lycan?
I was sure that Mike would never hurt her. I would never let her tell him if there was even a small part of me that thought he was a danger to her. Mike was a lot of things and he made a lot of mistakes, but he would never hurt his daughter. I was so fucking sure of that.
But would he get angry? Would he get depressed? I had no fucking idea.
I could hear him approaching the office. Maddie started bouncing her leg up and down. I placed a hand on her thing and raised an eyebrow at her.
“It’s still not too late,” I said.
She shook her head and looked at the door. Mike walked in with a smile that disappeared as soon as he looked at Maddie.
“What happened?” he asked worriedly. “Why are you so pale?”
He closed the door and started approaching her.
“Hi, Michael,” Oliver spoke, making Mike stop and look at him.
His eyes widened.
“Oliver?” he mumbled quietly.
Oliver smiled and stood up. He approached Mike and pulled him into a hug.
“It’s good to see you, Mike,” Oliver said, patting Mike’s back. “I am so sorry about Leah. I did everything I could.”
I could feel Maddie tense up. I took her hand in mine and squeezed it tightly.
Mike gulped and let go of Oliver.
“Thank you for being there for Leah and my little girl,” Mike said. “Thank you for making it easier on Leah.”
Oliver nodded and gave him a small smile.
“I wish that there was something else I could have done,” Oliver said. “I wish she was here with us today.”
A wave of sadness washed over Maddie. I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her to me.
Your mom is always with you, my love. I mind-linked her. She is watching over you.
Maddie wrapped her arms around my waist and I kissed the top of her head.
Mike nodded and looked back at Maddie.
“Maddie, honey, what’s wrong?” he asked worriedly as he continued walking toward us.
“Sit down, Mike, please,” I said calmly.
He looked at me and furrowed his brows.
“I will explain everything in a minute,” I said, giving him a small smile. “Just sit down, please.”
Mike looked at Maddie and sat down next to Will.
“Are you okay, Maddie?” Mike asked. “Is something wrong? Please just say something. I am freaking out here.”
“She is okay, Mike,” I said. “There is something we need to…”
“I am a Lycan!” Maddie exclaimed, interrupting me.
I looked at her in surprise. We agreed to do this slowly, explaining everything we knew so far. She was staring at Mike wide-eyed and she wasn’t breathing. She looked like she was surprised with what she did as well.
“Wow, subtle, Maddie,” Will mumbled, shaking his head at her.
I heard Ellie snorting quietly.
I looked at Mike and saw him looking at Maddie with a confused expression on his face.
“What?” he asked quietly.
Maddie was silent now. I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair.
“She is a Lycan, Mike,” I said, making him look at me. “She is not a regular wolf.”
His eyes widened.
“I knew that something was different about her when her wolf refused to shift on the night of her 18th birthday,” I started explaining. “Skye said that she refused to do it to protect Maddie. We didn’t know then what she was protecting her from.”
Mike glanced at Maddie and took a deep breath.
“Maddie started hearing voices the day I made her a member of our pack,” I continued, deciding to be as direct as possible. “She thought that our pack members were mind-linking her, but she was wrong. She could hear their thoughts. She could read their minds.”
Mike visibly paled. He looked at her and gasped loudly.
“She is the heir,” he mumbled, shock written all over his face.
I furrowed my brows.
How did he know?
Maddie tensed up again.
“I am so sorry,” she mumbled, her voice breaking. “I didn’t know. I didn’t want this, Mike, I promise.”
Mike’s shocked face turned into a confused one.
“What are you talking about, Maddie?” he asked quietly.
Maddie took a deep breath, but it got caught in her throat. I knew that she wouldn’t be able to explain it to him.
“She was worried about how you would react,” I said, making Mike look back at me. “We were all kind of worried.”
Mike’s eyes widened and I saw hurt flash in them.
“Did you think that I would hurt her?” he asked quietly.
His voice was laced with pain and sadness.
“No, Mike,” I said sternly. “Never. I know you and I know that you would never hurt her.”
He gave me a small nod and took a deep breath.
“I was worried that you would get angry,” I said. “Maybe a bit sad.”
I didn’t really know how to explain it.
Mike nodded and looked at Maddie. He took another deep breath and stood up. I watched him approach Maddie. She tensed up a little and I rubbed her back, trying to relax her.
Mike kneeled in front of her and took her hands in his.
“I love you, Maddie,” he said. “I love you with my entire heart and I would never do anything to hurt you. I did it once and I hate what it did to you, me, and our relationship. I won’t be making that mistake again.”
Maddie let out a quiet sob and Mike pulled her into his arms. She hugged him tightly and I couldn’t help but smile a little.
I was glad she had him in her life. Mike made a huge fucking mistake, but he was a different person now. He was the father she needed.
