FLASHBACK
My mother then looks at Nick and me seriously.
"Please do not tell Margie and Robert that I told you. They are embarrassed and ashamed, and I do not think it is fair to make them feel even worse about the situation."
"What are you talking about, Mother?"
My mother looks down at the ground and begins wringing her hands.
"I know who Astrid's first mate was, and I know how she got hurt the morning of Stephanie's memorial."
My ears perk up. "Do tell."
"Astrid has been having an affair with a rogue off and on for years. The morning of the memorial, she snuck into the woods to meet him. It turns out that he was her mate, and that is one of the reasons that she had been drawn to him."
"She is lying," Luke mind-links me.
"Of course she is. I saw the picture of Astrid on the day she was born… She had the mark of—
Luke? You are back?"
Wait—
Luke does not respond, but his sudden appearance causes me to almost miss the rest of my mother's story.
