Vengeance of a Queen: The Resurrection of Queens, Book 2

“If you knew where my sisters are, you would have said something by now,” Ayla says, cutting through the silence. “Do you think it’s something like what happened to me?”

I shrug. To be honest, my mother didn’t have the magic to take my memories, and we’d lived pretty secluded lives, even when the family had been primarily located in the States, so I don’t think my mother hired a witch.

This was so frustrating. I tug on my braid in annoyance.

“I don’t think so,” I mumble.

Malcolm comes over and wraps his arms around me, pulling me in close to his chest. “We’ll figure this out. Want to call your mom?”

Ayla starts to cackle.

“No.” I sigh. “My mother won’t answer questions about something like this over the phone. We’re going to have to go to Mexico.”

Ayla cackles louder, so I shoot her a dirty look.

“This isn’t funny.”

“It really is though. Malcolm is going to meet both Mena and Abuela. This is going to be great!” She wipes tears from her eyes. “They’re going to kill you.”

I feel Malcolm stiffen behind me. That scene from The Lego Movie comes to mind, where Batman just goes “Ugghhhhhh,” and it plays on an endless loop. While I’m busy internally dying, Malcolm has gone from rigid to chuckling, his chest rumbling against my back.

“I look forward to the challenge of getting them to like me.”

Cue the continuation of that endless loop. They didn’t like anyone. They were crotchety old women who took great pleasure in making you feel so awkward and squirm so much that you just up and died without thought.

“They’re going to love you!” Ayla laughs. That traitor.

I cough and clear my throat. “Right. They are insane. Just know they’re insane. They might try to kill all of us in our sleep.”

“Sounds like fun,” is his response.

“I didn’t realize you were a masochist.” I spin in his arms to glare up at him. He chuckles in response, leaning down to press a light kiss to my lips.

“Don’t worry, kitten. Everything will be fine.”

“Your funeral.”

I pull away from him, fishing my phone out of my pocket. I might as well get this over with and rip the Band-Aid off. I stare at my phone for a minute before wincing as I press the dial button.

She answers on the first ring.

“Mija!” She sounds pleased and irritated at the same time. Ah, the steaming side dish of guilt is about to be served. “You haven’t called me in almost a year!” She proceeds to cuss me out in a stream of Spanish so rapid that even I have trouble keeping up.

I hit the speakerphone button as I roll my eyes. It’s best to just let her tire herself out. Malcolm casts an amused glance at the phone, and Ayla and Caleb meander over to be part of the conversation.

There’s a soft thud on the other end, and my abuela’s voice comes over the line. “Mena,” she chides my mother, “you let Olivia speak. She has called for a reason. You can reprimand her later.”

Bless her.

“Fine, Mama, but she should be more considerate of her poor mama. Being so far away… she should call more.” I just want to slam my head against the wall. It’s the same conversation over and over again.

“Mama,” I insert, “Abuela is right. There is a reason I called. I’m sorry I haven’t called before now, I will explain later.”

She scoffs. “Later? Later, she says.” She’s ramping herself up for another tangent, but before she starts, I cut her off.

“Mama,” I scold. “We’re coming for a visit.” That kills any angry ranting she was about to unleash on me. “We have a lot to discuss, Mama, and I know you’ll want to tell us this story in person.”

There’s a pregnant pause on the other end before another thud sounds. “Ximena, what have I told you. You should have told her sooner.”

So they know why we’re coming. My abuela was always astute.

“Sí, mija, I’ll want to tell you this in person.” My mother sounds more subdued than I’ve ever heard her. “When will you be here?”

“Later today. We’re portaling in.”

“I’ll prepare rooms. Mija…” She takes a deep breath before continuing. “I knew this day was coming. I couldn’t tell you before now, but it’s a relief to be able to talk about it.”

That surprises me. My mother isn’t usually one for apologies…or guilt. This tells me she hadn’t withheld anything from me out of a need to protect me, she’d done it because she had no other choice.

“There’s one more thing, Mama.” I don’t want to warn them before showing up, but after that, I feel like I need to. “My mate is coming with me.”

Abuela starts to cackle in glee on the other end of the phone. A smile laces my mother’s voice when she says, “Good. You’ve found him. Tell him we have the perfect plot of land picked out for his final resting place.”

“Mama…” I warn. The line goes dead with both of those devil women laughing.

“So that went well.” Ayla snickers.

I shrug. “About as well as can be expected considering she’s the devil.” This gets a laugh out of Ayla and Caleb, and an amused smile from Malcolm. “Just be warned, they are both evil.”

The portal before me leads to some of Mexico’s dense rainforest. My ancestors were Aztec, and they lived in these jungles alongside humans until the conquistadors showed up. My abuela fought alongside her human neighbors, but there were too many of them. She eventually fled to the States with my mother and the rest of our clan.

Now, centuries later, they were finally back in our ancestral home.

I inhale a deep breath as I step through the portal. Home. My panther and I are comforted by the scents and sounds of the jungle around us. I want to shift and run through the trees, and feel the rough bark dig into my paws before giving way beneath my razor-sharp claws.

That will have to wait until after we sit down with my family though. That Batman scene is looping through my head again.

Malcolm steps forward and takes my hand, lacing his fingers through mine and squeezing gently. I squeeze back, finding immense comfort in his presence.

A large male panther prowls close to us, quickly shifting into a familiar form. Caleb lets out a low growl at the sight of the naked male, and I can practically hear Ayla rolling her eyes. Malcolm slaps a hand over my eyes, his own growl rumbling out of him. He isn’t a shifter, but he sure can growl like one. It is fucking hot.

“Hi, Diego.” The laughter in my voice has Malcolm stiffening next to me. “Everyone, meet my cousin Diego.”

“Hola!” He sounds exactly the same as the last time I saw him, which is a silly thought to have, but it warms my heart anyway. Just another piece of home. “I’ve come to show you to the village.”

“You can do that as a panther,” Malcolm deadpans.

“I suggest you shift,” Caleb threatens.

I bite my lip to keep myself from laughing. I can feel Ayla’s similar struggle through the pack bond.

“You guys could just pee a circle around us, ya know.” There’s a small part of me that finds Malcolm’s territorial behavior appealing, but the majority of me snaps her fingers and reminds that small part I’m a strong, independent woman who doesn’t need no man.

“That might get the message across quicker,” Ayla agrees. “Should we get a sign and tape it to our foreheads? Property of a grouchy alpha male?”

“Watch it,” Caleb murmurs.

Malcolm pulls his hand away from my face, and I can see Diego has shifted back. But I also notice Malcolm is holding two small stickers in his hand. He didn’t. I look up into his eyes and see the laughter sparkling there.

“Here.” He hands one to me and one to Ayla. Mine reads “Property of Malcolm, Lord of Witches, he who has the biggest dick, tamer of pussies, and all-around general badass.”

“Are you serious right now?” My brows shoot up to my hairline. “The only pussy you’re taming is mine.” My panther growls in agreement. “Ayla, what does yours say?”

“Property of Caleb, Lord of the Dragon Pussy, noble steed, spitter of shit, and all-around general douche bag.” She laughs as she reads hers allowed. Caleb’s growl replaces mine, and I can’t fight the giggle that bursts from my lips.

“Payback is going to be so, so sweet, you dumb fuck.”

“Onward, noble steed!” Malcolm cries with one of his hands thrust into the sky. Caleb steps up behind him and punches him in the side.

He looks to me while Malcolm clutches his ribs. “I want it noted I did not dick punch him out of respect for you.”

“So it is noted,” I state in a somber tone.

With that, we all turn to follow Diego into the jungle.

After about forty-five minutes of walking, we finally make it to my mother’s village. Built within the trees of the jungle, the huts are small and adorable. They live simply here.

A small boy runs up holding a pair of shorts. Diego shifts and pulls them on, then he ruffles the boy’s hair in thanks. “This is my son, Beto.”

“I didn’t know Maria was pregnant! Why didn’t anyone tell me! He looks so big!” I squat down with a smile. “Hola, I’m your cousin Olivia.”

Beto sticks his thumb in his mouth and waves a tiny hand.

“He’s three. We’ve kept it pretty hush-hush. Aunty Mena knew what was coming for you, and she didn’t want to run the risk of not having you where you were meant to be.” He shrugs. “Once all of this is done, we know you’ll come visit as often as you want. Especially since you’re shacking up with a witch.”

“True.” I stand and look around the village. Bridges span the distance between the trees. On the forest floor, there’s a large communal fire, several tents where food is prepared and eaten, and a small hut for visitors who aren’t comfortable sleeping in the trees. “Speaking of Satan…where is she?”

Diego chuckled and gestured above him. “She’s at home, waiting for you.”

“Like the creep she is.” He chuckled again. “I’ll see you around, Diego.”

“Good luck!”

We need it.

We make our way up to the village in the trees. Each step closer to my mother has me wanting to walk in the other direction. I honestly shouldn’t complain. She’s a wonderful, loving mother, but she’s a menace.

We’re not even at her door when she comes bursting out, waving her hands in the air as she spots us. “Mija!”

Despite all my earlier grumblings, I open my arms and rush to hug her. She may be a pain in the ass, but she feels like home, damn it.

“Mama.”

“Mija.” She squeezes me in her arms. “I have missed you so much.”

“I’ve missed you too, Mama.”

“We will get you sorted, mija. I promise.” She holds me out at arm’s length to study me before her gaze travels over my shoulder to my companions.

“Now which one is the mate?”

I groan softly. “Mama, you don’t need to interrogate him.”

“Nonsense. I would never do such a thing.”

I snort. “Okay.”

Malcolm steps up behind me. “I’m Malcolm, Liv’s mate.”

My mother pushes me to the side so she can study Malcolm. Her eyes travel all over him, and she makes small noises under her breath as she does. I roll my eyes behind her back, and Malcom’s eyes glitter with laughter. He’s being a trooper.

“He’s a witch, mija.”

“Sí, Mama.”

“I don’t know, mija.”

“It’s too late for that, Mama. The bond has already been finalized.”

“I suppose he’ll do then.” With that, she spins to go back into her house.

Malcolm’s shoulders tremble with laughter, and he shakes his head as he follows me into my mother’s home. Caleb and Ayla are right behind us.

Despite how small the space actually is, the wall of windows at the back makes it feel so much bigger. The hut has a small loft where my mother sleeps, and the downstairs is an open concept living room with an eat-in kitchen. I take a deep breath and let the scent of home wash over me.

New England will always be where I’m meant to be. My adult home. But here…this is far more comforting than I thought it would be. I could, I suppose, admit that I needed my mother’s help more than I thought.

“Take a seat.” My mother gestures around the living room and goes into the kitchen to grab some water for everyone. As she comes back, she says, “Abuela will be here soon, and we can start. She’ll have some pieces of her own to add.”

We converse as we wait for my grandmother. She doesn’t live far, but she lives by the philosophy that she never arrives late, everyone else is simply early, à la The Princess Diaries.

The door opens and my abuela, all five feet of her, fills the room. She’s tiny but has more personality in her little toe than most people have in their whole body. My mother is the spitting image of her, so I know exactly what Mama will look like when she’s older than dirt. My mother looks to be in her late thirties or early forties, while Abuela appears to be in her early sixties. Shifters age well.

“Nieta!” Abuela’s grin causes one to stretch across my face. “I am so happy you are here.” Her eyes go to Malcolm and narrow. “Is this el compañero?”

“Sí, abuela. This is my mate.” I grab hold of Malcolm’s hand. “This is Malcolm.”

She sniffs and lifts her nose into the air. “He’s a witch.”

“Don’t you start, abuela. I seem to recall some interesting stories of your dalliances from your youth.” My grin turns predatory. “Didn’t you seduce Cortez?”

“The Cortez?” Malcolm asks.

Abuela hair flips like the best of them and scoffs. “Of course the Cortez. How else was I supposed to get information on where he would attack next? When I got tired of him, we fought. He’s lucky his guards showed up, or he would have died a lot sooner than he did.”

So my abuela may be a bit of a badass. She fucked and fought Cortez.

“I’ll allow it,” Abuela announces as she glances between Malcolm and me.

I roll my eyes for what feels like the millionth time today. She’ll allow it… Yeah, okay.

“Thank you, Abuela.” I’m not sure I’m completely successful at keeping the sarcasm out of my tone. “That’s very generous of you.”

Ayla snorts around a laugh. It’s the first sound she’s made since we entered my mother’s house. Apparently my mother scares her too.

“Olivia has come here for a purpose, Mama,” my mother chastises Abuela, as though she didn’t just do something similar. These two, I swear. “And we don’t have much time. There’s so much to tell, and I’m sure they’ll have a lot of questions.”

“Sí,” Abuela sighs as she sits next to my mother. They both look grim now. That’s a great sign.