We finished our showers and got ready to leave as soon as I silently made that promise. We didn't say another word to each other until we were at the entrance of the building, and Caroline looked at me expectantly as if she was waiting for me to lead her to wherever it was we needed to go first.

"Ok," I said and clapped my hands together. "I think that the first thing we need to do i-"

I stopped talking as soon as I heard something, and my heart grew still and became filled with pain and sadness.

Mom...

My heart skipped a beat before it started to pound harder and faster in my chest, leaping into my throat while a wave of emotions washed over me, and a shower went down my spine while my mouth grew dry.

Oh Goddess... please, no, not yet. I didn't need her to save the day yet. I was just getting started to protect everyone...

Caroline furrowed her brow and cocked her head. A look of worry and fear flashed through her eyes while she looked at me as if she was afraid as to why I had stopped saying anything else. "Ky?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "What is it? What's wrong? Why did you stop?"

"Where's that coming from?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper and not answering her question while I looked around before I looked at her with tears filling my eyes. "Where is that voice coming from?"

Caroline frowned and furrowed her brows further. She bit back a small frown and slowly blinked while she stared at me, studying me further. "What voice?" she asked, as if she was oblivious to the voice of my mother filling the air around us. "What are you talking about?"

"Mom," I said, and my bottom lip started to quiver while another wave of emotion washed over me. I took a deep, shuddering breath and released it with a shaky whoosh, silently praying that I wasn't hearing the voice of my mother.

No matter how much I yearned for her to be here with me...

"Why do I hear the voice of my mom here? Where is it coming from?"

Was this a dream or a nightmare, something evil and telling me that I was not home and I would not be home for a long, long time..?

Realization dawned on her face, and she shook her head. "Don't worry about it, Ky," Caroline said before she cleared her throat and shifted on her feet. The new Red Wolf bit the inside of her lip and grabbed my arm as if she was afraid I would leave and go explore the reason as to why I heard my mother's voice. "She isn't here. I promise."

"Then why do I hear her voice?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. Pan and sadness filled my body, and my heart yearned for the answers that she seemed to hold.

Caroline smiled sadly and shook her head. "Again, don't worry about it, Ky," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. She cleared her throat and licked her lips, hesitating ever so slightly as if she was afraid of what I would see if I kept pushing for her to take me to the sound. "It's none of your concern."

I looked toward the area where the sound of my mother talking was coming from, and my heart ached and yearned for the comfort that her voice gave me. "But..." I said before I looked at her with tears pricking the corner of my eyes, and my bottom lip started to quiver further. "Mom..."

Caroline bit back a small smile and slowly nodded. Pain and sadness flashed through her eyes while she stared at me sadly. "I know," she said, with a small hum in her voice. "I hope you can forgive me."

I bit back a tired sigh while I shook my head and pursed my lips in annoyance. "I do," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "I forgive you." I licked my lips and turned to look that way before I looked at her, growing serious. "Come on, let's go check on the others since you won't let me see what that noise is going on over there." I gestured toward the other way where the voice of my mother was coming from, and my heart and soul yearned to go that way, even though I didn't listen to them.

Why was I hearing her now and not earlier or later than this..?

My heart ached and became filled with pain and sadness, and Caroline bit back a small smile and tucked her head closer to her chest while she looked at me with a sad look in her eyes. "I wish you would let me," I said, my voice barely above a whisper while I walked in the direction that was away from my mother's voice. "I want to know."

Caroline bit back a small smile and slowly nodded. Her eyes flashed with pain and guilt while she studied me. "I know," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. She cleared her throat and licked her lips. "But it is someone's private time, and I don't want you to interrupt it."

She hesitated and rubbed her hands together while she looked around before she looked at me, afraid of who was around to hear her. "Let's just say it's Cooper's private time, and it is a time where no one bugs him, not Gisselle, not Rhett, and not ev-"

"Me," someone said behind us, and we instantly turned that way to see Jonah standing behind us with his hair wet and plastered against his head and water dripping a bit from his beard.

Pain and sadness filled his eyes when he looked at me, but that didn't stop the sad smile on his face while he tucked his head closer to his chest while he studied me. "Hello, Kyler," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I am Jonah."

Jonah cleared his throat and shifted on his feet while he grimaced, and his cheeks turned red. He rubbed the back of his neck and smiled sheepishly, and I couldn't help but bite back an amused smile while I stared at him. "Even though I am sure that you already know that."

I nodded in confirmation, and my grin grew wider while I looked at him. "I know," I said. "I know that you are Jonah even before you said anything to me." I shrugged and grimaced, pressing my lips into a thin line. "Even though you are a heck of a lot older than mine, and my brother doesn't have a beard like this." I gestured toward my face and wrinkled my nose, pursing my lips.

Jonah bit back a small snort and moved a hand through his beard slowly nodding and a look of pain flashed through his eyes. "You should tell him to grow one." he said. "It will suit him."

I shrugged and grimaced, pressing my lips into a thin line and biting back a small smile. "Maybe when he is out of the main house or Mom stops popping out kids left and right," I said. "For right now, I think it will be best if he doesn't have one from personal experiences..."

Jonah scowled playfully and narrowed his eyes, and I bit back a small, cheeky grin while I stared at him. "What did you do Kyler..?" he trailed off and cleared his throat while his cheeks turned a little red in embarrassment.

"Rose," I said, and my heart ached and became filled with pain and sadness because a part of me was sad that my own brother did not know my middle name.

Even though he wasn't my own brother...

"My middle name is Rose."

Jonah bit back a small hum and slowly nodded with a small smile on his face. "What did you do, Kyler Rose?" he asked and narrowed his eyes further while he raised an eyebrow in question.

I bit back an amused smile, tucking my head closer to my chest. "Nothing, really," I said.

"Mmhmm." He narrowed his eyes, and I could tell that he didn't believe me.

I placed my hands behind my back and gave him an innocent grin. "I... might have coaxed a few of our younger siblings to put some Christmas ornaments and lights on some of the other members' beards..." I rubbed the back of my neck and grinned.

Jonah bit back a small snort, and an amused smile appeared on his face. "Did you help?" he asked and raised an eyebrow in question.

"Mmmm. Maybe," I said and shrugged, with a smile appearing on my face. "I might have helped with a few of them. It was mainly with Uncle Percy that I had helped with, though, and his mom helped him."

My brother bit back a small chuckle and slowly nodded before he grew serious. "So what are you two up to?" he asked and raised an eyebrow in question while he studied us. "Are you starting to get in trouble?"

"Not yet," I said and shrugged, pressing my lips into a thin line. "We are going to check on those that have been accepted into the group. There are a few that I want to make sure everything has been fine with them, especially since they hadn't had the best experiences with the group."

Jonah's eyes grew darker, and he became protective over us. "Like Reece?" he asked and raised an eyebrow in question while he studied me, and his voice grew darker.

I bit back a small scoff and nodded in confirmation, holding back an eye roll. "Yes," I said, trying but failing to keep the annoyance out of my voice. "He is one of them that I want to keep an eye on."

Jonah bit back a small growl and warning flashed through his eyes while he stared at me, and Caroline hesitated before she moved closer to me and further away from him. "Stay away from him, Kyler Rose. He is dangerous."

I scoffed a laugh and rolled my eyes, pursing my lips in annoyance. "Ya, like he can create fire from his hands. Nice one, Jonah," I said. "He is not dangerous at all."

"Oh, and you can?" Jonah asked and raised an eyebrow in question while he studied me. "He doesn't need to create fire from his hands for me to consider him as dangerous."

I stared at him with a blank look on my face before I held out my hand, and a small ball of fire appeared above it, with Jonah's eyebrows growing wide while he stared at the ball of fire, shocked and surprised. "Ya... I think I am good," I said and looked at the ball of fire in my hand before I looked at him.

Jonah scowled and narrowed his eyes. "Well, I still do not want you to visit him alone," he said, "and I do not want Caroline near him." He gestured toward Caroline, and I followed his hand before I looked at him.

Caroline set her jaw and narrowed her eyes, pressing her lips into a thin line. She did not say a word, but I could tell that she wasn't pleased with what he said.

"Well, she is her own person and can make her own fucking decisions," I said sarcastically. I glanced at her before I looked at Jonah, slowly blinking. "If she wants to go over to him and talk to him, then she can."

"Bu-"

"She also has the gift that my mother has," I said, interrupting him. "She might not know how to use it yet, but she can tell if someone is an innocent or not."

Jonah scoffed a laugh and rolled his eyes, and he pursed his lips in annoyance. "And he is innocent?" he asked and raised an eyebrow in question while he studied me, and I nodded in confirmation. "How?" he asked and raised an eyebrow in question while he studied me. "How is he an innocent, and how the hell do you know, Kyler Rose?"

"Because I have the gift, too," I said and closed my hand over the fire. "I can tell who is innocent and who is not. I can tell a lot of stuff just by looking at the person and then feeling it."

Jonah set his jaw and narrowed his eyes while he looked at me. "Then I want to come with you," he said and slowly nodded with a small growl in his voice. "Is that understood?" he asked and raised an eyebrow in question.

I bit back a tired sigh and slowly nodded in confirmation. "Fine," I said and started to walk the way that I was going in, gesturing for them to follow me, and Caroline and Jonah did what I told them to do and started to follow me after they looked at each other. "But Rhett is going to be near him. I already asked him to do that."

"Why?" Jonah asked and raised an eyebrow in question.

"Because that was for his safety and my peace of mind," I said and shrugged with a small grimace on my face. "I don't want to be that worried about him, since I know that a lot of people are going to blame him for whatever his father had done."

"As w-"

"And if you finish that sentence, I am going to kick your ass," I said. I bared my teeth in warning and narrowed my eyes with a small growl in my voice. My whole body was tense, and he hesitated before he slowly bowed his head. "He is not his father, and I thought you would know that by now, Jonah Abrams."

Jonah hesitated and didn't say a word. He shrugged and grimaced, pressing his lips into a thin line. His whole body was tense, and I couldn't help but scoff a laugh and roll my eyes while I scowled.

"Whatever," I said and rubbed the bridge of my nose before I bit back a tired and shook my head, pursing my lips in annoyance. "I hope that you can learn to "forgive" him, even though there is nothing that he has done to ask for your forgiveness even if you want it, Jonah."

You have my word...