“I found my mate,” I said quietly. “Actually… mates. Four of them.”
The silence was thick.
Then Tessa’s scream echoed down the line, high-pitched and delighted.
“You lucky b*tch! I knew it! I knew it! You’re the Quad’s mate?!”
“I hate you,” she whispered reverently. “I hate you with my whole soul.”
Aunt Elira coughed. Loudly.
“Enough, Tessa. Go.”
I could hear her groan and shuffle off, muttering something about how I better send pictures or she’d disown me.
Then the tone on the line changed. Instantly.
“Elira,” I said quietly. “What happened?”
There was a beat. Then another.
“I don’t know how to explain this without scaring you.”
“That’s not a good start.”
Aunt Elira sighed, and the sound wasn't just tired—it was gutted. Heavy. Like the kind of grief you try to keep hidden be
