Chapter 3 - Maddy's Explosion
"He's taking this way too well," Maddy grumbled.
"Relax, Mads," Tom said. "Jeffries knows it was just a 'wolfing-out' episode, nothing more. He's forgiven you, yeah? Trust us. You'll see."
"No, Maddy may have a point," Shannon said with a thoughtful rub of her chin. "Jeffries and Ceri have been cloistered upstairs together for quite some time…and it wouldn't surprise me if Maddy was the topic of conversation."
The four teens were all huddled in the den Jeffries had added to his bungalow after he'd taken Maddy in about a year ago. It was a lot cozier than the wolfblood den the Smiths had built—or as Maddy liked to point out, when Jeffries said 'cozy' what he really meant was 'small' and 'cramped.' Yet the fact that Jeffries had gone to all the trouble for Maddy's sake meant that, all in all, Maddy chose not to complain.
Shan and Rhydian flanked Maddy on the half-chewed couch with Tom sitting in the armchair just opposite. Everything else in the den was designed for the comfort of creatures four-legged rather than two.
"They've been up there for ages," Maddy cried. Rhydian tried to reassure her, gently rubbing her arm as he draped his own arm around her shoulders. Maddy shrugged Rhydian off and jumped up, pacing for a bit before she whirled back toward her friends.
"Look, I owe all of you an apology. I'm sorry I freaked out today. I should be thankful I have people like the three of you in my life, who care enough to look after me. I thought I was completely past the past, ya know? Mostly, I am…but Mother's Day yesterday, it…it just brought some of those memories flooding back, ya know? I…I couldn't stop it."
Rhydian sprang up and took Maddy by the wrists, pulling her toward him for a gentle kiss. "All's forgiven already, smelly girl."
Tom groaned in the background. "Nice, mate, rub it in why don't you? You have to kiss her right in front of me. You know I used to fancy Mads."
Rhydian and Maddy both shifted uncomfortably until they noticed Tom was grinning.
"Are you teasing us?" Maddy said.
"You make it too easy," Tom said with a shake of his head as Shan put a hand over her mouth to cover her smile.
Just then the teens heard footfalls on the stairway. Jeffries peeked his head in and crooked a 'come hither' finger in Maddy's direction.
"Maddy, I need to have a word with you."
The brown-haired girl frowned. "Whatever you have to say, surely Shan, Tom, and Rhydian can hear it too."
Jeffries impatiently repeated his gesture. "No arguing, Maddy Smith. Come along. Or do you want me to send Ceri down here to fetch you in she-wolf alpha mode?"
Rhydian nudged Maddy in the side. "It's not worth it. Just go. We'll be here waiting."
Maddy rolled her eyes. "Some wolfblood you are, afraid of your mum." Yet Rhydian just smiled at her.
"This is just your boyfriend having common sense. You should listen to me more often," he called out as she made for the stairs. She glanced over her shoulder, stuck her tongue out at him, and followed Jeffries.
Upstairs, Maddy stepped into the kitchen. Jeffries had placed a pot of tea on the table. Trails of steam drifted above two cups of Darjeeling.
"Have a seat, Maddy. We need to talk."
Maddy groaned. "I'm sorry I broke the window, okay? I'm sorry I wolfed out on everyone."
"You didn't just wolf-out. I think that may be the problem," Jeffries said as he took a seat beside her. He took a sip of the warmth-infusing tea as Maddy frowned.
"I don't get it."
"The first day you came to me, lost and ravaged by grief, you changed into a wolf in my living room."
Maddy sighed and met Jeffries' compassionate gaze. "Yeah, you don't have to remind me. I remember."
"Do you know the main difference between what happened that day and what happened today?" Jeffries asked.
The pretty brunette wasn't quite sure where he was headed with this…
"Um…well for one, I didn't actually change into my wolf today."
Jeffries folded his hands together and leaned forward, looking at her intently. "It's more than that, Maddy. When you first came to me, your grief revealed itself by, as you call it, 'wolfing out.' Even when you changed into your wolf, though, it was an extension of the grief felt primarily by your human side. It was your human emotions processing everything which would then trigger the change." Jeffries took another sip of his tea as Maddy's eyes narrowed.
"Your point being?"
"What happened today was the opposite. You destroyed and leapt through a perfectly good window, running from your schoolmates when there wasn't any threat, with no one even around you. You were in human form, but your reaction, not wanting Rhydian's care or your friends' attention, that was triggered by your wolf. Your wolf was what drove you to act the way you did today, and I think I know why."
"You do?" Maddy shoved her teacup aside. "Jeffries, just because…of how much we've been through, of what you've done for me—and I'm very grateful for all you've done, I really am—that doesn't make you an expert on wolfblood psychology."
"Maybe not," answered an intruding voice, "but he's smarter than he looks, and he knows the truth when he sees it." Maddy turned to see Ceri entering the kitchen. She still wore that pretty teal dress which brought out the vivid blue of her eyes.
Jeffries frowned, not sure whether to take Ceri's comment as an insult or a compliment. "Maddy, I've decided that after the graduation ceremony in two weeks, you'll stay with Rhydian's parents for the summer before you head off to university."
"What?!" Maddy's head jerked back towards Jeffries as she stood up. "Absolutely not. Why are you doing this? You became my guardian. I thought you actually cared about me." Maddy began backing away from the table. Jeffries sighed and reached out a hand.
"Please calm down, Maddy. It's because I care that I'm doing this. Listen, I know you've made huge strides since the passing of your parents, but there's one thing Ceri has been insistent about ever since you came back to Stoneybridge. I think today's events show that she may have been right all along."
"About what?" Maddy said impatiently, ready to bolt. She was furious, her eyes flickering with the barest hint of yellow.
"You've recovered from your parents' passing and dealt with your grief more as a human than as a true wolfblood. Yes, you've had wolfbloods your age, Rhydian and Jana, to help you through the process. What you haven't had, Maddy, are adult wolfbloods in your life. With your parents gone, it's important that your wolf gets guidance too, not just your human side. Living for two months with Ceri and Gerwyn…" Jeffries threw up his hands. "Ceri and Gerwyn can help you tap into your wolf and truly let go of the past…in a way that I'm not equipped to do."
"But I'm comfortable here. Tom and Shan are just a hop and a skip away. Rhydian too. This summer will be the last chance I get to spend a big chunk of time with all three of them, here, together, doing the stuff mates do. Going up on the moors, getting into mischief." She glared at Jeffries. "You can't do this."
Ceri sat down stiffly and looked up at Maddy with a trace of sadness. "Would it be so bad, living with us for a little while? Do you still resent me for the past?"
The exposed look on Ceri's face took Maddy's breath away. She softened. When she'd come back to Stoneybridge after the tragedy of her parents' deaths, Ceri had been good to her. She truly had.
"No, I don't resent you," Maddy mumbled. She wiped away at a tear before it could fully form. "At least I don't mean to… In a few months I'll be gone from here, in a totally new place. I want to cherish the last couple months in Stoneybridge. I want to be with me friends, and with Rhydian. I want to savor the things familiar and wonderful before I have to move on for good."
Jeffries' eyebrows quirked. Maddy knew that look. The history teacher saw an opening.
"All the more reason for you to live with Rhydian's parents, Maddy, before you move to a challenging new environment. If we're going to help your wolf fully heal, we need to start the process now, not after you're surrounded by thousands of humans at university in Inverness."
Maddy hated that he had a point. She hated it.
"Rhydian will be at UHI with me too. We'll watch out for each other," she insisted.
Jeffries shook his head. "It's admirable how close you and Rhydian have become. You've been watching out for each other since well before you two became an item." Jeffries smiled sadly. "But even here, I think your wolf is holding you back. From what I've learned, two wolfblood mates are supposed to have the instinct to get to know not just their mate, but also their mate's family. You haven't done that in Rhydian's case. You've kept your distance. On your trip to see Damian in America, Ceri and Gerwyn hardly saw any of you after the flight over even though they accompanied you! You know what I think? I think you've been avoiding getting to know Rhydian's parents because your wolf still resents Ceri for trying to take Rhydian away."
"That's ridiculous," Maddy scoffed.
"Is it?" Jeffries shot back. "Then why did the idea of staying with Ceri and Gerwyn just a 15-minute drive from town cause such an extreme reaction from you? You'll still be close to your friends, you'll still have plenty of opportunity to spend time with them. No, there's something beneath all this. Your wolf is restless. Today was living proof of it. Your wolf is still clinging to the past, and we need to figure out why. I don't have the tools to make that happen. We need a seasoned wolfblood to help get you through this. Ceri can help you. Gerwyn too."
Maddy groaned loudly. "Even if all this is true, you're still being clueless. Do you have any idea how awkward it would be living with my boyfriend's parents?! Jeffries, you can't—"
"I've already made the decision, Maddy. It's done. Ceri and Gerwyn will pick you up the day after graduation."
Maddy's normally delicate face darkened into something unrecognizable as she glared at Jeffries, her eyes glistening.
"After that first day I came to you, when I had nowhere else to go, I told you I didn't want to be a burden, that I was willing to go away, but you insisted I stay. You even became my guardian. But now you don't want me, huh? I guess I'm too much trouble. I guess you regretted your decision after all!" she shouted, slamming her hand on the table before she turned away and ran upstairs crying.
Ceri downed the rest of her tea and stared at the tabletop. Jeffries pressed a hand to his forehead. Just then Gerwyn peeked around the corner, saying exactly what the other two were thinking.
"Well that could have gone better, no?"
Ceri threw him a look, but it didn't deter him in the least. "You know, I hate to butt in, but I think you two are going about this wrong. Maddy's stronger than you think. What if we tackle her wolf's issues head-on?"
Jeffries gave him an odd look and stood up to take the teacups to the sink. "I better go up and talk to Maddy. When I come back downstairs, you can explain to me what in the devil you're talking about."
But Ceri was shaking her head adamantly. "No. It's too dangerous."
"She's stronger than you think, love."
"Not so long ago she was just a cub. If her Mum was still alive, she'd tell you—Maddy's still a cub."
Gerwyn shook his head, steely-eyed as ever. "And she would be the well-meaning, overprotective mum talking, which still wouldn't make her right. No, Ceri. You're wanting to be overprotective of Maddy too, and that's…admirable, I guess. But you're doing her no favors. She has to fight this thing head-on, and you know what we have to do."
Tension crackled in the air as Ceri gaped at Gerwyn.
"Are ya out of your mind?"
"We have to send her through the eyethwyd." Jeffries' ears perked up. He had no idea what the word meant, but he recognized a wild wolfblood word when he heard it.
"What's this eyethwyd?"
Ceri's eyes turned to him, bleak as a snowless winter. "It's better you not know. Leave us."
A/N - Hey wolfblood fans. I hope you're enjoying this story. I've been asked whether this is a sequel to Mr. Jeffries and Maddy's Return. This does take place after that story and it's sort of a mini-sequel but not an official sequel, if that makes sense. I'm planning to do a longer novel sequel after Mr. Jeffries and Maddy's Return which shows Rhydian and Maddy starting out at university. Lost Cub will bridge the gap of time between the two longer fics. I hope that helps :)
You don't need to have read Mr. Jeffries and Maddy's Return to enjoy this story, but it does explain the history of how Maddy came to live with Jeffries, etc. - so if you get curious, feel free to check out my older stories. Thanks again for the comments so far, and please comment or review if you'd like to offer a dose of encouragement. I wrote this on a dreary, rainy day, so encouragement can be pretty helpful when the weather's acting the complete opposite.