Mate

In the morning, Serena and another Were named Alex chat about the Were community. Alex explains the power the Alphas have and how the Assembly works: The Assembly is a council that oversees the Weres’ huddles, or smaller groups. This information is new to Serena. She only recently learned about the Northwest and Southwest packs’ histories, too. The Northwest pack was formerly run by the Alpha Roscoe (whose mate was Koen’s aunt). The pack “splintered into different factions” around this time, but Koen eventually reunited them when he became Alpha (96).

Serena meets with a geneticist named Juno, who has been doing DNA tests for Serena to determine her parentage. Serena is surprised to learn that her father was the Were, and her mother was the Human. Juno is seeking out more information to determine her parents’ fates—the genetic database was destroyed in a mysterious conflict, and with it, Serena’s parents’ records were lost.

On a phone call, Serena and Misery discuss Serena’s DNA results. Serena doesn’t know how to process what she’s learned. She has very few memories of her childhood as it is.

Koen shows up, interrupting the call. He transports Serena from the safehouse to his private