The fear nearly choked me-fear of seeing that familiar disappointment in his eyes one last time. But when I saw him lying there, the man I’d spent my life both fearing and longing to please…
Gone was the towering figure of my nightmares. The father who’d once seemed invincible now lay motionless, his chest swathed in bandages, his face ashen. The eyes that had always burned with contempt when they looked at me… now held nothing at all.
Tears streamed down my face. Why did this hurt so much?
This man-this giant who’d hated me from the moment I presented as a wolfless. Who’d looked at Celeste with pride and me with shame.
The memory of our last meeting still clawed at my heart.
There had been no wedding for Kieran and me. No celebration. Only my father’s iron grip forcing my hand to scrawl my name on the marriage paper.
“Now you’ve gotten what you wanted,” he’d snarled, his Alpha power choking the air between us. “From this day forward, you are no daughter of mine.”
I’d never wept so violently-never begged so desperately. But all I earned was the frozen line of his back and his final, venomous curse:
“Your birth was a mistake, Seraphina. Dare to show your face again, and I swear you’ll never know another moment of happiness.”
He kept his promise.
His curse had poisoned every moment of my life, while my “honorable” husband turned our marriage into a gilded cage with his endless silence and contempt.
I should have hated them all-this family, this fate.
But when my father’s fingers twitched weakly on the sheets, my traitorous heart lurched. Before I could think, I was at his side, clutching his ice-cold hand.
“Dad?” My voice trembled with something dangerously close to hope.
His pale lips parted slightly, as if struggling to form words.
But before he could speak-
BEEEP-!
The heart monitor screamed. The line on the screen flattened.
“NO!” The cry tore from my throat. He couldn’t leave-not like this. Not before I saw forgiveness in his eyes. Not before we could unravel the knots binding our hearts.
The door burst open. Ethan and Mother shoved me aside, sending me crashing to the floor.
“He’s gone…” Mother collapsed against Ethan, her body wracked with violent sobs. “My mate… my Alpha…!”
Ethan’s grief choked him silently-until his gaze locked onto me. His wolf was on the surface, teeth bared. I didn’t doubt for a second he’d rip my throat out. Until Mother caught his arm.
“You viper,” he hissed. “Whatever scrap of happiness you’ve clung to-I’ll rip it from you.”
A hollow laugh echoed through my mind. Why were they all so obsessed with stealing my happiness? Something I’d never had.
The doctor entered, murmuring to my mother, “Luna, we must prepare Alpha Edward’s remains.”
I numbly walked into the hall, my soul scraped raw, tears falling unchecked. As the pack’s elite arrived, none acknowledged me-just as it had always been.
But their indifference barely influenced me now. I stood numb before the chamber holding Father’s body, still unable to grasp the truth that he would never open his eyes to us again-
Until Kieran’s voice cut through the silence.
“My deepest condolences, Margaret.” He took my mother’s hands, every inch the dutiful son-in-law. “Rest assured, I’ll assist Ethan with every arrangement.”
Moonlight from the windows gilded his broad shoulders, the silver streaks at his temples only heightening the aura of a prime Alpha in his prime. Not a hair out of place despite the midnight summons.
The deadliest Alpha of the NightFang Pack. Just his presence was enough to control the air.
“Your presence comforts me, Kieran,” Mother wept, clutching his arm.
When he embraced her, those piercing amber eyes found mine over her shoulder-then flicked away as if spotting a stain on the wall.
“What exactly happened?” he asked as he turned to Ethan. “How could Edward get attacked?”
Ethan’s jaw clenched. “Routine border patrol. But the bastard rogues came in numbers we’ve never seen-armed with silver weapons.” His throat worked as he fought for control. “It was an ambush. Father never stood a chance.”
My mother’s renewed sobs filled the corridor. Kieran gripped Ethan’s shoulder-
“The rogues will pay for this,” he vowed.
I hovered at the periphery, an outsider in my own family’s tragedy.
The three of them-Mother, Ethan, and Kieran-stood united in their grief, an unbreakable circle I couldn’t penetrate.
“I’ve sent for Celeste,” Ethan added suddenly. “She should be arriving soon.”
“Oh, my poor girl!” Mother wept into her hands. “To miss her father’s final moments…”
My gaze flickered unbidden to Kieran’s face.
Our eyes locked again.
His expression remained unreadable-arctic, assessing, utterly devoid of warmth.
Ten years sharing a bed, yet he still felt galaxies away. I’d never touched his heart.
And now, with Celeste’s return, a terrible truth crushed my chest like an iron weight: I was about to lose my second family.
If my wolf lived within me, she would have whined low in her throat. I didn’t know if I could survive the coming storm-but one thing burned brighter than fear:
No matter what arrived, no one would take my son from me.
No one.
SERAPHINA’S POV
The fragile silence was shattered as a piercing cry echoed down the sterile hallway.
“Papa! Where are you?”
Every head turned in unison. My stomach plummeted as Celeste came into view-her golden hair whipping behind her, cheeks flushed from running. Her eyes were rimmed with tears, but her beauty remained utterly breathtaking.
After ten years, my sister’s sudden appearance struck me like a physical blow.
I almost instinctively turned to Kieran, whose mouth had fallen open, staring at Celeste like she was a dream he was scared to wake up from. The raw longing in his eyes was enough to answer the question that had haunted me for a decade: his heart had never been mine.
“Tell me I’m not too late,” Celeste begged, her voice breaking. When no one answered immediately, her knees buckled.
Kieran moved faster than any werewolf had a right to. He caught her before she hit the ground, cradling her against his chest as my mother and brother descended into the huddle. Their tangled limbs and shared sobs painted the perfect family portrait-one I’d never been part of.
The thought clawed at my throat. I’d lost my father too. Didn’t I deserve to mourn?
But this was Celeste’s world. It always had been. From the moment she’d taken her first steps, everyone had watched her, admired her, loved her. As Celeste shone, I became a shadow.
And now, as her whimpers filled the room, I might as well have been invisible.
The exit beckoned. Better to leave with what little dignity remained than wait for their inevitable rejection.
Not a single head turned as I slipped away.
My tears had dried by the time I reached home, leaving salt tracks on my cheeks. But the hollow ache in my chest? That felt like it would linger forever.
My first stop was Daniel’s room to check up on him.
I was surprised to see light under his door, and when I pushed it open, I found my nine-year-old curled into himself, knees drawn to his chest like a tiny fortress against the world.
“Mommy?” His voice was too small, too knowing.
I perched on the edge of his racecar bed. “Sweetheart, why are you up?”
He worried his lower lip between his teeth. “Something’s wrong with Grandpa Edward, right?”
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