Selena couldn't take her eyes off of her father.
"You want me to be your spy?"
"Clearly," he responded while maintaining a serious expression. "I need to put my faith in someone, and who better than my daughter?"
"You trust me?" She asked with a note of irony in her voice.
Hawk let out a chuckle. "Of course not. But I have faith in the love you have for Jennifer." He said, still grinning. "I just know that you wouldn't want to see her in any kind of pain at all."
She licked her lips nervously. When she found out that her father had planned to blackmail her, it did not surprise her at all.
"Dad," she began, eyes downcast, unsure how to phrase the question that had burned inside of her for so long. "I need to know: did you ever love my mom? Did you ever care for us?"
When her father said, "I did," she felt as though her breath was caught in her throat.
"Jennifer radiated sweetness that lit her up like an angel. She was delicate and shy, and all you wanted to do was shield her from the harshness of the outside world. You bring to mind the other person."
"You loved her," she breathed in surprise.
"If she had asked, I would have done anything for her, including laying down my life at her feet. I would have considered it an honour. But although I had no feelings for her, they married me off to another woman. So we made plans to run away together. My father was the one who discovered it. I tried to convince him that Jennifer was my partner, but he ignored what I had to say. I dared him to a fight in order to seize leadership of the pack. I knew that I could have beaten him, or at the very least, perished trying. However, Jennifer was successful in convincing me to consider the pack."
She heard the pain and longing in his voice, so fresh, as though he were speaking of events that took place yesterday.
"She said that the pack would suffer because of this conflict. She rejected me."
Selena's eyebrows rose in astonishment.
"She only needed to support me." But no! Our future was not as important as the pack."
He delivered it with fury.
"I didn't abandon her, though. No one else could have her if I couldn't. I took her as mine. But she consistently rebuffed me." He regarded the feeble body resting in bed and said, "Until. I forced her to comply. She is now at my mercy."
"So why did you kill all those people?" "Why did you kill Cayden's family?"
"Oh, so that's what he's been telling you all along? Perhaps? I did. But unfortunately, this is how things go in our world. Either you can kill and stay alive, or you will perish."
"You have no remorse at all, dad?" Selena asked.
"I do, Selena. But sometimes we have to make tough choices in order to protect ourselves and our loved ones," replied the father. "It's not a perfect world, but we have to do what we can to survive."
She thought she glimpsed humanity in him for the first time, but it quickly vanished when he spoke his next words.
"The question is, who exactly Cayden is? I have killed many. It's difficult to keep everything straight."
"What about the Red Moon Pack? Do you remember them?" When Selena asked, Hawk narrowed the focus of his gaze. "You took Alpha Rudolph's son as a ransom after you killed his mate and Alpha Rudolph. Do you have any recollection of that?"
As he responded, Hawk's features hardened into a stone mask. "I remember it like it was yesterday. However, Rudolph was the one who put me down. Because I was financially disadvantaged, he and those snobs treated me with contempt. I ensured the safety of my pack by taking precautions."
"But dad...."
He kept a finger on his mouth to keep her quiet.
"I take it Cayden is Rudolph's son?" He smiled and paced around. It appeared as though he found the circumstance to be quite amusing, based on the way he laughed and then shook his head.
"Now, this is the information I want." He laughed, and Selena wondered if she had made a mistake by revealing Cayden's identity. "All this time, I thought Cayden was just ambitious and seeking power, but now I see that he only seeks retribution."
He turned to look at Selena. "Do you know why your mother was executed?"
Selena's face turned white, and the sudden question about her mother's execution surprised her. She realised that there might be a deeper connection between Cayden's desire for retribution and her mother's execution.
"She helped those brats escape because she was an emotional fool. Cayden was one of those brats."
Selena gripped the back of a chair to keep herself steady. Suddenly, everything made sense. She remembered those green eyes. That boy was Cayden.
"I know you hate me, Selena, but Jennifer is in this condition because of Cayden. She sacrificed her life for that brat. Cayden caused your mother's death. Do you still want to stand up for him?"
"Please stop." Selena screamed and put her hand on her ears. Trying to block the overwhelming emotions, "I don't know," she said, tears streaming down her face. "I just can't believe it."
"He is just as bad as me, if not worse. Don't you agree?" Hawk smirked.
Selena didn't reply.
"Now be a good girl and be my spy. I will keep in touch. Once everything is over, you will be free."
"But how am I supposed to go back to Cayden now? I escaped from his pack. He will know where I am. He would kill me the moment he found me. He doesn't trust me, anyway. I am nothing more than a sex slave to him. I don't understand how I can be useful to you."
"You are more than useful, my dear daughter. I have faith in your charms, Selena," her father said, striding to the door. "That is why I arranged with that idiot Michelle. She will take you back."
"You have everything thought out," Selena mumbled.
"I am a perfectionist," Hawk grinned. As he gestured for her to walk through the corridor, "So do we have a deal?"
Selena didn't reply. She gave a last look at her mother through the glass pane. "Yes, we have a deal."