Freya's POV
Kingsley, seething with anger, attempted to lunge forward to take Grace's life, but I intervened and stopped him.
"I fail to fathom why you must implicate so many innocents when the issue is plainly between us."
I leaned forward onto my knees, feeling a little unstable on my feet after the physical exertion.
"I have nothing to explain. Just kill me," Grace said coldly.
However, at that moment, an unexpected event occurred.
A figure suddenly flashed by and snatched the baby from the hands of the werewolf next to her.
"Joyce?" Kingsley exclaimed in surprise.
I looked at Joyce in front of me, wondering why she was suddenly taking such action.
Was it to threaten us into letting her mother, Grace, go?
With my baby in Joyce's arms, for a moment, none of us dared to make a move.
Kingsley's eyes, filled with regret and remorse, betrayed the realization that he might regret bringing Joyce into the situation.
However, Joyce walked up to Grace, her eyes reddened, and asked, "Why don't you take me with you? I'm your child too."
Her tone echoed that of a child left behind, brimming with grievances and resentment.
"Why? Mom?" Joyce questioned.
Grace, however, sneered and said, "Because you're not my child at all."
Kingsley and I widened our eyes in shock at her revelation.
"What?" Joyce exclaimed in disbelief.
Grace glanced coldly at Kingsley, revealing the truth. "Your father only had sex with me once, and that time I wasn't pregnant. However, for the sake of my position in the pack, I had to fake a pregnancy and adopt a baby girl from somewhere else. I thought I could slowly win your father's heart that way, but little did I realize..."
At this point, Grace's eyes filled with intense resentment. "I didn't expect your father to be such a hypocrite!"
"Nonsense! I won't allow you to talk about my father like that!"
"What? Isn't he hypocritical? Back then, he abandoned your real mother for the benefit of the pack but chose to marry me. That was his choice. How am I not a victim of the alliance between the two packs?"
"It's his greed that's to blame! He wanted love, fame, and status. Since he chose his pack, he should have treated me well. Instead, he hypocritically tried to protect his pure love, even the Luna necklace, the symbol of Luna; he never gave it to me at our mating ceremony, just because I was not the Luna he wanted."
"After marriage, he even refused to touch me and have an heir with me. He didn't just ruin your mother; he ruined me too! He is a hypocrite!"
Kingsley and I fell instantly silent.
Kingsley's hands trembled slightly.
When Grace finished speaking, she turned her head to face Joyce, who stood frozen in place. "As for you, you're not even my child! You're just the daughter I adopted to win over my mate's heart. You are as much a victim as I am; no one cares about what we truly think, and you will never have the right to make your own choices."
"AHHHH!!!" Joyce let out a sudden roar of rage at Grace's words. "I don't believe it! What you're saying is not true!"
Joyce's eyes glowed red, and she continued yelling like a madwoman.
Suddenly, a baby's cry pierced the air. Kingsley and I tensed up simultaneously, our eyes locking onto our baby in Joyce's arms.
I saw Joyce flinch for a moment, then gently place the baby on the ground. However, in the next second, Joyce pulled a dagger seemingly out of nowhere and rushed to harm our child on the ground.
"No!" Kingsley and I exclaimed simultaneously, but Joyce was too close for me to intervene.
A sharp pain surged from my heart, and in fear, I involuntarily spat out a mouthful of blood.
I squeezed my eyes shut, not daring to face the tragedy that followed.
The air fell suddenly silent.
A faint wolf howl rang out, and I slowly opened my eyes in disbelief.
Grace had rushed over at some point, shielding my child with her body. The dagger had hit her directly in the heart from behind.
Kingsley stood next to her, and at his feet, Joyce sat dazed and paralyzed on the ground, staring at the lifeless Grace, lost in her thoughts.
I rushed over to pick up my baby, whose big, bright eyes stared curiously at me, followed by a wolfish howl as he smiled.
Tears streamed down my cheeks, and I couldn't control them. Kingsley also hung his head, gazing tenderly at our child. "Little one, I've made you suffer."
Kingsley and I exchanged glances before looking at Grace, now lifeless. A wave of complicated emotions surged through my heart.
Suddenly, I thought of the gentle voice I had heard that night when Grace sang a children's song to my child.
"Alpha!"
Jeremy led our people forward, followed by several prisoners and a group of Rogues who had survived the war.
"What's our next move?"
Kingsley surveyed the battlefield and the weary, numb faces of the survivors. When he locked eyes with me, I instantly grasped his thoughts and nodded.
"I understand that you all desire peace and tranquility. Some of you were compelled to fight in the war to protect your pack, while others, like the Rogues, sought a secure life to avoid displacement. However, war doesn't guarantee that. Even if it does, you'll pay a terrible price. If you wish, I can admit you into the Shadowmoon Pack as Alpha, but by joining, you agree to follow my orders. Are you willing?"
As soon as Kingsley spoke, hope flickered in the eyes of the wolves in front of me.