The moonlight bathed the Crimson Fang territory in an ethereal glow, casting long shadows across the ancient stone walls. Bella stood in the center of the room, her mind racing with everything she had learned so far. Her heart pounded in her chest, an unsettling mix of anticipation and fear threading through her veins. The presence of the Crimson Fang elders, the warriors, and Alpha Keryth was overwhelming, but it wasn’t just the pack that had her attention now.
It was her parents.
Bella had always wondered about them, the two figures who had left her in the care of Crescent Howl, abandoning her with nothing but a medallion and a cryptic legacy. Now, standing in the heart of the Crimson Fang territory, she felt the weight of their absence more than ever. Her pulse quickened as Lira guided her into the inner chambers of the pack’s stronghold, where the answers to her questions awaited.
And then, she saw them.
Misery stepped forward first, her silver hair flowing like a waterfall of moonlight, her eyes a deep and sorrowful shade of amber. She moved with an eerie grace, a silent presence that filled the room with an aura of otherworldly beauty. Bella’s breath caught in her throat as the woman approached, her eyes never leaving her face.
When Misery finally closed the distance between them, she reached out, her arms opening in a welcoming embrace. Bella hesitated for just a moment—uncertain, confused, afraid of the emotions that swirled within her—but then she stepped forward, and without another thought, she was enveloped in her mother’s arms.
The warmth of her mother’s embrace was both comforting and suffocating, like being wrapped in a blanket of safety and guilt all at once. Bella felt her heart skip a beat, the flood of emotions threatening to overwhelm her. For the first time in her life, she felt what it was like to have a mother, to be held like this, as though the years of abandonment were nothing more than a distant memory.
“Bella,” Misery whispered, her voice trembling with emotion. “My beautiful girl. You’ve grown so much.”
The words were gentle, soothing, but they didn’t erase the lingering questions in Bella’s heart. How could Misery have left her behind? How could she have abandoned her all those years ago?
“I’ve waited for this moment all my life,” Bella murmured, her voice thick with unshed tears. “But… why did you leave me? Why did you abandon me?”
Misery pulled back slightly, her expression softening, yet there was a sadness in her eyes that Bella couldn’t quite understand. “It wasn’t by choice,” Misery said softly, her fingers brushing through Bella’s hair. “There were forces beyond our control, things we couldn’t protect you from. We had to keep you safe, even if it meant staying away.”
Before Bella could respond, a presence filled the room—an overwhelming, heavy presence that made the air grow thick with tension. Bella turned, her senses alert, and there, standing at the entrance to the chamber, was Eryon.
His presence was like a storm rolling in. Tall, broad-shouldered, with an aura of raw power that seemed to crackle in the air around him, Eryon was everything Bella had imagined and more. His silver eyes met hers, a mixture of pride, sorrow, and something else—a guarded pain.
“You’re here,” Eryon said, his voice low and conflicted as his gaze lingered on Bella.
Bella felt her heart tighten at the sight of him. This was her father—the man who had once stood beside Misery, the one who had helped create the bloodline that now coursed through her. But the sight of him brought as much hurt as it did relief. The abandonment, the years of unanswered questions—it was too much.
Misery stepped back, allowing Eryon to take her place, and for a moment, the tension between the three of them was thick. Bella’s chest tightened, and a dull ache bloomed in her chest.
Eryon’s gaze softened as he moved toward Bella, his eyes full of an emotion she couldn’t decipher. “I know you have many questions,” he said quietly, his voice heavy with regret. “But the truth is… it’s complicated. We had no choice but to leave.”
Bella’s throat tightened, her emotions swelling to the surface. The image of her parents, once distant and mythical, now standing before her, felt like a cruel twist of fate. The anger that had been bubbling beneath the surface for years finally surged forward.
“No,” she said, her voice trembling but firm, filled with the weight of her pain. “I don’t want your excuses. I don’t want your lies. I need the truth. Why did you leave me? Why did you abandon me to grow up without parents?”
The words came out harsher than she intended, but she couldn’t stop them. The hurt, the anger, the confusion—it all poured out in one brutal rush. She had waited so long for this moment, and now that it was here, she couldn’t hold back.
Misery’s face softened with grief, her hands reaching out to Bella, but the younger woman took a step back, unable to let herself be comforted just yet.
Eryon’s jaw clenched, and for a moment, he seemed to struggle with his words. “Bella, we—”
“You don’t get to explain it away,” Bella cut him off, her eyes flashing with tears of rage. “You don’t get to say you did it for me when I spent my whole life wondering why I was left alone. Why I was never good enough for you. You didn’t protect me—you abandoned me.”
Eryon’s face paled at her words, and for the first time, Bella saw something in his eyes—regret, sorrow, and a depth of pain that she hadn’t expected.
“We thought we were doing the right thing,” Eryon said quietly, his voice laced with sadness. “We thought we were protecting you from the war, from the dangers that followed us. But we never meant for you to be left without answers. We failed you, Bella.”
Bella’s anger shifted to something softer, something raw and tender. She wanted to hate them, wanted to scream at them for leaving her, but she could see the truth in their eyes. They had made choices—choices she didn’t fully understand yet—but they hadn’t done it out of malice.
Still, the hurt remained.
“You don’t get to fail me again,” Bella whispered, her voice hoarse. “Not now. Not ever.”