What She Always Wanted (Part 1)
Thea’s POV
“What the fuck is he doing here?” Sebastian roared, his golden-green eyes blazing with fury as he glared at Kane.
I clenched my fists, feeling a surge of anger rise from my chest. Even though he’d saved me last night, that didn’t mean he could continue controlling my life. I wasn’t his Luna anymore, and he had no right to decide who could enter my temporary home.
Maximus cleared his throat, his Alpha presence subtly countering Sebastian’s. I’d need more time before I could comfortably call him “father.”
His voice broke the tense atmosphere. “Alpha Ashworth, we meet again.” Maximus flashed a dangerous smile. “Though I can’t say I’m pleased with how you’ve treated my daughter.”
“Maximus Kincaid?” Sebastian turned to him, surprise flashing across his face before he quickly masked his emotions. “What are you doing here?”
Sebastian’s gaze shifted between Maximus and Seraphina before returning to me.
“What he means is that we’re furious about how you and your Pack have trampled our daughter’s dignity,” Seraphina spoke up, no longer smiling. For the first time, I sensed hostility emanating from her. “We can’t imagine maintaining any form of alliance with a Pack that has treated her so poorly.”
“How is this possible?” Roman’s face was frozen in shock.
As I’d mentioned, every werewolf in North America knew who the Kincaid family was. They might keep their private lives secret, but their standing in werewolf society was common knowledge.
I glanced at Aurora, whose face mirrored Roman’s shock. That usually superior expression was replaced with pure disbelief. If she wasn’t careful, flies might fly into that perfectly sculpted mouth of hers.
“Can we just get this over with so you can all leave?” I asked, looking directly at Sebastian.
He nodded, pulling out his phone without delay and calling Margaret. The video call connected quickly.
“We’re all here, Mom,” Aurora informed her, and she nodded in acknowledgment.
“How are you, Thea?” she asked slowly, her voice carrying a tremor I’d never heard before.
I couldn’t understand why she suddenly cared about my well-being when, for the first twenty-plus years of my life, she’d looked at me like I was nothing but an unwanted burden.
“Just say what you want to say without the fake pleasantries,” I responded coldly.
I heard her gasp, apparently hurt by my words, but I honestly didn’t care right now. I wasn’t going to play along with whatever game she wanted to play. It was too late for her to try making amends.
She took a deep breath and began: “You were only a few weeks old when you came to us, but we didn’t officially bring you into the Sterling family until you were about a year and a half.”
“What do you mean?”
“We had an excellent Pack doctor named Elaine who served us for several years. She desperately wanted pups of her own but couldn’t imagine bearing children for another male. Her mate died in an accident seven years after they marked each other, and her wolf never recovered from that pain. They had planned to start a family the year he died, having already established stable positions within the Pack. But everything was taken away by a single accident,” she explained.
“Elaine wanted a pup but didn’t want to find a second-chance mate or accept other males who showed interest, so she decided to adopt. About a month after making this decision, she received a call from her mother. She was told that a member of their old Pack had found a baby after the last moonlight ceremony and was asking if any wolf wanted to adopt the pup.”
We all exchanged glances. Was this coincidence? Was the person Elaine’s mother mentioned my real grandfather? The coincidence seemed too strong.
Mother continued: “She requested to return to her old Pack to retrieve the baby. We thought she’d be back quickly, but it ended up taking her several weeks to finally return with the infant. No one knew who the baby’s mother was, and the infant didn’t carry any Pack scent. The elders said it might have been a pup left there by a frightened underage mother wolf after giving birth.”
“Since no issues were found, the Pack elders allowed Elaine to bring the baby back while preparing the adoption papers. Elaine believed the baby was the Moon Goddess’s blessing for her, and she named her Thea. That adopted baby was you,” Mother’s voice paused, then continued, “I had never seen her wolf so calm since her mate’s death. It was as if you gave her life again. Elaine loved and protected you as if you were her own pup.”
I took a moment to process the information she’d just shared. Elaine sounded like an amazing mother wolf.
“If she loved me as much as you say, why didn’t she raise me? How did I end up with the Sterling name?” I asked.
What She Always Wanted (Part 2)
Thea’s POV
“About a year after she got you, she contracted a chronic virus. The kind that doesn’t kill werewolves immediately but slowly torments and destroys their bodily functions. Even as the Pack’s best doctor, she couldn’t cure herself. She had less than a year to live. Before joining the Moon Goddess, she begged us to take you into the Sterling family. We initially didn’t want to–we already had two pups and didn’t want more.”
Something must have happened because I eventually became part of the Sterling family.
“So if you didn’t want me, why take me in?” I asked, struggling to control my emotions.
Everyone fell silent, waiting for her answer. I even held my breath.
“When Roman was three, we took him to watch the werewolf hunt on a full moon night and lost sight of him. The mischievous boy ran out of Pack territory before we realized it. By the time I noticed, he had already rushed toward Rogue territory. A pack of bloodthirsty Rogues was waiting right there. I tried to get to him, but I was paralyzed with panic. Elaine was closest to the boundary, and by the time I came to my senses, she had saved Roman. I don’t know how she managed it. But that day, she dragged her already severely deteriorated body to save him and was bitten by the Rogues. She lost consciousness and never woke up again.”
She inhaled deeply and then exhaled. “We accepted her request because we felt indebted to her. Nothing we could have done would have been enough to repay her for saving Roman and the suffering she endured. So shortly after she joined the Moon Goddess, we brought you into the Sterling family.”
I looked down, muttering, “I wish you hadn’t. You should have given me to another Pack with actual empathy. It would have been more merciful than life with the Sterlings.”
I couldn’t recall having any good memories with them. All my memories were terrible, filled with the pain of rejection and the sadness of self-doubt.
“Goddess, look at this ungrateful wolfless. Do you know how many people would kill to have the life you’ve had?” Aurora asked, sneering in my direction.
“Put away that fucking superiority complex before I permanently shut your mouth,
Aurora,” I hissed, my anger rising. “I’m sick of your stupid comments. Yes, I slept with Sebastian, get over it already. It’s pathetic watching your wolf throw tantrums like an out-of-control pup. Even Leo behaves more maturely than you.”
My outburst surprised everyone, especially Aurora, whose wolf clearly hadn’t expected a wolfless to challenge her so directly.
I felt someone squeeze my hand and found Seraphina beside me. Looking up at her, I saw her protective smile, her warm aura surrounding me. I’d completely forgotten they were sitting next to me.
“I suggest you control yourself, young lady,” Seraphina said firmly. “It’s been years, your Pack clearly made her pay for that unfortunate mistake. You should learn to let go of the past. If you release hostile scents challenging my daughter again, I promise you won’t like what I’ll do to you.”
I was shocked that she’d stand up for me. Nobody except Iris had ever defended me like this in front of a Pack. It felt strange but also filled me with a warmth I hadn’t expected.
Aurora looked up once, then lowered her head, her wolf submitting.
Mother cleared her throat, pulling our attention back to her. “I know we weren’t fair in how we treated you all these years, and I’m sorry. More sorry than you can imagine.”
“Please stop. Like I told Roman, it’s too late for apologies now. I really don’t want to hear them, and I don’t want anything to do with you or the Sterling Pack anymore,” I said simply.
Too much had been said and done. This was better. Maybe someday I’d let my heart forgive them, but not now.
“Since everything has been said, our business here is finished,” Maximus spoke up, his voice leaving no room for argument. “I don’t care what you think she did, but we must all acknowledge that the Sterling Pack’s contempt for our daughter began long before her mistake with Sebastian. Remember my words–we will ensure you pay for every tear she shed and every year of pain she suffered at your hands.”
Something dangerous pressed against every inch of the room, making my lungs feel suffocated. Everyone knew the Kincaid family’s power–they were not a force any Pack could easily mess with.
“Please, Alpha Kincaid,” Mother pleaded.
“How many times did my daughter beg? You didn’t care, did you?” Seraphina hissed at her. “Why should we show mercy when you never showed any to our daughter?”
Mother said nothing, shamefully averting her gaze.
“I think you should all leave now,” I stared at Roman and Aurora, feeling a new strength gathering in my chest.
They had done what they came to do, and their time here was over. They stared at me for a moment, then stood and left. Sebastian followed, and then Kane departed as well.
“You never have to worry about anything again, my daughter,” Maximus said to me gently. “Your enemies are our enemies, and our Pack will fight those who have hurt you. No one will cause you pain anymore.”
“We love you, our long-lost daughter. Please always remember that,” Seraphina added, her eyes filled with warmth and protectiveness.
They left shortly after. Having a Pack truly support me felt unexpectedly good. But the question is, did I really want revenge against the Sterling Pack? And even if I did, would the Kincaids turn against Kane for hurting me?
Would Seraphina and Maximus stand against the son they’d raised for fifteen years for a biological daughter they’d just found?