But nothing could stop me now.When I reached the rogue camp, the tension hit me like static. You could feel it in the way people shifted, the way eyes darted, the way no one spoke above a whisper. They were waiting for someone to tell them what came next.They were waiting for him.But he wasn’t co
DEREKI stood in the doorway to Aiden’s hospital room, barely breathing.Inside, the boy I had just learned was my son lay pale and still, surrounded by wires and monitors. The soft beep of machines echoed in the sterile silence, steady but too quiet. Like a heartbeat you didn’t trust to keep going.
ELENAI hadn’t moved from his bedside since yesterday. Not when the nurses gently nudged me to rest. Not when my back ached from the hospital chair. Not even when my eyes burned from staying open too long.Aiden hadn’t stirred.The doctors said he was stable, that the transfusions were working, that
His voice was calm. Measured. But I could feel the weight of it settling over all of us like a thundercloud.Logan shifted on his feet.Mason glanced between them, but didn’t speak. He was still at the foot of Aiden’s bed, his eyes glassy and fixed on the boy, one hand lightly resting on the rail li
ELENAThe world had been reduced to a series of small rituals.Wake up. Tiptoe down the Moonstone hallways. Open the door to Aiden’s room. Sit by his side. Watch the rise and fall of his chest. Whisper prayers to the Moon Goddess I’d neglected to properly worship since I was a teenager.Repeat.He’d
The silence was driving me insane.He was my son.My son.And I wasn’t even allowed to see him.I’d left Barbados because I had no choice. Moonstone had taken over his care, and they’d made it clear I wasn’t welcome. Logan hadn’t said a word to me during that entire final hour at the hospital. Mason
ELENAAiden was awake. I should have felt nothing but joy, and I did. I did.His eyelashes fluttered like bird wings before they opened, and his little fingers twitched around mine like he was afraid I might disappear. But with the joy came something else—an ache. Because some of the first words ou
“If you want to be part of Aiden’s life,” I said finally, softer now, “then you have to show up. Not just with presents. With presence. With love. With support. You have to earn his trust. His love. Not buy it.”He didn’t argue, he just nodded slowly, like each word I’d spoken had cut through to som
My parents had pulled out all the stops. White-gloved servers, silver candelabras, a string quartet in the corner playing soft music. It was the kind of dinner that only happened when my mother was trying to impress—or intimidate.I spotted the way Erin's eyes flicked over the crystal glasses, the w
ELENAThe soft hum of Dr. Voss’s voice was like a current running under my skin—steady, focused, grounding. I let myself sink into it, the earthy scent of burning herbs drifting from the brass bowl on the table beside me. My hands were clenched in my lap, but my breathing had evened out, and my mind
For the first time, I didn’t follow her.Didn’t chase.Didn’t apologize.But I didn’t forget, either.And some part of me always carried that moment—like a shard of glass pressed into the soft part of my palm.***I found Cassandra in the solarium, stretched out on the chaise in a pale silk robe tha
DEREKI remember the exact moment my father died.Not when I found out—when it happened. I didn’t know then, of course, but looking back, there was a sudden weight that settled in the air that day, like the wind itself knew something had shifted.Something in the bond between us snapped.We were out
Still, watching Aiden throw his head back in joy as he sped around the rose bushes, hair flying behind him and helmet finally strapped tight—I couldn’t deny the truth of what I’d said.Derek had done something for him today that I never could have.And it mattered.Derek stayed quiet, the gravity of
ELENAI hadn’t expected it to hit me like that.Watching Derek teach Aiden to ride his bike… I don’t know. It gutted me in a way I wasn’t prepared for. Not because it hurt, but because it was right. The way Aiden beamed up at him.The way Derek knelt beside him, patient and calm, catching him every
Still nothing.“A good friend of mine was hurt. She saved my life a long time ago, and I thought she needed me.”I paused.“But even if that’s true… I didn’t handle it right. And I want you to know—I get it. I let you down.”Aiden was quiet for a long time.Then, softly: “I think the meatballs weren
DEREKI’d never felt more nervous about knocking on a door in my life.And that included negotiating with rival Alphas and walking into rogue territory with a barely-functioning truce.This was worse.Because this was Aiden.Because I’d let him down.Elena opened the front door of the Moonstone esta
“Mason is blinded by love,” he muttered. “He’s not going to see sense or reason. Even if I backed it up with evidence.”I blinked. “Evidence?”He hesitated. Sighed. “Alpha Derek found documents while investigating Pierce. Moonstone correspondence. Reports. Internal logistics. It was part of what led