19.The transformation.

Mia Miller

The small cold hands grabbed me as if they never wanted to let go. My son was terrified, and my tears kept falling.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

I stared at Ethan, searching for a plausible answer to all the mess that was happening. He had to be crazy!

"Mia, let's get out of here. As soon as we get home, we’ll talk," he ordered.

I simply nodded.

I cuddled Lorenzo in my arms and put my coat on him; it was cold, and he seemed to have a cold. Only God knows how my son had suffered these days, he was just a two-year-old baby, and I focused on not crying thinking about him being away from me.

Ethan opened the door, and I got into the car, sitting in the back seat, while he drove. The silence in that car was almost deafening, but I didn’t know what to say, what to think, or how to act.

Lorenzo fell asleep in my arms. I watched his little face and his blond hair; he wasn’t harmed, on the contrary, it seemed like the kidnappers hadn’t hurt him. And I knew that if they had kidnapped my son, we were still in danger.

All of this surely led to him, and his sick secrets.

As we stayed silent on the deserted road, I watched the horizon getting darker as midnight approached. Lorenzo was safe in my arms, but I couldn’t shake the fear that wrapped me like a heavy blanket.

Ethan was focused, his eyes fixed on the road, but there was a tension in his body that I couldn’t ignore. It was as if he was waiting for something, an invisible threat that hadn’t yet revealed itself.

When we arrived at Ethan’s mansion, the sun was beginning to rise. He slowed down, looking around, alert to any signs that we might be followed. I didn’t know if I was more scared by the fact that we were still in danger or the fact that I was there, with a man I barely knew, but who seemed to know a lot more than he was willing to admit.

Ethan stopped the car, and silently led us into the mansion. The place, which always seemed so imposing and intimidating, now felt like a refuge. But I knew that the safety here was temporary, that something much bigger was at play.

I climbed the stairs with Lorenzo still asleep in my arms, his small hands clutching my coat. I entered the room I had been sleeping in and placed him on the bed.

His eyes remained closed, and I sat by his side, unable to move away. My hand stroked his soft hair, trying to calm the storm of emotions that was inside me.

“Mama won’t let anything happen to you. We’ll never be apart again, my love.”

Ethan appeared at the door, watching silently. I knew he wasn’t good with children, that his coldness and toughness weren’t just a façade.

But something in him changed when he saw Lorenzo, something he couldn’t hide completely. It was as if, for a moment, he was just a man trying to understand his own role in this confusing new reality.

After a few minutes, I couldn’t hold back the question that was burning inside me. I looked at Ethan, my heart racing, and finally said the words that had been tormenting me since the rescue.

"What are you, Ethan Greenwood?"

He remained silent for a moment, as if pondering the best way to answer. His eyes, usually so cold and calculating, were now filled with a mixture of confusion and something deeper, something he was trying to control.

"I told you that you wouldn’t understand, Mia," he finally replied, his voice low, almost hoarse. "But I think you deserve to know the truth. Just know that this truth… won’t be easy to accept."

I felt a chill run down my spine. "I’ve seen things today that I can’t explain, Ethan. I lost my father, had my son kidnapped, and now I’m in the hands of a man I don’t even know. Whatever this is, I think I can handle it."

He stepped forward, finally crossing the threshold of the room. "I’m not like you. I’m… different. And if Lorenzo is our son… so is he."

I furrowed my brow, trying to understand what he was saying. "Different? What do you mean? You’re talking like... like you're not human."

Ethan sighed deeply, running a hand through his hair in a rare gesture of vulnerability.

"That’s because I’m not. Mia. I’m… a werewolf."

The words hung in the air, and for a moment, everything was silent. It was like time had stopped, and I stood there, trying to process what he had just said. It seemed absurd, like something out of a nightmare or a horror movie.

I took three steps back.

"This is crazy," I whispered, feeling my body tremble. "Werewolves don’t exist. This is... this is impossible. Are you on drugs?"

"I know it’s hard to believe," he continued, his eyes fixed on mine. "But you saw things today that defy logic. And Lorenzo... he’s part of this world too."

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Everything felt like a nightmare I couldn’t wake up from. The man transforming into a wolf... Was I really seeing this? Was I really losing my mind?

I looked at Lorenzo, still sleeping in bed, his breath soft and peaceful, and a wave of despair took over me. “You’re saying my son… our son… is like you?” My voice came out weaker than I wanted.

Ethan looked at me, his eyes cold but sincere. "Yes, he’s half human, half wolf. But we don’t know exactly why they kidnapped him or how they found out he was my son. That’s the question we still need to answer."

My heart was racing, and confusion wrapped me like a dense fog. "Alpha? What does that mean? Am I going crazy?" The words came out quickly, my mind struggling to process everything.

Ethan sighed, as if he were trying to find the right words. "Alpha is the leader of the pack. It’s my responsibility to protect everyone, especially my son. This brings dangers, Mia, and there are those who may want to use him against me."

I felt dizzy, everything he said sounded impossible. Nothing made sense, but at the same time, something inside me told me that I was hearing the truth. "And why did you sleep with me, knowing this could happen? Knowing I could get pregnant?" I asked, feeling a mix of anger and pain.

He looked away for a moment, as if reluctant to answer. "There aren’t many reports of human-wolf children. I thought it wasn’t possible… that it was just one night. Something that wouldn’t have consequences."

Anger began to boil inside me. "So for you, it was just one night? Just one night, and now I’m stuck in this madness?"

Ethan stepped closer, but kept his distance, his expression serious. "I know this is hard to understand, but I need you to trust me. Come with me to the garden. I want to show you something."

I looked at Lorenzo, still sleeping, feeling afraid to leave him alone. "I can’t leave him here alone…"

"He’ll be safe. Mia. The house is under surveillance 24/7. Nothing will happen to him. Trust me."

Reluctantly, but knowing I needed answers, I followed him. Fear accompanied me with every step, my heart heavy with uncertainty.

We reached the garden, and he turned to me, his eyes serious. "If you don’t believe me, then see for yourself."

Before I could react, Ethan began to change, his muscles contracting, his bones stretching. The sound of the process was terrifying and, at the same time, mesmerizing. In a few seconds, where there was a man, there was now a huge wolf, its eyes still shining with Ethan’s.

I took a step back, fear completely overtaking me.

"My God... what is this?"