Hope

I didn’t know how to feel after seeing Ron’s expression. As much as I was relieved to see Maron again, something felt off. She didn’t return my hug. The Ma I knew would’ve clung to me, crying and smiling all at once—not standing stiff like a stranger.

And what was she even doing here?

She should have no access to the Awoke Pack. My thoughts raced, connecting dots I didn’t want to acknowledge—until one image flashed in my mind:

The masked woman.

The one who’d come with Ron.

My breath caught.

No.

But before I could utter a word, Julian’s voice rang through the air.

“What are you doing, Rex?”

I turned toward him, momentarily distracted.

When I looked back—

She was gone.

Just like that.

Gone, like she hadn’t been standing there a second ago.

I whipped around, scanning the area. Ron—nowhere in sight either.

That bastard.

He took my mother.

Julian’s hand gripped my shoulder. “Rex? Why are you just standing here alone?”

“What do you mean alone?” I snapped. “Didn’t you see the woman I was tal