“You're right about Adam. You can't avoid a werewolf pregnancy with conventional pills, but they have the medication for it. Caricature takes me to the hospital for an injection every month. I always remind him of this commitment. But it's different with Max. You don't really know if he was ready to be a father.” “He already had a son, Kate.” “Yes. But still, if you didn't plan ahead for these children, it wasn't honest.” Anna took a deep breath so as not to snap at Kate. “You said there were two reasons for not getting pregnant.” “The second is that... I don't want to put more monsters into the world.” Anna looked grim. “You can teach them not to be monsters.” “Like you did with Ian? Who gave a death sentence to a boy and agreed to Alexander's death? You've got to be kidding!” “Max and I have given Ian a moral and ethical education. When he's influenced only by Max, he'll return to being the kind child I want him to be.” “I hope your plans to return to him a
Adam continued to look serious, but Anna could see from his eyes that he was enjoying himself, but he looked away and went back to staring at the ceiling. “So Max talked about it with you...” “I saw it.” “Max needed your fear, or dread, for you to accept being his wife, in fact. He told you that when I made those tapes, I still didn't have command of as many territories as I do today? I was still searching for my place. I still wanted to achieve something other than my authority over the werewolves. I felt useless, I... I didn't think I deserved to have everything I'd received without doing anything. Something that even Max doesn't know was that my enemies blackmailed me all the time. They threatened his safety. If I hadn't made them leave, and continued to believe that I was a danger to them, they'd be dead today.” “I already hated you, Adam. Max didn't have to lie to me or use underhanded tricks to win me over. I fell in love with him. I was the one who imposed a physical
Anna stood up and stared at him for a while before saying; “It's not that normal to take pleasure in making others suffer. I hope my son never has to resort to something so...” “Don't be silly!” Adam said, getting up and standing right in front of her, making her lift her head to look him in the eye. “You're a masochist too. What do you think you're doing to Sarah? If both our parents, and Ian's paternal ancestors, went through this period, why is there something bad about Ian experiencing it too? Stop being so hypocritical!” Adam said and grabbed a suit from the closet. Anna crossed her arms as she watched him put the clothes on. “Where do you go dressed in black, like the werewolves who work for you?” Adam stared at her, looking indecisive. “Anna, you... Get out of here and put some black clothes on, too, and ask them to dress Ian in the suit Kate bought him. She seemed to be guessing...” He said, frowning. “What happened?” Anna let all her worries show in that qu
The men, who had only just learned of the moment, began to buzz, along with the staff of the mansion. All eyes were on Alexander, who was so proud of his son, but he wasn't there. “Today, all the staff of the mansion have been relieved of their duties to attend the wake. As for the others, I need them to remain at their posts and take turns so that everyone can spend some time with Alexandre and the other families. They are currently in the chapel of this estate, together with their families. Anna felt dizzy. It had never crossed her mind that a child would take part in a war. And Genevieve? No!” And tears welled up in her eyes. Everyone left after the announcement, leaving only Kate, Caricature, Adam, Ian and Anna. Anna looked at Ian. He was visibly shaken and struggling with all his might to stop the tears that glistened in his eyes from running down his face. For Anna, seeing her son like that was the worst thing that had ever happened to her. She turned to Adam, but he
“All right.” Adonis said with a smile. “What?” Anna asked, finding it bizarre that he should find anything funny in those circumstances. “You, Anna. Even when you're wrong, you're right.” Anna laughed too. “Remember that when I start giving you advice.” “I would never forget.” Anna saw a glint of desire in his eyes, but it was like lightning. So fast, she could have imagined it. “Shall we?” She asked. And they got into the car, and as usual, the train left. When Anna arrived at the old house, there was no one in the house or in the plantations. They had probably also been summoned to mourn. She noticed, as they passed the small houses built along the way and even the corrals, that they were all decorated with a black flag with a yellow werewolf drawn on it. “That wolf, is it the symbol of a house?” “No. It's the symbol of the transformed werewolves.” Anna thought. Adam was making a beautiful tribute to the dead. But useless, in her opinion. Anna went downstairs w
“I don't believe that nonsense. I don't know why my mother allied herself with someone like that.” “So you're not going to stop?” “No. I need to know about my mother.” “She won't say.” “I think I always knew she wouldn't, ever. But it's a good excuse to keep tormenting her.” “Anna... I'm going to prove to you that she's not joking, with a very simple question.” Anna leaned back in her chair, reassured. “Then do it.” “If you were pregnant today. Would you know who the father of the child was?” Anna felt her peace of mind fade. Adonis looked at her inquiringly, but she knew that he really believed her words. “I... well, the tests I did before coming to this country weren't exactly to identify a pregnancy, and... no. I wouldn't know.” “That's what I'm talking about.” “There's no such possibility. Not that I'm pregnant. I've been on the pill for a few months. And I may not know who the father of the child is that she says will be a shadow in my life. That makes
Anna widened her eyes in surprise and felt a chill run down her spine. She could have been wrong, but he had described the woman she believed to be her mother. “What was her hair like? The woman you saw? What color?” She needed to be sure, she ignored what Ian had said about Max's biological mother, because she knew she wasn't human. “It was beautiful. It looked golden, but it had a different color... And it was red like yours at the ends.” “And what did she say to you?” “She just said she was my grandmother.” “And did you answer?” “No. She disappeared, right after she told me.” Anna became pensive. The pain could have made Ian imagine things, after all, his mother was very similar to her, and his wish that Genevieve was living somewhere else could have produced a hallucination in his mind. “Adam said something to you when he was saying goodbye to Genevieve” Ian's mouth formed into a line. Anna became alert. He didn't want to say anything to her. “Ian, children sh
“If Adam had asked you to have an abortion, would you have done it?” “No. I already loved the child. How far along are you in your pregnancy?” “Eight weeks. I love the child, but I love Adam, too. I love my parents. I'm very confused. I don't want to lose either of them.” “Emanuelle... make a decision after you've heard Adonis' opinion. That way, there'll be no room for regret, whatever you want to do.” “I'll sound out Adonis. I can't risk telling him about this child and him forcing me to do something I don't want to do. Depending on his response, I'll know if this child is welcome, and then I'll choose. It won't be an easy choice, but a necessary one.” Anna stood up, brushing the sand from her clothes, and Emanuelle followed her. They walked to the edge of the beach, and Anna called them to leave. There was a proposal she had to make to Adam, even though he knew he wouldn't have to change anything to have her in his bed. Anna reproached herself for not being able to re