Nicolas POV
I had my fists firmly clamped around my father’s neck, choking him. He was crushed against the wall. Ray’s power was more than I had expected.
“Alpha,” Ronan’s startled cry resounded across the room. Nor has he ever seen me allow Ray to maintain control, nor has he ever seen Ray lose his fury like that. “I think you should sit your father down before you kill him.”
My father’s face flushed, and his eyes popped out of their sockets as he struggled against Ray’s grip. However, I became even more enraged as I relived the memories of what he had done to me.
“Why should I?” My grip on my father’s neck grew tighter as Ray let out a howl. “He erased all traces of your Alpha’s past… We thought we were cursed.”
Ronan turned his gaze away from me, a hidden emotion visible in his eyes as if he had anticipated Ray’s words.
Was my dad truly so corrupt? Did Ronan realize it? His silence baffled me.
“Your father instructed him to remain silent!” Ray gave a hiss. “Why do you suppose Ronan feared him so much? He likely uncovered a wealth of information.”
“I had no choice!” My father managed to choke out.
My attention shifted abruptly to my father, whom I now hold in an incomprehensible state of loathing.
“Maybe you should give Alpha a chance to explain himself,” Ronan suggested in a soothing tone, hoping to defuse the situation. His gaze never left me.
The sight of that light fading filled me with delight as I saw my father’s eyes roll over, abandoning the struggle against my grip.
“And what will that help me?” Snarling, Ray whirled around to face Ronan.
The terrifying image of an alpha wolf gone mad-my reflection-was staring back at me from Ronan’s eyes.
“At least then you will know the reason for his action. Then you’ll have the option to kill him or not,” Ronan said. “You can use this to send a message to the rest of the pack-if anyone dares to stray from your path, they will suffer the same fate.”
It seemed like Ronan’s suggestion had an impact, and Ray started to think about his possibilities more and more.
In the next moment, Ray abruptly dropped my father’s body to the floor, spat on him, and turned his back.
“He has one minute to gather himself,” Ray said. “He has two minutes to clarify his thoughts and ensure they are significant; if not, I will cut his throat.”
As Ronan took care of my father, Ray gave me control.
I watched my father sit down and touch his throat while I idly poured a bourbon, downed the golden contents, and then served myself another.
“Time’s up,” I said. “You need to explain the situation clearly!”
“I had no other choice,” my dad said, his rasp clearly audible.
I gestured with my drink to break the awkward silence.
“We have established that justification, and it is no longer adequate,” I snapped. “Tell me the truth! You have a limited amount of time! Alternatively, I will authorize Ray to extract the answers from you.”
As his cheeks flushed white, my father forced himself to swallow.
It appears that his fear of Ray has grown to an official level. He finally grasped the power Zara had given me.
As he stared down at his hands, my father explained, “The packs were afraid of what the prophecy would bring.”
“How does that relate to me?” I asked. “Why did you erase my memories?”
My father sighed, shaking his head.
“It was her plan,” he said, his face betraying his emotions.
“Whose?” Ronan inquired.
“Luna Mary’s,” he responded.
The comment baffled me, so I turned to Ronan to get some clarification.
“Luna Mary is the mother of Noah,” Ronan stated.
“I am well-informed about that,” I responded. “You did tell me.”
“He is also your half-brother,” my father said.
That took me aback, causing me to gasp for air. I couldn’t breathe, like someone had snatched my wind.
There must be a mistake. I cannot have a half-brother like Noah! The characteristics of a silver wolf are not present in him.
“You cheated on my mother with another she-wolf,” I yelled in rage. “You had an illegitimate pup with her?”
“It is not how it seems; besides, it was a long time ago!” My father muttered, looking directly into my eyes.
“I don’t care how long ago it was!” I let out a furious cry. “You didn’t tell me about this! After harming my mother and having a pup, are you now trying to convince me the situation is different?”
“She drugged me!” He cried out in anger.
“Wait, what?” I inched closer and queried. “And you did nothing about it?”
He replied, a look of apparent distress on his face, “I only found out later what had transpired. It was too late then.”
“So how did you find out about Noah’s existence?” I asked.
“She came to see me just before you turned twelve years old,” he replied. “She had heard that you had called out to Zara as your mate.”
“So you knew about that?” I demanded while clutching my fists.
All he did was nod.
“What did she say?” By asking this question, Ronan was trying to take my focus off of him.
“If I didn’t help her, she would expose me as Noah’s father.”
“So she blackmailed you?” I became agitated. “Why didn’t you just own up to your mistakes?”
“Because he had the right to challenge you for the Alpha title,” my father explained, looking directly into my eyes. “I did not desire that. He is not my son. He did not originate from this pack. He doesn’t even have the hallmarks of a silver-blessed wolf!”
“So instead. You betrayed me!” I growled.
“I just had to protect you,” he said. “I just had to make sure you found another mate. I wanted you to think that this new mate was the one for you. What I did not expect, though, was for Isabella to be a victim and die.”
Ronan winced. My father’s actions led to the death of his sister.
“How did you manage to break the bond between them?” Ronan tried to be calm, but his intent to murder my father was plain to see.
“I sought the advice of a witch,” he said. “I paid her to remove the bond between Nicolas and Zara.”
My eyebrows furrowed in surprise. No ritual could be simple and without consequences.
“How?” Ronan snarled. “There were no witches around-”
“That was back then,” he said, and he looked back at Ronan. “Before they went into hiding, that is.”
An unexplainable emotion flashed through my father’s eyes. He seemingly influenced their decision to hide.
Ronan looked bewildered as he stared at my dad.
“He is talking about the Gemini coven,” I informed him. “They still exist.”
“You seem completely confident in your statement,” Ronan muttered with astonishment.
“I am,” I said. “I have met one of them twice in my life.”
That took both wolves by surprise.
I sat down at my desk and asked, “So, what was Luna Mary’s original plan?”
“Without a bond between you and Zara, and you being mated to Isabella, Luna Mary hoped that the Goddess would grant Noah as Zara’s new fated mate, as he has silver blood in his system.”
“That happened, but he rejected her when they met,” Ronan chimed in.
“And it reset the balance,” I added. “Picking me as her mate again.”
The ringing of my phone interrupted my father’s attempt to speak, but before I could ask him why he seemed so anxious, I answered and ignored him.
However, I never imagined that things might change so quickly just by answering my phone.
****