Chapter 122: Chapter 122 Not Your Father
Seraphina’s POV
I knew they would come eventually. My parents stood at the entrance of the pack house, wearing those practiced expressions of concern that never quite reached their eyes. They were here for Roxanne, of course. I had been expecting this confrontation ever since she was captured.
I watched them approach, their faces painted with that familiar mask of fake worry they always wore when they needed something from me. I refused to give them the satisfaction of making the first move.
"I don’t want to hear it," I said, my voice cutting through the air like ice. Without my wolf, I couldn’t intimidate them the way I wanted to, but I was still the Luna of this pack. Still Julian’s mate. "And no, I won’t be releasing Roxanne."
The panic that flickered across my mother’s face was almost satisfying. Almost.
"Roxanne will pay for every single thing she did to me. Every lie, every manipulation, every moment of pain she caused."
My father stepped forward, attempting to use his Alpha authority on me. The command that might have worked years ago now felt like nothing more than a gentle breeze. I was no longer the broken girl who cowered under his disapproval.
"Seraphina, this isn’t about Roxanne," he began, his voice dropping to that low, threatening tone I remembered from childhood.
That irritated me more than anything else could have. If this wasn’t about Roxanne, then what was it about? My newfound strength? The power they had probably known about all along but chose to keep hidden? They saw me as a weapon to be wielded, not as their daughter to be protected.
"Look, I’m having the worst week imaginable," I snapped, feeling my patience evaporate. "Right now, I need space from both of you. Immediately."
The door opened behind them, and Julian walked in with Alpha Quincy close behind. I caught the flash of something across my father’s face, like a gambler who thought he was winning until someone changed the rules. Alpha Quincy looked anything but pleased to be here, while Julian appeared calm and utterly dangerous.
Julian’s gaze swept past my parents as if they were insignificant obstacles, focusing entirely on me. His eyes asked silent questions that I wasn’t ready to answer. When he turned to address my parents, his voice was deadly quiet.
"What brings you here?" He studied them with dawning realization. "Let me guess. You’re here about Roxanne."
He didn’t wait for confirmation. "Roxanne is going to die for what she did. Nothing less than execution will satisfy justice."
My father’s composure finally cracked. His eyes blazed as he faced Julian directly. "If anything happens to Roxanne, I will terminate our alliance. Immediately."
Julian’s laugh was sharp and cutting, slicing through the tension like a blade.
"You seem to forget that yours isn’t the only alliance I maintain, Alpha," he replied smoothly. "If you want to dissolve our agreement because your daughter kidnapped an innocent child and kept her from her real family, then please, proceed. I have numerous alliances, many far stronger than ours. The simple truth is this: I don’t need the Solstice Fang. The Solstice Fang needs me."
The atmosphere in the room became suffocating, heavy with unspoken threats and barely contained rage.
My father took a deep breath, struggling to regain control. "Our alliance represents more than simple politics, son."
He shifted his attention away from Julian, focusing instead on Alpha Quincy with calculated intensity.
"Quincy," my father said, his voice dropping to barely above a whisper. "Control your son. If this alliance crumbles, I’ll have no obligation to remain silent about what we did twenty years ago."
My blood turned to ice in my veins. The shadow of their past actions seemed to follow us everywhere, creeping into every conversation like poison.
The situation was spiraling completely out of control. We stood in the main area of the pack house, and if they continued shouting secrets, everyone would hear.
"ENOUGH!" I commanded, my White Wolf authority ringing through the space. "We are not having this discussion here. Office. Now."
We moved quickly upstairs, Julian’s protective hand steady against my back as everyone followed. The tension felt suffocating, like a storm about to break.
Something told me this conversation would go too far. When people started revealing buried secrets, it usually meant they were past the point of caring about consequences.
We hadn’t even settled into seats before Quincy spoke, his glare fixed on my father like a weapon.
"Start talking, Maxwell," Quincy commanded. "Don’t forget that I wasn’t alone in what we decided to do. And most importantly, you were the one who wanted Alpha Victor dead the most. Because your mate was carrying that man’s child."
Silence crashed over us like a physical blow.
My head spun violently. Victor? Mate? I didn’t know who Victor was, but the way Quincy spoke his name, the way my parents froze completely, told me everything. I was the only person in this room who had been kept in the dark.
My mother shot to her feet, her face drained of all color. "Stop this. Stop right now. This isn’t what any of this is about."
"This is exactly what this is about," Quincy fired back, his attention fixed on her. "I will not tolerate anyone coming here to threaten me and my son. It’s time Seraphina learned the truth about her identity and exactly who her parents really are."
I had been shocked many times before. I had heard devastating news and experienced terrible things, and it had always been difficult. But this left me completely numb.
Julian stepped forward quickly, placing a restraining hand on his father’s arm. "Father, this is neither the time nor the place."
"There is no better time than right now," Quincy shook off his son’s grip. "All parties are present. Most importantly, Seraphina is here to finally hear the truth."
I looked between Julian and his father, my heart hammering against my ribs. "What truth?" I whispered.
The numbness lasted only moments before everything came rushing back with devastating clarity. I needed to know if I had heard correctly.
This had to be some kind of nightmare or cruel joke.
Julian tried to guide me toward the door. "Come on, Seraphina. Let’s leave. Our parents need to discuss something privately, and it doesn’t concern us."
But Quincy’s voice cut through the air, freezing me in place. "Stop right there, Seraphina."
I couldn’t move even if I wanted to.
Quincy looked at my father, who was now staring at the floor in defeat.
"Will you tell her the truth?" Quincy asked my father. "Or shall I?"
My mother started pleading, tears streaming down her face. "Please, Quincy! Stop! Don’t do this to her!"
Alarms were screaming in my head. Everyone in this room knew the secret except me. I was the only one who had been left in darkness.
Julian’s silence and his desperate attempts to remove me from the room spoke volumes.
Quincy ignored my mother’s pleas completely. He looked directly into my eyes with what I could only describe as pity.
"I won’t stop," he promised.
He raised his voice slightly, ensuring every word would embed itself in my memory.
"Seraphina," he said with devastating clarity. "The man you’re looking at is not your biological father. And he is responsible for murdering your real father."
