Chapter 79: Chapter 79 The Truth Erupts
Julian’s POV
Seraphina was concealing something from me, but every attempt to draw it out of her seemed to drive her further away. I decided to wait, to let her approach me when she was ready, if she trusted me enough.
I allowed her to believe her secret was safe, though the guilt radiating from her was impossible to miss.
The decision I made today would be one I’d stand behind forever, but it brought its own weight of remorse. Elena had done nothing wrong, yet every choice a parent makes ripples through their children’s lives. That reality would soon touch Elena, and the root of this mess traced back to the day she was born.
I couldn’t focus on my responsibilities as Alpha when my personal life was in such chaos. My pack deserved better than a distracted leader, which meant I had to resolve these tangled threads. That’s what brought me home today.
Seraphina carried guilt for hiding my son from me, but her parents bore that same burden. I found them settled comfortably in my living room, acting as though nothing had changed.
My words came out flat and cold. "Were you planning to tell me eventually?"
Alpha Maxwell’s eyes narrowed, confusion creasing his features.
A quick glance passed between them, loaded with unspoken understanding. Slowly, the puzzlement faded, replaced by something that looked like terrible recognition. I watched the truth dawn in their expressions like a disaster unfolding.
I asked again, my voice carrying more force and a sharper edge. "I said, were you planning to tell me?"
Alpha Maxwell coughed, a tell I’d learned to recognize. "Julian, I’m not following you." His Luna bobbed her head beside him with exaggerated enthusiasm. Their eyes went wide with manufactured innocence. Pure deception. Even if I hadn’t witnessed the truth myself, I wouldn’t have bought their act.
My greatest terror was becoming like them, favoring one child over another. My circumstances mirrored theirs exactly - one child I’d raised, another who was truly mine by blood.
My patience shattered because dishonesty disgusted me. Alpha Maxwell and I were supposed to be allies built on trust, but that foundation crumbled when lies kept stacking between us. The exhaustion in my bones transformed into something wild and fierce. My voice dropped to a menacing rumble, sharp as winter stone. "Were you planning to tell me I’m a father? That I have a son?"
The question filled the room like smoke, thick and choking. Alpha Maxwell jerked backward as though I’d hit him. His mouth fell open, and understanding finally reached his eyes along with the full force of my fury. "Julian, hold on, just let me clarify -"
"Clarify what?!" The roar tore from my throat, bouncing off every surface. "Clarify how you watched me go through each day believing Elena was all I had, thinking I deserved nothing beyond that? I supported Roxanne! I raised someone else’s child, your child, Roxanne’s child, and never voiced a single complaint. I never demanded anything in return. Meanwhile, my actual son, my blood, my boy with Seraphina, existed somewhere in this world! The bare minimum you owed me was honesty when you discovered he was real!" Each word came harder than the last, betrayal coating my tongue like poison. Years of quiet sacrifice, years of putting everyone else first, and this was my reward. Their deception.
A sharp voice sliced through the charged air. "Stop discussing your son."
Roxanne appeared in the kitchen doorway, fire in her stare, her skin drained of color. She must have been eavesdropping the entire time.
My attention swung to her, the rage I felt toward her parents now including her, burning twice as hot. "You knew too, didn’t you?" It wouldn’t surprise me if she’d hidden this truth, considering she’d do anything to eliminate Seraphina from the picture.
She straightened her spine, rebellion flashing in her expression. "What if I did? Would you scream at me the same way you just screamed at my parents? Would you kick me out?"
Looking at her now, really seeing her, I felt nothing except bone-deep weariness. The favor I’d done her, the price I’d paid, all that accumulated resentment had soured into complete exhaustion. "I’m done with you, Roxanne. Completely done. I hope our paths never cross again."
Her composure cracked slightly, pain flickering across her face before anger rushed back to cover it. "Too bad for you, Julian, because we share a home. And Elena is your daughter!" She hurled those final words like weapons. "Just moments ago you were celebrating having a son. Did you forget you already have a daughter?"
My laugh held no warmth or joy. "We live in the same pack, Roxanne, and we share responsibility for a daughter even though she doesn’t carry my blood. Of course we’ll encounter each other. But it won’t happen the way you imagine."
Her eyes became slits. "What do you mean?"
"I’m relocating to my other house."
Construction on that house began before Seraphina’s departure. It was meant to be a surprise, a place where we could build something new together. I’d lost interest for several years, but I was grateful I’d decided to finish it recently.
Her mouth dropped open. "The house? It’s finished?" She sounded genuinely stunned, almost lost.
I fixed her with another icy stare. "It’s been ready for months. I chose not to mention it because I had no intention of bringing you with me."
The revelation hit her like a physical strike. Her face went slack, eyes wide with shock. All her defiance melted away, leaving her looking completely adrift. "You’re leaving? Moving to that house?" She finally whispered, her voice barely audible. "Are you taking Seraphina with you?"
I held her gaze without wavering. The answer was straightforward, definitive, and absolute. "Yes."
