Chapter 28

Chapter 28
CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT 

LYRIQ'S POV

I viewed the familiar landscape as it stretched before me, quiet and untouched, as if waiting for something I’d never been ready to give it. I hadn’t been to the family grounds in years, but now, looking over the familiar hills and rugged paths, a strange ache honed in my chest. 

Here, in this forgotten corner of the world, the land remembered everything—even the memories I’d spent so long trying to bury.

The wind swept over the grass, and for a moment, I could swear I heard my mother’s voice. Everything seemed to remind me of her these days.

She’d loved these fields. Even when my father had shown only disdain for anything that didn’t serve his ambitions, she’d found peace here, in the places he’d overlooked, where he couldn't find her.

That's what I thought.

But that was my mother—a quiet soul in a world that valued noise and power above all else. My father had crushed that out of her as best he could.

It was his legacy I’d inherited, though. His expectations, his brutality, his hunger for control. I’d thought, when I was older, everything would get better. That somehow, leading the Northside Pack would be different, that I’d forge a new path, one he’d never even dream of. 

But blood has a way of calling out, even when you don’t want to listen. And the pack needed me to be strong—to carry on in ways I’d sworn never to emulate. It was hard to resist the shadows of what he’d taught me, even if I wanted nothing to do with him.

I could still remember the feel of his iron grip on my shoulder when I was just a child, not strong enough to stand under his expectations, let alone his gaze. “Stop thinking, boy,” he’d say. “Act. You don’t win anything by letting emotion get in the way.” 

He’d drilled that into me, his harsh words chipping away until I’d built walls so high, even I couldn’t see past them. Over time, shutting people out became second nature. Emotions—mine or anyone else’s—had no place in my life.

For years, I’d lived by that code, that cold emptiness that I thought was strength. Until recently. Until her. Indigo. She was something else—someone whose presence demanded attention, whose spirit seemed to cut through the walls I’d built, even if she didn’t know it. 

And as much as I tried to ignore it, the bond between us was undeniable. I fell to my knees, my fingers digging into the earth. My mind throbbed with thoughts

How would I change when the pack needed a leader. Someone who wouldn’t let emotion cloud their judgment. Someone like my father, maybe, though that idea twisted in my stomach in ways I couldn’t explain. 

He’d been a tyrant, but he’d kept the pack strong, feared, and respected. And as much as I despised his methods, I couldn’t deny the results.

Still, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was caught between two worlds—between the legacy he’d left and the path my mother would have wanted me to take. 

My mother and Aries.

She’d wanted me to lead with kindness, to care for the pack as family, not just as followers. But in the years since I’d taken over, I’d struggled to reconcile those ideas. Power and compassion rarely went hand in hand, and I didn’t have the luxury of choosing one over the other.

The faint crunch of footsteps pulled me from my thoughts. I straightened, already recognizing the steady rhythm that belonged to no one other than my Delta. She always knew where to find me.

She was one of the few people I trusted, though I’d never admit it to her. She’d probably roll her eyes and tell me I was getting soft.

“Brooding again?” Her voice cut through the silence like a knife, and I didn’t have to turn around to picture the smirk on her face.

“Just remembering.” I didn’t bother lying. She had known me too long to be fooled.

“Dangerous pastime,” she said lightly, though there was an edge to her voice. She stepped up beside me, her gaze sweeping over the fields with a quiet intensity that matched my own. “And here I thought you’d finally moved past this place.”

“I thought I had, too.” I paused, then looked over at her, studying her face for a moment. She was still the same, with that fierce glint in her eye that reminded me of the loyalty she’d always shown. “But I can’t keep running from it. If I’m going to lead the way I need to, I have to face it.”

She nodded, her expression softening. “Then it’s about time. The pack needs your present, Lyriq, not haunted by ghosts.”

I forced a small laugh. “Easier said than done.” For a moment, I considered telling her about the memories that had clawed their way to the surface, about the rage and helplessness I’d felt watching my mother suffer under my father’s rule. But those were things I couldn’t give voice to—not even with her. They were too raw, too tangled up in everything I’d buried.

“I want to give ruling my pack like an actual pack a chance. But I don't know if I can…I don't know how to.” My voice broke.

She gave me a long look, as if reading the unspoken words in my expression. “I know you feel trapped. But you don’t have to do this alone, you know. I’m here, and so is the rest of the pack. We’ll stand with you, however you choose to lead.”

Her words settled over me, both reassuring and uncomfortable. Trust was a luxury I couldn’t afford—not fully. I’d built my reputation on keeping people at arm’s length, on being untouchable. And as much as I valued her loyalty, there was a part of me that couldn’t let her in. Not completely.

“I appreciate it,” I said finally, keeping my tone neutral. “But I have to be the one to carry this. I can’t let anyone else get dragged down by my father’s legacy.”

She sighed, a faint note of exasperation in her expression. “Fine. But don’t think I’m letting you off that easily.”

“I know you won't,” I smiled. “If you were me…where would you start?” I looked up at her.

“Maybe try to get to know them?”

I felt my skin crawl, “Like smiling and–talking and what not?”

“Yes! A greeting, it's been ages since you've done that, since you took head I suppose. I'll schedule it for you.” She concluded instantly and shifted to her wolf form.

“Hey!” I shouted off but she just began running off, ignoring my calls.

“I'll set it for next week so you better not back off!”

“I never agreed to this!”