Caught in the shadows

Mia's POV 

Thick, suffocating silence stretched between us. I didn't miss the way Elder Seraphina sharp eyes scanned me as if weighing if I could handle the truth. Beside her, Sylvia's mother folded her arms, her expression cold and unwavering.

"You think you're ready for the truth?" Seraphina repeated, her tone soft but hinting at condescension. "Jasmine betrayed this pack. She was a traitor who put this pack in harms way and that was why she ran and let you grow up in the filth of the human world."

A scoff left my lips before I could stop it. I didn't believe me. I wouldn't believe this bullshit. "That's not true. My mother can be anything.....but a traitor?" I shook my head in disagreement. "No...."

Sylvia's mother stepped forward, a sneer curling her lips. "Then why did you think everyone in the Pack is wary of you? Why did you think no one is ever talked about her?"

My fists clenched at my sides. I can't believe this manipulative story. I knew my mother—at least, I thought I did.

"Your mother never told you about your true origin, because she did betrayed this pack. She even went as far as changing her name all to hide . No one is ever going to accept you here, Mia because they are afraid you are just like her."

I shook my head frantically. My lips parted but no words came out. 

Then Seraphina continued. "Leave, child. You're wasting our time." They turned away, their dismissal clear.

Frustration burned through my veins but I refused to show weakness. I turned on my heels and stormed out.

Without hesitation, I moved towards Ezra office. He was the only one who could tell me the truth but I wonder why he was hiding that. 

I stormed inside the office without a knock. Ezra looked up, clearly irritated. "Are you getting bolder or you just lack something called manners," he said, leaning back in his chair.

I wasn't in the mood for this games, and this isn't definitely the time for me to care about manners. "Tell me the truth about my mother," I demanded. "What happened with her?"

He sighed, rubbing his temples. "You should be focused on getting stronger, not chasing after some ghosts."

Ghosts? Asking about my mother isn't important? Was Slyvia Mother and Elder Seraphina right?

"Don't give me that," I snapped. " Slyvia Mother and Elder Seraphina were talking about her. They call her a traitor, said she betrayed the pack."

Ezra’s expression darkened, and for the first time, something flickered in his eyes—pain? Guilt?

"You think you're ready for the truth?" His voice was quite. "Then get stronger first."

Anger burned in my chest but I knew it was useless arguing with him because he won't bulge. He was dangling answers like a prize I had to earn. Good. I will get stronger and come back again. And when I did, he would have no choice than to tell me the truth.

I turned on my heel and left without another word.

*****

The next morning, I stood at the edge of the dense forest, my stomach knitting with fear and unease.

Zane as usual was already waiting for me, his arms crossed as he leaned against the tree. Doesn't he get tired or weak?

"Shift," he ordered.

My throat tightened as I stepped closer, willing to convince him again. "Zane.... Can we just train in our human forms today?"

He arched a brow, smirking. "At the training grounds, I'm your master, princess," his voice was cold. "And you don't get to tell me what to do." He pushed himself from the tree and stepped closer. "So. Shift."

Embarrassment overwhelmed me, but it also gave me purpose. I focused, willing my body to change. My skin and bones stretching, twisting and realigning. Sabina took charge and soon, I stood on my four legs.

I had barely had to time to adjust when Zane lunged.

His wolf was faster, stronger and huge that I got scared for a second. It was a brown wolf with scary eyes that made Sabina cower in fear.

I barely had time to react before he pinned me to the ground. I yelped, scrambling to my feet, but he was already circling me like a predator playing with its prey

Growling, I lunged at him, but he dodged with practiced ease. But then something changed. A deep unfamiliar and raw power surged through. My wolf moved faster than I should have been able to and even before my mind could catch up. 

I lunged at him, and with my claws, I  gave him a slight scratch. But the moment was fleeting. The power faded as quickly as it came, and Zane was on me again, pinning me with a growl.

We shifted back, panting. We stood naked, and the shameful instincts of being unclad surge in me and I quickly placed a hand on my vaginae, and another on my nipples, willing to cover myself. But Zane was unbothered about his own nakedness, instead he walked towards a tree and pulled on a cloth.

I turned away too, and in that moment that my hand was on my nipples, I imagined it was Javier's. Fuck! Heat pooled low in my stomach. In that moment, even the wind seems to sense my turmoil, because it got stronger, making my nipples hardened.

Javier. 

I remembered his touch, the way he looked at me anytime I was arguing with him, the way he claimed me as his pet, the way his head were buried between my thighs, the way his fingers played my body like an instrument. Come to think of it, I missed everything, even those moments, I had hated in the past.

"You really are incredible," Zane muttered, his voice drawing me out of my thoughts. I turned to find him fully dressed, surprise flickering in his eyes.

I stiffened. What did he mean by that?

Before I could ask, he turned away. "Training's over. For now."

Once I noticed Zane was out of sight, my hands trailed lower, down to my pussy. I touched my clit and found myself incredibly wet. Fuck! I quickly removed my fingers. I shouldn't do this.

I grabbed an extra training outfit that I had brought along, slipped it on and made my way out of the forest.

**********

That night, I couldn't shake off the feeling that the training with Zane this morning had changed something inside me.

Restless, I slipped out of my room and made my way towards the Pack archives. I could find something that hints at the truth about my mother. The scent of old books and dust hit my nostril, the moment I stepped in.

I searched through the shelves and then found a book titled 'The Forbidden Luna'. 

What was that?

I quickly opened the book, and scanned through the pages. My mother's name was scrawled across it.

My breath caught. Before I could read further, a hard hand closed around my wrist. I froze.

Then a voice whispered behind me, low and dangerous.

"You shouldn't be here, princess."