Midnight Confessions

Midnight Confessions
POV: Aria

The screaming gets louder, and suddenly I understand what's happening to me.
My dog form is dying. I can feel my organs shutting down, my heart fighting to keep beating. Rosa's forced change is killing me from the inside.
But that's not what scares me most.
What terrifies me is that I can hear the thoughts of the coming pack.
Find the silver wolf.
Protect the princess.
Kill anyone who stands in our way.
The words echo in my head like whispers, and somehow I know they're real. I'm hearing other werewolves' thoughts, connected to them through bonds I never knew existed.
Rosa raises her hands higher, dark power crackling around her fingers. "Did you really think Murphy's little sting operation would stop me? I've been planning for this moment for twenty years."
"Rosa, stop!" Murphy screams, but his voice sounds far away. The witch magic is making everything fuzzy and strange.
That's when the pack comes.
The remaining windows burst inward as six massive wolves leap into the room. But these aren't like Kael or Marcus or the wolf I've become. These dogs are different. Older. More strong.
And leading them is the biggest wolf I've ever seen.
Pure white fur. Eyes like blue ice. A presence that makes every other werewolf in the room—including Rosa—freeze in fear.
Even in my dying wolf body, I know exactly who this is.
The Alpha of all Alphas. The monster king.
Hello, granddaughter, a voice says straight into my mind. I've been looking for you for a very long time.
Rosa stumbles backward, her magic failing. "That's impossible. Alexander Blackwood died fifty years ago."
The giant white wolf shifts smoothly into human form, and I see a guy who looks like an older version of Marcus and Kael. Tall, strong, with silver-white hair and those same ice-blue eyes.
"Death is relative, child," Alexander says quietly. "Especially when you have unfinished business."
My wolf vision is getting fuzzy, but I can see the shock on everyone's faces. Marcus looks like he's seen a ghost. Vincent is looking with his mouth open.
Change back, Alexander's voice says in my mind. I'll help you.
But I don't know how to change back. I don't know how to be human again.
Trust me, he says. Remember who you are.
I close my eyes and try to remember. Aria Castellano. Daughter of Vincent. The girl who woke up with no memories. The woman who fell in love with her captor.
The woman who saved a dying werewolf boy in a swamp five years ago.
The shift happens slowly this time, gently. My bones reshape themselves without the terrible pain from before. When I open my eyes again, I'm human and naked, but living.
Kael quickly moves to cover me with his jacket, his eyes full of relief.
"How?" I whisper to Alexander.
"Because you're not just any werewolf, child," Alexander says kindly. "You're royal blood. The last of the true Blackwood line."
Marcus stares at his father. "You're meant to be dead. I buried you myself."
"You buried a body double," Alexander says. "I've been hiding in the deep bayou for fifty years, waiting for the right time to return."
"Waiting for what?" Rosa orders, her magic still crackling around her hands.
"Waiting for her," Alexander says, looking straight at me. "The child who would join the bloodlines. The bridge between human and monster."
Murphy steps forward, his tactical team still circling the room. "Mr. Blackwood, you're under arrest for—"
"For what?" Alexander asks gently. "I haven't committed any crimes. At least, not any that your human rules would recognize."
He turns to Rosa, and his face becomes cold as winter. "Unlike some people in this room."
Rosa's face twists with rage. "You ruined everything! The Luna Pack was going to change the world, work with people, create peace!"
"The Luna Pack was weak," Alexander says bluntly. "They forgot that werewolves are predators, not pets."
"My mother wasn't weak!" Rosa screams. "She was trying to protect people!"
"Your mother was a fool who got her pack killed by trusting the wrong humans," Alexander responds. "Just like you're about to do."
That's when I realize what's been bugging me about this whole situation.
"Rosa," I say quietly. "If you've been planning this for twenty years, how did you know I was a dormant werewolf?"
Rosa's eyes flick to mine, and for a second I see doubt there.
"I did my research," she says.
"But my father didn't know," I continue. "Marcus didn't know until tonight. Even I didn't know. So how did you?"
The room goes very quiet.
"Someone told you," Kael realizes. "Someone who knew the truth about Aria's bloodline."
Rosa's power wavers as she looks around the room desperately.
"Who told you, Rosa?" Vincent asks, his voice deadly cool. "Who's been feeding you information about my daughter?"
"I..." Rosa starts, then stops.
That's when Murphy speaks up. "She didn't figure it out herself. Someone's been helping her. Someone who knew about the royal genes, about the dormant gene, about everything."
Alexander nods grimly. "Someone who wanted to use Aria just as much as Rosa did."
We all look at each other, and I can see the same terrible thought in everyone's eyes.
There's another rogue. Someone who's been playing all parts of this game.
"Rosa," I say softly. "Who's your partner? Who else is involved in this?"
Rosa looks at me with something that might be pity. "Oh, sweet child. You still don't understand, do you?"
She lifts her phone and dials a number. After a few rings, someone picks up.
"It's time," Rosa says into the phone. "Yes, the girl has moved. No, things didn't go exactly as planned, but we can still recover this."
She hangs up and smiles at all of us. "My partner will be here in five minutes. And when they arrive, you're all going to understand just how deep this plot goes."
"Who is it?" Marcus wants.
"Someone who's been with you from the very beginning," Rosa says. "Someone you trust completely. Someone who's been giving me information for years."
The front door opens quietly.
We all turn to see who's walking in.
It's Emma.
But this Emma looks different. Calmer. More controlled. Her eyes are clear and focused instead of wild with rage.
"Hello, everyone," Emma says warmly. "Sorry I'm late. I had to take care of a few lost ends."
She's carrying a big duffel bag, and there's blood on her clothes.
"Emma," Kael breathes. "What have you done?"
"What needed to be done, brother dear," Emma says. She sets down the bag and unzips it.
Inside are three severed heads.
I recognize one of them. It's Detective Murphy's real partner, the one who was meant to be running the sting operation.
"Your backup isn't coming," Emma tells Murphy happily. "I made sure of that."
Murphy goes pale. "You killed my entire team."
"Not your entire team," Emma corrects. "Just the ones who weren't already working for us."
She looks around the room with satisfaction. "You see, Rosa and I have been very busy building our network. We have people everywhere. Police, government, even in your precious magical crimes unit."
Alexander's eyes narrow. "How long have you been planning this?"
"Since the night I died," Emma says simply. "Rosa saved my life, but more importantly, she gave me meaning. She helped me understand that the only way to end the war between our families was to destroy both families totally."
"But you're family," Vincent protests. "You called me Papa for five years."
"And you were a good father," Emma admits. "But you were also the man who ordered the attack that killed my real family. I couldn't let that go unpunished."
She pulls out a remote control device similar to the one Rosa used earlier.
"This building has been rigged with explosives," Emma says calmly. "Enough to level three city blocks. In exactly sixty seconds, everyone in this room will be dead, along with anyone else unfortunate enough to be close."
"You're insane," Kael snarls.
"I'm thorough," Emma corrects, repeating Rosa's words from earlier. "And I'm done playing games."
She presses a button on the remote.
A countdown timer shows on the device's screen.
Fifty-nine seconds.
"Emma, stop!" I beg. "You don't have to do this!"
"Yes, I do," Emma says sadly. "Because if I don't stop this tonight, it will never end. The war will go on forever, and more innocent people will die."
Fifty-five seconds.
"There has to be another way," I say.
Emma looks at me with something that might be love. "There is another way, sister. But it takes a sacrifice that none of you are willing to make."
She holds up a second radio control. "This button will stop the bombs. But only if someone takes my place."
Fifty seconds.
"What do you mean?" Kael asks.
"Someone has to die tonight," Emma says simply. "Someone has to pay the blood price for all the deaths our families have caused. If one of you offers to die in place of everyone else, I'll disarm the bombs."
Forty-five seconds.
The room erupts into confusion as everyone starts talking at once. But I can barely hear them.
Because I'm looking at Emma, and I finally understand what she's really asking for.
She's asking for me to help.
She's asking me to die to save everyone I love.
And I know I'm going to say yes.