Chapter 150 150
Venessa’s POV
I dropped to my knees first, slipping my hands behind my back and silently urging my mother to do the same. She hesitated only a second before following my lead.
Burning silver snapped shut around our wrists.
The pain was instant sharp, sizzling, alive. A sound escaped my lips despite my effort to stay silent. In that moment, Nyla’s words echoed in my mind. This is real. Because there was no way no possible way I could remember the exact sting of silver so vividly. The heat. The crackle. The way it sank into flesh.
Confusion washed over me.
“Take me to Alpha Shaw,” I demanded, my voice steady, firm, commanding.
My mother stared at me in shock. I was no longer the timid daughter who spoke only when permitted. Whatever I had become, it startled her.
The men holding us exchanged uneasy looks.
“Who are you?” one of them barked, striking my back.
I didn’t flinch. I didn’t take offense. He was doing his duty.
“I am nobody,” I said coolly, “but I want to see Alpha Shaw.”
They ordered us to our feet. Still chained, we were dragged through the Blood Moon pack territory and forced to kneel at the entrance of the pack house.
It was just like before.
Except this time, my mother was beside me.
“Where is she? Where is she!”
Denzel’s voice tore through the air.
He was already rushing outside.
My breath caught. My chest tightened. I needed to see him to touch him if only once more. Even if he didn’t remember me. Even if he rejected the bond that tied us together. Just seeing him again was enough to make my heart pound wildly against my ribs.
“Venessa, what have you dragged us into?” my mother whispered, panic edging her voice. “That man sounds dangerous.”
I stayed calm. I waited.
Jalisa should have been there. Tyrell too. But they weren’t.
That was new.
That was wrong.
And suddenly, I knew this wasn’t a memory.
Denzel burst from the pack house, his eyes red and swollen. The moment they landed on me, something shifted. Those eyes screamed recognition. They screamed remembrance.
Relief flooded his face, washing away the pain and fear he had carried when he came running out.
“Mate!” he declared.
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
“Venessa,” he said softly.
My heart nearly stopped.
He crossed the distance in seconds, lifted me to my feet, and crushed his lips against mine. The kiss was fierce, desperate, overflowing with longing and joy.
“My darling Venessa,” he murmured against my mouth.
I was stunned. Overwhelmed. And impossibly grateful.
Never—never had I imagined that all my suffering, my sacrifices, would lead to this.
Someone unlocked my chains.
Denzel pulled back just long enough to cup my face, his eyes searching mine.
“She gave you back to me,” he said, voice breaking. “She brought us all back. She fixed everything. Moon Mother made it right.”
Understanding dawned.
“Order has been restored,” Nyla said warmly. “Being sent back to a time when we could save our mother that was Atabey’s final gift.”
My heart swelled until it ached.
I didn’t question it. I didn’t analyze it. I simply lived in the moment.
My mother’s chains were removed, and she rose slowly, confusion clouding her expression.
“What is happening?” she asked.
Before I could answer
“Venessa! Venessa!”
Tyrell and Jalisa’s voices rang out.
The crowd stared in stunned awe as Jalisa rushed forward, wrapped her arms around me, and kissed my cheek.
“You did it,” she sobbed. “We won.”
She pulled back, tears streaming freely.
“Don’t worry,” she said, smiling through them. “Denzel and I will divorce. You’ll take your rightful place.”
I turned to Tyrell. He smiled warmly.
“Thank you, Luna,” he said with deep respect.
Murmurs spread through the pack. I realized then not everyone remembered. Only those who had led the battle carried the truth forward.
My mother and I were guided into the pack house.
Rayon and Devon approached.
“Venessa,” Rayon breathed.
I ran into his arms, holding him tightly. He had been my friend to the very end. I remembered watching him fall in battle, remembered the grief that had nearly destroyed me.
“Oh, Rayon,” I cried, squeezing him harder. “I’m so glad she spared you too.”
He laughed softly and pulled back.
It was really him. Alive. Whole.
After what Tremaine had done… I hadn’t believed this was possible.
“Tremaine…” I whispered.
“And yet here I am,” he said with a grin. “Thank you for winning the war.”
I nodded, emotions clogging my throat.
Devon stepped forward and saluted me.
“My Luna.”
I smiled and pulled him into a hug.
As we walked deeper into the pack house, understanding settled within me. Only the leaders remembered. And that made me happy because I knew my father would remember too.
“King Fabian?” I asked.
Denzel smiled. “On his throne, no doubt. I’ll send for him soon.”
“Keon?” I pressed.
“He remembers too, my love,” Denzel said. “I’ll reach out.”
“What is going on?” my mother asked again, her confusion deepening.
I turned to her and smiled.
“Momma, this is my mate Alpha Denzel Shaw.”
She gasped.
“How did you know?” she demanded. “Have you met before?”
That was a truth I couldn’t explain not yet. I would leave that to my father.
“I can’t explain right now,” I said gently. “You need to rest.”
She shook her head. “I’m in exile.”
Denzel laughed.
“Nonsense,” he said. “You’re a free woman.”
She scoffed. “Tell that to the Lycans hunting me.”
We all laughed.
As grim as her words sounded, we knew better now. We knew how this story ended.
My mother was shown to her room.
And Denzel and I went to his.