Chapter 433 Father She Never Knew

Chapter 433 Father She Never Knew
Iris was perfect.

Holding her felt like holding Zenep all over again.

She had a full head of hair, bright lime-green eyes, and a tiny little body that refused to uncurl.

Valduz and Ansley had convinced Hope Elara to spend the weekend at Valduz's main house before the baby arrived.

Instead...

Iris decided this was where she wanted to be born.

Like everything Arvin Valduz built, the house was breathtaking.

He once said he didn't want an old mansion.

He wasn't born into old money.

He wanted something completely new.

Something that showed both the blood on his hands and everything he had sacrificed to build.

The house was open and bright.

It looked as if it had come straight from a luxury magazine.

But it still felt like him.

Modern artwork.

Comfortable but unusual furniture.

And giant family portraits covering the walls.

Including several of him surrounded by his growing army of children.

Something felt wrong.

Hope Elara could feel the bundle in her arms.

She could see it too.

But she knew it wasn't Iris.

Iris was already eight days old.

The blanket she held was the one Iris had been wrapped in after birth.

After it had been washed, Hope Elara packed it away with the blankets the twins had been born in.

She was beginning to recognize the dream.

She had dreamed the same thing every night for the last four days.

Nothing ever happened.

She and Derek had realized that nothing would change unless she chose to open the door herself.

She continued rocking in the chair, holding the bundle she knew wasn't her baby.

The worst part came after she woke up.

It always felt as if she had never slept at all.

Everyone was worried about her.

This time...

She decided to find out what waited beyond the dream.

She stood and gently placed the bundle into the bassinet.

For some reason, she looked down at her clothes.

Maybe it was habit.

She always did that before leaving a room.

She was wearing the same dress she had arrived in the day before Iris was born.

Only now, her stomach was flat.

The dress hung loosely around her.

She brushed a hand across the empty fabric before walking toward the door.

She expected to find the woman who called herself her mother.

Or maybe that strange room where she had summoned Derek and Hope Elara before.

Instead...

She stepped onto the back porch of the beach house.

The ocean stretched out before her.

Not far away stood the gazebo that overlooked the shore.

The waves rolled quietly beneath the moonlight.

Hope Elara glanced back at the bundle in the bassinet.

Then, with a heavy heart, she closed the door behind her and walked toward the gazebo.

A man and a woman were talking.

As she approached, both turned to face her.

She recognized the woman immediately.

The man...

She had never seen before.

But somehow...

She knew.

No one had to tell her who he was.

Those dark, playful eyes were impossible to mistake.

Perry had inherited them.

Even his silver hair looked just like hers.

“You're stubborn,” he said with a smile.

“I've heard that's a Nelson family trait,” Hope Elara replied with a nod.

“Unfortunately,” he said with a chuckle.

“How are you here?” she asked, glancing at the woman beside him.

“I'm a Lycan,” he answered. “My gift lets me borrow another person's power through skin-to-skin contact.”

“That's creepy.”

Hope Elara grimaced as she looked back and forth between them.

Both of them laughed.

“You jump to conclusions,” he said.

“I have five full-blooded siblings and two mates,” she replied. “Of course I do.”

“Fair enough.”

He nodded.

“You're not here just to introduce yourself, are you?”

“No.”

His smile faded.

“I've never needed an introduction.”

“I've also heard we have something else in common.”

“What?”

“We both prefer getting straight to the point.”

“You heard right.”

The smile disappeared from his face.

He let out a slow, heavy sigh.

Then he looked out at the dark ocean.

“I thought you were dead,” he said quietly.

“I died looking for you.

“At the very least, I wanted to find your body and bring you home.

“Your mother isn't very maternal.

“But I love being a father.”

“From what I've heard,” Hope Elara replied, “you weren't very good at it.”

He gave a small smile.

“You were raised by people who lost touch with their instincts.

“They could never understand the strength of a female leader.

“You were taught to be happy living beneath a man.

“To cook.

“To clean.

“To have children.

“To raise a family.”

“Wolves aren't all the same,” Hope Elara said. “The laws keeping women from becoming heirs or ranked leaders come from traditionalists.”

“The world is much bigger than the Kings,” he replied.

“Much more complicated than you realize.

“Your mate and your sister forced their way into a world that pulled the rest of us along with it.

“What they've done has never happened before.

“They say the second-born child always tries to please everyone.

“And your sister has achieved far more than I ever expected.”

He paused.

“But none of that was ever meant for her.

“She wasn't the one who inherited the Silverback.

“You were.”

“I gave up being Alpha,” Hope Elara said, shaking her head.

“No, baby.”

He looked at her gently.

“I'm not talking about the packs.

“Ansley Valduz can keep that title.

“I'm talking about something much bigger.”

“The sectors?”

“Exactly.”

He turned to face her.

“I don't really know anything about them,” Hope Elara admitted.

“And honestly...

“I don't want to.”

“Your sector was ruled by an Alpha Wraith.

“One of the rarest shifters ever known.

“Perry killed him and took his power.

“That's what kept her alive long enough to complete her transition.

“I did the same thing.”

Without warning, he stepped forward.

In an instant, he was standing right in front of her.

Hope Elara instinctively stepped back.

“Midnight is a very unusual wolf.”

“I know.”

“Good.”

He smiled.

“She belonged to me before she was passed on to you.

“Did you know that?”

“No.

“We're still getting to know each other.”

“She likes games.

“She tests the people she chooses.

“The fact that she's only come out twice tells me she trusts you.

“You've done well, Hope Elara.”

He smiled again.

“Let me tell you where she came from.”

“I think that's Midnight's story to tell,” Hope Elara replied.

He chuckled.

“Midnight is the daughter of Selene, the Moon Goddess.

“She is a deity who was cursed to remain mortal until she earns forgiveness.”

Hope Elara frowned.

“You're unbelievable.”

“I am.”

He nodded without denying it.

“What did you want with a child who could inherit that kind of power?”

He glanced at her mother before looking back at Hope Elara.

“Isn't it obvious, baby girl?

“We wanted to destroy F.A.T.E.”

He walked over and sat in the place where Valduz usually sat beside her.

After a brief hesitation, Hope Elara sat beside him.

“We didn't become who we are because we wanted to.”

He rolled up his black sleeve.

A barcode was tattooed on his wrist.

“This was the King's mark.

“They claimed it was only for identification.

“But it meant much more than that.

“I didn't choose to become an assassin.

“I was forced into it.

“Just like you and your siblings, I was born with a talent for killing.

“The problem was...

“Every person I killed made me stronger.”

He looked down at the barcode.

“Kings and Alphas hate that.

“It's in their nature to always be the strongest.

“This barcode made sure the slave never became stronger than the master.

“Ask your father-in-law.

“He hides his under a four-million-dollar watch.”

“I still don't understand what any of this has to do with me.”

“One day,” he said quietly, “you and Perry will fight for control of the sector.

“Your mating bond isn't complete yet.

“But once it is...

“You and your mates will become stronger than the False King and the Wolf Bait.”

Hope Elara shook her head.

“I could never fight Perry.

“She’s my little sister.”

“I know.”

His voice stayed calm.

“That's why I'm telling you now.

“What you do with that knowledge...

“Is your choice.”

“That’s it?” Hope Elara asked quietly.

“That’s all you wanted to tell me?”

He turned to face her.

There were tears in his eyes.

Slowly, he reached out.

Hope Elara flinched the moment she felt the warmth of his hand.

Eliza quietly sat beside her and gently took her other hand.

“I’m sorry, Firefly.”

The nickname caught Hope Elara off guard.

She had heard it before.

“I’m sorry I never came back for you.

“I’m sorry for everything those cats did to you.

“I’m sorry for how lost you’ve been your whole life.”

A broken laugh escaped him.

The sound made Hope Elara's chest ache.

“I’m here.”

He looked around at the beach.

“In your favorite place.

“And I still can’t believe you’re real.”

His voice cracked.

“It was always supposed to be you.

“Everyone else...

“They were only my attempt to replace what we lost.”

He swallowed hard.

“I want you to know something.”

His eyes never left hers.

“I never stopped thinking about you.

“And now that I know you’re alive...

“That you’re safe...

“I never will.”