subtle

subtle
The pack gathered in a wide circle around us, their eyes burning with suspicion, hostility rolling off their bodies like waves. I felt the weight of their stares pressing down on me, heavy and suffocating.
“She’s lying,” one of the wolves spat, his teeth bared. “Samantha died years ago!! along with her kid. We buried them! Whoever this is—she’s an imposter.”
Another voice rose, louder, trembling with anger. “She must have killed him. She killed our Alpha!”
Their words struck harder than claws. My heart twisted in my chest, every beat echoing the disbelief and hatred surrounding me. I wanted to scream, to tell them it wasn’t true, but my throat tightened until no sound could escape.
“I am Advika, well you probably knew me as Lola” I forced out finally, my voice shaking. “Samantha was my mother. Eric was—” My breath caught. “He was my stepfather.” i said it again, as though saying it twice was going to change their minds
The growls deepened. They shook their heads in unison, eyes flashing with rage. “Lies,” someone barked. “You expect us to believe that? Eric died because of you. You brought him here. You—”
I couldn’t listen anymore. The accusations pierced deeper than any blade. Guilt wrapped itself around my chest, pulling tighter and tighter until I thought I might choke. They were wrong about me killing him, but in a cruel way, they were right about something else.
If I hadn’t begged him to stay in the castle with me, he would still be alive. If he had gone back to his pack last night, if I hadn’t needed him so selfishly—he wouldn’t have been there, lifeless in my arms this morning.
The realization hit me like a storm. My legs trembled, my vision blurred. I wanted to deny it, to push the blame back at them, at fate, at anyone but myself. But I couldn’t.
Eric was dead because I wanted him close. Because I couldn’t let him go.
And now, staring at their snarling faces, I knew there was no convincing them otherwise. To them, I wasn’t a daughter, or a stepdaughter. I was a stranger. A fraud. A curse.
I lowered my gaze, biting back the tears that threatened to fall. I had lost him, and now I was about to lose everything else too.
Then Aiden stepped forward.
He didn’t growl. He didn’t bare his teeth. He just moved, calmly, slowly, until he stood between me and them.
“Enough,” he said, his voice low, but sharp enough to slice through their noise. “You will not lay a hand on her.”
“She’s the reason he’s gone!” someone shouted from the crowd.
“No,” Aiden snapped, turning to face them fully. “He made a choice. He stayed because he wanted to protect her. Because she was his family. Whether you believe it or not, she is Samantha’s daughter. Eric’s stepdaughter. And I was there. I saw the way he looked at her. He would have died for her—and he did.”
The words made my throat ache. I wanted to beg Aiden to stop, because hearing it said aloud was too much. But I couldn’t speak.
“She’s grieving too,” he went on, and now there was something rougher in his tone. “You think she’s your enemy? She’s a girl who just lost the only father she’s ever known.”
There was a silence, thick and suffocating, as if the entire pack was holding its breath. No one moved. No one spoke.
Behind Aiden, I stood frozen, every word he said echoing in my mind, making the guilt coil tighter around me.
He was defending me. And I didn’t deserve it.
I had taken Eric’s presence for granted, thinking there would always be another day. Another morning. Another moment. I never imagined the last time he’d looked at me would be the last.
Aiden’s hand brushed mine, just barely. A small reminder that I wasn’t alone. That maybe—just maybe—I could still stand.
But even as he stood in front of me like a shield, I felt myself collapsing on the inside. Because I couldn’t shake the truth.
He died because I needed him close.
And no matter what Aiden said, or how fiercely he defended me, I wasn’t sure the pack would ever forgive me.
Worse—I wasn’t sure I’d ever forgive myself.
The pack’s accusations still rang in my ears long after they quieted, but it wasn’t their words that haunted me most—it was Aiden’s voice. The way he stood in front of me, unwavering, ready to take on an entire pack if it meant keeping me safe. His hand brushing mine had been such a small gesture, but it lingered in my skin like fire.
And that was the problem.
Eric had stayed close because of me. He had chosen me when he should have gone back to them. And now, he was gone. The guilt clung to me like chains, dragging me deeper with every breath. If Aiden kept standing by me, if he kept putting himself between me and danger, I knew exactly how this story would end.
He would end up like Eric.’ i thought, looking at the back of my head from where i stood
The thought sank into me slowly at first, then with the weight of a thousand stones. I couldn’t bear the idea of watching someone else fall because of me. Not again.
When Aiden glanced back at me, his eyes steady and fierce, I felt my chest tighten. He trusted me. He believed in me. And it hurt more than any of their accusations, because I knew what I had to do.
I had to let him go.
Not later. Not after the pack cooled their anger. Not after the grief dulled its edge. Now. Before I clung to him the way I had clung to Eric, before I let myself believe he could stay without consequences.
I reached out my hands, looking at him and squeezing his hands.
He looked at me, squeezing back, not knowing this was my very subtle way of saying goodbye…