I barely managed to push the door shut behind me before my knees trembled and I dropped on the floor. The room was quiet, too quiet, and for a moment, all I could hear was the pounding of my heart in my ears. I pressed my back against the door, closing my eyes and trying to steady my breathing.
Dominic’s presence had a way of ripping scars and opening old wounds, making everything feel raw again. But I could not let that get to me. I had to stay focused, to keep my head on straight for Devon and Diana.
My phone buzzed in my pocket, yanking me out of my thoughts. I pulled it out, and my breath caught when I saw the caller ID: Annie - Home.
Panic twisted in my chest as I quickly answered. “Annie? Is everything okay?” I tried to keep my voice steady, pushing my worries away, but my nerves were on edge.
“Samantha,” Annie, the human nanny I had trusted to care for my twins, spoke in a soft tone. “Sorry to bother you, but the twins called you earlier, yeah? I noticed this on the call log. Everything is fine here. Maybe it was just a quick dial I guess. Well, they had been asking for you. But they are asleep now, when will you return?.”
Guilt knifed through me as I think of the kids back home. “Maybe tomorrow? Or the next day. I am not quite sure yet. We are pretty busy here. But... is everything okay there? I mean the kids calling me instantly, I was worried that something might be wrong.” I said. I should have been there, not across the country dealing with pack politics and a past that refused to let me go.
Annie was quiet for a moment and I waited. I could hear the uneasiness and confusion in her voice.
“Actually... there is one more thing,” she said. “I found... well, it is probably nothing, but I found some silver hair in the living room. At first, I thought maybe an animal got in, but the doors and windows were locked. It’s odd, don’t you think?”
My stomach dropped. Silver hair. The only explanation was Devon and Diana. They must have inherited the hair of Dominic’s wolf— the rare silver hue, a mark of the Silver Crescent Pack’s bloodline. I clenched the phone tightly, trying to calm the sudden rush of fear. If Annie suspected anything, if she connected the dots... she was a human and she might panic and report to human authorities about this, or worse, she might do something to the kids if she gets scared.
However, there was one more thing that I dreaded— the twins carrying a very distinctive feature from the Silver Crescent’s bloodline— from Dominic. If he sees their wolves, he would recognize them as his.
“It’s probably from their toys,” I lied smoothly, praying she would not question it. “The kids were probably playing with their stuffed toys. You know how they are, always making a mess.” I chuckled, masking the nervousness that drummed in my chest.
Annie let out a relieved laugh. “Oh, of course! That makes sense. I must have imagined the whole animal thing. I just did not want to take any chances.”
“Thank you for being so careful,” I said, forcing my voice to stay light. “I will be back as soon as I can. Please let me know if anything else comes up.”
“Will do,” she replied, and I could almost hear her smile. “Take care, Samantha.”
I ended the call and sank onto the edge of the bed, running a hand through my hair. I hated lying to Annie, but there was no other way. The truth about the twins’ and their heritage had to stay hidden. If anyone from Dominic’s pack discovered them... I could not let myself think about that. I had fought too hard to protect them, to keep them safe from a world that would not understand.
A knock sounded at the door, breaking through my spiraling thoughts. I jumped to my feet and approached cautiously.
“Who is it?” I called.
“It’s me,” Killian’s familiar voice answered. Relief washed over me, but it was short lived. Killian being here meant something had happened, and in my experience, it was never good news.
I opened the door to find him standing there in a casual suit with his usual composed expression, but there was a seriousness in them that I had only seen whenever there was something urgent.
“Samantha, I know you initially told me you would not be attending, and I understood that,” he began. “But something has happened. We have received a report about an unusual rogue, and they have brought it in.”
I paused, my hands still on the jacket I had just worn.
“A rogue?” My brows knitted together. “What do you mean, unusual?” Rogues were always dangerous, driven by primal needs and a lack of resources to sustain life so they had to force their chances to obtain whatever they could have. They were filled with greed and thirst for blood. But it was their way of living lawlessly that put them in such a situation which turned them into a... monster.
Killian took a step inside, closing the door partway behind him. “We can’t understand what’s wrong, but it was acting unusual,” he explained.
“It’s acting erratic, and there are signs that it’s... not like anything we have encountered before. This could affect the pack alliances, and tensions are already high and this rogue might increase the doubts and wariness against each pack. This is threatening the trust that we are here to strengthen for everyone. Your knowledge about rogues could be useful in this. You need to see it for yourself.”
I hesitated. I had done extensive research on rogues, memorizing everything I could when I was still being trained as Luna by Dominic’s mother, Lena. Because even back then, I had wanted to prove myself useful, to be prepared for anything. But facing a room full of Alphas— and Dominic— was not something I wanted to do right now.
Killian’s voice softened. “Please. Your insight might make a difference. If doubts arise about the security of our alliances, it would threaten the packs’ treaty.”
I took a deep breath and sighed. As much as I wanted to avoid this meeting, my instincts told me I could not.
“All right,” I agreed, “Just give me a moment.”