My fingers tighten around the phone 58

Aria’s POV
Marcus crashed through the boutique doors with such force that the bell nearly tore from its mounting at this time. His
voice exploded through the space like a thunderclap, making the other customers instinctively cower.
“Lucas!” His voice cracked with a vulnerability I’d never heard from my father before. He dropped to his knees, arms
trembling as he pulled my son into a desperate embrace. “Thank the Moon Goddess you’re safe.” The mighty Silver Moon alpha was shaking, actual tears gleaming in his eyes as he pressed his face into Lucas’s hair.
But then I saw her.
Bella sashayed in behind him, dabbing at her perfectly made-up eyes with a silk handkerchief. Her heels clicked against
the floor like tiny gunshots as she approached, lips quivering in a masterful display of contrition.
“Oh, Lucas, sweetie!” She reached for him with manicured fingers. “Your auntie was so worried—”
Something snapped inside me. Six years of suppressed rage, of swallowing my pride, of watching this viper play the
perfect daughter – it all erupted in a single moment.
“Don’t you dare touch him!” I lunged forward, my palm connecting with her cheek with such force that her head snapped
to the side. The crack of the slap echoed through the suddenly silent boutique like a thunderclap.
“You lying bitch,” I snarled, my voice dropping to a dangerous whisper that made several nearby wolves whimper. “You
deliberately left my six-year-old son alone in a crowd. What kind of monster does that to a child?”
The red handprint blooming on her pale cheek was the most satisfying thing I’d seen in years.
“You did this on purpose, didn’t you?” My voice came out in a low, dangerous growl that would have done my wolf growl
too, if she were still with me.
“Aria!” Aurora’s shrill cry pierced the air as she rushed to shield Bella. “How dare you strike your own sister!”
A bitter laugh escaped my throat. “Sister?” The word tasted like poison on my tongue. “You call someone who
deliberately abandoned my child in a crowd my sister? A snake who endangered a pack child deserves that title?”
“That’s enough!” Marcus’s roar made the boutique’s windows rattle in their frames. The glasses on nearby shelves clinked
ominously as his alpha power filled the space. “This is my fault. I should never have trusted…” He ran a hand over his face,
suddenly looking every one of his years. “I can’t watch my daughters tear each other apart like this.”
“Daughters?” I spat the word like a curse, gathering Lucas into my arms. His small body trembled slightly against mine,
and the feeling of him – safe, whole, alive – only fueled my rage. “Come on, baby. We’re going home.”
Behind me, Bella’s theatrical sobs reached a crescendo. “Daddy, please,” she whimpered, clinging to Aurora. “I only wanted to help… Lucas was just so energetic, he ran off before I could…” Her voice cracked perfectly on the last word, a
performance worthy of the silver screen.
“I was scared, Mommy,” Lucas whispered against my neck, his words meant only for me. The tremor in his voice made my
heart clench. “Aunt Bella just… let go. She didn’t even look back when I called for her.”
Ethan’s presence at my back was like a solid wall of strength, his alpha energy crackling with barely contained fury. “Let me drive you home,” he said, his voice brooking no argument. The protective edge in his tone made several nearby wolves take instinctive steps backward.
He insisted on stopping at a pharmacy, selecting healing salves with careful precision. The domesticity of the moment –
him choosing medical supplies while I held Lucas – created an odd ache in my chest.
Back at my apartment, Lucas clung to me on the couch, his small fingers twisted in my shirt like he used to do as a
toddler. “I’m sorry, Mom,” he mumbled, fighting sleep. “I didn’t mean to make everyone worry.”
“None of this was your fault, sweetheart.” I stroked his dark hair, so like mine, while my mind raced through contingency
plans. Bella wouldn’t stop here – this had been a calculated move, and she’d try again. I’d have to be smarter, more
vigilant.
It didn’t take long for Lucas to drift off, the excitement and fear of the day taking their toll. I watched his peaceful face,
memorizing every detail as if he might vanish again at any moment. The steady rise and fall of his chest beneath my hand
was the only thing keeping me anchored.
When I finally looked up, I caught Ethan studying Lucas with an intensity that made my breath catch. There was
something in his gaze – a mix of wonder and possessiveness, confusion and recognition – that sent my heart racing for
reasons I refused to examine.
“What are you thinking?” The words slipped out before I could stop them.
His forest-green eyes met mine, filled with questions he seemed afraid to ask.
“Nothing,” he said finally, but his gaze lingered on Lucas’s sleeping form. “You should both get some rest. I’ll have extra
patrols around your building tonight.”