Chapter 2: Belonging to Someone Else

The question slipped out before Azerbel could stop it.

"Who is she?"

Her voice trembled.

Not because she didn't want the answer.

But because a part of her was suddenly terrified of hearing it.

Luna Lorraine's hand tightened around hers.

And somehow...

that made everything worse.

The grip was gentle.

Warm.

Steady.

Like Lorraine was trying to keep her from falling apart.

Azerbel slowly looked at her.

Luna Lorraine gave her a small smile.

Soft.

Sad.

The kind of smile that didn't comfort.

The kind that said...

I know something you don't.

A chill ran down Azerbel's spine.

"Let's go back to the pack house first," Lorraine said quietly.

"We'll talk later. Guerero must be tired."

Her voice was as warm as ever.

Usually, hearing it would calm Azerbel.

Usually.

But not today.

Not anymore.

Azerbel nodded anyway.

What else could she do?

Her chest felt heavier with every breath.

As if the air around her had changed.

As if something invisible was pressing down on her.

She turned and followed Luna Lorraine.

One step.

Then another.

But every step felt wrong.

Like she was walking away from something important.

Something she should understand.

Yet didn't.

Before entering the pack grounds, Azerbel stopped.

Just for a moment.

Then she looked back.

Guerero was still standing where she left him.

His head was lowered.

His shoulders stiff.

His face...

filled with shame.

Azerbel frowned.

That wasn't the expression she expected.

Not after coming home.

Not after surviving the war.

In front of him stood Alpha Dave.

His expression was cold.

Sharp.

Angry.

The pride Azerbel saw earlier had completely disappeared.

Now there was only disappointment.

No.

It was more than that.

It looked like betrayal.

Azerbel's heart skipped a beat.

"What is going on...?" she whispered.

None of this made sense.

Why was Guerero holding another woman's hand?

Why wouldn't he look at her?

Why did Luna Lorraine look sad?

Why was Alpha Dave angry?

And why...

why did it feel like something precious had just slipped through her fingers?

"Mother..."

Azerbel glanced at Lorraine again.

"Who is that woman?"

Her voice was quieter this time.

Smaller.

Almost pleading.

But Luna Lorraine didn't answer.

She only squeezed Azerbel's hand tighter and gently guided her forward.

Back toward the pack house.

The warriors behind them slowly dispersed.

Some families cried with relief.

Others laughed.

Children ran into their parents' arms.

Tonight was supposed to be a celebration.

A welcome home for the warriors who survived.

Tomorrow...

there would be a funeral.

A day to mourn the ones who never returned.

Azerbel lowered her eyes.

A strange ache spread through her chest.

Because somehow...

standing in the middle of everyone's happiness...

she felt like she had lost something too.

"We will talk about this later," Luna Lorraine said again.

But this time...

her voice sounded heavier.

Like she was carrying a burden she didn't know how to share.

Azerbel looked up at her.

Really looked.

And for the first time that day...

she noticed something she had missed before.

Luna Lorraine wasn't just sad.

She was worried.

Terrified, even.

Azerbel's steps slowed.

Because suddenly...

she wasn't afraid of who the red-haired woman was.

Azerbel was afraid of what Luna Lorraine was trying so hard not to say.

And that fear only grew as the night went on.

She couldn't sit still.

Not anymore.

The celebration continued around her.

Music filled the pack house.

People laughed.

Warriors told stories from the battlefield.

Families reunited after months apart.

It should have been a happy night.

A night she had dreamed about for an entire year.

But to Azerbel...

everything felt distant.

Muted.

Like she was standing behind a wall no one else could see.

Her eyes kept searching the room.

Searching for him.

Guerero.

Every time she found him...

he was walking away.

Or speaking to another warrior.

Or standing beside that woman.

Avoiding her.

Again.

And again.

And again.

As if she was someone he didn't want near him.

As if her presence made him uncomfortable.

The thought hurt more than she wanted to admit.

Azerbel lowered her eyes and tightened her grip on her dress.

She tried to talk to him.

More than once.

The first time, he excused himself.

The second time, someone called his name before she could speak.

The third time...

he simply walked away.

Like he hadn't seen her standing there.

Like he hadn't heard her softly call his name.

The pain became sharper each time.

She wanted answers.

She wanted to ask him why.

Why was he acting this way?

Why wouldn't he look at her?

Why did he act like the bond between them meant nothing?

But Guerero gave her nothing.

Not a hug.

Not a smile.

Not even a proper greeting.

The reunion she had imagined for months...

never happened.

It disappeared before it even began.

And the worst part?

She never got the chance to tell him how grateful she was.

How every night she prayed for his safety.

How relieved she was that he came home alive.

Azerbel swallowed the lump in her throat.

Not here.

She wouldn't cry here.

Not in front of the pack.

She straightened her back.

Lifted her chin.

Pretended everything was fine.

Even though every smile she forced felt painful.

Even though something inside her was slowly breaking apart.

And then there was the woman.

The beautiful woman with red hair.

She was still here.

Still by Guerero's side.

Still staying in his room.

Azerbel didn't understand.

Why was she here?

Why hadn't she left?

Who was she to Guerero?

The questions circled endlessly inside her mind.

One after another.

Sharp.

Relentless.

Burning.

She tried asking Luna Lorraine.

"We'll talk later."

She asked Alpha Dave.

"Not now."

Even the warriors avoided her eyes.

Everyone gave her the same answer.

Later.

After the party.

Tomorrow.

But tomorrow never came.

Not really.

Because with every passing hour, the uneasy feeling inside Azerbel only grew stronger.

Heavier.

Sharper.

Like her heart already knew the truth...

and was desperately trying to protect her from it.

Then she noticed something else.

The warriors.

Whenever they looked at her...

their expressions changed.

Some quickly looked away.

Others lowered their heads.

A few gave her small, sad smiles.

Pity.

Azerbel froze.

That was what she saw in their eyes.

Pity.

Her stomach twisted.

Because pity only came when someone knew bad news.

And everyone here...

seemed to know something she didn't.

Azerbel suddenly felt cold.

The music became louder.

The laughter harsher.

The room smaller.

Time slowed.

Every second stretched painfully.

Every glance felt heavier.

Until finally...

one of the guards approached Luna Lorraine.

The Luna nodded slowly.

Then she looked at Azerbel.

Her eyes were gentle.

But tired.

"It's time," she said quietly.

Azerbel's heart skipped a beat.

The Alpha's study.

That was where they were going.

That was where the answers were waiting.

And somehow...

that terrified Azerbel more than not knowing.

The Alpha's study felt too quiet.

Too small.

Too closed.

The walls seemed to press closer with every breath she took.

Azerbel sat beside Luna Lorraine and held her hand tightly.

Too tightly.

Her fingers were starting to ache.

But she couldn't let go.

It was the only thing keeping her grounded.

Tears blurred her vision.

She blinked them away.

Then more came.

At this point, she didn't even know why she was crying anymore.

Was it anger?

Pain?

Fear?

Or all of them at once?

She couldn't tell.

The silence was suffocating.

It wrapped around her chest.

Pressed against her ribs.

Made it hard to breathe.

Finally, she couldn't bear it anymore.

"What is happening?" Azerbel asked.

Her voice shook.

She hated that it did.

"What do you know that I don't?"

Her throat burned.

She swallowed hard.

Forced herself to ask the question she had been avoiding.

"Who is that woman?"

The words hung in the room.

Heavy.

Painful.

No one answered.

Luna Lorraine lowered her eyes.

Alpha Dave looked away.

No one moved.

The silence only grew thicker.

Like the truth was standing in the middle of the room, waiting.

Waiting for someone brave enough to say it.

"Let's wait for Guerero," Alpha Dave finally said.

His voice was calm.

Too calm.

"He will explain everything."

But his words brought Azerbel no comfort.

Because deep inside...

she already knew.

Whatever Guerero was about to say...

it would change everything.

The certainty settled in her chest like ice.

Nothing eased the pressure inside her.

She wanted to ask more.

Needed to.

But Alpha Dave was still the Alpha.

And Luna Lorraine looked like she was barely holding herself together.

So Azerbel stayed quiet.

And waited.

The silence in the room became unbearable.

Every tick of the clock sounded louder.

Every breath felt heavier.

Time dragged.

Minutes felt like hours.

Until finally...

the door opened.

Azerbel's heart jumped.

Guerero walked in.

And she was with him.

Ruby.

They entered side by side.

Close.

Far too close.

Azerbel felt something twist painfully inside her.

The air shifted.

Cold.

Heavy.

Wrong.

For one terrifying moment...

fear rushed through her.

A sharp, instinctive fear.

Like standing at the edge of a cliff and realizing the ground beneath her feet wasn't stable.

But she pushed the feeling away.

No.

This was Guerero.

Her mate.

The man who wrote to her for a year.

The man who promised he would come home.

He wouldn't hurt her.

He couldn't.

There had to be a reason.

A misunderstanding.

Something she didn't know yet.

There had to be.

Guerero walked toward the chairs.

Azerbel unconsciously straightened.

Her heart pounded.

He would sit beside her.

Of course he would.

He always would.

Except...

he didn't.

Guerero sat beside Ruby.

Not beside Azerbel.

Not even close.

He left an empty space between them that somehow hurt more than any wound.

Azerbel stared at him.

Waiting.

Begging silently.

Just look at me.

Please.

But Guerero never raised his eyes.

Not once.

Azerbel's heart dropped.

Hard.

This was the same man who faced death without fear.

The same man who led warriors into battle.

The same man who returned home carrying scars he refused to talk about.

But now...

he couldn't even look at her?

Why?

Why was looking at her harder than facing war?

"Mother... Father..."

Guerero's voice cracked.

The sound shocked everyone.

He cleared his throat.

His hands were clasped tightly together.

Too tightly.

Like he was trying to hold himself together.

For the first time that night...

Azerbel saw it.

Not guilt.

Not shame.

Fear.

Guerero was afraid.

And somehow...

that terrified Azerbel even more.

Because whatever he was about to say...

the strongest warrior in Hellfire Pack looked like it was going to destroy him too.