Chapter Three

As Diego Rivas walked through the compound in the morning, the air was thick with tension and his steps were heavy with determination. He couldn't stop thinking about what Lucia Torres had said to him, her accusations and promises, which made him feel uneasy. He needed to find Mariana. He had to fix what he had broken; he couldn't let it all go.

A quiet voice calling his name broke into his thoughts. He turned to see Xavier Navarro, his trusted friend, walking toward him with a blank look on his face.

Xavier said in a serious tone, "Diego, we need to talk."

Diego squinted his eyes because he thought something was wrong. "What is it?"

"Mariana's gone," Xavier said, sounding frustrated. "She's been hiding, and I have a strong feeling that Raquel Cordero knows where she is."

Diego's heart raced. Mariana only trusted a few people, and Raquel was one of them. Why hadn't she told him where she was? "Do you think Raquel is hiding something from me?" Diego asked, his voice tense.

Xavier took a moment to think. "I don't know." But the way she acts is a little strange. "She has been acting like she is hiding something."

Diego's thoughts were racing. Raquel had always been loyal, but if she was hiding Mariana's whereabouts, why? Was it to keep her safe from him? Diego's gut told him something was wrong, even though the questions kept coming. He couldn't afford to doubt his friends now, not when everything was at stake.

"Where is she?" Diego yelled, his eyes flashing with urgency.

Xavier shook his head. "I don't know for sure, but I can try to find out." It will be harder to find her the longer we wait.

Diego didn't need to hear it again. He turned around and was ready to leave, but then he stopped. "Keep an eye on Raquel. "Let me know if you find anything."

Diego then walked away, his mind set on one thing: finding Mariana. He had to tell them everything. He couldn't let her go.

It was getting late, and Diego still hadn't found Mariana. He and Xavier had searched the area, but it was like she had disappeared without a trace. He was getting more and more frustrated when something caught his eye. He stopped in his tracks when he saw something hidden in the back corner of the old family mansion: the heirloom chest his father had kept locked away for years.

Diego had only seen it a couple of times when he was a kid. The chest was a piece of the family's history, and his father had never told him what was inside. Diego had always known that the chest held something important, even though he had never been told much about it. It had been passed down through the family for generations. Something he didn't quite get.

Diego went up to the chest because he was curious. The lock was rusty, but it was still there. He thought about it for a second, then used the old key his dad had given him years ago. He hadn't thought to use it until now.

Diego's heart raced as the chest creaked open. There were old letters, faded papers, and a very old book with a leather cover inside. He carefully pulled it out and felt how heavy it was in his hands. He opened the book to the first page and saw that the words were in a language he didn't know. It was very old, older than anything else he had seen.

He carefully flipped through the pages, looking for something he could understand. His eyes got bigger when he found a part that seemed to tell the story of the Rivas bloodline, a story of power and betrayal, of a curse that was tied to the pack's very foundation. He couldn't breathe as he read on and found out a terrible truth.

The book talked about a secret power that had been hidden away for hundreds of years. A power that has to do with the pack's future. The twins she had with Diego and Mariana were the key. The book said that having their babies would give them this power, but it would come at a price: one that could either save the pack or kill it.

The twins were born into a cursed bloodline, and they had to either break the curse or seal the pack's fate for all time.

Diego's hands shook as he slammed the book shut. His mind was racing. The twins. Mariana's kids. He didn't know what this meant, but one thing was clear: everything was linked. He thought he knew everything about his past, his future, and Mariana's, but he was wrong.

Mariana, on the other hand, was alone in her small, dark room. The pain of the last few days was hard for her to bear. She had hoped she could forget about Diego and move on, but the truth was that she couldn't. Even though everything was going wrong, she still loved him. Her feelings were all over the place: anger, betrayal, longing, everything was mixed up in a storm that could have taken her life.

A knock on the door broke her train of thought. She quickly wiped away her tears and tried to calm down before opening it.

Raquel Cordero stood in the door with a serious look on her face. "Mariana, we need to talk."

For a moment, Mariana didn't say anything. She had always trusted Raquel, but it hurt that she hadn't told Diego where she was.

"I know what you're thinking," Raquel said in a low voice. "But you need to know that this isn't just about you and Diego. Something else is going on here. "More than you know."

Mariana frowned, and her heart skipped a beat. "What do you mean?" What's up?

Raquel paused before speaking, and her voice was barely a whisper. "There are things about Diego's past that he doesn't even know. And it has something to do with you. To the twins. The family line. Mariana, it's dangerous. He doesn't know what he's getting into.

Mariana's breath got stuck in her throat. "What do you mean?" How does this affect my kids?

Raquel moved closer and spoke more quietly. "I can't explain everything right now, but you have to believe me. There is a curse and a prophecy. And your kids... they're the most important part. You have to keep them safe and keep yourself safe. From Diego and everything else that is coming.

Mariana's heart raced as she looked at Raquel. She had known that something was wrong with all of this, but this? This was too much. Her mind was racing, but before she could ask more, Raquel turned and walked away, leaving her with more questions than answers.

Diego couldn't shake the feeling that everything was falling apart as he walked back to the compound with the heavy heirloom book in his hands. His bloodline was caught up in a web of darkness, with Mariana at the center of it all.

He had to look for her. He had to explain everything, but what if it was too late?

He saw Mariana in the distance as he got closer to the pack compound. She was standing at the edge of the woods and looked like she was about to leave.

But then, something happened that wasn't expected. A person came out of the shadows and stood in her way. Diego's heart stopped.

Valentina Ruiz, an Alpha who had always been a pain in his side, was the one. She gave Mariana a dark smile and her eyes sparkled with something much worse than just competition.

"Valentina, what are you doing here?" Diego yelled, his voice tight with warning.

Valentina's smile grew even bigger. "Mariana, you shouldn't be worried about Diego. The future is coming. And you... you're in the way.