ROOTS OF BETRAYAL

Aurora's POV

"I don't have a father," I said after recovering from the shock of his words and backing away a step or two.

He looked frantic and desperate, nothing like he was trying to trick me. Sweat was dripping all over his body soaking into his clothes, he must have run with all his might after me, an awakened wolf.

For that, I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt instead of sprinting off again.

"My Mom never said anything about my father, I don't have any way of confirming if we are related or not it's possible that you are-"

"Lyra Nightshade, daughter of one of the gamma families of the thornblade pack, that's your mother right?"

I was lost for words; when I found them, it was a whisper.

"Yes…but…how she's a werewolf and you're…"

"A witch correct," he completed it for me helpfully. "Sometimes love doesn't care about differences…" he said, then his eyes were sad, "at least at first.."

A tsunami of emotions crashed into my heart but beyond the confusion, shock, and everything else something bubbled to the surface first.

Rage.

I ran to the man in front of me and began to hit his chest with my clenched fist.

"You jerk!" I cursed at him, "... You got my mom pregnant and then abandoned her to be the scorn of the pack, you left her all alone to raise me and now you're claiming to be my father without any shame! I hate you…" He stopped my barrage of punches. However, he seems to be using all of his strength.

"I see you got parts of your mom's power…" he said almost fondly, ".. and a little of her temper too. But it's not what you think. If your mom had told me she was pregnant with you I would have never left her side,"

My brow furrowed together and doubt was beginning to creep back in.

"How do you know I'm your daughter if you didn't even know my mom was pregnant?"

"You're a carbon copy of her," he pointed out, and I blushed from not realizing that myself.

"But that doesn't prove that I'm your daughter,"

Time slowed down for a second and I felt foolish for pointing that out, clearly, this man was going to help me out because of his relationship with my mother but now if he confirmed that I was not his child then.

"If that turns out to be the case it won't matter if a child of Lyra's is a child of mine," he said my mother's name so tenderly, it was impossible to doubt that they had been lovers.

But even without him spelling it out for me I knew why they had broken up, his Coven and her pack would have never accepted their union, it was a relationship doomed from the start.

That was where my question came from, why bother chasing after something that would only end in sorrow for both of them?

Then he asked a question that shattered me.

"What about your mom? Is she doing well? Does she know you here?"

Before I could tell him anything I was interrupted by that boy's voice, grumbling loudly in frustration. Suddenly the man's face twisted in concern.

"Your wolf energy is coming out," he said, "it must have been clouded earlier by your aura but now it's making its way through…I have to mask it, can you trust me to do that?"

I nodded quickly, this seems to be witch territory…if I were found out to be a wolf then…

Before I could finish the thoughts, a sphere of light appeared before me. It was smaller compared to mine but still quite big and it didn't lead to an explosion, rather it dispersed peacefully.

I guess this is what my power will look like if I'm able to control it.

"Uncle Ragnar…have you found her?" The boy appeared with some leaves and twigs in his hair.

He spotted me and looked ready to pounce when the man who claimed to be my father stood between the two of us, protectively shielding me.

"Cream, relax, I think she's my daughter…"

I had just assumed he was going to lie, but I guess being upfront with some kind of truth would help.

"Daughter?" Colt yelled like he was hearing the word for the first time and tried to catch a glimpse of me.

"She doesn't really look much like you," he commented.

"She's a copy and paste of her mother," he defended, still trying to cover me from the boy's judging gaze.

"A daughter, but you don't even have a choice, Uncle Ragnar!"

Ragnar laughed, "There are some things that all adults can understand, don't worry it will come to you when you're older,"

"I told you to stop treating me like a kid, Uncle Ragnar! I'm going to be the head of my family soon enough!"

I had no idea what they were talking about but eventually, they calmed and we were all working back to their Coven.

He kept looking at me curiously, some of the aggressiveness from his stare gone, but most of it remained.

"So you lost your memory huh? Looks like you're coming from a party,"

That was the only lie Ragnar had told so far, I nodded, my feet shaking. Fortunately, the bridal dress I wore was basic and could be mistaken for a normal regular dress.

"I guess so,"

"Cream doesn't ask so many questions like that, she's still in shock,"

"Uncle Ragnar I'm just trying to be cautious…I didn't want to say this until we got back to the Coven but…" he was quiet for a second his eyes running over me from here to toe, like there was something he was trying to dig out of me but he didn't know just where to start yet.

"Earlier I could almost swear that I sensed wolf energy coming from her,"