Chapter Fifty Two

Vanessa

The air between us was heavy, thick with everything unspoken.

I sat on the edge of the couch, my knees pulled close, my heart hammering so loud I was sure she could hear it. My mother stood by the window, staring out at the darkening sky, the fading light slicing her face in half, one side shadow, one side truth.

For a long time, neither of us spoke it was just silence that felt heavy. .

Then she said quietly, “You deserve to know everything, Vanessa. All of it and I am so sorry we kept it away from you, we thought we were doing the right thing.”

I nodded once, the sound of my name in her voice both comforting and terrifying.

She turned from the window, her eyes glistening, and began.

“It started long before you were born,” she said softly. “Before I was even Luna. The packs weren’t at peace back then. Damian’s father and your father had an alliance, fragile, but powerful. They ruled through fear, manipulation, and bloodlines. It was never about unity, it was about control.”

H