3

MAYA. 

Six Months Later

“You have to know that you’re not capable of carrying these children. There are two of them in your belly, and you have no strength. You have no wolf, which makes you no different from a human. Humans can’t bear werewolf children—they don’t have the strength.” Giana’s voice was calm but firm as she spoke, her eyes filled with concern.

I said nothing.

I was determined to have them. To bear these children and use them for my revenge. Even if it meant my death, I had already started writing them diaries, so they would avenge my death—and that of their grandparents. I would never relent. Never.

“Maya has made up her mind, Giana,” Stella said, walking into the room as Giana packed up the instruments she used to check on me. “No matter what, she’s going to have these kids. She’s even started writing a diary. The other day, she told me I have to give it to them.”

Giana didn’t argue. She’d been with me through it all, ever since they found me. Running from Leonardo hadn’t been easy. He sent over a thousand soldiers to search for me and promised rich rewards to anyone who brought me back. But these two—Stella and Giana—they took me in and never turned me over.

They had their reasons. Both had been with Leonardo, and neither had become pregnant. He’d discarded them, just like he discarded so many others. They knew the pain of betrayal, just as I did. They hated him as much as I did. And women, especially those like them, were so often blamed for infertility, never questioning the men.

“You know,” I began, “we can’t sit around for the rest of our lives. When my children are here, they’ll need something to live on. We need to think about the future. I want to start a business. We can look for other women who’ve suffered the same fate as you two and employ them.”

Stella nodded, and Giana moved closer.

“What’s the business idea?” Giana asked. “I can help gather the other women with spells.”

I smiled. It sounded like a great plan. I’d been thinking about it for a while. My children would need financial support, even if I wasn’t there to see it through. I had to build something that would last for them.

Giana and Stella were supportive, helping me finalize the plan. We gathered resources, acquired land outside the packs restrictions, and set clear goals. The gold I took from Leonardo was sold off, and soon, we had enough capital to begin.

Ten women joined us—broken, shattered women. Women who’d once been with Leonardo, used and discarded. Most had been sold into slavery, forced to sleep with guards, tossed around until they were of no use. These women, like me, carried a shared rage toward Leonardo, and they worked harder than anyone to make everything come together.

It wasn’t easy. My body often betrayed me. Sometimes, I felt so weak I couldn’t move. I cried in those moments, exhausted by the weight of it all. Giana warned me again, saying I was too weak, but I never listened to her. My past experiences - back when I was sold to the human traffickers had broken my wolf at a young age, and I had no strength left. But I would fight—even without my wolf. I would keep fighting.

Eventually, we decided over dinner that we would open a restaurant.

“Good idea, Maya. Your food is always so good,” Stella commented with a smile. “We can do this.”

I placed my hand on my belly, my mind racing.

“But our faces—Leonardo will recognize us, even from afar,” I said, my voice heavy with fear.

Giana nodded. “You’re right. But how about we open a masked restaurant? Every worker will wear a mask, so no one will recognize us.”

“This will also make us unique,” Anna added. “It will create a dynamic that sets us apart.”

I smiled. These women were brilliant. I loved that I’d gathered them.

“I can build our masks,” Celine suddenly spoke up, her voice soft but confident. “It will be like a second skin.”

Celine rarely spoke at our meetings, but when she did, it always left an impact. I knew there was a deeper story behind the mark on her face, just as there was for the rest of us. We all had scars, inside and out. But soon, it would all change 

“Celine,” I said, “I’ve seen some of the things you’ve built. You’re talented.”

After dinner, I stepped outside to get some fresh air. I stood in the foyer, staring at the forest outside, lost in thought. “Do you think they will ever forgive us?” Stella’s voice broke the silence. She had short purple hair, her eyes filled with concern.

“Who?” I turned to her and adjusted so she could sit next to me.

“The children in your belly,” she said, her voice tinged with uncertainty. “Everyone is counting on them for revenge, but I can’t help but wonder if it’s too much for them. Do you think they’ll forgive us for dragging them into all of this?”

I sat up, placing one hand on her lap, my voice filled with determination.

“We don’t need their forgiveness, Stella. We need their vengeance. Did you see Celine’s face? The mark on it? What she endured just because she was with an Alpha who never had an heir? A man like Leonardo doesn’t deserve to be happy. If it takes his own children to make that happen, so be it.”

We had come too far to turn back now.

Stella chuckled, her eyes filling with tears. None of us had ever shared our full stories. We kept our scars hidden, ashamed of what had been done to us. But we were more than our pain. We were fighters.

That night, after Stella left, I wrote in my diary again.

“I am probably gone by the time you are reading this, but don’t mourn me. I believe I am in a better place. I chose this path, to carry you despite the consequences. Don’t ever forget the sacrifice I made for you, the pain of these women. Leonardo took everything from us—take it all back. Take it all back without remorse. I birthed you for this reason.”

I pressed my trembling hand against my belly, my eyes skimming over the thick forest that protected us - it had a sprinkle of Gianna’s protection spell. Although part of me was still scared that Leonardo would fine me - find us because he hadn't stopped searching.