3

It has been a week since I got that letter from Dominic. I had been expecting another one, maybe something angrier, something that would tell me he hadn’t truly given up. But the silence stayed. No phone calls, No letters. Nothing.

It seems he gave up after his first try, and I honestly couldn’t be more relieved.

Still, every now and then, I catch myself looking over my shoulder. Wondering how he somehow found out where I live and if he knows about Our children. The thought of the possibility makes my heart skip.

Adrian’s voice broke My thought “You packed the sandwiches?”

I turned, blinking at him, “Yeah, I did. And the fruit juice too.”

He smiled, today Adrian had suggested we go on a family picnic at the nearest park to refresh ourselves and honestly I needed it, In fact we all needed it.

He was kneeling beside the picnic basket, carefully folding the blanket, while my children sat beside him chatting and playing.

I walked over and brushed a crumb off Adrian’s shoulder. He looked up at me, and his eyes softened. “You okay?”

“I’m okay,” I said quietly, though my voice didn’t sound like mine.

Adrian studied me for a moment longer, like he wanted to say something but decided against it. Instead, he reached for my hand, gave it a light squeeze, and smiled. “Then let’s go before they eat all the snacks at home.”

I smiled faintly. “Yeah, before the children eats all the strawberries again.”

Adrian laughed softly and lifted the picnic basket. The sound of the twins’ laughter filled the street as we walked toward the car.

By the time we got to the park, the sun was high. The air smelled of grass and something sweet, maybe the flowers near the playground fence. Adrian spread out the blanket under a big oak tree, while I unpacked the food.

My Children darted off immediately toward the swings, their voices mixed with the other children’s laughter.

I turned to Adrian, watching as he pulled off his shoes and stretched out on the blanket. “You could actually pass as a stay-at-home dad,” I teased.

He chuckled. “I just might.”

I smiled. He was everything safe felt like calm, steady, and human.

For a while, everything was simple. The twins came running back for juice, fought over cookies, and then went off again. I sat beside Adrian, leaning my head against his shoulder.

After a while, Lisa came running toward us, frowning.

“Mommy!” she panted, holding up her teddy bear. “I lost my shoe!”

Adrian and I looked at her in surprise, “How did you manage that?” We both said in chorus.

“I don’t know,” she said, her little face scrunching. “It just… disappeared.”

I sighed, brushing the grass off my legs as I stood. “Where were you playing?”

She pointed toward the small patch of trees by the pond. “There.”

Adrian waved his hand dismissively. “Elena, leave it. It’s just a shoe. I’ll order her a new pair.”

I shook my head. “No, it’s new. She wore it for the first time today.” I turned to lisa “Sweetheart, you have to take care of your things.”

she looked down, with her lip trembling. “Sorry, Mommy.”

I softened a little, crouching to fix her remaining shoe. “It’s okay. Just… next time, don’t run off alone, okay?”

She nodded, sniffling, "OK mummy!"

Adrian sighed behind me. “Elena, seriously, it’s not worth it. I’ll order another one when we get home.”

“I’ll just check around,” I said, brushing my hands on my jeans. “It won’t take a minute.”

I didn't wait for his reply when I darted off toward the spot Jessica pointed to, it was a quiet area and a few meters away, that was shaded by trees. The laughter and chatter faded behind me and was replaced by the rustle of leaves.

I scanned the ground, moving aside a few branches with my foot but I found nothing. Just grass and dirt.

After a while, I sighed hopelessly. Maybe Adrian was right. Maybe it wasn’t worth it, maybe it was time to turn back. I turned, already rehearsing what I’d tell Adrian that he’d been right, that lisa's shoe was officially lost to the woods.

But then I heard footsteps behind me.

I froze.

At first, I thought it was another parent or a kid running around. But the sound was heavy and slow, like someone big was walking on purpose.

My heart started beating fast. I turned around, looking at the trees. “Hello?” I said but No one answered.

Everything went quiet, too quiet. The wind blew softly, and I told myself to calm down. It was daylight, for crying out loud. There was no reason to be scared.

Still, something felt wrong.

I turned back toward the park and started walking faster. I could still hear my kids laughing in the distance, but their voices sounded far away.

Then I heard footsteps again. This time, they were closer.

I started to run. My heart was pounding so hard I could hear it in my ears.

Suddenly, a strong arm grabbed me from behind. I tried to scream, but a hand covered my mouth.

Before I knew what was happening, a cloth pressed against my nose. It smelled strange, familiar and bitter, that was Wolfsbane.

I kicked and tried to fight, but the arm was too strong. My head began to feel dizzy, and everything started spinning.

The last thing I heard was Adrian calling my name before everything went dark.

*****

I woke up with a sharp pain shooting through my head. My body ached all over, like I’d been hit by a truck.

Where was I?

My vision was blurry at first, everything spinned slowly into focus. The last thing I remembered was the park… Jessica’s missing shoe… the footsteps… and that awful smell of wolfsbane. My eyes flew open.

My kids. Lisa, Logan, Liam and Adrian

Panic gripped my chest so hard I could barely breathe. Were they safe? Did Adrian see what happened? Did anyone? I prayed silently they were okay.

I pushed myself up, groaning. The room was dark and cold, the air was thick and musty. The floor beneath me felt rough, concrete, maybe.

“Hello?” I called, my voice shaky and small.

There was No answer. Just the sound of dripping water somewhere in the distance.

Tears filled my eyes. Who would do this to me? I hadn’t hurt anyone. I left everything behind to live quietly, peacefully. What could be going on?

I covered my face, my body shaking as I cried quietly. For the first time in years, I whispered a prayer to the moon goddess. “Please… please keep my children safe.”

I don’t know how long I stayed like that before I heard the creak of a door.

My heart stopped when Footsteps filled the room. Then a deep, familiar voice spoke my name, softly, almost like a whisper.

“Elena.”

My breath caught in my throat. That voice...no, it couldn’t be.

I turned around slowly, my heart thundering in my chest.

And there he was.

Alpha Dominic Standing tall, wrapped in a black coat, his cold, piercing eyes locked on me.

“Alphq Dominic?” I breathed in disbelief.