Chapter 4

Aliza's Point of View

I heard the elevator ding, and my heart started beating fast. I looked over and saw my father, brother, and the woman who had destroyed everything, my stepmother Catherine, walking into the family room. My mom stood up, and I did the same as they walked closer to us. 

"Dad, I missed you. I love you so much," I said as I hugged him tightly. My dad had treated me well for the little bit of time I had known him. He was a great father to both Josh and me, and I wished I had met him sooner. I know I shocked him because of how tense he was, but then he relaxed into the hug and wrapped his arms around me, hugging me back. 

"You have no idea how happy I am to hear you say that, Aliza. I wish I had known about you. I promise I would have been in your life," My dad said, and I pulled away from the hug. I looked at my mom to see she had tears in her eyes. 

"Hello, Tina," My dad said

"Hello, Michael," my mom replied. They kept staring at each other. They would do that a lot, just stare into each other's eyes like they were in a trance or something. Catherine cleared her voice loudly, causing everyone to look at her. My dad walked over to where she was standing and wrapped his arms around her. 

"This is my mate Catherine and our son Josh," My dad said

"Hello, it is nice to meet you, Aliza," Josh said as he held his hand out for me to shake. Josh and I were not that close. We would greet and talk for a moment, but we never hung out.  He was only six months younger than I was. I honestly didn't know if I could trust him, not after what Catherine had done. When everything went down, Josh was supposed to be on vacation with his best friend, Zach. I hadn't seen him the day my stepmother and her followers attached the pack and killed almost everyone, so I wasn't sure if he had anything to do with it. He seemed to love our father, but he also loved his mother. 

"It is nice to meet you, too," I replied as I shook his hand. 

Catherine suddenly wrapped her arms around me and hugged me tightly just like she did in the past when we first met. "I am so happy you are here, Aliza. I have always wanted a daughter," Catherine said and then she pulled away from me. "I understand this must be very hard on you. I could only imagine how you feel just finding out who your father is. I want you to know that I am here for you," Catherine said smiling at me. When I met her in the past, I had fallen for her lies. I believed that she cared about me. I would talk to her about everything. I felt bad just thinking about how bad I was to my mother and how nice I was to Catherine.  I let Catherine trick me into believing she was a caring person, but now I know she is nothing but a conceiving, manipulating, Bitch. 

"How about we all have a seat and talk," My dad said, and my mom and I sat next to each other on one of the couches, my dad and Catherine sat across from us on a loveseat, and Josh sat on the corner in one of the reclining chairs. 

"Your mom told me that you shifted on your eighteenth birthday," My dad said

"Yes, I did," I replied, thinking about how painful and scary it was when I shifted into a werewolf for the first time. 

"Have you shifted since then?" My dad asked

"No, I haven't," I replied

"Well, you should practice shifting more. Also, you should start training with us to become stronger. You don't have to do it right now, but it would do you some good," My dad said

"She will think about it," my mom said

"I want to train," I replied, and my mom looked at me

"Are you sure?" My mom asked

"Yes," I replied. In the past, I didn't start training until about a month before Catherine attacked the pack. It was right after my mom was killed. At that time, I thought rogues were to blame for her death, and I wanted to get my revenge on them. Now I know the truth, and I need to get stronger to get my revenge on the person who killed her. 

"Okay, if you are sure," My mom said

"Great. We can talk more about this at dinner. We have a house ready for the two of you close by. I will take you there so you can rest before dinner. I know it was a long trip to get here," My dad said

"That would be great," My mom said, and we both stood up. 

"There was something I wanted to ask. Aliza, I was wondering if you would like to stay in the packhouse. I would give you a chance to meet some people," Catherine said.

"No, she will be staying with me," my mom replied angrily. In the past, I had accepted Catherine's offer of moving into the packhouse because I was upset with my mom, but this time was different. 

"I am not trying to overstep, Tina. I just think it would be a good idea to be around the pack," Catherine said

"She will have time to be around the pack, but she is staying with me. I am her mother," My mom said

"Yeah, but my mate is her father," Catherine replied. My mom was about to tell her off, but I spoke. It wasn't the time for them to get into it. 

"I will stay with my mom," I said

"Okay," Catherine said with that fake smile that was always on her face.