Arianna: Sofia took my daughter from me and gently put her in her bassinet before taking a seat beside me. “Do you want to tell me why you chose to reject Dean the second you gave birth?” She asked, her voice gentle as she spoke. I looked down at my lap, avoiding her eyes as tears fell from mine. “I won’t judge, but I would be more than willing to listen.” “He lied to me, more than once. He kept secrets, and he’s been taking me for a damn fool.” I said, looking down at my lap. “He knew that I had a brother and didn’t tell me. He knew that I felt alone and with no family, and yet, nothing. I don’t know how long he’s known about this, and what else he is hiding from me, but I just couldn’t handle it.” “In his defense, even I didn’t know that Kai was alive, and it seems to me that my husband knew. Now, as for him being your brother, I can assure you that if Dean knew, he only recently found out about it. Neither one of us knew where Kai came from, but I always raised him as my own.”

Arianna: Yaroslav entered my room and I raised an eyebrow at the man as he put a hand on his son’s shoulder. Dean rolled his eyes and Yaroslav squeezed his shoulder gently. “I am glad that you managed to put some senses back in your head.” Yaroslav said, and Dean smirked. “You know, sometimes a punch or two from your parents in public tends to do that.” Dean said, and his father chuckled before kissing the crown of his head. “If I didn’t want what was best for you, I wouldn’t have done so. Plus, you have a woman that reminds me a lot of your mother, and I didn’t have anyone punching me in the face to ensure that I didn’t upset her when I was your age. If I did, I knew that I wouldn’t have broken her the number of times that I did when the two of us first started our relationship.” He said, and I smiled. He walked toward me and kissed my forehead. “I want you to know, Arianna, that even though Gabriella isn’t around, you do have a family here. I know that she was your one family b

Dean: “What have you been up to over the past three years?” I asked, shaking my head in question. Kai looked down at his coffee and frowned at its smell. The coffee sucked, but it did the job of keeping us awake. “Been here, done that, made a few friends and many, many enemies.” He said, and I chuckled. “Your dad wanted me to get inside Lorenzo’s place. I failed to do that when your mate chose to leave the pack. Well, in other words, when Mariana almost killed her earlier today.” “I heard you were chosen as their Alpha.” I said, and he nodded. “Sadly, but it was a way of getting in without giving chances to those who wanted to ask questions. The idea of that happening was alarming enough, and the last thing that I needed was Mariana finding out about anything.” He explained and I shook my head in question. “The woman had men following me around on the clock since she found out that I was alive. And I have to tell you, it was not the best thing that one can go through when you’re u

Dean: “Mama…” “Boss, we need to stop the bleeding.” The nurse said, stopping Irina whose eyes widened in surprise at the sight of mom. Her baby was in her arms as she lay in front of me, and her heart raced against her chest as she tried to find out what was happening. “Then get to it,” I said, glaring at the woman. “Dean, what the fuck is going on?” Irina asked, snapping at me. I closed my eyes and pulled my second gun out of my holster. The fact that I watched my mom get shot and yet, I couldn’t move or react as I found myself being tied down. It was either I reacted and risked my family being killed or I stopped and watched as they tried to bargain with me. “The fucking hospital was attacked, that is what’s going on.” I said, just as Arianna walked toward the room alongside Kai. She held onto Alina as she walked and Kai held his gun. “Arianna…” “They’re either dead or gone, though I can feel Luca’s presence, but we couldn’t find him.” Arianna said, her eyes void of color.

Dean: I woke up to Arianna running her fingers through my hair. Alina was asleep in her bassinet, and I frowned in confusion before shaking my head as I processed where we were and what happened. “Mama…” “She got out of surgery a few hours ago. Both her and Kai are okay and are asleep,” Arianna said, stopping me. “Just relax.” “I don’t even know how I dozed off.” I said, and she smiled. I massaged my temple. “You were exhausted, and I honestly didn’t have it in me to wake you up.” She said, and I nodded in understanding. I looked at Alina who whimpered in her sleep. I looked at Arianna whose eyes met mine and she smiled before I got up. I kissed her forehead and ran my fingers through her hair before sitting on the edge of the bed. I gently massaged her hand and she gently pulled me toward her. I chuckled and laid my head on her chest. She ran her fingers over my hair, gently massaging my head. “Do you want to get more sleep? You need to rest.” “I am going to get a cup of co