Blood of My Blood (Part 1)
Thea’s POV
For days, I’d been fuming over Sebastian’s behavior at the prenatal checkup. I couldn’t believe he acted like he had no idea what hell I went through when I was pregnant with
Leo.
He, the Sterling family, and the entire Ashworth Pack were all to blame. I nearly lost my baby because of their coldness and rejection, yet here they were playing innocent, as if they couldn’t understand why I couldn’t forgive them.
The thought alone made my blood boil. I was practically drowning in misery back then, and they couldn’t have cared less, didn’t even bother to check on me. All because they blamed me for that night. Was I the only one who had sex? Did I force Sebastian to sleep with me? He was willing too, yet I was the only one blamed and punished.
In reality, I suspected it was just their excuse. They used that night and its consequences to isolate me. I, the wolfless, was never considered one of them. So that incident just gave them the perfect justification to completely cut me out of their world.
What I told Sebastian was the truth. I couldn’t regret meeting him because he gave me Leo, but I did wish I’d escaped that cold prison when I was pregnant. Perhaps my life
would have been completely different.
“Things happen for a reason, Thea,” that voice spoke in my mind again, gentle and
comforting. “Every pain you experienced was meant to lead you to this moment. This path led you to Seraphina and Maximus, brought you to Iris, and introduced you to friends who genuinely care about you. It was also this journey that brought Kane into your life, and
the new life growing inside you. Everything that happened was meant to lead to
something better.”
“Where did you go?” I asked her, but was met only with dead silence.
I thought about her words, and my anger slowly subsided. She was right. If I had escaped back then, my life would certainly be different, but who could guarantee I would’ve met all the precious people now in my life? Like with Sebastian, taking back that night would mean taking back Leo and everyone currently in my life.
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Blood of My Blood (Part 1)
Leaning back on the sofa, I tried to release the pressure in my heart. Though people kept reopening my wounds, I had resolved to move forward and find inner peace.
Just as I was about to rest, a sharp crash came from the kitchen. I immediately tensed up, my heart racing.
I slowly stood up and walked toward the kitchen. Thinking of those horror movie characters who stupidly walk toward danger, I used to mock them–why not just run? Yet here I was, doing the exact same thing, knowing there might be danger but needing to check.
I should have called for help immediately, but I wanted to make sure if just Jaxon’s golden retriever who always seemed to sneak in to steal whatever I baked.
When I stepped into the kitchen, I saw no one. Rounding the island, I spotted the broken glass on the back door–someone had broken into my house.
Fear instantly gripped my heart. Not again! This time was worse; I was alone and pregnant. I turned to grab the phone but froze in place.
Graves stood right in front of me, looking disheveled, his eyes dangerous.
“Long time no see, Thea,” his voice cut like ice.
I’d thought Sebastian’s voice was cold, but compared to Graves, Sebastian’s was as warm as a spring breeze.
Instinctively, I grabbed a knife and pointed it at him. “Stay the fuck away from me!”
“Don’t get nervous, I won’t hurt you,” he raised his hands in surrender.
“Do I look stupid to you?” I didn’t back down.
“Really, I’m just here to talk,” he said, casually sitting down on one of my kitchen barstools like he owned the place.
I stared at him, my eye twitching slightly. This man had kidnapped me and threatened my life not long ago, and now he was sitting in my kitchen as if nothing had happened.
“Talk about what? I won’t be part of your revenge plan against Sebastian. If you want revenge on him, that’s your business, but leave me and Leo out of it.”
Blood of My Blood (Part 1)
Something flashed in his eyes, an emotion I couldn’t quite identify, gone in an instant.
“I have principles. I don’t harm pups. It’s an untouchable rule in my organization.”
His words surprised me, but I tried not to show it. Regardless, it didn’t change how dangerous he was.
“What are you doing here? What do you want from me?” I asked bluntly.
“Put down that knife,” he commanded.
“Absolutely not. I’m not stupid. Say what you need to say, but the knife stays with me.”
“Feisty. I like that,” his lips curled upward.
Hearing such an assessment from a werewolf like Graves was definitely not a good sign.He looked unstable, like he could lose his mind at any moment, a ticking time bomb.
“Get to the point, Graves,” I repeated, annoyed that I’d left my phone in the living room. I might have been able to text Sebastian secretly.
“Your lover sent me a ‘gift,” he said with a mocking smile.
I looked at him in confusion. “What lover? I don’t have a lover.”
“Kane. Does that name ring a bell?”
Blood of My Blood (Part 2)
Thea’s POV
My body stiffened. What the hell had Kane done? Didn’t he know who he was dealing with? Even Chief Hawthorne had been hunting Graves for years without success, proving how powerful his dark network was.
“Seems he wanted to protect his baby’s mother, so he sent people to take care of me. Too bad he didn’t know that I’m the king of this city’s underworld. Guess who those people actually answer to? No one dares to touch me,” Graves spoke casually, as if discussing the
weather.
Shit. Don’t tell me Kane had made an enemy of Graves too. I didn’t go through all that trouble facing the man who betrayed me just for him to die before his child was born.
“But I don’t blame him,” he continued. “He didn’t realize that I would never hurt you.”
“Wh–what do you mean?” I stammered.
He seemed lost in his own world, continuing his monologue: “That day I wanted to play a game with Sebastian. I already knew Sebastian would choose you. If he chose you, I planned to kill Aurora; but even if he chose Aurora, I wouldn’t actually kill you.”
I stared at him in shock, unable to make sense of his logic.
“That’s impossible. Sebastian would choose Aurora, it’s always been her. You were
gambling with my life!”
“You’re wrong. Maybe he would have before, but not now. I’ve observed him for a long
time, studied him. If it really came down to saving only one, he’d let Aurora die without
blinking an eye. Some feelings might have always been there, he just needed to lose you
to realize it.”
I was speechless. Sebastian had told me he would choose me, but I refused to believe it at the time. Or perhaps, more accurately, I was afraid to believe it, afraid of the pain that would come from trusting again. Yet now even an enemy was saying this, making me more confused about my feelings for him.
I shook my head, trying to maintain clear thinking.
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Blood of My Blood (Part 2)
The man sitting so casually in my kitchen exuded danger yet seemed completely relaxed. If I were him, knowing I could be caught at any moment, I would never be so calm.
“If you don’t plan to hurt us, what was the point of kidnapping us?” I demanded.
“I said I wouldn’t hurt you,” he emphasized the word “you.” “As for Aurora, she’s irrelevant
to me.”
This werewolf was completely baffling; every sentence he spoke was like a riddle.
“Aren’t you curious why?” he raised an eyebrow.
I took a deep breath, staying calm: “Why?”
Surprisingly, he gave what seemed to be a genuine smile: “Because you’re carrying my nephew or niece. I can’t hurt you under those circumstances, can I?”
I must have misheard.
“That’s impossible… I don’t have siblings, so you can’t be my baby’s uncle, unless you…”
The truth hit me like lightning. This couldn’t be! It was like fate playing a cruel joke on
- me. I had so many problems already, and now I had to worry about my child having a seemingly psychopathic crime lord for an uncle?
I examined Graves’s face more carefully, my heart racing. Graves’s eyes were brown, unlike
Kane’s, which were as dark as ink, but the shape of their eyes–that slightly elongated
outline, that specific expression when they raised their eyebrows–was almost identical.
The line of their jaws was also strikingly similar. The only obvious difference was their hair: Kane had a head of soft curls, while Graves’s was straight, combed back in a slightly
messy style.
I couldn’t believe I’d missed these similarities before. Maybe it was the age difference, or
perhaps their vastly different demeanors had masked these commonalities.
“You understand now,” Graves nodded, “Smart girl.”
“Does Kane know?” I asked cautiously, my thoughts still a tangled mess.
“No, he doesn’t remember. I was 12 when Kane was just 1. I was sent elsewhere to carry out ‘tasks‘ arranged by our father. I didn’t even know it was criminal activity at the time,
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Blood of My Blood (Part 2)
didn’t realize he was grooming me to be his successor. By the time I got out, our father was dead, and Kane had been adopted.”
Shit, I recalled Kane telling me about his birth father being executed, never realizing what this meant beyond his adoption. I mean, what kind of heinous wolf would be sentenced to death? And now his background and all its consequences were laid clearly before me.
I watched Graves fall silent, his eyes revealing memories and sadness. Unlike those men Sebastian had killed, Graves had been forced into this dark world, woven into a web of
crime from childhood. I could see it clearly.
“Why didn’t you look for him after you got out?” I couldn’t help asking.
“I loved my little brother, so I chose not to disturb his happiness. With the Kincaids, he received love and care that he would never have gotten under our father. If he’d been in the foster system, or if his adoptive parents had treated him the way the Sterlings treated you, things would be different. But I saw him growing up loved, so I chose to walk away, even though it hurt. It was the only way to give him a normal life.”
Damn, I didn’t want to feel sympathy for him, but could someone who sacrificed his relationship with his brother just to give him a better life really be a complete monster?
“But he ended up in prison anyway,” I said quietly.
Despite these sacrifices, Kane still went down a criminal path and ended up behind bars.
“Yeah, I should have kept an eye on him. Maybe that would have helped him avoid
trouble.”
“Maybe by teaching him better ways to plan my murder?” I said sarcastically.
The evil grin returned to his face. “I’ve killed many wolves, so naturally I have some experience to share, to keep him from getting caught.”
Strangely, I no longer felt afraid. Perhaps knowing about this blood connection had replaced fear with other emotions.
I realized that at some point, I had put down the knife.
“So what do you want? Since you’re here, you must have a reason,” I asked
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Blood of My Blood (Part 2)
straightforwardly.
“I want a chance to know my niece or nephew,” he admitted, “I haven’t had family for a long time. I want to feel that again.”
I was silent for a moment. “You know you’re the most wanted criminal, right?”
“Correct,” he gave me a charming smile, as if it were some badge of honor, “but I promise my ‘business‘ won’t harm him or her, and you and Leo will have my permanent protection.”
I studied him carefully. Despite looking dangerous and unhinged, there was a genuine light in his eyes. He was seeking family bonds, and that was something I understood
better than most.
“One condition,” I said, “Tell Kane the truth.”
“Deal,” he answered immediately.
He extended his hand, and after a moment’s hesitation, I shook it.
I didn’t know if I’d made the right decision. Making a deal with a crime boss sounded insane. But strangely, it didn’t feel completely wrong. Maybe I’d already been assimilated into this crazy world, because this decision, however irrational, gave me an odd sense of
peace.
