Chapter 3
1433 Words
Dana’s POV
The night I left Red Valley, I didn’t look back.
I didn’t pack much, just a bag Grant threw together for me and the old pendant my mother left behind.
Grant didn’t speak a word the entire time. His jaw was clenched, his eyes hard, and the guilt in his silence stung more than anything he could have said.
I knew he was doing this to protect me and the pack but it didn’t stop my heart from breaking a little more every second I was driven away from the only home I’d ever known.
We met with a few of Grant’s trusted warriors at the border, where a black SUV waited to take me to my Uncle Axel's pack, the Crescent Stone Pack. I hadn’t seen Axel in years, not since the funeral. His name always brought a strange warmth and ache to my chest. He was the closest thing to a parent I had left, but he lived far, and politics between packs kept him and Grant from interacting much.
The journey was quiet. I rested my hand on my small baby bump, barely noticeable yet always there to remind me of what I was leaving behind
All because of Ivan. The thought of his name alone brought tears to my eyes. I closed them tightly, forcing back the memories. His touch. His lips. The way he had looked at me, only to later act like none of it mattered. Like I didn’t matter. The pain of his rejection burned deeper than I’d ever expected. Still, I had to keep going for my baby and for myself.
---
The Crescent Stone Pack territory was different, it felt more open, more wild.
Uncle Axel met me at the entrance. He hadn’t changed much. Still broad-shouldered, tall, with graying hair and a kind smile. His arms wrapped around me tightly, and for the first time in a while, I felt safe.
Tiana, his Luna, greeted me next. She was soft-spoken, with warm brown eyes and a graceful posture. Her hug was tender, motherly, and when she said, “You’ll be okay here,” I nearly broke down but I had to be strong now.
Few years passed after I gave birth to my daughter. I named her Rina. She had Ivan’s gray and stormy eyes but everything else was mine. The first time I held her, I cried so hard I couldn’t breathe. She was perfect. My little miracle. My reason to keep moving.
Tiana spoiled her. Axel too. Rina was never short of love. Sawyer became like an uncle, always showing up with new baby clothes or wooden toys he carved himself. His patience with her, with me, only deepened our bond. I wasn’t sure what we were, but I knew one thing, I trusted him.
People murmured soft condolences around me, all dressed in black, heads lowered.
I stood near the front, Rina holding tightly to my hand. She was too quiet for a five-year-old. Her big eyes scanned the people, sensing the sadness but not understanding its weight. I squeezed her hand gently. She didn’t ask any questions. She just stayed by me, small and soft, a reminder that life kept going even when it felt like the world had stopped.
I had barely noticed the crowd thickening around us. Wolves from all corners had come to say goodbye. I caught sight of Alpha Soren, a distant ally, speaking quietly to Axel.
There were Lunas in veils, warriors with tight jaws, children clutching at their parents’ legs. Somewhere behind the layers of mourners, I spotted Grant alone, as always. He gave me a brief nod when our eyes met. I returned it. That was all we had left between us. A nod of understanding that we both lost someone we cared about.
I turned for just a second to check something with Sawyer, he was speaking to Axel, helping direct the final part of the ceremony and when I looked down again, my hand was empty.
Rina was gone.
My breath hitched. My heart skipped. I spun around, scanning the crowd, the ground, the edge of the trees. People stood too close. Too tall. Too distracted. Panic started to crawl up my throat like fire.
“Rina!” I called.
No answer.
“Rina!”
People turned. Some looked around. I pushed through them, trying not to shove, but failing. My heart was slamming in my chest now. My fingers trembled. I called her name again, louder. My voice cracked.
I was about to shift, ready to throw off my shoes and sprint into the woods if I had to, when I saw Ivan.
He stood near the edge of the crowd, close to the back, bent slightly at the waist and there, right in front of him, was Rina talking to him.
I froze. My lungs didn’t move. I just stood there, too stunned to even blink. My entire body locked in place.
Ivan had his head tilted, his face softened with something unfamiliar. His eyes were wide, full of surprise and what was that? Awe?
He knelt slowly, bringing himself eye-level with her. His lips moved gently as he spoke, his brows creased as if he couldn’t make sense of what he was seeing.
Because he saw the resemblance.
I knew it from the way he looked at her. The way he kept glancing between her face and something in his memory. Maybe his own reflection. Maybe mine.
I moved before I thought. My body propelled forward, each step heavier than the last.
“Rina!” My voice cracked again.
She turned first, smiling. “Mama! I made a new friend.”
Ivan looked up next. Our eyes locked and the slam of years’ worth of pain and silence and brokenness hit me.
His expression faltered and his mouth opened slightly like he wanted to say something. I didn’t give him the chance.
I stormed forward, scooping Rina into my arms as she squealed, laughing softly like it was a game. I turned my back to him, cradling her tightly against my chest.
“What did I tell you about wandering off?” I whispered, trying to stay calm.
“She was sad,” Rina said. “I just wanted to see the flowers.”
I swallowed hard. “You can't run off like that. Ever. Do you understand me?”
She nodded, burying her face in my shoulder.
Behind me, I heard him take a step forward.
“Dana,” he said. “Please.”
I turned slowly, glaring at him over my daughter’s head.
“What are you doing here?” I hissed.
“My uncle invited me,” he said. “For her.”
“You shouldn't have come.”
“She—she looks just like me.”
His voice cracked a little on the last word. I hated how my heart stuttered at the sound. I hated that his eyes, the same eyes Rina had, were filled with something raw.
“She’s not yours,” I said coldly.
His brows drew together. “Dana..”
“You don’t get to ask questions. You don’t get to look at her like that. You lost that right the day you threw me away.”
“I didn’t know—”
“You didn’t want to know.” I pulled Rina closer. “And now? Now it’s too damn late.”
“Please, just give me a minute.”
“I gave you years.”
Silence hung between us. Thick. Loud. My chest heaved.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered.
I laughed bitterly. “Sorry won’t fix anything.”
I turned away again and walked off. I didn’t look back.
---
Later that night, Rina was curled up in bed, already asleep. But she’d been quiet since the funeral. Unusually so. She didn’t ask about the man she met, but I saw the way she’d looked at him. Curious. Open. I hated that he’d gotten even one second with her.
I sat at the edge of my bed, still dressed in black, my hair a mess, my hands gripping the edge of the mattress. The image of Ivan’s face wouldn’t leave my mind. The look of recognition. Of regret.
A knock on the door startled me.
I opened it and found Axel there.
“I didn’t know he’d come,” I said immediately.
He nodded. “I did invite him. Tiana asked me to. Before she passed. She told me… to forgive what I could.”
I swallowed hard.
“Well, I can’t.”
- Writer
