The Confession
1163 Words
Lyra's Pov
Helena pours the wine herself, and I wonder if she's stupid enough to poison me with my mate twenty feet away.
The private family dinner was set in a small dining room off the main hall. The table was laid with familiar china from my childhood, but everything felt wrong now. Theron sat beside me, his hand resting on my thigh under the table, a silent anchor. Marcus sat at the head, looking older than I remembered. Helena played the perfect hostess, smiling too wide as she poured wine into each glass. Ivy sat across from me, her eyes sharp with jealousy.
The tension was thick. Everyone performed politeness, but the air felt heavy. Helena passed me a glass. "Red, your favorite, Lyra. I remembered."
I took it but did not drink. "Thank you."
Helena asked about the Northern Territory, her voice sweet. "It must be so different from here. The power, the wealth. You must feel like a queen."
I gave measured responses, waiting for an opening. "It is different. The pack is large. Strong. There is much to learn."
Ivy's bitterness slipped out. "Must be nice, living in luxury while we struggle here."
Marcus cut her off. "Ivy, enough."
Theron's dark amusement was quiet but clear. "Struggle? Your pack is comfortable enough to fund assassination attempts."
Helena's wine glass paused mid-air for a fraction of a second. A tiny tell. I filed it away. She knew what he was referencing.
The conversation continued, Helena redirecting to safer topics. Marcus talked politics and alliances, oblivious to the undercurrents. Theron and I exchanged glances. We needed to separate Helena from the group.
After dinner, I asked Helena for a private word. "About mother. I found some of her things at the estate. I wanted to ask you about them."
Helena could not refuse without seeming suspicious. "Of course, dear."
We moved to Helena's private sitting room. Theron followed, but I stopped him at the door. "Give us a moment?"
His jaw was tight, but he trusted me. He positioned himself right outside the door. I could feel him through the bond, close and ready.
Alone with Helena, her mask started to slip. She poured herself another glass of wine and sat down. "I am surprised you came back. After leaving so...dramatically."
"I had reasons to leave," I said.
Helena smiled. "Yes. Poor Derek and Ivy. So tragic, fated mates torn apart by your selfishness."
She was rewriting history, making me the villain. I let her talk, baiting her carefully. "I heard there was a bounty on me. Rogues attacked me at the estate."
Helena's response was careful. "How terrible. These rogues are so bold these days."
"Strange though," I said. "The funding was traced to Crescent Hollow."
Helena's pause was longer this time. She was calculating. "That is quite an accusation. I am sure Alpha Blackridge's investigators are mistaken."
"Are they?" I pushed. "Because it seems like someone here wanted me dead."
Helena stood up, her smile sharpening. "Why would anyone here care about you anymore? You are gone. Problem solved."
"Unless I am not a solved problem," I said. "Unless my success threatens someone's plans."
Helena's patience cracked. "Your success? You were sold, Lyra. Like a property. You think that makes you special?"
The venom was showing. I kept pushing. "Special enough that you tried to have me killed."
Helena's laugh was bitter. "You should have died in that forest. Should have been torn apart by rogues when you ran away like a stupid girl."
The confession started pouring out. "You sent people after me that night?"
Helena realizes she said too much, trying to backtrack. But I kept pushing.
"You have been trying to kill me for months. Why?"
Helena's rage broke completely. "Because you ruin everything! You were supposed to be broken, disposable, gone. Instead you became Luna of the most powerful pack on the continent. Do you know what that does to Ivy? To our family?"
Her words spilled faster. "Your mother was the same. Perfect, beloved. Marcus could not see anyone else. I was the second choice my entire marriage."
I felt cold. "You killed her."
Helena's laugh was sharp. "No. But I knew who did. And I did not stop them."
The bomb dropped. "There were wolves who wanted her dead. Oracle bloodline, too powerful, too influential. I made sure they knew where to find her that night."
My horror and grief mixed with rage. Helena kept going. "Then you survived. Little copy of her. Marcus doted on you. I had to watch you get everything while Ivy got scraps."
"So yes, I funded the bounty. I arranged for Derek to string you along for years. I made sure you were humiliated on Mating Day. And when you still somehow ended up as Luna, I tried to have you killed."
The full confession was out. All of it on recording. Tears fell down my face. "You destroyed my entire life."
Helena's smile was cold. "I tried. You are harder to break than your mother was."
The door slammed open. Theron entered, fury rolling off him. Marcus was behind him, face white with shock and horror. Helena realized the trap too late.
Theron's voice was deadly calm. "Marcus. Control your mate before I do."
Marcus looked broken. "Helena... what have you done?"
Helena's defiance was short. "What I had to do."
Theron looked at Marcus. "By Continental Law, she attempted to murder a sitting Luna. That is punishable by death."
Marcus's devastation was complete. His mate was a murderer, involved in his first wife's death. I turned to my father. "Did you know?"
Marcus's voice broke. "No. I swear. I knew nothing."
Theron gave the order. "Helena Winters, you are under arrest for conspiracy to commit murder, accessory to murder, and treason against the Continental Pack Alliance."
Northern Territory warriors entered and took Helena into custody. She screamed as they dragged her away. "You cannot do this! Marcus, do something!"
Marcus turned away from her, broken.
Ivy ran in, seeing her mother arrested. Chaos erupted in the room.
As they dragged Helena away screaming, my father collapsed into a chair and wept. I'd come home for a confession. I'd gotten the truth about my mother's murder, my stepmother's hatred, and the realization that my entire childhood had been a lie built on blood.
- Writer
