Running on Empty

New Family

Darlene

One month had passed since my mother, Cathy, had passed away. The pain of losing her still felt fresh, like an open wound that refused to heal. Every day, I found myself making the drive to the cemetery, visiting her grave, and pouring out my heart to her. It was my way of keeping her memory alive, of holding onto the love and connection we shared.

I noticed a growing distance between my father, Alpha Victor, and me. We had become aloof to each other, our grief and anger creating an invisible barrier that seemed impossible to breach.

The betrayal I felt from him, the knowledge that his actions had contributed to my mother's death, weighed heavily on my heart. One afternoon, after returning from the cemetery, I walked through the front door of our pack house, my eyes still filled with tears.

As I entered the living room, I froze in my tracks, my heart pounding in my chest. There, sitting on the couch, was a woman and a young girl, who seemed the same age as me. My father is sitting beside them, a smile on his face.

"D-Dad, who are they?" I stammered, my voice trembling with a mix of shock and anger.

Victor turned to me, his smile fading. "Darlene, this is Jillian," he said, gesturing to the woman beside him. "And this is Margaret, our daughter."

My eyes widened, and a surge of anger coursed through my veins. "J-Jillian?" I spat, my voice filled with bitterness. "You've brought your mistress and her daughter into our home? How could you? How could you bring them here after what they've done?"

Jillian looked at me, her expression filled with guilt. "Darlene, I know this is difficult for you," she began, her voice filled with remorse. "But your father and I have made a decision to be together. We never intended for any of this to happen, and we are truly sorry for the pain we've caused."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. My father, the man I had once looked up to, had betrayed my mother and now had the audacity to bring his mistress and their daughter into our family home. The anger and betrayal I felt consumed me, threatening to drown out any sense of reason or compassion.

"How can you stand there and apologize?" I shouted, my voice filled with rage. "You caused my mother's death! You destroyed our family! And now you want me to accept this? To accept you?"

Victor's face hardened, his voice filled with frustration. "Cathy is dead, Darlene," he snapped, his words cutting through the air. "I need a new Luna. Jillian and Margaret are a part of my life now, and you will have to accept that!"

My heart shattered into a million pieces as his words sank in. The man I had once loved and respected had become a stranger to me. The pain of losing my mother, coupled with the betrayal I felt from my father, created a storm of emotions within me.

I felt anger, sadness, and a profound sense of betrayal. "You think I'm just going to accept this?" I cried, my voice filled with a mix of sadness and defiance. "You think I'm going to stand by and watch as you replace my mother with your mistress? I won't allow it!"

Victor's face twisted with anger, his voice filled with frustration. "You have no say in this, Darlene," he growled, his eyes filled with determination. "I am the Alpha, and I will make the decisions that are best for our pack. You will respect that!"

Tears streamed down my face as I looked at him, my voice trembling with emotion. "Respect? How can you talk about respect when you've shown none to my mother, to our family?" I cried, my voice filled with a mix of sadness and anger. "You've betrayed us, Dad. And I can't forgive you for that."

I took a deep breath, mustering the courage to confront my father about the choices he had made. "I can't take it anymore," I began, my voice trembling with a mix of frustration and sadness. "You need to make a choice – it's either me or them. I won't stand by and watch you replace me with a new family."

Alpha Victor, seated on his regal throne, regarded me with a stern expression. His silver eyes, once filled with warmth when they looked at me, now seemed distant and cold. "Darlene, you know it's not that simple. I can't just abandon Margaret and Jillian. They are a part of this pack now, a part of me."

"But what about me?" I exclaimed, my hands balling into fists. "I'm your blood, your daughter! Doesn't that count for anything?"

He sighed, his gaze fixed on some distant point beyond me. "Darlene, you have to understand. I didn't plan for any of this to happen. It just did. I can't turn my back on them."

"So, you're choosing them over me? Your own flesh and blood?" I yelled.

Alpha Victor's expression hardened. "I'm not choosing anyone over anyone else. I won't play this game with you."

"No, you have to choose," I demanded, my voice breaking through the tense atmosphere. "Choose between me and your new family!"

Alpha Victor's gaze, once warm and comforting, turned cold and distant. "Darlene, you're putting me in an impossible position. I won't choose. I can't."

My frustration boiled over. "You have to choose! Your own daughter or the mistress and your bastard daughter?"

His eyes flashed with anger. "Watch your words, Darlene. I won't tolerate disrespect."

"I won't tolerate being replaced!" I shot back, my emotions raw. "I won't stay here if you won't acknowledge your own blood."

Alpha Victor's face hardened. "If you leave, Darlene, you leave for good. I won't have you disrupt the pack with your selfish demands. If you walk out that door, consider yourself disowned."

I stood there, stunned. The weight of his words crashed over me, and the realization that my own father would disown me left me breathless. "You can't be serious," I whispered, my voice barely audible.

He met my gaze with steely resolve. "I am dead serious. This pack is my responsibility, and I won't let anyone tear it apart, even if it's my own daughter."

The mansion seemed to close in around me as the gravity of his ultimatum sank in.

Disowned?

The word echoed in my mind, each syllable a painful reminder of the choice I was being forced to make. Tears welled up in my eyes, a mix of disbelief and heartbreak.

"You love them more than you love me," I said, my voice choking with emotion. "Your own flesh and blood, and you would cast me aside for a new family."

Alpha Victor's expression remained unyielding. "I love you, Darlene, but I won't let you destroy what I've built for the sake of your own pride."

Pride? Was that what he thought this was about? Anguish and anger mingled within me. "This is about family, not pride. If you can't see that, then maybe I'm better off without you."

Without waiting for a response, I turned and fled, the echo of my footsteps reverberating through the empty corridors. I ran to my room, the tears blurring my vision. Slamming the door shut behind me, I collapsed onto my bed, the weight of the situation bearing down on me.