The hybrid nobody wanted

Chapter 2:The mother’s secret

I didn't sleep.

Every time I closed my eyes, I saw him. Those dark eyes. That face ,beautiful and terrifying. And the bond... it hummed under my skin like a second heartbeat, pulling, waiting.

Mine.

His voice echoed in my skull. Not spoken. Felt.

I'd spent my whole life invisible. Alone. And in one night, some ancient vampire had shattered all of it.

Dawn crept through the broken window. I should move. Go back to the bar. Check on Mira and Jax and Old Tom.

But my legs wouldn't cooperate.

Instead, I reached into my pocket and pulled out my mother's locket. I'd never been able to open it. Never really tried. Some secrets were better left buried.

But after last night? After him?

I needed answers.

The bar was quiet when I slipped through the back door.

Too quiet.

"Old Tom?" I called. "Mira? Jax?"

Nothing.

My heart hammered. I pushed through the kitchen door.

And found them all sitting at the table. Staring at me.

Jax's arms were crossed, his wolf eyes glowing. Mira's fingers crackled with witch fire. Old Tom looked like he'd aged ten years overnight.

"You want to explain," Jax growled, "why a Vampire King's executioner walked into our bar last night looking for you?"

I opened my mouth. Closed it.

Mira's eyes narrowed. "Don't lie. I'll know."

So I didn't lie.

I told them everything. The bond. The pull. The word he'd whispered “mine”. The way my wolf and vampire had both screamed in agreement for the first time in my life.

When I finished, silence filled the kitchen.

Old Tom stood slowly and walked to a cabinet I'd never seen him open. He pulled out a small wooden box. Worn. Ancient. Covered in symbols.

"Your mother left this with me," he said quietly. "She made me promise to give it to you only when the time was right."

I stared at the box. "When is the time right?"

Old Tom's eyes met mine. "When the hunter came."

My blood turned to ice.

He set the box before me. My hands shook as I touched it ,and something warmed inside. The box recognized me.

It clicked open.

Inside: a letter, yellowed with age. A ring with wolf and vampire symbols intertwined. A small velvet pouch that clinked when I touched it.

I opened the letter first. My mother's handwriting.

My dearest Raya,

If you're reading this, the hunter has found you. I'm so sorry, my love.

Your father was not a wolf. He was a vampire. The Vampire King.

And he was murdered the night you were born.

I stopped reading. The words blurred.

Mira leaned forward. "Raya? What is it?"

I couldn't answer. I kept reading.

The current King killed your father. He's been hunting you ever since. Not to kill you, worse. He wants to use you.

There's a prophecy: a child of two bloods will end the war between wolves and vampires. The King believes you're the key to his eternal rule.

I ran with you the night your father died. I hid you. But I always knew this day would come.

Look in the place where the moon meets the earth.

I love you, my little flame. Always.

(Mama)

The letter ended. My hands shook.

Jax broke the silence: "Raya. What does it say?"

I looked up. "My father was the Vampire King. The current King murdered him. And there's a prophecy... about me."

Mira's face went pale. "What kind of prophecy?"

"The kind that gets people killed." I folded the letter. "The kind that explains why a vampire executioner showed up last night calling me mine."

Old Tom sank into his chair. "Oh child. I'd hoped..."

"You knew?" The words came out sharp. "You knew and never told me?"

"I promised your mother." His voice cracked. "She wanted you to have a normal life."

"Normal?" I laughed , bitter, broken. "I'm half-werewolf, half-vampire, being hunted by a King, and bonded to his executioner. There's nothing normal about my life!"

I grabbed the ring from the box. It felt warm in my palm.

And through the bond, I felt him stir. Dorian. Somewhere in the city. Feeling my pain.

Raya. His voice in my mind ,soft. What's wrong?

I slammed walls around the bond. Stay out of my head.

"The place where the moon meets the earth," I muttered. "What does that mean?"

Mira's eyes widened. "The Moonstone Temple. Three days north. Through werewolf territory."

I stood. "Then that's where I'm going."

Jax stood too. "That's suicide!"

"Staying here is suicide." I faced him. "The King knows about me now. Running isn't enough anymore. I need answers."

Mira rose slowly. "And if you don't like what you find?"

I looked at the ring. At the letter. At the locket around my neck.

"Then at least I'll know."

I turned to leave.

"Raya." Old Tom's voice stopped me. "The hunter... what did he say?"

I remembered his face. His whispered word.

"He said... mine."

Old Tom's face went pale. "The bond doesn't lie, child. Even when everything else does."

I didn't answer. I walked out.

The moment I stepped into the alley, I felt him.

Dorian. Standing in the shadows. Watching.

I froze. My hand went to my dagger.

"You heard," I said flatly. "Through the bond."

A pause. "I felt your pain. I came to make sure you're safe."

I laughed. "You're the one hunting me!"

"I'm the one protecting you." His voice was low. "The King wants you alive."

"Then why not capture me now?"

He stepped closer. I stepped back. The bond pulled.

"Because," he said softly, "I can't."

Our eyes met. The bond burned. For one moment, I wanted to stop running.

Instead, I said: "I'm going north. Don't follow me."

I walked away. Heart pounding.

His voice followed: "You can't outrun me, Raya. The bond won't let you. And neither will I."

I didn't look back.

But I felt him. Watching. Waiting. Wanting.

Somewhere deep inside , in the part of me that had been alone my whole life, that had never belonged anywhere or to anyone ,I didn't entirely hate it.