Chapter 4: The Secret Between Two Bloodlines
2743 Words
The message remained on the ancient page long after the lights returned.
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
The words were simple.
But they carried the weight of a death sentence.
THE RIBEIRO HEIR WILL BE THE ONE TO DESTROY HER.
Isadora stared at the message.
Then she looked at Caetano.
For the first time since their bond had awakened, she did not see the powerful Alpha heir everyone respected.
She saw a man who was afraid.
Not afraid of an enemy.
Afraid of himself.
“How long have you known?”
Caetano did not answer immediately.
That hesitation was enough.
Isadora’s chest tightened.
“How long?”
“Since the ceremony.”
Her expression hardened.
“So you knew there was something dangerous about me.”
“Yes.”
“You knew your family was connected to mine.”
“Yes.”
“And you still let me believe I was the problem.”
Caetano looked away.
“I was trying to protect you.”
The anger inside her exploded.
“Everyone keeps saying that.”
Her voice echoed through the library.
“Protect me.”
She laughed bitterly.
“Do you know what it feels like to spend your entire life believing something is wrong with you?”
Caetano said nothing.
“To believe your own wolf doesn’t want you?”
Her eyes filled with frustration.
“To finally feel that connection, only to have the person who is supposed to understand you look at you like you’re a danger?”
Caetano took a step closer.
“I never thought you were dangerous.”
“Then what did you think?”
His voice lowered.
“I thought the world would destroy you.”
The answer caught her off guard.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Because the pain in his voice sounded real.
But real pain did not erase what happened.
“You should have trusted me enough to tell me.”
“I wanted to.”
“Wanted?”
Caetano closed his eyes.
“I saw what would happen if I told you.”
Isadora frowned.
“What does that mean?”
Before he could answer, Leandro entered the library.
His expression was serious.
“We have a problem.”
Caetano immediately turned.
“What happened?”
“One of the attackers was captured.”
Maristela looked surprised.
“They survived?”
Leandro nodded.
“But there is something strange.”
He looked at Isadora.
“The creature asked for her.”
Everyone became silent.
Isadora felt a cold feeling move through her body.
“Why?”
Leandro hesitated.
“Because it said the Eclipse Wolf would know the truth.”
Caetano’s expression changed.
“Where is it?”
“The old underground chamber.”
Isadora looked at him.
“I’m coming.”
Caetano immediately shook his head.
“No.”
She raised an eyebrow.
“No?”
“It’s dangerous.”
A small, humorless smile appeared on her face.
“Everything is dangerous now.”
“Isadora.”
“No, Caetano.”
She stepped closer.
“You don’t get to decide when I’m involved anymore.”
The words hit him.
Because he knew she was right.
For years, everyone had made choices for her.
Her pack.
The elders.
Even him.
She was finished being powerless.
“I’m coming,” she repeated.
After a moment, Caetano nodded.
Not because he agreed.
Because he finally understood he could not control her.
The underground chamber was hidden beneath the oldest part of the Ribeiro territory.
Isadora noticed the irony immediately.
Her ancestors had been hunted by this family, yet the answers about her existence were buried beneath their home.
The captured wolf was chained inside the chamber.
But something about him was wrong.
He looked like a normal wolf.
Until his eyes met Isadora’s.
Then fear crossed his face.
“You’re alive.”
Isadora stepped forward.
“Who are you?”
The wolf laughed quietly.
“You really don’t know.”
“No.”
His expression changed.
“That’s why they were able to hide you.”
Caetano moved closer.
“Who sent you?”
The wolf ignored him.
He looked only at Isadora.
“Your family was not destroyed because they were weak.”
Isadora remained still.
“Then why?”
“Because they discovered the truth.”
“What truth?”
The wolf smiled.
A cruel smile.
“The Moon Goddess never created mates to unite wolves.”
Everyone froze.
“What are you talking about?”
The wolf looked at Caetano.
“She created bonds to control them.”
The chamber became silent.
Isadora looked confused.
Caetano’s expression darkened.
“That’s impossible.”
“Is it?”
The creature laughed.
“For centuries, wolves have believed fate chooses their perfect match.”
His eyes returned to Isadora.
“But what if fate chooses what it needs?”
The words disturbed her.
Because something about them felt familiar.
The bond.
The pull between her and Caetano.
Was it truly love?
Or was it something designed?
Before anyone could question him further, the creature suddenly screamed.
Dark energy spread across his body.
The chains broke.
Caetano moved instantly, but Isadora stopped him.
“Wait.”
The creature looked at her.
“You deserve to know what they did to you.”
Then his body collapsed.
Silence filled the chamber.
The creature was dead.
But his final words remained.
Later that night, Isadora sat alone outside the territory.
She needed air.
She needed distance.
Too many truths had fallen apart in one night.
The girl who believed she was unwanted had discovered she carried an ancient bloodline.
The man who rejected her had been hiding a reason.
And now she questioned the one thing she thought she understood.
The mate bond.
Footsteps approached.
She did not turn.
“I thought you would come.”
Caetano stopped beside her.
“You always know when I’m nearby?”
She almost smiled.
“Apparently my mysterious wolf abilities include knowing when annoying people are approaching.”
For the first time in days, Caetano almost smiled.
Almost.
Then the seriousness returned.
“I owe you the truth.”
She looked at him.
“Then start.”
He sat beside her.
Not as an Alpha.
Not as someone above her.
Just a man.
“My family knew about the Eclipse Wolves.”
Isadora waited.
“They believed your bloodline was too powerful.”
“And?”
“They created a way to control them.”
Her heart sank.
“What way?”
Caetano looked at their hands.
At the invisible bond connecting them.
“The Ribeiro bloodline was created to balance Eclipse power.”
Isadora stared at him.
“No.”
“Yes.”
“That means…”
He nodded slowly.
“My family was never meant to protect yours.”
A pause.
“They were meant to control yours.”
The silence between them felt heavier than anything before.
Isadora stood.
“You are the reason they feared me.”
Caetano looked at her.
“No.”
His voice was quiet.
“I am the reason they never found you.”
She stopped.
“What?”
Caetano looked toward the dark forest.
“Because my family has spent generations searching for the last Eclipse Wolf.”
His eyes returned to hers.
“And I spent five years making sure they never found you.”
Before Isadora could respond, a howl echoed through the mountains.
Not from the territory.
From far away.
A warning.
Then every wolf in the area felt it.
A new presence.
A powerful one.
Someone had crossed into their lands.
Leandro’s voice came through the mind link.
“Caetano.”
His tone was urgent.
“We have another problem.”
Caetano stood.
“What?”
A pause.
Then:
“The person who attacked us…”
Another pause.
“He wasn’t working alone.”
Isadora looked toward the forest.
A figure appeared between the trees.
Watching them.
Waiting.
And when the moonlight revealed his face, Caetano’s expression changed.
Because he knew him.
“Vicente.”
The man smiled.
“Hello, Caetano.”
His eyes moved to Isadora.
“So this is the last Eclipse Wolf.”
Isadora felt her mark burn.
And for the first time, she understood something terrifying.
The world had not forgotten her.
The world had been waiting for her.
Chapter 5: The Man Who Came for the Eclipse Wolf
The forest went completely still.
Isadora had always thought silence meant peace.
She was beginning to understand that silence could also mean danger.
The stranger standing between the trees did not move.
He simply watched them.
Like he had been waiting for this exact moment.
Caetano stepped forward immediately.
His entire body changed.
The calm man who had sat beside Isadora moments earlier disappeared.
The Alpha heir returned.
“Vicente Alvarenga.”
The stranger smiled.
“Still using that tone with me, Caetano?”
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
That bothered Isadora more than anger would have.
Dangerous people did not always need to shout.
Sometimes they smiled.
Caetano’s hands tightened into fists.
“You entered my territory without permission.”
Vicente looked around.
“Your territory?”
A quiet laugh escaped him.
“How quickly we forget history.”
Isadora noticed the reaction.
Caetano hated him.
Not the way someone hated an enemy.
Something deeper.
Something personal.
“Who is he?” Isadora asked.
Caetano did not look away from Vicente.
“An Alpha from the northern territories.”
Vicente smiled.
“An old friend.”
“Not anymore.”
The response was immediate.
Isadora looked between them.
Something was missing.
A part of the story neither man wanted to explain.
Vicente’s eyes moved to her.
“So it’s true.”
Isadora felt uncomfortable under his attention.
“What?”
“The Eclipse Wolf survived.”
She hated how everyone spoke about her like she was a discovery.
A weapon.
A legend.
Anything except a person.
“I have a name.”
Vicente tilted his head.
“Of course you do.”
He stepped closer.
“Isadora Valença.”
The fact that he knew her name made her body tense.
“You’ve been looking for me.”
It was not a question.
Vicente smiled slightly.
“For longer than you know.”
Caetano moved between them.
“Take another step and you will regret it.”
Vicente looked amused.
“There he is.”
He glanced at Isadora.
“The man who rejected his own mate to protect her.”
Isadora’s eyes narrowed.
“How do you know about that?”
Vicente looked at Caetano.
“Because I know the vision he saw.”
The forest became colder.
Caetano’s expression changed.
“What did you say?”
Vicente smiled.
“You thought you were the only one who knew what fate showed you?”
Isadora looked at Caetano.
“What is he talking about?”
Caetano did not answer.
That was becoming a habit.
And she was starting to hate it.
Vicente continued.
“The problem with secrets, Isadora, is that they eventually become weapons.”
His eyes moved to the mark on her skin.
“Especially when they involve ancient bloodlines.”
Caetano stepped forward.
“This conversation is over.”
Vicente ignored him.
“Do you know what your ancestors were capable of?”
Isadora remained silent.
“They could sense lies.”
She frowned.
“They could see corruption.”
The wind moved through the trees.
“They could break supernatural bonds.”
Caetano’s expression hardened.
Vicente noticed.
“Yes.”
He smiled.
“That part bothers you, doesn’t it?”
Isadora looked at Caetano.
“What does he mean?”
Caetano looked away.
And that was the answer.
Something about their bond.
Something he had not told her.
“You can break bonds?”
Isadora’s voice was quiet.
Caetano finally looked at her.
“Not intentionally.”
“But it’s possible.”
“Yes.”
The word hurt.
Because suddenly she understood why everyone was afraid.
Her existence was not only about power.
Her existence threatened the entire system.
Vicente watched the realization appear on her face.
“You understand now.”
Isadora turned toward him.
“Understand what?”
“That everyone has a reason to fear you.”
Caetano’s voice became dangerous.
“Enough.”
But Vicente continued.
“Your own mate fears what you can become.”
The words hit harder than Isadora expected.
Because a small part of her had always wondered the same thing.
Was Caetano protecting her?
Or was he protecting everyone from her?
Vicente stepped backward.
“I did not come here to fight.”
Caetano laughed coldly.
“You entered my territory with information about my mate.”
“I came with an offer.”
“No.”
“You don’t even know what it is.”
“I know enough.”
Vicente looked at Isadora.
“I can teach you what you are.”
The offer caught her attention.
Not because she trusted him.
She didn’t.
But because she was tired of being the only person who knew nothing about herself.
Caetano noticed.
“No.”
Isadora looked at him.
“No?”
His expression softened.
“Isadora, he is not offering answers. He is offering control.”
Vicente smiled.
“Interesting.”
He looked at her.
“Even now, he thinks he gets to decide.”
The words irritated her because they were true.
Caetano had protected her.
But he had also controlled the situation.
Everyone kept making choices for her.
She stepped forward.
“Why should I believe either of you?”
Neither man answered.
Because neither had a good answer.
Then the ground shook.
A deep sound moved beneath the forest.
Not a howl.
Not an animal.
Something older.
The trees around them began to darken.
Caetano immediately looked toward the mountains.
“No.”
Isadora noticed his reaction.
“What?”
His face had gone pale.
“The seal.”
Vicente’s smile disappeared.
For the first time, he looked concerned.
“What did you do?”
Caetano looked at him.
“You know exactly what happened.”
Isadora looked between them.
“What seal?”
Neither answered.
Then a c***k appeared across the ground.
A strange black mist rose from beneath the earth.
Every wolf nearby felt it.
The ancient wolf that had bowed to Isadora appeared from the forest.
But this time, it was afraid.
The creature looked at Isadora.
Then at Caetano.
And spoke directly into their minds.
“The prison has opened.”
Isadora felt a chill.
“What prison?”
The ancient wolf looked toward the mountains.
“The one created to contain the first corruption.”
The mark on Isadora’s skin burned violently.
She fell to one knee.
Caetano reached for her.
But before he touched her, she saw something.
A memory.
Not hers.
An ancient memory.
A woman with silver eyes.
An Eclipse Wolf.
Standing beside a man from the Ribeiro bloodline.
They were not enemies.
They were lovers.
Then she saw them fighting.
The Ribeiro man was holding a blade.
The Eclipse woman was crying.
And before the vision ended, Isadora heard the words:
“If you love me, you must be the one to kill me.”
She gasped and returned to reality.
Caetano was holding her shoulders.
“What did you see?”
Isadora stared at him.
Because the answer changed everything.
The first Eclipse Wolf and the first Ribeiro Alpha were not enemies.
They were mates.
Just like them.
She looked at Caetano.
“Your family didn’t destroy mine because they hated us.”
His expression changed.
“What are you saying?”
Her voice shook.
“I think they destroyed them because they loved them.”
Nobody spoke.
Even Vicente looked surprised.
Then the ancient wolf turned toward the mountains.
A second sound echoed.
A roar.
Something had awakened.
Something that had been trapped for centuries.
Vicente’s face lost all color.
“No…”
Caetano looked at him.
“You know what that is.”
For the first time, Vicente looked afraid.
“It was never supposed to wake this soon.”
Isadora stood slowly.
“What was never supposed to wake?”
Vicente looked at her.
And whispered:
“The first Eclipse Wolf.”
A cold wind swept through the forest.
Then a voice entered Isadora’s mind.
A voice that sounded exactly like hers.
“Finally… my daughter has returned.”
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