Five Alphas Kneel for Me (Isabella) novel Chapter 573

Chapter 573.

I was silent for a few seconds. Honestly, I wanted to tell him his wolf was better off not scenting this truth. The reality regarding Wendy it more insidious, more gut–wrenching, than anything she’d ever revealed to him. I wanted my cousin and uncle to see Wendy for the rogue s was, to prevent the tragedy of my past life, but I never intended to wound their spirits so deeply.

Caleb let out a bitter, humorless laugh that sliced through the quiet of the pack–cruiser. “I can handle it,” he insisted, his Alpha aura flickering jagged edge. “My wolf needs to know.”

I simply reached out a finger and lightly tapped the crystal projection set into the center console. The screen lit up, displaying the high–tier d where Lola was staying. Right at that moment, Wendy walked in.

The Wendy on screen–where was any trace of the submissive humility and remorse she’d just displayed at the Citadel? She was practically vi vith excitement, gripping Lola’s hand, her face completely unmasked, brimming with triumph and the scent of raw greed.

Lola! I knew it! Caleb still has a soft spot for me! Lola, look at this!”

Wendy thrust the parchment Caleb had just sealed with his Alpha mark into Lola’s hands. A surge of happiness washed over Lola’s face too, o Imost immediately tinged with that familiar, predatory dissatisfaction.

Mom, what good is just a nominal title in the Grant Pack? How many credits did he actually transfer?”

Vendy patted Lola’s hand with a doting smile, her scent cloying like overripe fruit. “Silly she–wolf, the Grant Pack’s prestigious name is far mo aluable than hundreds of millions in tribute! With that brand power, when we go out to the other territories to fundraise, Alphas will be tripp ver each other to hand us their resources!”

Then, from the tribute we receive, we’ll take ten percent and invest heavily in your promotion on the Howlnet, turning you into the territory’s 1 enowned charity Luna!”

ola’s eyes lit up with a golden glint. “What about the rest?”

Vendy playfully pinched her cheek, her face beaming with affection, her voice practically buzzing with uncontainable excitement. The other nir ercent, naturally, will be deposited directly into our Lola’s personal vault! To be your mate–tribute!”

ola beamed, flinging herself into Wendy’s embrace and cooing, Thanks, Mom! You’re the best in the pack!”

Silly girl, who else would I be loyal to if not my own blood?”

Vendy hugged her close, grinning from ear to ear. As they snuggled close on the screen, they looked like true, blood–related kin–a picture–perfe nage of a real family unit, untainted by the lies they fed the rest of us.

deathly silence fell over the cruiser. The harsh glow from the projection bathed Caleb’s face, draining it of all color, leaving him looking utterly loodless. His gaze was locked, unblinking, on the screen. He was so still, so utterly rigid, I could almost feel the temperature drop around him, as if lood in his veins was turning to ice with every agonizing second he watched that unbearable betrayal.

uddenly, I understood: His mother’s earlier humble, remorseful act must have been nothing but a scent–masking lie. And I knew, watching him, th e was realizing then just how she truly saw him: a soft–hearted Alpha pup, easily manipulated for her own gain.

watched his hand, clenched around a water bottle, turn stark white at the knuckles, his wolf’s claws threatening to unsheathe as veins bulged fiercely cross the back of his hand. The scene on the screen played on, and their laughter–the “mother and daughter’s–sounded like a thousand silver needl iercing not just his ears, but my own.

He couldn’t watch another second.

Silence it,” he commanded. His voice was so hoarse it sounded like claws scraping against stone.

pressed the switch, and the screen instantly went dark. Darkness and silence returned to the vehicle. I watched Caleb. There was no Alpha roar, no cream, not even a single tear from his wolf. His face was a mask of utter blankness, a dead stillness that spoke of numb despair.

drove Caleb back to the gates of the Grant family estate. He moved like a puppet drained of its soul, mechanically opening the door, stepping out, and :losing it behind him. He didn’t utter another word, not one, the entire time. I wanted to help him, to offer the comfort of a pack–mate, but he waved me off, stumbling as he walked into the villa.

Once inside, Caleb went straight to the lower levels, the basement, utterly silent. I knew his mother had forbidden him from going down there when they were living in other territories. She’d always claimed the lower den was too dirty, too cluttered, and had warned him to stay away from the

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shadows there.

But now, his wolf needed to see what was hidden.

He twisted the heavy handle and stepped inside. The basement, I would later learn, was surprisingly clean–not at all the dirty, cluttered mess his had described. Someone had clearly been tending to this territory recently. Old artifacts and furniture filled the space, yet it was remarkably well–maintained. Despite its age, every piece gleamed in the dim light.

He wouldn’t have recognized any of it, I realized. It was ancient, the kind of craftsmanship that simply didn’t belong in the modern Grant mansion–pieces from thirty years ago, from a different era of the pack. He must have wandered through the dark in a daze, his mind still reeling suddenly, his hand brushed against a stack of crates.

A sharp crash echoed through the silence.

A box went flying, hitting the stone floor. The old copper lock, brittle with age, instantly shattered open. The lid sprung open, spilling its conten the floor. And then, I knew, his movements froze.

There they were: yellowed letters, old photographs, and… a delicate–looking journal. I watched him crouch down, compelled by some invisible pack–instinct, to pick up the overturned box. The first things he picked up were those old photos, scattered just outside.

The photos were already yellowed, their edges frayed and soft like old fur. The first one showed my mother, younger, with two braided pigtails, bright, shy smile on her face as she leaned against a handsome young man’s shoulder.

That he–wolf wasn’t my father, Carson.

My heart gave a sudden, hard jolt. I kept looking. The second, then the third… almost all of them were my mother with this stranger. They were by ake, on a country road lined with blooming rapeseed fields, perched on a worn–out bicycle… In every single photo, my mother’s face glowed wit heartfelt, unreserved happiness and love that I’d never seen before–not even once in our home.

That look in her eyes… she’d never directed it at my father, or at me. My breath hitched, a knot tightening in my chest as my wolf whimpered. My į dropped to the scattered letters, and I reached for one.

On the envelope, the recipient’s name was “Wendy.” The signature, though, was a name completely new to me–Adrian.

Wendy, it’s like seeing you here with me. The rain’s fallen in the Silvermoon territory again. Did you remember your umbrella? The painting I’ve b working on for you is finished. I’ll bring it when we next meet at the border…”

My Wendy, you said you loved sycamore trees, so I planted one in our old spot, where we used to meet. When it grows tall, well mark our territor ogether…”

Wendy, wait for me! I promise I’ll come back and seal our blood bond!”

The words in the letters were overflowing with a tender, heartbreaking love and promises of a fated match. I read them, one letter after another, as a world belonging to my mother–a world I had never even known existed–slowly unfurled before me. My mother, before my father ever came into t >icture, had an unforgettable first love.

So what? Everyone has a past before they find their mate. I tried to tell myself that, but my heart felt like it was being squeezed tight by an invisible hand, the pain so sharp I could barely breathe. My last sliver of hope now rested on the thick journal.

The diary, with its dark blue cover embossed with golden patterns, was secured by a tiny silver lock. Caleb stared at the lock. I knew him–a true Alphi gentleman, raised never to pry into another’s secrets. But even then, I could feel the powerful, almost desperate pull he must have felt, an undeniable urge to read what lay inside the heart of his mother’s deception.

Then, with a sudden, decisive jerk, he tore the lock right off! I saw his hands tremble as he flipped open the first page. Neat handwriting filled the page holding all the secrets of a young she–wolf.

Today, I saw Adrian again. He smiled at me in his white shirt under the sun, and my heart almost leaped out of my chest. Adrian said he liked my eyes the most. He said my eyes held the stars of the Moon Goddess.

We’re together! I’m so happy! I want to marry him, have beautiful pups with him, just like him.

I gathered, page after page, that her entire soul had been devoted to that man, Adrian.

< Chapter 574