Dark Shadow (Book 1 in the REWRITTEN DARKNESS Duology)

Twenty-One: The Quail Wolf is Revealed

“I’m not going.”

Dad sighed, nodding that he understood why I wouldn’t want to attend the wedding of my ex-mate, but that it was the alpha’s orders that everyone was to go. I narrowed my eyes at him, remaining firm on my bed with my arms crossed.

“It’s not like he won’t know I’m there,” I mumbled.

“Not true,” Dad replied. He was fingering the porcelain carousel I had stopped using so long ago. Now it was just a dresser decoration.

Dad frowned that he and Alpha Beaumont were to discuss with Alpha Hannibal the matter of me after the wedding as promised. Dad mentioned how the alpha would notice my absence and that would make it seem like I was trying to run.

“I would rather have that, in all honesty,” Dad grumbled, looking away from the carousel and at me instead. “He’s selling my daughter off like cattle. If I wasn’t trying to keep you safe… trying to hide your secret… I’d challenge him.”

My eyes widened at Dad’s confession.

Challenging an alpha was big. It wasn’t done very often because of the birth right of respect that each alpha was given. For someone without alpha blood to become alpha was a big deal, but also looked down upon by our kind because anyone without actual Alpha Blood would taint the bloodline through their offspring.

It was also difficult to defeat an alpha.

Only someone just as strong was able to beat them. But just because you’re an alpha, doesn’t mean you’re the best fighter. There’s a reason why Alpha Beaumont always had his favorite person—Dad—around all the time. In case of an attack for whatever reason, Dad would probably come out surviving more than the alpha would.

I looked down at my hands in my lap and swallowed, “It’s going to be so hard seeing him, Dad.”

His dress shoes stepped lightly over to sit beside me. Dad touched my hand with his warm one, bending his head to catch my eyes.

“And I’m sure it’s going to be just as hard for him, Button. You rejected him, after all. Imagine trying to give yourself to someone who you don’t love…? He’s going to be standing up there with Molly, and not be able to say a thing about it because only one thing is standing in his way.”

I frowned, glancing at him to mumble, “His baby?”

Dad shook his head, a light grin on his face. “No… you.”

As he studied my confusion, Dad sighed. He squinted in front of him, trying to gather the right words. He looked at me, raising a brow and pointed out that just because Ridge was having a baby with Molly, didn’t mean Ridge couldn’t be just as devoted to that child as much as to me.

Dad nodded to the side, scrunching his nose as he mentioned that, yes, Ridge was willing to give up Molly and the baby for me but had both Ridge and I took some time to have space and then regrouped, things could have turned out differently today.

“If you both took the time to see the positive in this situation, you guys could have realized that Ridge would only have responsibility to his child. Not her.”

My dad tucked in his lips, shaking his head again.

“I understand you thought you were being selfless for the sake of the pack having its reputation. For Ridge having his reputation. But Gigi… Did you ever think that maybe taking away the love of his life from him— the one he just got because of what Molly had done—would only ruin him down the line?”

My neck craned back, narrowing my eyes and scoffed, “But he rejected me first!”

Dad shrugged a shoulder, pursing his mouth to the side that he knew that.