The Alpha's Secret Legacy

Chapter 21

Harry's Pov

We stood there in silence.

No one moved.

No one spoke.

Just the sound of our breathing and the heavy weight of what had just happened sitting in the room with us.

Clifford was gone.

But his letter... was still here.

In our hands.

We kept staring at it like it might change if we looked long enough.

Like maybe the words would rearrange themselves into something easier to accept.

But they didn't.

In the end, we all agreed without saying it out loud.

We'd read it together.

I took a breath and unfolded the paper.

My hands weren't steady.

None of ours were.

And I started reading.

Dear Ni, Dani, Li, Haz, Lou, Gem, Greg n' Tim,

Hi guys.

If you're reading this... then I guess it's already too late.

First of all... I'm sorry.

For everything.

For what I did.

For what my father did through me.

And I know you're probably confused right now about who I mean by "father."

The truth is... the demon you fought wasn't just some random monster.

He was my real father.

Not the man who raised me.

Not the one I thought I belonged to.

The real one.

Everything else... was a lie I lived inside.

I know that doesn't excuse anything.

It doesn't fix what happened.

It doesn't bring anyone back.

But I need you to know the truth before I go.

I didn't want things to turn out like this.

I tried to stop him.

I really did.

But in the end... I failed.

And because of that... people got hurt.

I got hurt.

And now I'm gone.

You can hate me if you want.

I understand.

I probably deserve it.

But I hope... someday... you'll forgive me.

Or at least try to.

Take your time.

I'm not going anywhere anymore.

I'll wait.

— Clifford xx

The letter ended.

But no one spoke.

Not right away.

The silence felt heavier now.

Different.

Like something had been taken from the room and left a hollow space behind.

I lowered the paper slowly.

My throat felt tight.

He was a pain in the ass most of the time.

Annoying.

Arrogant.

Always acting like he didn't care.

But reading this...

It made everything feel different.

Real.

Niall wiped his face quickly, pretending he wasn't crying.

Gemma looked down at the floor, arms crossed tightly.

Liam exhaled shakily.

Tim stood still, unreadable.

And then Zayn broke the silence.

"I'm not heartless," he said quietly, "but I can't forgive him that easily... not after what happened to my wife."

We all nodded slowly.

No one argued.

Because we understood.

Loss doesn't heal just because words are written on paper.

Gemma sighed softly. "Take your time. He'll understand... wherever he is."

"I still can't believe the demon was his father," Niall muttered, shaking his head.

"Calm down," Zayn said gently. "People are scared of their past. Doesn't mean they choose it."

"Yeah," Greg added quietly. "Let it go... he's gone now."

That made Niall snap his head up.

"Why?" he asked suddenly.

Greg frowned. "Why what?"

"Why did you lie to us?" Niall's voice cracked. "Why did you take Chrissy away? Why did you make us think she was gone? Do you know how sick we were worrying?"

The room tensed instantly.

Greg closed his eyes for a second.

Then he exhaled.

"I didn't have a choice," he said quietly. "I was trying to kill him from the inside. That was the plan. He told me to do it... I thought I could end it quietly. I thought I could fix everything without dragging you all into it."

His voice dropped.

"But I was wrong."

Silence again.

Thicker this time.

But softer.

Less angry.

More understanding.

Liam spoke first. "We get it... really. If we were in your position, we might've done the same thing."

Louis nodded beside me. "Love makes people do stupid things. Doesn't mean they're bad."

He looked at me for a second when he said it.

I felt that.

Deep.

And then—

Danielle suddenly stood up straight.

"Where's Chrissy?"

Everything stopped.

Just like that.

No one answered.

Because none of us knew.

And for the first time since this started...

That silence felt dangerous.