The scents of roasted meats and spiced vegetables filled the grand dining hall, but I had no appetite. Seated at the ornate table, I felt their eyes on me—Alpha Garett, Luna Selina, and Hera, the golden-haired girl who once believed she was their daughter. Across from me, Hera offered a sweet smile, her eyes sharp and calculating beneath it.
The tension was suffocating. My fork scraped against the plate, the sound grating in the oppressive silence. Alpha Garett broke it first. “Calla, I know this is overwhelming, but you’re home now. You are the rightful heir, our true daughter. Your place is here.”
I set my fork down, trying to keep my trembling hands steady. “You keep saying that, but I don’t even know you. I grew up in the human world. My parents—” My voice cracked. “They raised me.”
Selina reached across the table, her hand warm on mine. “They loved you, and we’re grateful they kept you safe. But the human world was never meant for you. You belong here, Calla.”
I pulled my hand back. “I don’t belong anywhere—not here, not there. Everything I trusted is gone. And now you expect me to just... accept this?”