It was usually her mom's words that came to her when she needed them the most. It was like whenever she was sad or scared, whenever the wind was blowing right through her, a little butterfly would land on her finger and tell her that it was all going to be alright.

But this time, she couldn't remember her mom's words with ease. There was an eerie silence around her, outside and in. She was standing in the forest alone. It was the same place she and Kaleb had gone after the Lunar Ceremony. It was here that her path had drastically changed direction, where everything had started going wrong. 

That's where it had started, Kaia realized, when she had chosen to tug on the loose string, to follow her curiosity. Because for some reason, she'd had to know the truth. Was it regret that hung heavy around her heart? It felt like this massive lead weight that she had to drag around with her. 

Kaia's father wasn't her father. It was terrifying how badly Kaia suddenly wanted the man she'd grown up with to be her birth father because anything was better than Jack. But he wasn't. Jack was. And that made Kaia want to scratch her arms out until all of that bad blood in her veins disappeared. 

The man who'd killed her mother, the murderer that Kaia had hated for years was her father. The thought alone made Kaia's head spin, and she leaned heavily against the tree, sliding down it despite the bark scraping at her skin. 

Maybe it was because thinking about her gave Kaia's mind a break from her other worries, but she couldn't stop wondering who the woman was who she'd seen in Jack's mind. She also thought about how Kaleb felt about her now that he knew that Jack was her father, the same man who'd murdered his parents; but she wasn't worried. The fear had disappeared just as quickly as it had come. Kaia didn't hate herself, so why should Kaleb hate her? She trusted their bond.

Kaia was tired. She did want to have to think about all of her problems any longer. She wanted to curl up with a book and hot chocolate at the Prowler Mansion and read, to cry, to hide.

But Kaia couldn't disappear. She was Luna, and she had to face the music. Being Luna came with a responsibility to her Pack to make a decision. She'd stopped Kaleb from killing Jack on the spot but hadn't been sure why. Perhaps it was to spare Kaleb from having more blood on his hands. She hated to think of the possibility that she did it because no matter how disgusting a man he was, Kaia was still connected to Jack. He was her biological father, and since her mother was dead, he was the only birth parent she had left. 

That was a sad thought. 

"Hello, child." At first, Kaia thought that Jack had somehow escaped the cells in the Mansion's basement and found his way out into the forest to haunt her. But then she realized that this voice had none of the false kindness and over-the-top bravado that Jack's had. The word 'child' was ruined for her now, though. 

Kaia turned around slowly and was surprised to see the old man from the Lunar Ceremony standing in front of her, leaning heavily on his cane. He was still wearing a bow tie and donned sweet old man suspenders. He was the definition of adorable, with his kind eyes and soft smile. "What are you doing sitting in the woods alone? Kaleb's not with you?" Ben asked. 

Kaia shook her head, "I needed to think. I do that best when I'm alone in the woods." She nervously laughed. 

Ben nodded, "I understand that. I have a thinking place, too, but I always do it better when my wife's around." 

"Your wife?" Kaia asked. 

Ben nodded and smiled, coming to sit down slowly on a rock near Kaia's spot. His voice was soft and strangely comforting. Kaia felt like she could reveal secrets to this man and not even know she was doing it. "Rosy always has the guts to tell me when I'm playing the fool," Ben said, nodding. 

"Rosy is your wife?" Kaia exclaimed. She remembered Kaleb mentioning it briefly, but had forgotten what with everything going on. Ben looked surprised. Kaia cleared her throat, "Sorry, it's just...I like Rosy a lot." 

Ben laughed, "Me, too." 

Kaia smiled, her heart warm. "You two seem like the perfect couple." 

Ben nodded, "I suppose. But even the best couples argue, Kaia." 

Kaia was confused. It seemed out of place that he would say--oh. "You talked to him?" Kaia asked, staring at her hand and fidgeting.

"I talked to him," Ben confirmed, "But despite what you think, he didn't tell me much of anything, just that you and he might...disagree about Jack."

"Disagree?" Kaia demanded, suddenly on edge, "Why did he say that?"

Ben smiled in understanding and sighed, "Kaia dear if there's one thing that I know about Kaleb it's that he values his family above anything. As you know, he lost his parents when he was young, so Rosy and I helped raise him. Even if Jack is a terrible person, Kaleb understands that he's still your father." 

"But, Jack's-"

Ben raised his hand to quiet her down, and she obeyed, "Kaia, Kaleb loves you. He hates Jack. He'll always hate Jack. But he loves you, and he wants to give you time."

That made sense. Kaleb had barely talked to Kaia since they'd gotten back to the Mansion and she'd managed to tell him the truth about Jack. In return, he'd said his truth. Their lives had just suddenly seemed too impossible to be real. Kaia took a deep breath and pressed her fingers to her eyes where she was starting to feel the soft stinging of tears, "I don't know what to do." 

Ben's voice hushed, "You've been through a lot, child. Take your time." 

Kaia shook her head and looked at Ben, "I don't think it's about time. Waiting won't make this easier." 

"Probably not, no. But Kaleb won't do a thing before you're ready."

Kaia nodded and hugged herself, staring off at nothing in particular. Her gaze was lost among the trees just as the answers she needed were. "He's my father." 

"In a way," Ben said. Kaia looked up at him, waiting for him to save her, to say something that would suddenly make her world stop spinning. "You wouldn't be alive if it weren't for him, yes. But I don't think he's your true father. Part of you probably knows that already." 

Kaia thought of David, the man her mother chose. He'd maybe gone a little crazy, but Kaia wondered if she should try and talk to him again. Perhaps she was ready. "Your father is the one who watched you grow up, who picked you up when you fell and skinned your knee, who taught you right from wrong and carried you on his back. Who made you smile," Ben said, then he went quiet for a moment. 

He stood slowly, leaning on his cane again. Kaia watched him turn back to her and smile warmly, sighing, "Kaleb is my son just as much as he is Alexander's. So, Kaia...it's up to you, when it comes down to it. Who do you want to be your family? Once you have an answer to that question, I think you'll find your path to be much smoother." 

Kaia watched Ben leave. Just before he disappeared behind the trees, Kaia caught a glimpse of Rosy's wispy grays. They must have been out here together. Their little chat had likely been Rosy's idea. She smiled to herself and stood up, running her fingers along the tree's bark. 

Who did Kaia want to be her family? Her mother. Cole. Kaleb. Lionel and Jaeda. Rosy and Ben...David. 

Not Jack, not the man who would kill the mother of his child, who would try to kill his daughter. No, not Jack. That wasn't a real father. That was a monster. Kaia was sure of that. Even if David hadn't been in the right all these years, keeping her home as much as possible and hurting Kaleb, at least, he'd done it to protect her. Even if there was something wrong with her dad, at least his heart was still his. 

☾

"Hi," Kaia said softly. Kaleb looked up immediately. She was standing in the doorway of Kaleb's bedroom wearing one of Kaleb's shirts; it was the one he'd given her when she'd first gotten to the Mansion. She looked tired, but...at peace somehow. 

Kaleb sighed and stared at her. She let him. "How are you?" he asked, watching her as she moved to lean against the doorway. The sleeves of his shirt were pushed up and crumpled. She was adorable. 

"Not sure, to be honest. You?" she asked, watching him run his hand through his hair. 

"Come here and find out," Kaleb said, holding out his hand. She smiled and strode across the room, her soft hair bouncing slightly with each step. She reached out and took his hand. A calm washed over him when he had her hand safe in his. 

Kaleb closed his eyes and pulled her closer, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her forehead. She sighed and hugged him back. "I'm sorry," she said finally. 

Kaleb hadn't realized it at first, but there was a feeling he got whenever Kaia was looking into his heart. It was like an expanding of his chest; suddenly, there wasn't enough room in his rib cage, and he had to make more. It didn't hurt, but Kaleb always knew. That's what he was feeling now. "For what?" he asked, touching her hair. 

She took a deep breath, "I'm going to start crying soon." 

"That's ok," Kaleb said, "I don't mind if you start as long as I can stop it."

Kaia let out a laugh of a sob and nodded against his chest. He closed his eyes and listened to her, rubbing her back and letting her words dominate his attention. "I'm sorry that Jack's my father and that he took your parents from you. For some reason, I feel like it's my fault." 

Kaleb shook his head. "And I know that's stupid, but feelings are stupid, and it's how I feel." 

Kaleb laughed, "I get it." 

"And I'm sorry that I left you even after I told you I wouldn't," Kaia added. 

"You're back, though," Kaleb said quietly. 

Kaia nodded and hugged him tighter, "I know, but I still left. And I'm sorry for it. And I'm sorry that my dad shot you and that Cole seems to have something going on with Lionel." 

"You noticed it, too?" Kaleb asked with a chuckle. 

Kaia laughed and then took a deep breath, like her final apology was going to be the hardest one yet, "And I'm also...Kaleb, I'm sorry that you've had your heart broken so many times, that you've lived such a hard life."

Kaleb was speechless. He just stood for a moment, holding his Luna and trying to figure out what he could say to make her feel better. He decided to tell the truth. "None of that's your fault, Kaia," Kaleb said, "Not even Cole and Lionel." 

Kaia laughed and looked up at him. Kaleb smiled down at her and wiped her tears away, kissing her cheeks. She beamed. "My life has had some bumps, Kaia. I lost my parents. I became Alpha. And yes, I've nearly died multiple times. It hasn't been easy." Kaia nodded, watching him. "But where there's bad there's also good. I have Rosy and Ben. Even Lionel." 

Kaia laughed. "And I have you," Kaleb said, touching her face, "So don't apologize."

She nodded and touched Kaleb's chest, hesitating before her next words and not directly meeting Kaleb's eyes, "I decided that Jack needs to die." 

Kaleb felt relief like he hadn't noticed he'd been holding a breath since he'd found out Jack was Kaia's biological father. "Ok," was all Kaleb said.

Kaia nodded, "Ben helped me realize it." 

He chuckled, "Of course he did." 

Kaia smiled, "He's a smart guy, huh?"

"I think he secretly knows the answer to every question there is," Kaleb said, "But he sometimes decides to let us small-minded people figure the answers out on our own. You know, to learn from it." 

"That sounds accurate," Kaia said, hanging her fingers on Kaleb's belt loops. 

They went quiet again, just staring at each other. Kaia had always been able to read Kaleb without him having to say a word, even when he was a wolf. It was amazing. It was one of the things that had made him fall in love with her. 

So when Kaleb's eyes narrowed, and his lips curved slightly, Kaia smiled back and nodded. And that was all he needed. He leaned down and wrapped his arms around Kaia, lifting her up so that she could hug his hips with her legs. She laughed and swiped her hair away, lowering her lips to his. 

Kaleb chuckled as he kissed her. At first, it was playful. But soon enough, it changed into something else. They hadn't even been apart that long, but it felt like years. The gravity of that slammed into Kaleb the moment she'd made her decision about Jack, and his worries had vanished. He could finally breathe, and he was surrounded by Kaia's intoxicating vanilla scent. Stress left him all at once, he felt his muscles relax, and he fell into a rhythm. 

He moved with Kaia so fluidly it was like they'd been together for ages. Kissing her where she wanted to be kissed, pushing harder when she let out a little moan. He listened to her, watched her. All the while, she could feel her in his heart, his chest heavy because she was in it. She was reading him, listening to what he wanted and doing it. She even bit his neck when the craving passed through his mind. 

He wasn't even entirely aware of himself when he brought Kaia over to the bed. He'd wanted to do this for so long, ached to touch her and taste her. Kaleb had needed her from the moment he first saw her...no, maybe even from the first scent. 

He hovered over her for a second, staring down at her flushed self, watching her chest heave, burying his hand in the soft waves of her hair. Then something struck him, like a slap in the face. He woke up; the trance broke. He was breathing heavily, staring at her. "Kaia, I-" 

But she was already inside of his heart. She already knew. She reached up and touched his face, an expression of confusion on her face. "Maybe we should talk...first," she said, "About everything." 

Kaleb fell onto the bed beside her, and she bounced a bit. She smiled at him and bit her lip. Kaleb nodded and pulled her closer, trapping her waist in his arms and kissing the beauty mark on her neck. She sighed and closed her eyes. "I'll tell you the truth now if you want," Kaleb whispered to her, "Because I want to keep...but there's just-"

"Don't worry about it, Kaleb," Kaia said, "There are things I've got to tell you, too." She kept her eyes closed, and Kaleb relaxed, leaning against the pillows and watching her breathe. It was honestly more comforting than he'd expected. 

After a while, Kaia's breathing slowed. "Are you awake?" Kaleb breathed. Kaia didn't move. Kaleb lowered his head against the pillow and gently touched her skin, tracing shapes on the soft surface. 

"No matter what, I love you," he whispered to his sleeping mate. 

But Kaleb didn't know how important those words were. Because in the next couple of days...he'd need them to survive. 

Because without them, he would tear himself apart. 

Let me know what you thought about this one! Thanks so much for reading, and leave a star and a comment if ya feel like it. Or nah. Up to you. :)