Chapter 35: Untold Secret

Genevieve’s POV

The afternoon sun peeked through my window, moving slowly across the room. It was soft and golden, the kind of light that makes everything feel quiet. It hit the stone floor in long strips, warming up the old tapestries I’d brought from my home pack, Hollowcrown, many years ago. They were the only pieces of my old life I had left.

I sat alone at the wooden table. No maids were buzzing around, no guards were standing by the door. It was just me and the magic book.

​The book was old, older than the stone walls of this packhouse. Its cover was black and as smooth as glass, cold to the touch even on the hottest day. On the front, there was an etching that resembled a mirror, but it didn’t display a reflection. It looked more like someone had pressed their hand into the surface a long time ago and the mark had stayed there forever. A permanent memory of a touch.

​I opened it without waiting. At first, the pages were blank, as white and empty as a fresh snowfall. I placed my fingers gently on the paper and closed my eyes. I took a slow breath in, then out. I felt the air in the room shift, just a little bit, like a tiny shiver running down the spine of the house.

When I opened my eyes, thin, dark letters began to crawl across the page. It looked like invisible ink being pulled by a ghost hand. It wasn’t a language anyone else in this pack could read. It was an ancient tongue my mother taught me when I was just a little girl, sitting by candlelight back in the Hollowcrown Pack.

I read the words carefully. Each one felt like a heavy stone dropping into a still pond. My fingers stopped moving. I leaned forward, staring at the very last line, and then I sat back, my heart thumping.

I looked at my hands. My mind was racing.

​I thought about Azura’s journal, the one she’d shown me. The one that opened for her but snapped shut like a hungry trap when I tried to touch it. I had felt the magic in that book the moment I saw it. It was sacred, scary, and far more powerful than anything I’d seen in years. But reading my magic book now, I realized something I hadn’t expected.

​Azura’s journal was locked and sealed by someone with terrifying power. And the story inside it wasn’t finished. Something was missing. A piece of the puzzle that was so big it changed everything. I felt a sudden, fierce determination. I was going to be the one to find out what it was. For Azura’s sake, and for the safety of my own family.

The first time I laid eyes on her, I felt it, a strange, heavy energy that rolled off her in waves. It was so strong it made my skin prickle, but I pushed the feeling away, telling myself it was just my mind playing tricks on me in my old age. I called it an illusion.

But then came that fight with Isadora. Seeing Azura move like that, with that raw, unyielding power... that was when I knew. My instincts hadn’t lied to me. I searched for proof, something solid I could hold onto, but I found nothing until that journal appeared. It showed up like a piece of a puzzle I didn’t even know I was solving. None of it makes sense yet the book, the girl, but I can feel the truth hiding just out of reach. I will get to the bottom of this, no matter what secrets I have to dig up.

I closed the book slowly and set it on the table for just a moment. I stood up, taking a deep breath to settle my racing heart. I couldn’t leave it there. I reached back down, my fingers gripping the worn leather cover, and tucked the book under my arm.

​I walked to the center of the room and crouched down, my knees cracking slightly. With one hand still holding the book tight against my side, I placed my other palm flat against the cold stone floor. I whispered a single word, a sound so soft it was barely a ripple in the air.

​The floor responded immediately. A section of the stone slid apart silently, moving like it was breathing, revealing a dark hollow underneath. I took the book in both hands now, leaning over to place it carefully into the dark, hidden gap. It felt like burying a piece of my heart. Once it was tucked away, I whispered again.

​The stone sealed itself back up instantly. Seamless. It looked perfect, like the floor had never moved at all in a hundred years.

I stood up and brushed off my dress. I’ve done this many, many times. No one in the Crescent Moon Pack knew about this hidden spot. No one knew about the book, and no one knew what I was actually capable of. Not my husband, Arthur. Not even my son, Rhydor. I kept it that way for a reason, a secret I wasn’t ready to share.

Suddenly, a sharp knock hit the door. But it didn’t even make me flinch a bit. I just smoothed my dress and walked over to open it.

​Axel was standing there. He gave me a quick, respectful bow, but his face was pale. "Luna Genevieve. The Alpha wants to see you. Now."

​I looked at his face for a second. He looked calm to anyone else, but I had known Axel since he was a boy. I could see the tension in his eyes, the way his jaw was set too tightly. Something was wrong. Not with Axel, but with whatever was waiting for me downstairs.

"Of course," I said softly. I didn’t ask questions. I just followed him.

He led me to the examination chamber which was deep under the packhouse. The air turned freezing the moment we started walking down the stone steps.

Something felt heavy down here. It felt like the air was pressing against my skin. When we reached the circular room, I saw the runes on the walls glowing with a dim, ghostly light. In the center, the stone platform was floating, and there was a body lying on it.

I stopped at the bottom of the stairs. Then I saw her.

​Azura was standing near the body, watching it in total silence. I blinked, my instincts screaming at me. Something was... off. The way she was standing was all wrong. She was too still, too rigid. Her shoulders were pulled back with a kind of heavy, dark confidence that the Azura I knew didn’t have yet. Even her eyes moved differently, they were sharp, calculating, and cold.

​I studied her for a moment, watching the way she held her hands, the way she didn’t seem bothered by the stench of death in the room. "My dear," I spoke, my voice a soft probe, testing the air. "What brings you here?"

She turned to look at me. And then I saw it. Something was off. The posture, the quiet authority, the way she held herself, that wasn’t Azura. It was my son.

​I kept my face perfectly calm. I had spent decades hiding my powers; hiding my shock was easy by comparison. I didn’t let any surprise show in my eyes.

"When?" I asked quietly. Just one word.

The Alpha looked at me through Azura’s eyes. "This morning," he answered.

I nodded slowly. No drama. No big reaction. "Where is Azura?" I asked.

He tilted his head. "That’s not why I called you here."

I held his gaze for a second, then I turned toward the floating platform. I walked over, my steps slow and casual. I stopped next to the body and looked down. I didn’t need long to see that this was bad. Really bad.

I looked at the Alpha. He was staring at the body now, not at me. I turned back and let my fingers brush the edge of the stone platform.

The vision hit me like a lightning strike to the brain.

​Darkness. Deep, suffocating darkness. I saw mysterious markings glowing on a forest floor. I saw a circle of hooded figures standing around something that was burning with a sickly green flame. And then, the most horrible part was a hand, covered in blood, reaching into a living chest. I heard a scream that was cut short. A heart, still beating and dripping with life, was ripped out of a body and held up like a trophy.

I pulled my hand back fast and tucked it at my side. My chest felt tight, like I couldn’t get enough air, but I didn’t let my face change. Not even a little bit.

No. This shouldn’t be possible, I thought.

I stood there for a moment, breathing slowly, trying to get my heart to stop racing. Then I turned to face my son. He was watching me, waiting for me to say something.

I kept my voice low and steady, but I let him feel the weight of my words.

"Where exactly did you find this body?"