Chapter 581 Telling Them The Truth At Last 3

Chapter 581: Chapter 581 Telling Them The Truth At Last 3

The moment Addison heard her sons’ voices drifting from not far away, she knew Zion must have already figured out what she had brought them here for.

The familiar scent, the voices of the two boys, the secluded cabin by the lake — there was no way he could still be clueless.

But Addison couldn’t bring herself to turn around.

Without even realizing it, her fingers had curled into tight fists, her nails digging deep into her palms as nervousness slowly consumed her. She was afraid, afraid of what she might see on Zion’s face if she looked back.

Anger.

Betrayal.

Disbelief.

Or perhaps something even worse.

Her lips pressed into a thin line as she kept her eyes fixed straight ahead.

She simply didn’t have the courage to turn around and face him yet.

"Let’s go..." Addison said hoarsely, forcing the words past the tightness in her throat as she continued down the path.

Maxwell, Levi, and Leon followed without hesitation.

Zion didn’t.

He remained rooted to the spot, his body suddenly refusing to obey him.

Unlike what Addison had assumed, Zion hadn’t actually figured it out. Not yet. He had thought he did; that fleeting idea had flashed through his mind only moments ago, sparked by the familiar scent drifting from somewhere beyond the path.

It had struck him with such force that, for one brief second, it felt as though a piece of his own flesh was waiting ahead, silently calling him closer, demanding that he come close enough to recognize it.

But the more he thought about it, the more uncertain he became.

There was something about that feeling that made his instincts scream recognition, yet at the same time, it wasn’t quite the same.

Zion frowned deeply, trying to make sense of the unease crawling beneath his skin.

He had felt something similar once before.

The first time he realized Addison was his fated mate.

He remembered the homecoming banquet, the moment that strange, undeniable pull had seized him. Back then, there had been no mistaking it. He had simply needed to stand before Addison, breathe in her intoxicating scent, and let it sink into his lungs and seep through his pores. Her scent had been addictive, almost as necessary as oxygen to a dying man.

But this...

This was different.

Similar enough to make his heart pound, yet different enough to leave him questioning what the hell his instincts were trying to tell him.

An idea kept flashing in and out of his mind.

One he didn’t want to acknowledge.

One he was almost afraid to believe.

Because if what he suspected was waiting beyond that path was true...

Zion’s chest tightened.

Then he had wronged Addison far more deeply than he had ever realized.

The weight of that possibility settled heavily over him, crushing every excuse, every justification, every regret he had carried until now.

And for the first time, Zion wondered if regret would ever be enough.

Because if he was right about what awaited them beyond that path, then no matter how many times he apologized, no matter how much he begged for forgiveness, he wasn’t sure there was anything he could do to make up for what he had done to Addison.

Not even if he spent the rest of his life trying.

As Addison continued walking ahead, the other three immediately followed after her. Zion, however, remained rooted to where he stood.

A part of him desperately wanted to run after them, to push past everyone and be the first to reach the cabin and see what was waiting inside with his own eyes. If his instincts had not been screaming at him so strongly, he would never have tried to break into this place the first time he came here.

Something had called to him then.

And now, with Shura reacting this strongly, that feeling had only become more intense.

But instead of excitement, fear slowly began to crawl beneath Zion’s skin.

For the first time, he was terrified of finding out that his instincts had been right all along.

So, he hesitated.

He dawdled.

He deliberately slowed his steps, as if taking his time could somehow delay the truth waiting for him at the end of that path.

’What if... what if what’s inside is really...’ Zion couldn’t even bring himself to finish the thought.

"Oh, come the fuck on!" Shura suddenly growled, its patience finally snapping. "Stop acting like such a scaredy-cat, you fucking coward! We wouldn’t even be here in the first place if it weren’t for you!"

Shura was practically losing its mind. Every instinct in its body was screaming at it to run, to rush toward that cabin as fast as possible. It felt as though its ass was on fire, while Zion was standing there dragging his feet like a terrified child.

Its temper flared.

And honestly, Zion couldn’t even blame it.

"I know..." Zion finally muttered, his voice weak.

He lowered his head, his fingers slowly curling into fists.

"I admit it. I’m scared."

Shura fell silent.

Zion swallowed hard, his chest tightening as he forced himself to say the words that had been haunting him.

"Because if what my gut has been telling me this whole time is true..." His voice faltered.

He looked toward the path ahead, toward the cabin hidden somewhere beyond the trees.

"Then I don’t know what the fuck I’m supposed to do after that."

The fear in his eyes was no longer about what they might find.

It was about what finding the truth would mean.

Because once he saw it, once the truth was right in front of him, there would be no pretending anymore. No running from it. No convincing himself that he had been wrong.

And Zion wasn’t sure he was ready for the kind of truth that could completely change everything.

"The hell you do! You caused this, so you better fucking toughen up. Otherwise, I swear to God, I’ll be the first one to break you from the inside out, you dumbass!" Shura growled.

Its patience had completely snapped.

Without waiting for Zion to respond, Shura pushed against him from within, practically forcing his body to move. Addison and the others were already several steps ahead, yet Zion remained rooted to the ground as if his feet had been filled with lead.

They felt impossibly heavy.

Not because he couldn’t move.

But because he was terrified to.

Terrified of walking toward the truth. Terrified of seeing with his own eyes what Addison had been forced to face all alone during the years she had been gone.

Years he knew nothing about.

Years he should have been there for her.

Shura calling him a coward wasn’t even an insult.

It was the fucking truth.

And honestly, Zion felt like one.

For years, he had believed himself to be one of the strongest Alphas in the kingdom, second only to the Alpha King himself. He had thought he had become powerful enough that nothing could truly shake him anymore. That no matter what stood in front of him, he would be able to face it without fear.

But now?

Now, he felt small.

Pathetically small.

He felt small because, deep down, he knew that his stupidity, his mistakes, and his choices all those years ago had left Addison to suffer through countless things alone. Things he hadn’t known about. Things he hadn’t been there to protect her from. Things she had carried by herself while he remained completely unaware of the hell she might have been going through.

And he felt weak.

Not because he lacked strength.

But because now that the truth was waiting right in front of him, he was hesitating.

He was afraid.

Afraid of taking another step.

Afraid of what he might find inside that cabin.

Because whatever was waiting for him there might finally show him the full extent of what Addison had endured without him.

And Zion wasn’t sure if he was strong enough to face the truth — especially when a part of him already knew that, whatever he found, there was a good chance it would be something he could never forgive himself for.

Zion took one last, heavy breath, forcing his racing heart and chaotic thoughts to settle.

Then, finally, he moved.

One step.

Then another.

He didn’t rush. He couldn’t. Each step felt heavier than the last, but this time, he forced himself to keep going, following behind Addison and the others.

But then—

Addison suddenly turned and ran back toward his direction.

Zion froze.

Everyone was caught off guard by the abrupt change. Just moments ago, Addison had been leading them toward the cabin, yet now she was rushing back with a grim, deadly serious expression on her face, as though she had just received an urgent report through the mindlink and immediately decided that whatever was happening needed her attention.

Her expression alone was enough to make everyone’s stomach drop.

"Addie, what’s wrong?" Levi was the first to react.