Chapter 328 The Homecoming

Chapter 328: Chapter 328 The Homecoming

Talia’s POV

I watched my grandfather’s face, and I saw the memories flickering behind his eyes. He was lost in the past, in a time when my mother was young and alive and free. I saw the years fall away from him as he remembered.

"She used to come to me for advice," he said, and his voice was distant. "When she was young, and when she was trying to find her way. She would sit in my study, and she would ask me questions about being a leader, about being a mate, and about being a mother."

I looked at my mother, and I saw the tears on her face. "You always knew what to say, Aldric. You always made me feel like I could do anything."

Grandfather Aldric smiled, and I saw the warmth in his eyes. "Because you could, Seraphina. You always could. You were the bravest woman I ever knew."

I watched them, and I felt the love and the grief and the joy all mixing together. I had never seen my grandfather like this, and I had never seen my mother like this. They were both so broken, and yet so whole.

"Grandfather," I said. "Why did you never tell me?"

He looked at me, and I saw the pain in his eyes. "Because I could not bear to talk about her, Talia. Because every time I did, I felt like I was losing her all over again."

I felt my heart clench at his words. All those years of silence, all those moments when I had wondered why he would not speak of my mother, and now I understood. It was not that he did not care. It was that he cared too much.

"Grandfather," I said, and my voice was soft. "I am sorry. I am sorry you had to carry that alone."

He looked at me, and I saw the tears in his eyes. "You have nothing to be sorry for, Talia. You were a child. You were grieving too. I should have been stronger for you."

I shook my head. "You were strong, Grandfather. You were always strong."

I looked at my grandfather, and I felt the weight of his words pressing down on me. He had carried this grief for fifteen years, and he had never told me. He had suffered in silence, and he had never let me see his pain.

"Grandfather," I said, and my voice was barely a whisper. "You never believed she was dead?"

He shook his head, and I saw the tears in his old eyes. "Never. I knew she was out there, Talia. I felt it in my bones. I just did not know how to find her, because I was too old, too weak, and too afraid of what I might find."

My mother reached for his hand, and she squeezed it. "You did not give up on me, Aldric. That is all that matters, and that is what kept me going."

I watched them, and I felt the tears streaming down my face. She was right. His hope had kept her going. His belief in her survival had been a light in the darkness.

"Grandfather," I said. "When did you first start to believe she might be alive?"

He looked at me, and I saw the memories flickering in his eyes. "The day you told me you were going to find her, Talia. The day you looked at me with those eyes, so full of determination and fire. I knew then that she was still out there. I could feel it."

Grandfather Aldric looked at her, and I saw the love in his old eyes. "I could never give up on you, Seraphina. You are family. You have always been family."

I felt the tears streaming down my face, and I felt the love swelling in my chest. He had never given up, he had never stopped believing, and he had held onto hope even when everyone else had let it go.

"Grandfather," I said. "I am glad you did not give up. Because if you had, I might not have found her."

He looked at me, and I saw the pride in his eyes. "You found her, Talia. You brought her home, and that is all that matters."

Grandfather Aldric reached for my hand, and I felt his old fingers wrapping around mine. He pulled me into the embrace, and I felt my mother’s arms wrapping around me from the other side.

I stood there, held between the two of them, and I felt the tears streaming down my face. I felt their warmth, their love, and their hope. I felt fifteen years of grief and loss melting away.

"Welcome home," Grandfather Aldric whispered.

I pressed my face into his shoulder, and I let myself cry. "Thank you, Grandfather. Thank you for never giving up."

He held me tighter. "I would never give up on you, Talia. I would never give up on any of you."

I felt my mother’s hand on my back, and I felt her warmth against me. She was here, she was real, and we were together.

"This is what home feels like," I whispered. "This is what family feels like."

My mother looked at me, and I saw the tears on her face. "Yes, Talia. This is what home feels like."

We stood there, the three of us, holding each other. The sun was setting behind us, and the valley was bathed in golden light. The pack was waiting in the distance, and I knew that there was still so much ahead of us.

But for this moment, we were together, and that was enough.