Page 70 of Dawn of the Pack

I sit up in surprise and stare at him. “What do you mean you knew? You knew where she went?”

He leans to his side and pulls out an envelope, crinkled in so many places it’s practically soft. The faded script on the top reads: Dominic.

“Go ahead, you deserve to read it.” He holds it out to me, and I realize I’m trembling. I dug through everything my parents left behind when they died and I never found a single note; not a will, not even a post-it. She left nothing for me.

Despite my shaking hand, I accept the envelope and slip out the folded pages. These too are so worn the edges feel like an old flannel shirt. My eyes dart to Dom and he nods solemnly, so I lift the papers to catch the firelight.

Dom,

I’m sorry to do this. I know the burden I’m leaving you with, and I wish there was another way.

It’ll be hard, but I know our mom and dads will do their best to turn you into a great alpha. And I know you; I wouldn’t leave if I didn’t believe you’ll be amazing.

But there’s no other way. If we don’t find a way to thwart the curse now, our family, our pack, will never escape it. I refuse to continue cursing my children’s children with this terrible fate.

So Julian and I are heading west - please don’t follow us. And please don’t tell our parents!

I know this is a big secret to keep, but I know you’ll keep it for me because I’m going to make you a promise: I’m coming back.

Before you get too excited, it won’t be for a loooong while. We’ve got big plans, and trust me, it’s for the good of the pack. Know that always and forever, my heart is in Smoky Falls.

Elliot and Peter refused to come with us. I think they didn’t really believe we’d do it. I hope they realize I’m doing this because I love them. Now that they’re not going to be alphas, they can have almost normal lives… as normal as it can be in Smoky Falls, anyway.

Since I know this is a lot to take in, I’m going to tell you one part of our plan: We believe that if we have our daughter and she’s raised outside of Smoky Falls, she can break the curse.

So, now you know; once we have her, and she’s ready to manifest, we’re coming home.

I hope the time goes faster than we expect. I hope everyone is happy and safe when we come back. We won’t be wolves; I’m not sure if we’d be able to manifest so late, but you never know! Sometimes miracles can happen.

Anyway, I love you, little bro, always. You know I’d never leave you forever, but I’m asking for your patience. For me, and for the future generations of Harridans that could live a life entirely free of this curse.

Always and forever,

Lilliana (aka the COOLEST big sister ever)

Tears are flooding down my cheeks by the time I finish reading. It’s strange; it sort of sounded like my mom, but it also sort of sounded like me.

But more importantly, what she said! Her plan all along was to have me, and when I was seventeen, move back here. If they didn’t have that accident when I was fourteen, we’d have all come back last year. And she believed I could break the curse… somehow she knew the connection to the Montrose pack was still there. She had to have.

My mind chugs to life, the gears turning. She realized that if I grew up here, in Smoky Falls with Milo, Jared, and Landon, I’d never consider the possibility of another mate. Why would I? I’d grow up hating the Montrose pack for the curse I was bound to inherit; I wouldn’t even want to consider it.

Finally, I turn to meet Dom’s gaze. “So that whole time you knew why she’d done it. And when I arrived, and you disappeared, you were trying to figure out the connection.”

“Yes.” He’s obviously relieved to get this off his chest. “And your mom didn’t exactly disappear entirely. I’d get mail from her occasionally, stuff like a blank postcard from Yosemite, but I knew it was from her. It was her way of letting me know she was still out there, and still thinking of home.

“Not long before we found you, I got a package. It had a note inside from a mail service in Boise. She’d left specific instructions that they were to mail that package on a certain date; she prepaid for the shipping and for the package to be held there. Inside were all of your birth documents. So we’d know you were coming, you see? The package arrived in July, two months before your birthday. I think she left it at that mail service because she didn’t want to have all the real, legal documentation on her, just in case something happened, and she was just shipping it back to herself.”

Dom smiles sadly, rubbing his hands together like he’s searching for something to do. “And I was so excited, you have no idea. Your grandparents passed far too young; I think my mom just felt like she’d done something wrong, failed Lilliana somehow, and the guilt ate away at her. Once she was gone, my dads weren’t long after.

“But she was finally coming home, and we would be a family again. I wouldn’t be alone anymore, and I didn’t dare to hope, but I thought it might be possible that she’d manifest and take over as alpha. I admit, I did my best, but I couldn’t live up to her potential, or yours.” Giving up, he leans back into the couch and crosses his arms. His entire mood shifts before he continues.

“And then your birthday came and went, and she never showed. We waited—she’d never said she’d be back before your seventeenth birthday, but I just assumed. So I grew more and more concerned with each day that passed.

“Then I saw that news clip; they didn’t use a photo of you in the hospital. They had your library card and said they knew it was a false name, but they were hoping someone would recognize you. I didn’t have a doubt in my mind that you were my sister’s daughter. I mean, it’s not hard to see the family resemblance. You looked exactly how I remembered her.” He trails off, apparently lost in thought a few moments.

Then, as if remembering where he is, Dom clears his throat and continues. “So, that’s basically it. I went out to LA, confirmed it was you, showed them all your legal paperwork to prove I was your next of kin, and the rest you know. Once you manifested and the mantle of alpha transferred to you, I didn’t even think; I went straight to Montrose to figure out how you were going to break the curse. Because I knew your mom didn’t want you to live with it, and the only thing I could think to do to honor her wishes was to see if I could dig up how much they knew. I’d already exhausted every resource we had, but I wasn’t buying that there was nowhere to get an answer.”

My mind spins, trying to absorb everything he just told me. “So my mom must have figured out more than you did; she had to have known that I’d break the cure by mating the Montrose alpha. Otherwise, why would she insist on keeping me from growing up here?”

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