Seraphina’s POV
My feet froze at the entrance to his office.
Julian stood there holding Theo against his hip, with Elena positioned right beside them. The scene hit like a physical blow to the chest.
They appeared to be the perfect family unit. It wasn’t simply their proximity that wounded . Elena tilted toward him naturally as she spoke, while Julian’s hand settled comfortably on her shoulder as he lowered Theo to the floor. The image cut through my heart like broken glass.
That should have been my life.
The familiar voice of self-doubt began its cruel whisper in my head. I could have maintained our family together, raised my son alongside his father, and perhaps I wouldn’t be standing here now, consud by terror over whether my other child was safe, whether she even recognized her mother’s face.
The ache nearly forced a gasp from my throat. I had to end this spiral of self-pity. I needed to speak with him.
"Julian," I interrupted, my voice harsher than planned.
All three turned toward . Elena offered a warm smile with genuine politeness.
Theo, bless his heart, imdiately dropped his toy car and rushed in my direction.
"Mommy!"
He collided with my legs, wrapping them in a fierce embrace. His small, warm body was the only anchor keeping from falling apart completely. I pressed my face into his soft hair briefly, breathing in that precious, familiar sll that always grounded . For an instant, the world felt slightly more bearable.
Over Theo’s head, I t Julian’s gaze. His expression had shifted to deep concern. "We need to talk."
Theo stepped back while maintaining his grip on my hand. He glanced at Elena, who observed us with quiet attention.
"Mommy," he whispered with obvious disappointnt, "can I play with Elena? Please? Just for a few minutes?"
Both Julian and Elena waited for my response. Refusing would create unnecessary tension. These children shared blood as half-siblings, and I couldn’t make them suffer for the mistakes adults had made.
"Alright," I managed to say. I attempted a casual but firm tone. "Yes, you may play."
Theo’s expression brightened imdiately.
"However," I raised one finger, eting his eyes directly, "I will co for you in exactly twenty minutes. Ask soone to set a tir, understood? And you must remain on the playground. Stay close."
I hoped he grasped that ’stay close’ ant ’don’t go anywhere near Elena’s ho.’
"Okay, Mommy! I promise!" He squeezed one final ti, planted a kiss on my cheek, then hurried over to take Elena’s hand.
The mont they disappeared from view, I collapsed into Julian’s embrace.
He appeared startled, but before he could form a question, I was clinging desperately to him, my arms circling his waist tightly as I buried my face against his chest.
"Seraphina, what’s wrong?" he asked, his voice dropping to an alard whisper. His powerful arms imdiately enclosed , holding close.
The instant his touch registered, everything I’d been holding back ca flooding out. The crying wasn’t pretty or controlled. It was raw, choking sobs that shook my entire body. Yet being held felt incredible. His presence, his warmth, and the steady, comforting rumble of his wolf beneath the surface began to quiet the screaming panic in my chest.
"Everything," I managed between gasps, inhaling his distinctive scent of pine and leather that belonged only to him. "Everything has gone wrong. This is all because of ."
"Calm down. Tell what happened. You need to breathe." His hand moved in soothing circles across my back as he guided us toward his chair, though I refused to release my hold on him.
When the tears finally exhausted themselves and the sobs faded to trembling breaths, I managed to pull back enough to see his face.
"Julian," I whispered, the words bitter on my tongue. "We have a daughter."
He stared at blankly, confusion replacing worry. "What do you an? We have Theo. And Elena is my daughter. What are you saying?"
A horrible realization crossed his features. His eyes narrowed and his voice took on a sharp, dangerous edge. "Seraphina, please don’t tell you hid another daughter from too."
"No!" I cried out, the denial ripping from my throat. "I had no idea either! I swear I didn’t know!"
I broke free completely and began pacing frantically in front of him, too agitated to remain still.
"Dorian. He has evidence. He sent it to ."
Julian’s head jerked up. "What? Dorian? What are you talking about? And why were you in contact with that psychopath, Seraphina? I told you to avoid him!"
"I didn’t contact him!" I scread, running trembling fingers through my hair. "He sent a ssage. He sent my hospital records from Theo’s birth."
I stopped pacing and drew a shuddering breath. "Julian, they only handed one baby that day. Theo. But Dorian’s docunts, and then I contacted the hospital directly for my complete dical records, and they verified it."
His jaw clenched tight. "Verified what, Seraphina? Tell !"
"I delivered twins," I whispered. "Julian, we had twins. A boy and a girl."
The silence stretched endlessly. He simply stared at in shock, struggling to process the impossible revelation.
"Soone stole her," I continued, desperate to get all the terrible facts out before I collapsed again. "Soone took her the day she was born. And that soone is Dorian."
His eyes widened in disbelief, then his face transford with pure, murderous rage.
"He’s controlling her, Julian," I rushed on, grabbing his jacket. "He’s blackmailing . He said if I ever told you about her, if you discovered the truth, we would never see our daughter again."
Julian went completely rigid. He didn’t move or speak. For several agonizing monts, he simply sat frozen in place.
"Julian, what do we do?" I shook his arms, desperate for him to respond, needing his strength.
He finally moved, shooting to his feet so violently the chair scraped across the floor. He towered over , his hands trembling slightly.
"This better be so twisted joke, Seraphina," he said slowly, his voice deadly quiet. "So nightmare..."
"It’s not!" I insisted. "We have to find her. We have to bring her ho!"
For the first ti since eting him, I witnessed Julian’s true fury. I thought I’d seen him angry before, but this was different. This wasn’t re frustration or irritation. This was primitive, terrifying wrath. His eyes, normally warm hazel, seed to burn from within. His wolf was surfacing, ready to destroy everything in its path.
I quickly seized his hand, trying to anchor him before he lost control. "Julian, breathe. Please. We need to think clearly."
He gripped my hand so tightly it was painful, but I welcod the sensation.
"I swear to you, Seraphina," he growled, his teeth bared as he spoke. "This was his final mistake. I will locate that monster. I will find our daughter. And then I will destroy Dorian."
"How?" I demanded details. I needed a strategy.
He took a deep, shuddering breath, forcing his human side to regain control over his wolf. His eyes still blazed, but rational thought was returning.
"First," he said, drawing close and dropping his voice to a conspirative whisper. "No one can learn about our daughter. Above all, Dorian must believe you kept this secret from ."
He locked eyes with , his cold determination holding captive.
"We’re going to play his twisted ga now, Seraphina. And we’re going to destroy him at it."
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