Josie
I couldn’t hold the tears back.
The mont I stepped inside and saw the hall... it felt like the floor beneath my feet disappeared. My vision blurred, my chest tightened. My na was everywhere—woven into delicate banners, spelled out in shimring silver against a backdrop of twinkling lights. Soft music filled the air, a lody I vaguely recognized as one I’d once humd on the balcony. Candles floated midair, and soft petals lined the floor like a garden in bloom.
"Welco ho, Josie."
That was what the huge banner above the fireplace read.
I broke down.
Completely.
No one had ever done sothing like this for . No one had ever made feel like I belonged, like I mattered. The entire room glowed with the warmth of it, the effort, the care. It was overwhelming. I felt like I couldn’t breathe from how hard I was crying. I was sobbing so hard I nearly dropped to the floor, but then Varen’s arms were around , catching just in ti.
"Hey, hey," he whispered gently, holding against his chest. "You’re okay. You’re ho now. You’re safe."
My hands clung to his shirt as I nodded through the sobs. "I—I don’t know what to say. I’ve never... I didn’t know I could be loved like this."
"You always deserved it," he murmured, brushing his lips over the top of my head.
I glanced up to see Kiel and Thorne standing nearby, both looking awkward as hell. Kiel scratched the back of his neck while Thorne just... looked away, jaw clenched like he couldn’t stand being praised for sothing so emotional.
I sniffled and gave them a shaky smile. "Thank you... all of you."
"You’re embarrassing us," Thorne muttered.
Kiel coughed, but I saw the faintest curve at the corner of his lips. Maybe that was his version of a smile.
I laughed softly, the sound watery, still choked with emotion. But it felt real. For the first ti in what felt like forever, I felt like I was living—really living, not just surviving.
We had fun.
Real fun.
They brought cake—my favorite kind. There was music, laughter, Varen even danced with in the middle of the hall while Kiel pretended he didn’t care and Thorne rolled his eyes. It didn’t matter. In that mont, nothing else mattered.
But the happiness didn’t last.
It never did, did it?
At so point, I grew tired. My body ached in that lingering way it always did since the fall, and I found myself leaning against Thorne. To my surprise, he didn’t shove off. He just let rest there quietly, his fingers gently brushing my back.
"I’ll take her to the room," Thorne said after a while, his voice softer than usual.
He led back upstairs, his steps slow to match mine. When we got to the room, he didn’t say much. He just tucked the blanket around and stepped back as if giving space was the only way he knew how to show care. I watched him leave before closing my eyes for a few seconds, trying to steady my breath.
The peace didn’t last.
Soon after, the door opened again. The triplets walked in together, one after the other, like a pack formation. I’d been given food and pills earlier, and they stayed while I ate, hovering around like I might shatter if they blinked too long.
After I swallowed the last pill, I looked at them.
It was ti.
"About what Marcy said," I began carefully, licking my lips. "About the... danger being handled. What did she an by that?"
There was silence.
It fell over them like a spell, freezing the air.
Varen cleared his throat, trying for nonchalance. "It ans you’re safe now."
My blood turned to ice. "Safe how?"
Kiel opened his mouth like he was about to lie, but I cut him off.
"No," I said sharply. "Don’t try to twist it. Don’t lie to . I want the truth."
For a mont, no one spoke. Then Thorne exhaled, pinching the bridge of his nose. "We took care of it."
My heart slamd into my chest. "What does that an? What did you do?"
They tried to quiet down, tried to brush past it, but I saw the hesitation, the shadows behind their eyes. They were hiding sothing—and I wasn’t going to let it go.
"Thorne," I snapped. "What did you do?"
He stared at for a mont, then muttered, "We dealt with your parents."
The words hit like a slap.
"No," I whispered. "No, no—what do you an ’dealt’ with? What does that an?!"
No one answered.
My breath ca faster. I grabbed the sheets, knuckles white. "Answer !"
They exchanged looks, but none of them dared speak.
"Kiel," I hissed. "Tell . Tell what you did!"
He looked torn, guilt spilling over his features like a wave. Then, with a voice so flat it made my stomach turn, he sang the words like a twisted lullaby.
"We killed them."
Everything in shattered.
My throat felt raw. I gasped. "No. You didn’t. You’re lying."
"We’re not," Thorne said calmly.
I shook my head violently. "You... you killed my parents?"
"They weren’t your parents," Varen said, his tone cold now. "They sold you. They tried to kill you—"
"You didn’t even ask !" I scread, my voice rising to a hysterical pitch. "You didn’t give the chance to decide what I wanted. You just—"
"Josie—"
"You murdered them!"
The words burst out of like bile. My chest heaved, the air in the room thick, suffocating. I started to cry—no, wail. I couldn’t control it. The sounds pouring from my mouth were foreign even to . I clawed at my throat as if I could pull the pain out of it.
"You didn’t have the right!" I shrieked.
The room trembled.
The windows rattled violently.
The very walls shook.
The skies outside cracked open and rain poured down, hamring against the roof like war drums. Thunder bood, lightning illuminating the room in rapid flashes of white and shadow.
My scream tore through the house again, louder, primal. I didn’t even know I could make a sound like that. It was pain, grief, horror—all knotted into a wail so loud the entire pack must have heard it.
I could feel the earth tremble beneath .
Then—
Everything went black.
The last thing I heard was my na—three voices calling it all at once—and the sound of the world falling into silence.
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