Chapter 17
ARIA
Maya’s hands clench into fists at her sides, her expression shifting from disbelief to something darker. Harder.
“There’s something you need to know,” she says. “About Declan and Celeste.”
I sit on the edge of the bed, waiting.
“After you left—after the exile—Celeste started spreading stories. Love stories.”
Maya’s voice drips with disgust. “She rewrote everything. Suddenly, you weren’t Declan’s girlfriend of three years. You were just... some girl who had a crush on him. Someone who misunderstood his kindness for something more.”
My jaw tightens.
“She told everyone that she and Declan had this instant, powerful connection the moment the fated bond appeared,” Maya continues, her hands clenching tighter.
“That it was so overwhelming, so undeniable, that they couldn’t fight it even though they felt bad about hurting you. She made it sound like what you and Declan had was never real. Like it was one-sided. Like you imagined the whole relationship.”
“Of course she did,” I mutter.
“And the pack believed her,” Maya says bitterly.
“They wanted to believe her. It was easier than admitting their Alpha chose his fated mate over someone he’d actually loved for three years. I tried to defend you—told them I knew you and Declan were together, that it was real. But no one wanted to hear it.
They’d rather accept Celeste’s version where you were just a delusional girl and the fated bond was destiny finally setting things right.”
I stare at the wall, processing this. Six years of my name being used to prop up Celeste’s image. Six years of the pack believing I was just some pathetic orphan who’d misread basic kindness as love.
“But that’s not the worst part,” Maya says, her voice dropping lower.
I look at her.
“She’s eliminated every rival who’s come near Declan. Every single one.”
Maya’s eyes flash with anger. “There was a she-wolf from a visiting pack three years ago—beautiful, strong, from good bloodlines. She and Declan talked for maybe ten minutes at a diplomatic meeting. Nothing inappropriate. Just conversation.”
“Let me guess,” I say flatly. “She disappeared.”
“Her pack found her the next morning with a broken leg and claw marks across her face. She claimed it was rogues, but everyone knew.”
Maya shakes her head. “There have been others. A healer who worked too closely with him on a project. A warrior who trained with him regularly. They all ended up hurt or humiliated or driven out of the pack.”
My stomach turns.
“And Declan?” I ask, though I already know the answer.
“Covers for her.” Maya’s voice is bitter. “Every single time. He investigates, finds nothing, dismisses the accusations. He knows what she is, Aria. He has to. But he protects her anyway.”
The words settle over me like ice water.
Of course he does. Of course he covers for her. She’s his fated mate, his Luna, the mother of the heir he’s so desperate to have. Why would he care about the women she hurts? Why would he care about anyone she destroys?
Why would he have cared about me?
“I’m so angry,” Maya says, and her voice shakes with it. “I’m angry that he let this happen to you. That he’s let her get away with so much. That he still—” She stops herself, breathing hard.
I watch her, and something cold settles deeper into my chest. The last tiny flicker of warmth I felt when Declan caught me earlier, when his arms were around me and my body remembered what it felt like to be held by him—it dies completely.
I was a fool. An absolute fool for thinking there was anything left of the man I loved. For hoping, even for a second, that he might have changed. That he might have regretted what he did.
He’s exactly who he showed himself to be six years ago. A man who chose his fated mate over me without hesitation. A man who watched me get hunted through the forest and didn’t stop it. A man who covers for a woman who hurts people because it’s easier than standing up to her.
Maya’s still standing there, her fury slowly giving way to concern as she watches my face. Her eyes are soft. Caring. The same way they looked six years ago when she’d find me crying in the clinic supply closet and wouldn’t leave until I told her what was wrong.
She’s the only one who defended me. The only one who tried to tell the pack the truth when Celeste rewrote history. The only person in this entire pack who ever truly saw me.
If I can’t trust her, who can I trust?
The words sit in my throat for a long moment. Once I say this, there’s no taking it back.
“Maya,” I say quietly. “I have three children.”
Maya’s head snaps toward me, her eyes going wide. “What?”
“Triplets. Two girls and a boy. They’re almost six years old.” I pull out my phone. “But you have to swear—swear to me—that you’ll never tell anyone about them.”
“Aria—”
“Swear it, Maya.”
She stares at me for a long moment, then nods slowly. “I swear. On my life, I swear.”
I unlock my phone and pull up the photo album. The first picture is from last week—all three kids piled on the couch, Lily’s curls everywhere, Noah grinning despite trying to look serious, Emma clutching her stuffed rabbit. I hand the phone to Maya.
She takes it with trembling hands.
“Oh my gods,” she whispers. “Aria. They’re beautiful.”
“Lily, Noah, and Emma,” I say, and my voice softens without meaning to. “Lily’s the wild one. She treats everything like an adventure. Noah’s serious, protective, acts like he’s thirty instead of five. And Emma’s my quiet one. Gentle. Perceptive.”
Maya swipes to the next photo, then the next. Her face lights up with each one.
“They look so happy,” she says, her voice thick. “You did this. You raised them.”
“I had help,” I admit. “The Cole family has been amazing with them.”
She swipes through a few more photos, then looks up at me, her eyes shining. “Tell me about them.”
So I do. I tell her about their personalities, their quirks, the way they make me laugh even when I’m exhausted.
My voice softens as I talk about them. I can’t help it. They’re everything to me.
Maya listens to every word, asking questions, smiling at the stories, wiping her eyes when I describe the hard early days.
When I finish, she’s still holding my phone, staring at a picture of all three kids grinning at the camera.
Then her expression changes.
The warmth drains from her face, replaced by something serious. Heavy.
She looks up at me. “Aria. The boy. Noah.”
“What about him?”
“His eyes.” She swipes back to a closer photo of Noah’s face. “They’re gray. Storm-gray.”
I don’t answer.
Maya’s face goes pale. “Aria. Are they—”
“Yes,” I say quietly. “Declan’s children.”
She stares at me for a long moment. Then she sets the phone down carefully and takes both of my hands in hers.
“This is going to sound selfish,” she says, her voice low and urgent. “But you can never tell anyone about them. Never. Do you understand?”
“I know—”
“No. I don’t think you do.” Her grip tightens. “If Celeste finds out Declan has three illegitimate children, she will see them as threats. Rivals to any child she might have. She will hurt them, Aria. She will destroy them without hesitation.”
The words hit me like a physical blow even though I already know them to be true.
“You have to keep them hidden,” Maya continues, her voice growing more agitated. “You have to protect them. No matter what happens, no matter what Declan says or does, you can’t let him find out. You can’t—”
She breaks off suddenly, her face twisting.
Then she doubles over, coughing.
Not the polite, controlled cough of someone trying to clear their throat. A violent, wracking cough that shakes her entire body.
I move immediately, my hands on her shoulders. “Maya!”
She waves me off, still coughing, her hand pressed to her chest.
“I’m fine,” she gasps between coughs. “I’m—”
“You’re not fine.” I try to steady her, my medical instincts kicking in. “Let me examine you.”
“No.” She straightens up, breathing hard, her face flushed. “I’m fine. It’s nothing.”
“Maya—”
“I said I’m fine.” Her voice comes out sharper than she probably intended. She closes her eyes, takes a breath, then opens them again. “Just, give me a second.”
I know this look. I know exactly what she’s doing.
She’s the new Gamma. Young, untested, still proving herself to a pack that questions whether she’s ready to fill her father’s role. Showing weakness—showing illness—would give her enemies ammunition.
So she hides it. Pretends she’s fine. Pushes through.
I want to argue. Want to force her to let me help. But I know Maya. Pushing her now will only make her dig in harder.
“Okay,” I say quietly.
She nods, relief flickering across her face. She steadies herself and gives me a small smile. “I’ll come by tomorrow. We’ll talk more.”
“I’d like that.”
She heads for the door, pausing with her hand on the handle. “And Aria? Be careful. Celeste is dangerous. Don’t underestimate her.”
“I won’t.”
She leaves, closing the door softly behind her.
I stand there for a moment, processing everything.
Celeste’s manipulations. Declan’s complicity. Maya’s warning. The children’s safety.
It all swirls together in my mind, heavy and overwhelming.
Then my phone buzzes in my pocket.
I pull it out and see a FaceTime request from Sarah’s number.
My heart lifts immediately. I accept the call, and suddenly three beautiful faces fill the screen.
“Mama!” Lily shrieks, bouncing so much the camera shakes.
“Hi, babies,” I say, and I can’t keep the warmth out of my voice. “I missed you.”
“We miss you too!” Emma says, her face pressed close to the screen.
Noah leans in, his serious gray eyes studying me. “Are you okay, Mama? Are the sick people getting better?”
“I’m working on it,” I say. “But I’m safe. I promise.”
“We’re being so good for Aunt Sarah,” Lily announces proudly. “We helped make cookies today!”
“And we did all our chores,” Emma adds.
“I’m so proud of you,” I say, my chest aching with how much I miss them.
They chatter over each other, telling me about their day—the park, the cookies, the movie they watched. I listen to every word, soaking in their voices, their smiles, their warmth.
This. This is what matters. Not Declan, not Celeste, not the pack’s politics or power games.
My children. Keeping them safe. Protecting them from a world that would hurt them if it knew they existed.
I will do whatever it takes.
“Mama, Mama!” Lily interrupts my thoughts, practically vibrating with excitement. “We have a big surprise for you!”
“A surprise?” I smile despite myself. “What kind of surprise?”
“We can’t tell you yet,” Noah says, but his eyes are bright with barely contained excitement.
“You have to guess!” Emma giggles.
“I have no idea,” I say. “Give me a hint?”
They all shake their heads, grinning.
“Please?” I beg, playing along. “Just one tiny hint?”
They look at each other, some silent communication passing between them. Then they all nod at the same time.
“Okay, Mama,” Lily says, her voice turning serious in that dramatic way only she can manage. “We’ll tell you.”
All three of them lean close to the camera, their faces filling the screen.
Then they say it together, their voices bright and excited:
“Mommy, we found Daddy!”