Aria’s POV

Kathy smiled faintly, a cold look of disappointment etching her face.

I felt my wolf still.

Her words struck Margaret like a hammer.

“Kathy!” Margaret shrieked, her eyes glowing with her wolf. “It’s not your place to lecture me!”

She bristled instantly, like a cat with its fur standing on end. Jeremiah and Vivian both rubbed their foreheads in unison, looking weary and pained.

My gaze drifted slowly across everyone present, cataloging expressions, reactions, the subtle shifts in stance and breath.

Margaret’s claws protruded as though she was gearing up for a fight. Her whole body trembled.

“You’ve never even met Aria before,” she snapped at Kathy, her voice thick with resentment. “You spent only a few days with her. You really think you know her that well?”

Her words were aimed at Kathy, but her eyes were locked on me.

Those pair of eyes were burning, accusatory and hateful.

“If she were truly well-behaved and intelligent,” Margaret continued harshly, “why would I ignore my own flesh and blood just to protect my adopted daughter?”

I didn’t move.

I locked eyes with her. My face remained blank, but within me, my chest tightened painfully, as if an invisible claw had closed around my heart.

Why?

My pupils trembled almost imperceptibly.

Kathy noticed. Her brow furrowed as she looked at me again, then back at Margaret.

“Margaret,” Vivian said firmly, stepping forward, “Aria is a thoughtful child. Show her even a sliver of kindness, and she’ll return it tenfold. If she feels no bond with you, if she keeps her distance, it’s because you mistreated her in the past.”

The moment Vivian spoke for me, Margaret’s eyes reddened.

Her chest heaved violently. And then, it was as though a dam burst.

“Mistreated her?” Margaret shouted, her voice sharp enough to cut. “She brought it on herself!”

Everyone froze.

“Ever since Sophia came into our home, Aria has been jealous and resentful,” she continued, her words spilling unchecked. “She doesn’t understand that Sophia’s mother died because of me! Of course I feel guilty, of course I want to care for that child more!”

My wolf recoiled.

“But she used that as an excuse to target Sophia again and again,” Margaret snarled. “Someone so vicious doesn’t deserve to be my daughter!”

The words were cruel, deliberately so. I couldn’t help but think how delusional and blindsided my mother was. After everything that has been going on, the rumor that Clarence was still alive, including the proof I had sent her concerning her husband’s infidelity, she still allowed him to convince her Clarence was dead.

The temperature around us seemed to drop.

Rowland’s expression turned lethal in an instant. The playful glint in his eyes vanished, replaced by his wolf’s glow. He looked like he was moments away from tearing out a throat.

Margaret sensed it.

Her words died abruptly in her mouth.

The air around us froze until I reached out and pressed my hand firmly against Rowland’s arm.

He stiffened.

I met his eyes and gave a subtle warning shake of my head.

The storm in his gaze softened instantly, dissolving into something gentle and obedient, like water settling after a ripple.

Jeremiah tapped his cane against the ground.

“Margaret,” he said quietly, disappointment weighing down every syllable, “you left the Osborne family years ago, so I won’t say much. I came here today to accompany Aria. Sophia, your adopted daughter told us your mental state was unstable and asked us to visit. After seeing this for myself... she was right.”

Margaret swayed.

Her strength gave out, and she fell back into Patrick’s arms, staring at all of us in disbelief.

I could tell what was going through her mind. They had known me only a few days, yet they defended me at every turn. They said they came only to accompany me.

“Aunt Vivian, Uncle Jeremiah,” Patrick said quickly, tightening his hold around Margaret, “she hasn’t been well lately. Stress has made her unstable. She says things she doesn’t mean.”

Then he turned to me.

“Aria,” he continued, his voice still carrying that unmistakable paternal authority, “as her daughter, you should be more understanding of your mother.”

I frowned, my claws itching beneath my skin as mockery curled coldly in my chest. The air in the Darvin house smelled stale. My wolf didn’t like it here, neither did I.

“Aria,” Patrick pressed on, lifting his chin as though he was an Alpha whose pack still bowed to him, “your mother’s attitude toward you isn’t without reason. Since you’ve come back, I’ll still acknowledge you as my child.”

Acknowledge? I scoffed inwardly.

“Your past disobedience was because I was too busy with work to properly discipline you,” he continued magnanimously. “Now I finally have the chance to guide you. Discipline comes first, but you’re still part of the Darvin family.”

My wolf snarled softly in my chest.

I nearly laughed.

Did he really believe words could be taken back as easily as commands? That the world and I would bend just because he decided it should?

“Patrick,” Margaret cut in sharply, her voice edged with frost, “she’s always been rebellious. Now that she’s latched onto the Osborne family, why would she care about staying with us?”

Her scent spiked with a mix of jealousy, resentment and fear poorly disguised as disdain.

Stay?

A thought came to mind. I decided to play their game a bit.

I lifted my gaze, letting my eyes narrow just slightly, the way a wolf pretends to lower her head in submission while already measuring the distance to the throat.

“I’ll stay,” I said calmly. “After all, as you said, Darvin blood flows in my veins. I’m part of the Darvin family.”

The words tasted bitter in my mouth but they were useful.

Margaret froze.