Chapter 164: Facing the Past.
Alessandro’s POV
“No, Father. I don’t think you should be alone with that monster of an uncle,” I said firmly.
Alpha John shook his head, his eyes full of pain. “No… I need to be.
I have to look him in the eye and ask him why. Why he did all of this.
Why he’s hated me for so long… when I never did anything to deserve it.”
I frowned, not hiding my disbelief. “And you really think talking to him alone will make him open up?
That he’ll suddenly give you the answers you’ve been waiting for?”
I let out a short, bitter laugh. “From what I saw, Uncle Raymond is way past reasoning, Father.
No conversation will change him or bring him back to who he used to be.”
I looked him in the eyes, softer this time. “He’s hated you for years. That kind of hate… it doesn’t just disappear.
It grows. Twists everything. I don’t want to risk losing you again because you’re hoping for something he’ll never give.”
Father didn’t respond. He just stared out the window from his hospital bed, lost in his thoughts.
I stood there, still holding Aurora’s hand tightly. She hadn’t said a word this whole time, just quietly listening to me and my father talk.
But I could feel it she had something on her mind.
Then she let out a soft sigh and finally spoke up.
“Um… Alpha John… I know it might not be my place to say this,” she began carefully.
Father turned his head, his eyes meeting hers as she continued.
“But… sometimes the closure we’re looking for doesn’t come from the person who hurt us,” she said gently, her voice steady despite the emotion behind it.
“Sometimes, it has to come from within us. Because holding on to questions, to pain… it only keeps the wound open.”
She paused for a moment, eyes soft but sincere.
“I know how much it hurts to be betrayed by someone you trusted.
And I know it’s hard to understand why they did what they did.
But… maybe it’s not about understanding them anymore. Maybe it’s about healing yourself.”
Father looked at her, and for the first time in a long while, his eyes seemed tired, tired from carrying years of pain.
“I just… I thought we were brothers,” he murmured.
“I thought that meant something.”
“It did,” Aurora said softly.
“To you, it did. And that’s what makes you the better man.”
Silence followed, but it wasn’t a heavy one. It was full of unspoken emotion.
A quiet space for truth to settle in.
I glanced at Aurora, my heart full of admiration. She wasn’t just brave, she was wise beyond her years.
And in that moment, I loved her even more.
Father finally gave a slow nod, breathing in deeply.
“Thank you, Aurora. I think… I needed to hear that.”
She smiled and then looked up at me. I smiled back, my eyes filled with so much love for her.
“Okay,” my father finally said, turning to me.
“I will still talk to him… but not alone.
You’ll be with me but hidden, where he can’t see you.
Understood?”
I nodded. “Okay, father.”
Just then, the door opened and Rafael and Leonardo walked in. My eyes immediately caught Leonardo’s gaze as it shifted to my hand still holding Aurora’s.
He didn’t say a word, but I could tell he understood. He knew what it meant.
He knew I had told father about my relationship with Aurora.
Leonardo looked away, and Rafael stepped forward.
“Father, Uncle Raymond is in the dungeon… and he’s requesting to speak to you.”
My father’s brow furrowed in surprise. “He… wants to see me?”
Alpha John nodded slowly, still looking somewhat dazed.
“Then it’s time.”
He tried to swing his legs over the edge of the bed, but I stepped forward immediately.
“You’re still recovering. Let me help.”
With a quiet nod, he leaned on me for support. Aurora stood on his other side, her calm presence reassuring.
We walked him slowly out of the room and through the halls.
The silence between us was thoughtful, each of us lost in our own thoughts.
As we reached the entrance to the dungeon, a pair of guards opened the reinforced door.
The air grew colder as we walked. The stone walls echoed with the distant sound of dripping water and the low growls of caged rogues.
Rafael turned to me.
"The area's clear. Only you and Alpha John are going in. Aurora and I will stay back."
I nodded, squeezed Aurora's hand, and followed Father.
Just before we reached the room, Father stopped and pointed to a small, shadowed alcove near the door.
"You stay here. I'll handle this." I hesitated, but he added,
"I need to do this alone. Just be ready if things go wrong."
I nodded reluctantly. "I'll be right here."
Father stepped into the room, and the door creaked shut behind him.
I leaned against the cold wall outside the cell, listening to the voices inside.
“Well, well, well... look who's here,” Uncle Raymond said, his voice full of hate and mockery.
“I thought you'd be dead by now. Guess the poison didn't work.”
I could hear the clink of chains as he stood, the sound sharp in the quiet room.
Father entered slowly and sat down across from him without saying a word.
The silence between them grew thick and tense. Father wasn't afraid; he was holding back.
It was the calm before the storm. I pressed myself against the wall, my heart racing.
This was the moment when years of pain and anger would finally explode.
Inside the cell, the air was thick with tension.
“What happened, brother?
Cat got your tongue?”
Uncle Raymond sneered and paced slowly, his chains clinking.
Father sat calmly, his eyes fixed on Raymond. He didn't react or respond.
He just stared at the man who had tried to ruin his life. The silence spoke louder than words.
It wasn't weakness, it was strength. And it was making Raymond angry.
“You’re really going to give me the silent treatment, huh, brother?” Raymond scoffed, his voice rising slightly with irritation.
“After all these years… after everything I did, and you still sit there like some noble, silent saint?”
He laughed bitterly, but there was no humor in it, just frustration.
“You think that makes you better than me? That your silence makes you stronger?” he sneered, stepping closer despite the chains clinking with every move.
“Say something, John!
Don’t just sit there and act like you’re above it all!”
Father didn't react. He kept looking at Raymond, calm and steady, right through his anger.
Father didn't react. He kept looking at Raymond, calm and steady, right through his anger.
Then, finally, his voice broke the silence, low, but firm.
“I’m not above anything, Raymond,” he said quietly.
“I’m just tired.”
Raymond stopped moving, surprised by Father's simple words.
“I'm tired of wondering why you hated me so much,” Father said.
“I wanted us to work together as brothers.”
Father leaned forward, looking straight at Raymond.
“You talk about being strong, but I see a man who let hate consume him.”
I stayed quiet because I wanted you to see that everything you've done hasn't made you stronger, it's made you weaker."
Uncle Raymond looked like he wanted to speak, but he couldn't find the words.
He looked angry, hurt, and maybe even sorry.
"I'm not here to argue," Father said.
"I just needed to see the man you've become and say goodbye to the brother I used to know."
The room became very quiet. Even the sound of the chains stopped.
And for once, Uncle Raymond didn't have anything to say.
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