229 Still In Doubt
229 Still In Doubt
Louis‘ POV
Silence.
Heavy. Suffocating. Endless silence.
The kind that presses down on your chest and makes it nearly impossible to breathe.
I glanced around the room at my brothers. They were both here… but barely.
Lennox sat slumped on the couch, eyes blank, staring into nothing. His hands rested uselessly in his lap, his expression hollow. Like life had been drained from him.
Levi was lying on the bed, his eyes locked on the ceiling. He hadn’t spoken much today… or yesterday.
And me?
I sat on the floor, my back against the wall, knees up, head resting on my arm. Just… blanking out.
It had been three days.
Three days since we found Olivia’s body.
Three days since our world shattered.
We had no clue who did it. We sent trackers everywhere, across all borders. Hoped for something–anything–that could lead us to the one responsible.
But everything came back empty.
Whoever did this… was good. Smart. Careful.
Clean.
And no matter how much pain we were in, we were still struggling with one thing–w
didn’t believe it.
That body… headless, lifeless…
Could that really be Olivia?
229 Still In Doubt
Especially Lennox.
One moment he would be mourning, crying like his world had ended… and the next, he’d snap up, yelling, “That’s not her! That’s not Olivia!”
None of us wanted to accept it. And deep down, we couldn’t.
Even with all the signs. All the proof.
Still, we needed more.
We decided to do a DNA test. Just to make sure.
We took a strand of hair from the headless body. And another from Olivia’s old hairbrush. Sent it to the best lab we knew.
The results came in.
A perfect match.
It was Olivia.
She was gone.
Another brutal confirmation that she really was gone.
I didn’t even realize I was crying until I tasted the salt on my lips. Lennox stood up then, punched the wall, then sank to his knees.
“I still don’t believe it,” he muttered. “I don’t care what some test says. That’s not her. It
can’t be.”
Levi didn’t speak, but I could hear him sob quietly. A sound that tore me apart.
Maybe the Seer was right. 2
Maybe it was denial. O
Our hearts just refused to let go of her.
Suddenly, Lennox looked at me. His voice low and rough. “Louis… mind–link Olivia mother. Let her know the memorial is tomorrow night.”
I hesitated. “Are you sure? I mean….”
229 Still in Doubt
“She deserves to know,” Lennox said, his eyes red. “She’s her mother.”
I nodded slowly and reached out through the pack’s mind link.
Mrs. Parker?
There was silence for a moment… then her voice came through, angry and sharp.
What do you want, Alpha?
“We’re… having Olivia’s memorial tomorrow night. We thought you should know.”
There was a long pause.
Then she replied–cold and flat.
I’m not coming.
My heart sank. “Why?”
Because that’s not my daughter. I don’t care what you boys say or what proof you think you have. That’s not Olivia. She’s not dead. She can’t be.
I blinked, fighting back another wave of tears. “Mrs. Parker…”
Don’t call me again, unless it’s to tell me my daughter is alive.
And then the link went dead.
I opened my eyes and looked at Lennox and Levi.
“She’s not coming,” I whispered. *She doesn’t believe it either. She said… that’s not her daughter.”
We all sat in silence again, each drowning in our sorrow.
My wolf… he had completely withdrawn. I hadn’t felt him since the night we found her. He was mourning too. Our mate bond with Olivia might be broken, but not our feelings for her.
We loved her–even before the Moon Goddess made it official.
A soft knock echoed against the door.
We didn’t respond.
229 Still in Doubt
A few seconds later, it creaked open, and our mother stepped in quietly, holding a tray with food none of us had the strength to even look at.
She paused, her eyes scanning the room, lingering on each one of us.
Her face was pale, her lips trembling. “Please,” she said gently, “just eat something. Anything.”
No one moved.
She stepped further in, placing the tray on the table. Her voice cracked. “It’s been three days… You boys haven’t touched a single meal since–since Olivia…”
Her voice broke, and she cleared her throat, composing herself. “I know you’re hurting. I know how much you loved her. But you can’t do this to yourselves. You’re leaders. Alphas.”
We still didn’t speak.
She took a breath and continued, “You have a pack looking up to you. Hundreds of werewolves under your protection. They need you. Your strength. Your presence.”
Still silence.
Then she added softly, “And don’t forget… you’ll be fathers soon.”
That was the breaking point.
7
Lennox’s head snapped up, his eyes bloodshot, rage flashing across his face.
“Get out.”
Her eyes widened in shock. “Lennox-”
“I said get out!” he roared, his voice echoing off the walls.
She flinched, stepping back instinctively.
“You think we care about being Alphas right now?” he growled, rising to his feet. “You think we care about anything else when the one person we lived for might be gone?”
He pointed toward the door, breathing heavily. “We don’t need your lecture. Get out, Mother.”
Tears welled in her eyes as she whispered, “I’m sorry,” and turned to leave.
229 Still In Doubt
The door closed behind her, and the silence returned.
“Damn it… I shouldn’t have spoken to her like that,” Lennox muttered, sinking back onto the couch, running a shaky hand through his hair.
We all knew he didn’t mean it. We were just… broken. Grief had turned everything inside out, made us lash out at the people we still had left.
Before any of us could speak, the door opened again.
We frowned, thinking she had come back.
But it wasn’t her.
It was our father.
He walked in slowly, hands behind his back, face unreadable. We waited, expecting another lecture… maybe another attempt to get us to eat.
But he didn’t say anything like that.
He cleared his throat, his voice calm but firm. “I came to inform you of something.”
We looked up slowly.
“Your uncle, Alpha Damien, just sent word,” he said. “He’ll be coming here. Staying in the pack house for a few weeks… with his new wife.”
The room went dead silent.
“What?” Lennox’s voice was sharp, full of rage.
“He says it’s temporary,” Dad added. “Just for protection. His sources told him some candidates running against him in the Werewolf Council election are planning something dangerous… an attack, maybe even a bombing.”
He sighed. “He believes someone’s targeting him and wants to lie low for a while–here, where it’s safe.”
“No,” Levi said firmly, sitting up. “Not after what he did.”
I clenched my fists. “He shows up three days after Olivia’s death, and we’re supposed to just let him in like nothing happened?”
“He’s not stepping foot in this house,” Lennox snapped. “Not after what he pulled. Not
229 Still In Doubt
after everything”
Dad sighed, but his expression remained steady. “Boys, I understand how you feel. But you can’t stop him.”
“Yes, we can,” Lennox growled. “We’re the Alphas-”
“And he’s a Luciano,” Dad cut in gently but firmly. “Just like you.”
That shut us up.
He stepped forward. “This pack house belongs to our bloodline. Damien is family. He has every right to stay here, especially if it concerns his safety. Whether you like it or
not.”
I clenched my jaw, my wolf growling softly in the back of my mind.
Lennox looked like he wanted to rip something apart.
Levi muttered under his breath, “So he gets to hide here… under our roof… while we grieve the girl he probably helped kill? Because of his stupid revenge. Olivia rejected us… if she hadn’t, she would never have left this pack. She would have never been killed.”
Dad didn’t respond to that.
He only said, “Please stay calm. He’ll be arriving tonight.” Then he turned and walked
out.
The door clicked shut behind him.
We sat there again, stunned. Furious.
Lennox turned to me. “When did he suddenly get married?”
I sighed. “I have no idea.”
A cold chill slid down my spine. Something about the timing didn’t sit right.
Three days ago, Olivia was found dead.
Three days later, Damien’s coming… with a wife we’ve never heard of.
“It’s good he’s coming,” I finally said, my voice low. “Because I have questions. A lot of questions he has to answer.”
229 Still In Doubt
Lennox looked at me. “You’re suspecting him?”
I nodded slowly. “Apart from the three of us… everyone else is a suspect.”
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