CONFRONTATION

"He’s not the monster." I sob, Isla's words repeating in my head as I break again for the man lying there alone, his body motionless on the small cot. My gut wrenches for the lost childhood and the pain, the pain others caused, but more importantly, the pain I caused. Griffin's life up until now has been nothing short of misery, and all I’ve done is fight him at every turn. My heart and head warring with each other, one part telling me that I don’t want my decisions taken from me, and I’m not ready to be mated. But the other part…

Kneeling and taking my face in her hands, Isla wipes away my tears, smiling knowingly at me, her cheeks wet, "They were never given the chance to understand him." She sighs, biting her bottom lip and wrapping her arms around my neck in an embrace. "They, with their big house, are nothing but sheltered dogs, blind to the real evil beyond these fragile walls. Only some of them are kind, and even they don’t know."