Chapter Eight

Rieka Varon PoV:

It was exhausting but also nice to let all of my emotions out in my mother's arms. It makes sense that I have been holding in a lot of my emotions recently. school as usual, the stress of perhaps emerging as the alpha, and my father's health in addition. He is a fighter, and I know he will do all in his power to survive as long as he can. He will have to realize that he may finally rest when the time comes for him as well as for our family. I hate thinking about it, yet it is a terrible part of life. Everyone must eventually pass away, therefore we must live each day to the fullest. But even so, it may be challenging, particularly if all you can do is stand by and feel frustrated that you have no power to change the situation.

But that's all for now. I have to take advantage of my time with him while I can.

I gather all of my strength and take a long breath before opening his room's door gently. I go in and immediately notice him laying there. He seems worn out and unwell. His breathing was a little erratic, and I could see that he was in pain from the look on his face, but I could also see a glimmer of hope in his eyes. I approach him and grab a chair for myself to seat next to him. "Hey, dad. We can't just leave you alone, can we?" I ask in humor. "That could be true, princess, but I'm OK," he chuckles lightheartedly before starting to cough. "You shouldn't be worried about me" He grabs my hand and softly squeezes it. I look at him with compassion and say, "We both know that's not true" He simply sighs and turns to face the window. For a time, we sat in peaceful silence without speaking, each one lost in their own thoughts.

I wish I could help him, but I am unable to. I can only show him that I am there for him and that I will stand by his side no matter what. But I simply don't feel like I'm doing enough. These thoughts of hopelessness and powerlessness are destroying me. My father is slowly sailing away onto his next voyage, leaving everything he has ever loved behind, and I have no way to release myself from the mental grip he holds.

When my mother knocks on the door and opens it, I am startled out of my trance. She was undoubtedly sobbing because her eyes were a little red. "Your brother is on the way; he claims he needs some time because the car was taken" She says, giving me a little smirk as she looks at me. “But he also told be that you ditched detention” “damn snitch” I mumble to myself. “What was that?” My mom raises an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, but in my defense, you said there was an emergency, so I handled it like one," I responded after clearing my throat. She looks at me with narrowed eyes before groaning, "Fine, I'll let that one slide." “And?” she rolls her eyes at me “ and I will make sure to contact the school so that you arent in any more trouble” I answer "Yes, thank you, and I love you" and kiss her on the cheek. My father is simply amused as he observes us. My mother adds, "Yeah, I love you too, but you still have to explain why you got the detention in the first place," before jokingly pushing me out of the way. I agreed, but insisted that we first discuss the Ethan Situation. As soon as I stated that, the atmosphere surrounding us changed. from relaxed to tight. They both remain silent about it, so I start speaking once more. "We shouldn't keep him in the dark, and knowing that I'm lying to him hurts." "We should tell him sooner rather than later," I remark, emphasizing my father's health. Dad sighs and then says, "We'll tell him when the time is right, so hold it in a little longer, please," in response to my question.

I simply sneer at him. "Do you two not understand? The consequences will worsen the longer we wait! I've had enough with keeping this charade. Do you know how much it bothers me to see Ethan so thrilled about being Alpha when I know I'm going to take his place? I don't know how much longer I can keep this a secret, so I hope you tell him soon"

"What secret?" Oh my god, I hope Ethan didn't hear anything