Chapter Five: The Truth Revealed

The heavy wooden door creaked as it closed behind Alex, sealing him inside the dark, looming estate. The silence in the house was almost suffocating. The air seemed thick with the weight of history, of untold secrets that had been buried for far too long. He could hear the steady click of Katherine's heels against the hardwood floor as she led him deeper into the house. Every step they took seemed to echo, amplifying the tension that hung between them.

Katherine stopped in front of a large, ornate door and turned to face him. "This is it, Alex," she said, her voice calm but tinged with an undeniable gravity. "This is where everything started. This is where you'll learn the truth about your parents, about your family, and about the legacy that's now yours."

Alex felt a knot form in his stomach. He had imagined this moment a thousand times in his head, but now that it was actually here, he wasn't sure he was ready. He had spent so many years living with unanswered questions, with fragments of the past that didn't make sense. But now, standing in front of this door, he realized that the truth might be more than he could handle.

He nodded, his throat tight. "What happened to them, Katherine? Where are they? Why did they have to die?"

Katherine didn't answer immediately. She opened the door, motioning for him to step inside. The room beyond was unlike anything Alex had expected. It was a large study, filled with shelves of old books, maps, and artifacts—he had no doubt they were all tied to the history of his family. The room was dimly lit, a fire crackling in the hearth, casting flickering shadows across the walls.

"Your parents didn't die by accident," Katherine said as she walked to a large desk at the center of the room. "They were killed. But it wasn't just anyone who wanted them dead. It was someone inside your own family, someone who saw them as a threat to their own power."

Alex's heart sank. He had always known there was something wrong, something dark hidden beneath the surface of his family's empire. But the idea that someone within his own bloodline had betrayed his parents hit him like a hammer. He had always assumed that his family was a united front, built on loyalty and tradition. Now, he realized how naïve he had been.

"Who was it?" Alex's voice was barely a whisper, his body tense with anticipation. "Who killed them?"

Katherine turned to face him, her eyes cold and calculating. "It was your uncle, Robert."

Alex's world seemed to shatter. Robert—his uncle? The man he had always looked up to, the man who had been there for him after his parents' disappearance? The man who had helped him take over the family business? He couldn't believe it. The idea of his uncle being involved in something so treacherous seemed impossible.

"My uncle?" Alex repeated, his voice thick with disbelief. "But… why? Why would he do that?"

Katherine stepped forward, her expression hardening. "Robert is power-hungry, Alex. He always has been. Your parents were trying to change things—trying to move the family away from the old ways, to modernize, to bring the Wilson name into the future. But Robert couldn't accept that. He wanted to keep things as they were, to hold on to the control, the power that came with the old traditions. Your parents were in his way."

Alex was silent for a moment, his mind racing. He had never imagined his uncle as someone who would betray his own family. Robert had always been the charming, protective figure in his life—the one who had made him feel safe when his world was falling apart. The idea that his uncle had murdered his parents in cold blood was too much to comprehend.

"But how did you know all of this?" Alex finally asked, his voice shaking. "How did you know what happened to my parents?"

Katherine didn't answer right away. Instead, she walked over to one of the bookshelves and pulled down an old, leather-bound journal. She placed it on the desk in front of him and flipped it open to a page that had clearly been well-worn, the edges frayed from years of handling.

"This is your father's journal," Katherine explained. "He wrote everything down—his discoveries, his suspicions, and his plans. He knew what was happening. He knew Robert was planning something, but he couldn't prove it. This journal is the only record of what happened."

Alex took the journal in his hands, his fingers trembling slightly as he turned the pages. His father's handwriting was neat, precise, and filled with details about the family's history—about the wolves, the power struggles, and the ancient traditions that had governed the Wilson family for generations. As he read, a sickening realization dawned on him: his parents had known that something was coming, something terrible, and they had been trying to protect him from it.

"There's more," Katherine continued, her voice softer now, almost like she was trying to comfort him. "Your parents were part of something bigger, something that went beyond the family business. They were involved in a group, a secret faction of werewolves who wanted to change the way the packs operated. They wanted to break free from the old ways—ways that kept the packs divided, that kept certain families in control. But Robert didn't share that vision. He wanted to keep the status quo."

Alex closed the journal, his mind whirling. He had no idea how to process all of this—his parents' death, the secret life they had led, the betrayal within his own family. He had always thought of his parents as ordinary, as people who lived in the real world. But now, he understood that they had been involved in something far more complex, something far darker.

"Where does that leave me?" Alex asked, his voice cracking. "What am I supposed to do now?"

Katherine's eyes softened, and she stepped closer to him. "You are the heir, Alex. You are the one who is meant to lead the family, to take control of the legacy your parents left behind. But it's not just about power. It's about understanding the responsibility that comes with it. You need to decide what kind of leader you're going to be."

Alex looked down at the journal in his hands, the weight of his parents' legacy pressing down on him. He had never asked for this, never wanted it. But now, there was no turning back. The truth was out. And it was up to him to decide how to move forward.

"I don't know if I'm ready for this," Alex admitted quietly.

"You don't have to be ready," Katherine said, her voice steady. "You just have to be willing to face it."

Alex looked up at her, the firelight flickering in her eyes. The storm was coming, just as she had warned. And now, he had no choice but to face it head-on.