Sophia's POV
I'm practicing combat sequences in the training courtyard when they show up.
My parents stand at the edge of the grounds watching me like they've been waiting for the right moment. My mother looks nervous. Her hands keep fidgeting and she's glancing around like she's worried someone will see her. My father looks angry. His jaw is tight and his eyes are hard.
I haven't seen them since I arrived at the compound five days ago. They didn't come to greet me. They didn't ask how I was doing. They just disappeared into the pack hierarchy like I was never their daughter.
Now they want something.
I shift back to human form and pull on the clothes Marcus left for me. He's inside the compound somewhere. It's just me and the training yard and my parents approaching with urgency in their steps.
My mother speaks first. "Sophia, we need to talk to you about what happened."
I don't say anything. I just wait.
"The attack," my father says. His voice is cold and controlled. "We need to know everything. Every detail. How you survived. What you felt. What changed inside you."
They're not concerned about whether I'm okay. They're not asking if I'm scared or hurt. They're asking tactical questions like I'm a problem to solve.
"I already told the Alpha everything," I say carefully. "He has all the information."
My mother takes a step closer and I tense. "Sophia, we're your parents. We need to understand this directly from you. We need to know if there were any other signs. Any other changes. Anything unusual."
I don't trust their sudden interest. They've ignored me for my entire life. They made me invisible on purpose. Now they want me to give them information about the most important thing that's ever happened to me.
"The rogues attacked," I tell them flatly. "Something awakened inside me. I got stronger. I survived. That's all there is."
My father's expression tightens. "That's not all there is and you know it."
My mother puts her hand on his arm. Then she looks at me and says something that sends chills down my spine.
"We kept you safe by keeping you hidden," she says quietly. "We did what we thought was right. But now everything is different."
Before I can ask what she means, my father interrupts. He grabs her elbow and pulls her back.
"It doesn't matter now," he says harshly. "What's done is done. The important thing is that Sophia understands the gravity of her situation."
He turns to me and his eyes are dark and serious. "Listen to me carefully. Do not tell anyone about your heritage. Do not tell Logan Cross. Do not tell the council. Do not tell Marcus Webb. Tell no one what you are."
"I'm already living with Logan," I say. "I'm already training with Marcus. They already know something is different about me."
"They don't know the full truth," my father says. "They don't know what you actually are. And they cannot know. Your safety depends on it."
He's speaking like there's something specific I should be afraid of. Like there's danger in people knowing exactly what I am.
My mother reaches toward me but my father pulls her away. "We have to go," he says. "We've been here too long."
"Mom," I call out. "Please. I need to understand. What are you hiding from me?"
She looks back at me and her eyes are filled with something that looks like regret. Like she's making a choice she doesn't want to make.
"Be careful who you trust," she says. Her voice is barely above a whisper. "Even the people who seem like they're protecting you might be using you for something else."
Then they walk away. My father's hand is on her back steering her toward the compound buildings. My mother looks back at me one more time before they disappear inside.
I stand in the training courtyard shaking and angry and completely confused.
They know something. They know something about my power. About where it comes from. About why it's dangerous for people to know what I really am.
And they're not going to tell me.
Marcus appears from the training building thirty seconds after my parents leave. He studies my face like he's reading the emotions I'm trying to hide.
"Your parents," he says. It's not a question.
"How did you know?"
"Because I was watching," Marcus says. He walks closer and lowers his voice. "What did they say?"
I tell him about the questions. About my mother's strange comment. About my father's warning to keep my heritage secret.
Marcus's expression darkens. "Your father is more involved in this than I thought."
"Involved in what?" I demand. "Why is everyone talking around me? Why does everyone know something except me?"
"Because the pack is playing a game and you're the piece that everyone wants to control," Marcus says bluntly. "Your parents included."
Before I can respond, Marcus pulls me toward the training ground. He checks to make sure no one is watching us.
"I have to tell you something," he says quietly. "But you have to promise me you won't tell anyone. Not even Logan. Not yet."
"Why not Logan?" I ask.
"Because Logan cares about you and that's going to cloud his judgment," Marcus says. "Because the Alpha can't afford to have his focus divided right now. Because there are people in this pack who would use that against him."
He pulls out his phone and shows me a photo. It's from a security camera. It shows my parents meeting with Victor Blake in what looks like a private office.
My blood goes cold.
"How many times have they met?" I ask.
"Seventeen times in the last month," Marcus says. "Before you transformed. After you transformed. Constantly."
"What are they discussing?"
"I don't know," Marcus admits. "But I know that your father had contact with the rogues before they attacked you. I know that your mother signed off on that contact. I know that whatever they're planning, it goes deeper than just triggering your power."
I feel like the ground is disappearing underneath me. My parents aren't just keeping secrets. They're actively working with someone. They're coordinating something.
"There's more," Marcus says. He swipes to another photo. This one shows Victor Blake meeting with someone in the shadows. I can't see the person's face but I recognize the silhouette.
It's someone from the council. Someone important.
"They're building a coalition," Marcus says quietly. "They're gathering power. And I think they're planning to move against Logan."
"Why would they move against Logan?" I ask.
"Because Logan is protecting you," Marcus says. "Because your bloodline threatens the current power structure. Because if you become too powerful you might challenge the council's authority."
Another photo. This one shows my father talking to the mysterious council member. They're both looking at something. A document. A contract. Something important.
"Sophia, I need you to understand something," Marcus says. His voice is serious and heavy. "The people who orchestrated your transformation didn't do it to help you. They did it because they thought they could control you. They thought they could use your power for their own purposes."
"What purposes?" I whisper.
"To destabilize the pack," Marcus says. "To challenge Logan's authority. To take control of the Crescent Valley territory and the resources that come with it."
He puts the phone away and looks at me directly.
"Your parents sold you out," Marcus says quietly. "And now you're caught in the middle of a power war that could destroy everything."
I can't breathe. My parents didn't keep me safe by keeping me hidden. They were preparing me. They were setting me up. They were using me as a weapon in some game I didn't even know we were playing.
Before I can respond, Marcus's phone buzzes. He looks at the message and his face goes pale.
"We need to go," he says urgently. "Right now."
"What? Why?" I ask.
"Because Victor Blake just called an emergency council meeting," Marcus says. "And the topic is about you. About what you are. About whether you're a threat to the pack."
He grabs my arm and pulls me toward the shadows of the compound.
"If the council votes to exile you or bind you before Logan can protect you, everything falls apart," Marcus says. "And everyone who loves you gets destroyed in the process."
The meeting is happening in one hour.
And I have no idea what I'm about to walk into.