CHAPTER 16

As they walked through the dense woods, Vera sensed an unease in Damon that she had never seen before. The normally confident and composed alpha seemed distant, his eyes dark with memories that he could not shake.

"What is it? What's wrong? Why are you so quiet? And whose statue is that?" Vera asked, her voice filled with concern as they came upon a clearing dominated by a grim, lifelike statue.

Damon's gaze hardened as he looked at the statue. "This... this was where my parents were killed. And that... that man is the one who killed them," he said, his voice trembling with suppressed rage. His fists tightened at his sides, the tendons in his arms standing out like cables.

"Oh, I am so sorry," Vera said softly, feeling the weight of his pain.

"It's fine," Damon replied, though his tone suggested it was anything but.

Vera stepped forward, feeling the oppressive atmosphere of the clearing seep into her bones. She turned around slowly, clutching her chest as a wave of sorrow and anger washed over her. "This place... it feels broken, hurt. I can't explain it, but the blood spilled here cries out for justice."

Damon's face twisted with anguish as he continued, "Moses, he... he called my parents here to be the first to congratulate them on their new pregnancy. They hadn't even told the rest of the pack yet. Moses was my father's brother. He trusted him, and what did that trust get him? Moses gave them drinks laced with drugs, a potent concoction that even their werewolf senses couldn't detect. He drugged my father and made him watch while he ripped my pregnant mother apart, limb from limb. Then he came for my father, ripping out his heart."

Vera's eyes widened in horror as she listened. Damon's voice broke as he pointed to the statue. "I put his statue here so I will never find peace as long as I am alive until I catch Moses and do unto him what he did to my parents a hundredfold."

Vera stepped closer to Damon, her heart aching for him. She placed a gentle hand on his arm and said softly, "Moses is going to get what's coming to him, but that doesn't mean you will not get to live your life, Damon."

Damon shook his head, his eyes filled with bitterness. "I live enough."

"You are seen in public only when you want to address the pack. You have no friends except for the two siblings your parents were friends with since before you were even born, and they're not even from this pack. You are there but distant enough for no one to reach you," Vera said, her voice trembling slightly as she feared she might have overstepped her bounds. "I know what happened to your parents made you grow up fast, to take care of your brother and to lead a pack where most of the members were decades older than you."

Damon's lips curved into a faint smile, a rare sight. "You think I am one-dimensional, like the male fictional characters you read in your books, who have no personality other than being handsome, don't you?"

Vera chuckled nervously, then smiled. "Oh, I think you are... like the characters," she joked before turning serious again. "But I think there are nuances to you other than that. You will fight and protect everyone you love, even if it's the last thing you do. And that's why the werewolves of Moon Grove Pack honor you, and so do I."

Damon looked at her, holding her gaze. There was something in her eyes, a depth of understanding and compassion that called out to him. It was a moment of connection he hadn't felt in a long time.

"You think I'm handsome, huh?" Damon said, breaking the moment with a teasing smirk.

"Please," Vera laughed, rolling her eyes. She glanced around the clearing and added more seriously, "I wish I had met your mom."

"Yeah, you would have loved her, and her you. She was the joy of this pack, she even managed to cool my father's hot temper," Damon said, his voice softening as he remembered.

"What was she like?" Vera asked, eager to know more about the woman who had brought so much light to the pack.

Damon's eyes grew distant as he recalled his mother. "She was kind, always putting others before herself. She had this way of making everyone feel special, like they mattered. And she was strong. Not in the way that most think of strength, but in a quiet, enduring way. She stood up for what was right, no matter the cost. I miss her every day."

Vera nodded, understanding the depth of his loss. "She sounds incredible. I can see why you miss her so much."

Damon sighed, running a hand through his hair. "She was. And my father, despite his temper, loved her deeply. She balanced him, made him a better leader. Without her, he was lost."

Vera placed her hand over his, giving it a gentle squeeze. "You've done a remarkable job leading the pack, Damon. Your parents would be proud of you."

"Sometimes, it feels like I'm just pretending," Damon admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. "Like I'm not really the alpha they would have wanted me to be."

"You're not pretending," Vera said firmly. "You are a great leader. You care for the pack, you protect them, and you're doing everything you can to keep them safe. That's what makes you a true alpha."

Damon looked at her, his eyes filled with gratitude. "Thank you, Vera."

They stood there for a moment, the silence filled with unspoken understanding. The pain of the past lingered, but in that shared moment, there was also a sense of hope and connection.

"We better get back. The others might be worried," Damon said, breaking the contemplative silence that had settled over them.

"Oh, yeah," Vera agreed, snapping out of her reverie. They turned and began walking back through the dense forest. The sunlight filtered through the trees, casting dappled shadows on the ground. Damon started a conversation to fill the quiet.

"What book were you reading?" he asked.

"Oh, it's the biography of Loretta Adams," Vera replied, glancing at him with a small smile.

"Loretta Adams? She's a legend," Damon said, his tone filled with admiration.

"Yeah, she single-handedly stopped the human-werewolf war 500 years ago, among other things," Vera added, thinking about the incredible feats Loretta had accomplished. Then, remembering how Damon had handled himself against those six werewolves earlier, she asked, "What about you?"

"What about me?" Damon responded, a bit puzzled by the question.

"You single-handedly took down six strong werewolves who almost killed the war council like it was nothing. All while not even transforming. No one is that strong," Vera said, her eyes reflecting her amazement and curiosity.

Damon smiled slightly. "I am what you might call an energy werewolf. I can grow my body and strength not just from the energy within me but also from others and my environment. My werewolf form is an incomplete form, a dark fur with shadowy mist flowing in and out of me, representing the energy I am absorbing. It makes me a hundred times faster, stronger than the average werewolf, with a healing ability that is almost instant and resistance to most things that would hurt a normal werewolf."

"Wow," Vera said, genuinely impressed. "But does it hurt?"

"Does what hurt?" Damon asked, intrigued by her question.

"Feeding off energy. Do you worry it might overwhelm you or make you lose control?" Vera inquired, her concern for him evident in her voice.

Damon paused for a moment, reflecting on his past. "Maybe when I was little, but my parents trained me from a young age when they discovered my unique gift. And now... I have full control," he said confidently.

Without even realizing it, they reached the lake where the others were. The laughter and playful shouts of their friends filled the air.

"Where have you guys been? I was almost worried," Victoria said as she came up to Damon. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately. Vera felt a bit awkward as she stood, knowing it was time to leave.

She turned and headed back to the tree where she had left her book. Settling down, she opened the pages and tried to immerse herself in Loretta Adams' story again. But the words seemed to blur as her mind wandered back to Damon and the conversation they had just had.

As Vera sat there, she could hear the others playing around the lake, their carefree laughter mingling with the sounds of nature. She couldn't help but feel a sense of isolation, a reminder of the invisible barrier that separated her from them. They were part of a world that she was still struggling to understand, a world where she felt like an outsider.