Page 51 of A Silent Prodigy for the Lycan Princess

Eric squeezes my shoulder. “It’s not your fault,” he says quietly. “I hope you know that. Truth be told, I had a feeling something bigger was off.”

“He hurt Vander,” I mutter. “And it’s not been the first time. And he tried to hurt Aurelia.”

“What about you?” Eric asks quietly. “Did he hurt you before?”

I stay quiet for a while, collecting my thoughts. Eric lets me, not inquiring further and just drinking his coffee.

“Most of the time, he ignores me,” I admit.

“And the rest of the time?”

“He… he thinks I’m useless,” I say, barely able to say the words. It makes the situation feel a lot more real. “And that I shouldn’t have been born. A cripple. Well, you get the general message.”

I can see Eric’s hand tensing. Glancing at him for a short moment, something angry swirls in his eyes, but it’s gone fast. “Did he ever attack you?”

I think of the last time when he almost strangled me and the time before that when he purposefully beat me up during training. He is a reigning alpha. I had no chance.

“Oh fuck,” Eric spits out. “What is he even thinking? I will need to investigate him and his doings properly,” he tells me. “And I hate to put you through this, but I will need details. If you feel better about it, you can write it down instead of talking to me.”

“Is that really okay?”

“Of course,” Eric says, almost sounding gentle. “I will need to talk to Vander, as well, though.”

“He went through so much,” I mutter.

“I will be sensitive,” he reassures me. “Arden, he is a minor. I need to talk to him to find a solution that keeps him safe. I will try to keep him out of most of it. But please understand that I need his report, myself.”

“I know,” I say. “It’s just… I said goodbye to my father a long time ago. Ever since the accident happened. But Vander, he still had hopes that things will get better.”

“Is there more I need to know?” Eric asks me.

I swallow down my pride and my own pain, deciding it’s better for me to answer all his questions than for Vander to need to do it, and I tell Eric about how my father has been bedding she-wolves from our pack, just to drop them later. I go into more detail about how he treated me and how he never planned onmaking me his heir. I describe what happened today, including that he tried to alpha command me to reject Aurelia.

Eric is silent once I’ve finished, just his eyebrow ticking slightly. “It’s his loss,” he finally says. “That he never saw how capable and talented you are, it’s truly his loss. None of this is your fault, Arden. I know you won’t believe me, but I hope that one day you can accept this truth: you are not responsible for your father’s poor decisions. You are also not responsible for how he sees you or your brother. He thinks you are a failure? That’s his problem, not yours. You are good exactly the way you are. And just so you know, not everyone is capable of resisting an alpha’s command, but you did. Your mental capabilities are amazing. You will enhance Aurelia’s power well, just like she compliments yours.”

“Do you truly mean that?” I ask quietly.

“You are the prodigy. Let the facts decide,” Eric says.

“I know the facts, and I know rationally that you are right,” I say. “It’s just difficult for my heart to accept it.”

“I am proud of you,” Eric says, much to my surprise. “You are intelligent, empathic, and always try to become better. You invited your former bully to your team because you want to save these omegas. That’s the type of person you are. You will be a fantastic co-leader to Silverlake.”

“Who will lead my old pack?” I ask.

“We’ll see,” Eric says. “It’s your birthright—”

“I don’t want it,” I say shortly. “I truly don’t.”

“I know.” Eric looks sad. “I am sorry for not intervening earlier, Arden. I had a feeling something was wrong.”

“It’s not like I didn’t rebuff you every time,” I say. “If Vander wants the pack, I will give it to him. He is a good guy, and I’m sure he will be a good alpha one day.”

“Let’s see about that,” Eric says. “We don’t know yet what Vander wants. We should take him into consideration, too.”

“And if none of us wants it?” I ask.

“Then, we’ll find another solution,” Eric says. “For now, your father and his ranked members must face this investigation.”