Ivy’s POV
The tension from our shopping encounter with Kathrine still hung in the air as Nancy and I made our way back to my father’s quarters. Dad was waiting for us in the main sitting area, his expression unreadable.
"Nancy, would you mind if I spoke with Ivy alone?" he asked, his voice carrying that unmistakable Alpha tone that wasn’t really a request.
Nancy shot me a concerned look but nodded. "I’ll be in the gardens if you need me," she whispered before slipping out.
Dad gestured toward his office door, where I could see Grant already waiting inside. The Beta’s usually cheerful face was solemn, and my stomach tightened. I followed Dad inside, and he closed the door behind us with a soft click.
"Sit," he said, indicating one of the chairs across from his massive oak desk.
I remained standing, crossing my arms. "I’d rather not."
Something like pride flickered in his eyes before he took his own seat behind the desk. Grant stood beside him, his posture stiff.
"I hear you caused quite a scene at Moonstone today," Dad began.
So that’s what this was about. Kathrine had wasted no time running to tattle.
"If standing my ground against a bully is causing a scene, then yes, I did," I replied evenly.
Dad exchanged a glance with Grant. "Kathrine is—"
"I know exactly who she thinks she is," I cut in. "What I want to know is why you’ve let the female hierarchy in this pack descend into chaos. Since when do we allow ranked females to terrorize the unranked ones?"
My father’s eyes widened slightly at my directness, but Grant was the one who spoke.
"The situation is… complicated, Ivy."
I turned my gaze to him, feeling Killian stir angrily inside me. "Then uncomplicate it for me, Uncle Grant. Because what I’ve seen in the past twenty-four hours is a pack that’s rotting from the inside."
My father’s wolf, Thorne, growled in response to my accusation, but Killian growled right back, refusing to submit. Dad looked shocked at my wolf’s defiance.
"You’ve been gone for years," Dad said, his voice hardening. "You don’t understand—"
"I understand perfectly," I interrupted. "Without a Luna to establish order among the females, you’ve let things fall apart. What I don’t understand is why you, as Alpha, haven’t stepped in to fix it."
Grant sighed heavily, running a hand through his salt-and-pepper hair. "It was my idea," he admitted quietly.
That caught me off guard. "Your idea to what? Let the pack crumble?"
"To let your mother see what was happening in her absence," he explained, not meeting my eyes. "I thought if things got bad enough, she might…"
"Come back?" I finished incredulously. "You intentionally let the pack deteriorate hoping it would somehow guilt my mother into returning?"
Dad’s shoulders slumped slightly. "It sounds foolish when you say it like that."
"Because it is foolish," I snapped, unable to hold back my frustration. "Mom cut all contact with this pack. She’s not watching from afar, wringing her hands over your problems. She’s gone."
The truth of my words hung heavy in the air. I could see the pain etched in my father’s face, the desperate hope that had fueled this misguided plan.
"So instead of actually leading," I continued more gently, "you’ve allowed this power vacuum to form, and now some stranger named Kathrine is positioning herself as the next Luna while terrorizing the pack’s females."
"Kathrine isn’t—" Dad began, but something in his expression shifted when he said her name, his eyes taking on a glazed quality that sent chills down my spine.
"Kathrine is what?" I pressed, studying his sudden change.
"Beautiful," he murmured, his voice taking on an unnatural, dreamy quality. "Intelligent. Perfect in every way."
I frowned, glancing at Grant, who now wore the same entranced expression.
"Kathrine is the most incredible woman I’ve ever met," Grant added, his tone eerily similar to my father’s. "The pack is blessed to have her."
Alarm bells rang in my mind. This wasn’t normal. Their voices had the same rehearsed quality, their eyes the same unfocused gleam.
"Dad?" I said sharply. "Dad, look at me."
But he continued, as if reciting from memory: "Kathrine’s guidance has been invaluable to the pack. Her wisdom is unparalleled."
Fear gripped me as I realized something was very wrong. This wasn’t just infatuation—this was something else entirely. Without thinking, I pushed my aura outward, surrounding my father with it, trying to break whatever hold had taken him.
"Dad!" I said more forcefully, grabbing his shoulders. "Snap out of it!"
He blinked rapidly as my aura enveloped him, the glazed look slowly receding from his eyes. Confusion replaced it as he looked around, as if waking from a dream.
"Ivy?" he whispered, his voice back to normal. "What… what were we talking about?"
My blood ran cold. He didn’t remember.
"We were discussing the pack’s problems," I said carefully, watching as Grant continued to stare blankly ahead, still caught in whatever trance had taken them both. "And Kathrine."
At her name, my father’s eyes started to glaze over again, but I tightened my hold on his shoulders, my aura pulsing around him protectively.
"No," I said firmly. "Stay with me, Dad."
With visible effort, he shook his head, fighting against whatever was trying to claim his mind again.
"Something’s wrong," I whispered, terror clawing at my throat. "Something’s very wrong with both of you."
Dad looked at me, truly looked at me, fear dawning in his eyes. "What’s happening to me?" he asked hoarsely.
I didn’t have an answer, but one thing was clear: Kathrine wasn’t just a social climber or a bully. She was something far more dangerous—and she had my father and his Beta under some kind of spell.
"I don’t know," I admitted, my mind racing. "But I’m going to find out."
I needed to act quickly. Whatever control Kathrine had over them was powerful, and I had no idea how far it extended through the pack.
"I’m calling a meeting," I decided aloud. "I want to speak with the beta and gamma females. Today."
Dad nodded slowly, still disoriented. "I’ll arrange it."
"And one more thing," I added, making a split-second decision. "I overheard Kathrine talking about a ‘surprise’ tonight. I want you to watch Kathrine during the celebration."
Understanding dawned in his eyes, and for a moment, I saw a glimpse of the strong Alpha I remembered from my childhood. "Be careful, Ivy," he warned softly. "If what you’re saying is true…"
"I know," I replied grimly. "We’re dealing with something much more dangerous than pack politics."
As I left his office, leaving Grant still trapped in his Kathrine-induced trance, one thought burned in my mind: I’d come back to face my past, to prevent the future I’d suffered through once before. But now I was facing an entirely new threat—one I never saw coming.
And this time, it wasn’t just my life at stake. It was my father’s mind, and possibly the entire pack.