Two weeks had passed since Valeria and Azaria sat together in the coffee shop, finally clearing the air and mending the delicate threads of their friendship. With that little hiccup resolved and the comfort of their bond restored, Valeria found her mind steadily freed from that particular emotional turmoil, only to drift relentlessly back toward the unresolved darkness that had haunted her family for generations. The long, but quiet hours of her evenings were no longer consumed by fear for her friend, but by the bitter mystery of the feud between the Aldrith and Rhodes packs and, more specifically, by the memory of Aziel's voice during his last phone call to her.
She remembered every nuance of that conversation. She remembered his voice trembling slightly as he offered his sincere apology, his painful admission that he had never truly known the deeper truth behind their families' hatred, and his promise that he would launch his own investigation into the past.
