"What's wrong, Silver?" I repeated, my voice laced with alarm. Silver's face had twisted into an expression of horror I'd never seen before. He practically jumped out of the bed, hastily pulling on his underwear as if trying to escape from some unseen threat.

"Your father... I..." he mumbled, hyperventilating and clutching at his hair. His eyes shimmered with unshed tears. "I know him... Shit."

My heart raced as fear gripped me. What could have possibly prompted such a reaction? Shakily, I stood up from the bed, slipping on my panties and a t-shirt, trying to ignore the cold dread creeping through me. "Silver, please, calm down. You're scaring me," I said, trying to sound soothing, but my voice was barely a whisper.

"What do you mean you know him?" I asked hesitantly, my stomach churning with unease. A coldness spread from my fingertips to my heart, making it feel like it was encased in ice. I reached out towards Silver, wanting to place a hand on his back and offer him comfort, but he flinched away from me.

"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!" he yelled, stumbling over to a corner of the room and banging his head against the wall. It was like watching someone else in his body.

"Silver, please, tell me what's going on," I pleaded, feeling helpless as I watched him unravel before my eyes.

Tears streamed down my face as I tried to comprehend what was happening. This wasn't normal, and it scared me. Why was Silver like this? What did it have to do with Dad?

Silver let out an awful scream before collapsing to his knees, sobbing uncontrollably, his back to me. My heart ached for him, but I couldn't just stand there doing nothing. I approached his trembling body and forced him to turn around and look at me.

His yellow eyes were vacant, his expression completely unhinged. "I... I killed him," he choked out, finally looking at me.

A chill ran down my spine, and I stumbled backward, removing my hands from his shoulders. "Wh-what?" I stammered, my voice barely audible.

"I... I didn't know..." Silver continued, rising to his feet, his face a portrait of pure anguish. I stood up as well, taking another step back from him, trying to put some distance between us.

"What do you mean...? Who did you kill?" I mumbled, my throat dry with fear and disbelief.

Silver reached out, attempting to cup my face, but I backed away even further. He seemed so broken, so vulnerable, that for a moment, I almost wanted to embrace him, comfort him, but I just couldn't. Not until I knew the truth.

"It was self-defense, Red! I'm so sorry," he said through his tears. "I... I was young, and he attacked me first... He was a Black Hood, and I was scared... I'm sorry."

My heart pounded in my chest as the truth settled in, like an anchor pulling me down. "You... You killed my father..." I whispered, shaking my head, unable to accept the horrifying reality.

As the realization washed over me, my breaths came in ragged gasps. The man I loved, the werewolf I came to admire, had killed my father.

"No... Tell me it's not true..." I choked out, tears streaming down my face. My legs felt weak, and I was grateful for the wall behind me, supporting my back.

My world crumbled around me, and all I wanted to do was scream, cry, and rage against the injustice of it all.

Silver's eyes were filled with anguish as he dug his claws into his chest, drawing blood that dripped down his muscular torso. "Red, please," he begged, desperation etched into his every feature, a hand reaching out to me.

"Shut up!" I shouted, fury bubbling up inside me. "Don't touch me!"

I couldn't stand it anymore. The anger, the grief, the shock—everything threatened to consume me whole. "Do you know how much we suffered... How much I miss him?" I sobbed, feeling a volatile mix of sadness and rage.

Silver stopped dead in his tracks, his shoulders sinking as he looked at me with those beautiful, regretful eyes. A part of me wanted to run into his arms, to let him hold me until everything was okay again. But I couldn't. He had taken my father from me. And nothing would ever be the same again.

"I'm sorry, Red. Please," he pleaded once more, reaching out to me with trembling hands. His sorrowful expression nearly broke me, but my anger held strong, refusing to let me give in.

"Sorry doesn't change anything," I spat, wiping my tear-streaked cheeks with the back of my hand. "You took him away from us. You destroyed our lives."

As I pushed past him, my entire body shaking with emotion, I knew that the man I had loved—the werewolf who had brought passion and joy into my life—was now forever tarnished by the blood on his hands. And as much as it hurt, there was no turning back.

"Red..." he whispered one last time, his voice barely audible.

I felt overwhelmed by Silver's confession and could not stop the tears from flowing down my cheeks.

"Did you know he was the most caring, genuine person I've ever known?" I sobbed, my voice barely a whisper. "He was always there for me, always had a smile on his face. He meant everything to us, and when he died, it felt like the color was drained from my life."

As I spoke, Silver's eyes glistened with more tears, his jaw clenched in anguish. I could see how much my words were affecting him, but I didn't care. He needed to know the impact of what he had done.

"Life became unbearable after his death," I continued, my anger giving way to heartbreak. "My mother... she was never the same. She was always so controlling, but she just lost it after he was gone. She became depressed, and one night... One night, I found her in the bathroom, her wrists open and bleeding into the tub."

I paused, choking on the memory. "She almost didn't make it, Silver. All because of you."

Silver's face crumpled, and he tried again to approach me. I instinctively stepped back, but he moved quickly, grabbing my wrist and pulling me against his body. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry I made you go through all of that..." he whispered, his warm frame shaking with sobs. My chest tightened, conflicting emotions warring within me. I wanted to push him away, but I couldn't deny the comfort his embrace provided.

"I love you," he murmured into my ear, his breath hot against my skin. "I don't want to lose you."

His words sent a shiver down my spine, and I trembled in his arms. I wanted to scream at him, to tell him that he had already lost me when he took my father away. But as much as I hated him for what he had done, I couldn't bring myself to say those words.

His grip tightened around me, a desperate plea for forgiveness. But I knew that no matter how much I might want to give it to him, there was no going back. Our love had been built on a foundation of lies, and now the truth had come crashing down around us, leaving nothing but heartbreak and betrayal in its wake.

How could I have been so blind? How could I have fallen for him, the monster who killed my father? Waves of disgust crashed through me as the reality of the situation hit me. I had let myself become vulnerable to a werewolf, someone I had been trained to hunt and kill. And not just any werewolf, but the one responsible for tearing my family apart.

The anger inside me boiled over, and I couldn't stand another second in his arms. With a surge of strength, I pushed Silver away from me. "I don't want to see you ever again," I spat, my voice dripping with venom.

His yellow eyes widened in shock, and I could see the pain etched across his face. But I didn't care. My heart was hardened against him now, leaving no room for sympathy or forgiveness.

"Red, please," he begged, reaching out for me, but I turned away, desperate to escape the cabin that had become a prison. I fumbled with my clothes, pulling on my pants and jacket in a frenzy, all the while feeling Silver's gaze burning into my back.

"Please don't go," he whispered, his voice cracking with emotion. "I never wanted this. I would give anything to take it back."

"Save it," I snapped. "Nothing you say can change what you've done. You're dead to me."

"Red," he choked out, tears streaming down his face. But I refused to look at him. I couldn't stand the sight of him any longer.

"Red, I'm begging you," Silver pleaded as he grabbed my jacket. His eyes were filled with desperation and fear, but I couldn't let myself feel anything for him anymore. I jerked away from his grasp, put on my hood and headed for the door.

"Get off me!" I shouted when he tried to pull me back, grabbing at my red hood. The sound of ripping fabric tore through the air as the hood came apart in his hand. My heart ached at the sight of it, ruined and frayed – it had been the last gift my grandmother had given me before she died.

"Red, I didn't mean to—I'm so sor—" Silver started, but I cut him off with a sharp glare.

"Save your apologies," I spat, my anger flaring. "You've done enough."

Tucking the torn hood into my jacket pocket, I turned my back on Silver and the mess we'd made. "Don't follow me," I warned him, my voice cold and final. "Don't look for me. I don't want you, Silver. This was all a mistake."

I could hear him swallow hard, but I refused to look at him. Refused to give him even a shred of the love I had thought I felt. With my head held high and my heart shattered, I left the cabin and ran into the night.

The cool wind whipped against my face as I ran, stinging my cheeks and bringing tears to my eyes. But I wouldn't cry for him. No, not for the monster who had killed my father.

I focused on the steady rhythm of my footsteps, the burning in my lungs, and the numbness that had settled over my heart. And I ran, leaving behind the man I had thought I loved, and the life I had been foolish enough to imagine with him.

***

Night had fallen around me like a suffocating blanket, the darkness pressing in from all sides as I tore through the forest. My breath came in ragged gasps, the cold air searing my lungs with every inhale. The only sounds were the pounding of my heart and the rustling leaves beneath my feet, their whispers mocking my desperate flight.

I pushed myself to keep going, not daring to stop for fear that Silver would be right behind me. But even as I ran, part of me couldn't help but wish that he were there, strong arms to wrap around me and chase away the cold emptiness that threatened to swallow me. I shook my head, trying to banish the traitorous thoughts. He was a murderer. I couldn't love him. I wouldn't.

As dawn broke over the horizon, light filtered through the trees, casting eerie shadows that seemed to dance and twist with every step I took. The rising sun brought with it a growing sense of clarity, and I finally allowed myself to slow down, my body trembling from exhaustion and adrenaline. Leaning against the rough bark of a tree, I slid down to the ground and finally broke down, letting tears flow freely down my cheeks.

The night had changed everything—not just my life, but the person I was. I felt emotionally and physically exhausted, my mind replaying the events of the evening over and over again in an endless loop. I hadn't expected to fall for Silver, but it felt like a betrayal of my father's memory, and as if that weren't enough, thoughts of my mother filled me with dread. How worried she must be—if she ever knew what had happened between Silver and me… I shuddered at the thought, my tears coming faster now as guilt and shame overwhelmed me.

My fingers trembled as I reached into my jacket pocket, pulling out the broken red hood to dry my tears. It was torn, but not as bad as I first thought. As I examined the jagged rip, wondering if it could ever be mended, I noticed something white poking out from inside.

"What the hell is this?" I muttered, curiosity momentarily overpowering my grief. Carefully, I widened the rip just enough to pull out a folded piece of paper. Had my grandmother hidden this here without telling me? As I unfolded the paper, something small and metallic fell into my palm—a tiny silver key.