”Crack!”
The Steel whips hit Cecelia’s body and the sound rang through the dark, in the dank basement.
The light of a flickering candle lit up the grim faces of the tormentors.
"Mother..."
Cecelia, with her throat dry, struggled to speak, but her mother held the whip high over her head again.
"Bitch! Bitch! Bitch!"
"Crack! Crack! Crack!"
Every curse was accompanied by an angry lash. Cecelia was dressed in rags, tied to a post and unable to move. She was stubborn and would not beg for mercy. She bored her mother's violence with clenched teeth and she even raised her chest higher.
Her stubborn look made her mother much angrier.
"Well, well! Cecelia Stone, you just love showing off your cheap tits, don't you? Do you know what those nasty people in pack are saying about our family behind our back? You whore, disreputable whore of the family!"
With each swing of her mother's steel whip, Cecelia was struck with precision on the chest. Scars like snakes entrenched. Red, like fire ignited.
Except these hot bruises, they were gone in a second. Cecelia's skin would be flawless again.
Seeing this, her mother raised the steel whip hand suspended in mid-air. Contorted features blurred as her tears welled up.
"That's it, that's it, Cecelia Stone, you have strong blood and healing powers, and you've never been like your vile mother, me! Yes, I'm only human, dragging down your original noble werewolf lineage... Ha ha... Woo woo... Wow!"
Looking at her mother squatting on the ground, sobbing, Cecelia wanted to throw her arms around her and kiss her cheek. But she was still tied up and could not move.
"Mother..."
A soft call, followed by a tender kiss.
Cecelia suddenly opened her eyes to see her increasingly handsome and tall son, Damon, as a damp sea breeze blew in. Outside, the beautiful Italian town of Positano was already lit up by the morning sun.
It’s a dream.
It's the old days again. It's been 17 years since she fled from there...
“Mother?”
Damon looked at Cecelia anxiously.
Cecelia flashed a big smile and said, "What's the matter, Damon, did you clean the downstairs?"
Cecelia glanced sideways at the wall clock.
"It's past seven, and if you don't open the door, the men in the pack, with their coffee running through their blood, will yell at you for being lazy again."
Damon shrugged and pursed his mouth.
"I don't care what those old men say about me. In Burgundy Pack, I only care what you, Alpha, and Luna think."
"Alpha Jacques and Luna Daisy treat me like daughter, and treat you like grandchildren." Cecelia said softly, rubbing Damon's brown hair down to his chin. “You were right to respect them and listen to them. You're a good kid."
"I’m not a kid! I'm 17 years old. You must have been seventeen when you conceived me?"
Damon's words stunned Cecelia. She was about to say something, but her thoughts were interrupted by a loud male voice outside the door.
"Cecelia, Damon, here we come!" Alpha Jacques and Luna Daisy of Burgundy Pack showed up at the door.
Cecelia remembered that she had breakfast plans with Jacques and Daisy!
"Alpha, Luna, I'm so sorry! How silly of me to forget to have breakfast with you today! ... Just a moment, both of you, while I prepare coffee and breakfast..."
Before Cecelia finished her words, she saw Jacques and Daisy are already sitting at the table. And Damon at their side as he serve the food and pour the coffee.
The dining table was even set, with a linen tablecloth. In the middle of the vase was Cecelia's favorite flower white lily.
Jacques waved at Cecelia and laughed, "Cecelia, come and sit down. I was a little surprised by your surprise. Damon cooked all of this breakfast? Boy, you've grown up."
Jacques said, patting Damon on the shoulder. Daisy smiled and nodded.
"It was, it was a surprise."
Surprised and delighted, Cecelia walked to the table and glanced at Damon. Damon grinned and pulled out the stool for her.
"Thank you."
Cecelia sat down and looked at the tray that lay before them. She could not help wondering what lay under the lid.
"You did it all, Damon?"
Honestly, she's never seen Damon cook before, and as much as she loves her son, she can't help but worry.
Damon's eyes sparkled. "Yes, I did it. Please try."
With that, Damon lifted the lid off their meal, one by one.
The aroma overflowed.
Cecelia immediately felt that the early fatigue had been swept away, and also felt that the fragrance was a little... Be familiar with.
Cecelia looked down at this familiarity and, for one glance, was stunned by what was on her plate.
"Egg Benedict! It's a very American dish."
Although Daisy has lived in Italy for a long time, she loves to travel. She knew so much about food that she instantly recognized the origin of Damon's production.
Jacques laughed. "American food! Damon still has a sentimental attachment to his homeland, huh? Ha ha."
It's a perfectly normal joke, but when Damon heard it, his boyish face turned cold as ice.
“It's not my home country, and I hate everything there!”
Damon jumped to his feet, causing the table to shake violently.
"Damon!"
Cecelia grabbed Damon's hand.
"Damon, I told you to calm down." Jacques shook his head and sighed. "Go to your room and get some rest. There's something I want to talk to your mother about.”
Damon dropped his head and gritted his teeth. Moments later, he turned away and went up to the second floor.
Cecelia stood up with a deep bow, grateful for Jacques' generosity.
"Thank you for your generosity, Alpha!"
In the pack, offending the Alpha like Damon is already a capital offense!
"Cecelia, sit down. Just forget it ever happened."
Daisy's voice was soothing.
Cecelia still wouldn't sit down. Burgundy Pack is the only place she can rely on right now, not for herself, but for Damon's safety in the future, and to show Jacques and Daisy how sincere she is.
Jacques pretended to be angry. "Cecelia, do you want me to order you to sit down?"
After hearing Jacques's angry voice, Cecelia sat down.
"Cecelia, today I've actually come to tell you something."
"What’s that?"
Jacques nodded, becoming intriguing.
"There’s a message from Silver Moon Pack."
Cecelia's heart began to pound.
Silver Moon Pack... There will never be another Silver Moon Pack in this world.
"Cecelia, your brother is getting married, and he wants you to go back to California, to the Silver Moon Pack, for his -- wedding!"
