"No, Lily has long been buried." My voice was hoarse, barely recognizable even to my own


    ears.


    The words hung in the sterile air of the Silvercrest Pack Medical Den. Each syble felt like


    broken ss in my throat.


    Victoria''s hand tightened around mine. Her blue eyes widened with what appeared to be


    shock.


    "Five years," I continued, the admission tearing at my soul. "She''s been gone for five years, and


    I didn''t know."


    The weight of this truth crushed me. My daughter had died, and I hadn''t been there. Hadn''t


    known. Hadn''t mourned.


    Memories flooded my mind-painful, sharp-edged fragments of a life I''d barely acknowledged.


    Lily''s small face looking up at me, her emerald eyes-so like her mother''s-filled with hope


    whenever I entered a room.


    I remembered how she would approach me cautiously, always careful not to displease me.


    Her tiny voice would tremble slightly as she greeted me.


    "Hello, Father," she would say, standing straight, trying to make herself worthy of my attention.


    And what had I done? I''d barely acknowledged her. I''d been too busy with pack business, too


    preupied with Victoria and Emma.


    Emma. The thought of Victoria''s daughter sent a fresh wave of guilt crashing over me. How


    many times had I showered Emma with affection while my own daughter watched from the


    shadows?


    I recalled a particr day at Imperial Gardens when both girls had been present. Emma had


    run to me, throwing herself into my arms withplete confidence that I would catch her. I


    had swung her around,ughing at her delighted squeals.


    And Lily? My own daughter had stood apart, watching with longing in her eyes. When Emma finally released me, Lily had approached hesitantly.


    < Chapter 103 Lily''s Death


    "Father," she''d said softly, "would you like to see the drawing I made?"


    +15 Points


    I had nced at it briefly, muttered something about it being nice, and turned back


    to Emma who was demanding I watch her dance.


    The memory made me physically ill. How could I have been so blind? So cruel?


    "I failed her," I whispered, more to myself than to Victoria. "I failed my daughter in every way


    possible."


    I thought of the night I''d just spent at Sacred Moonlight Cemetery, kneeling before Lily''s


    Moonstone Tombstone until dawn. My knees had ached against the cold ground, but I''d


    weed the pain. It was nothingpared to what Lily must have felt, watching her father


    love another child while ignoring her.


    "I never deserved her love," I said, my voice breaking. "But she loved me anyway. She loved me


    despite everything."


    Victoria''s face contorted with what appeared to be sympathy. She stroked my arm gently, her


    touch meant tofort.


    "Ethan, you need to heal," she murmured, her voice honey-sweet. "Lily wouldn''t want you to


    suffer."


    Her words, though well-intentioned, felt hollow. How could she know what Lily would want? How could anyone?


    A terrible thought struck me then. I could have known about Lily''s death sooner. Olivia had