I stand in front of the doors of the west wing. Salvaza, Donata, and Zane are behind me waiting for me to open the door.

"Go on dear," Donata says.

I bring my hand up to the handle, ready to open the door that might unveil a truth I'm not ready for. I can feel it in my gut, whatever we are about to find is going to be monumental. I shake the dreary thought out of my head and focus. With a deep breath, I push open the door.

I enter and I am instantly hit with the exact same feeling I had when I came here before. The place seems familiar but most of all, it's so sad. There is a strong feeling of despair in the air as if the last people to reside here were grieving.

"Oh goddess," Salvaza speaks.

"What is it?" I ask her.

"Spirits. There are spirits here."

"Who are they?"

"There's no way to tell unless they wish for us to know. I'm guessing it's some alpha family."

"What nonsense! There hasn't been a alpha family here for centuries," Donata says.

"What is it you wanted to show us Alessia?" Zane asks.

"Follow me," I tell them.

They follow me into the opulent room I had discovered earlier. It's clear that this is the only place in the west wing that has not been stained with the sadness that fills the walls of every other room. This room was once full of love, a love so strong it can still be felt.

"It's a gorgeous room dear, but what does this have to do with anything?" Donata asks me.

"There," I point at the painting that is draped with a sheet. The sheet is slightly tilted but I tried my best to cover it when I was sneaking out of here.

Zane walks over to the painting. His hands grasp the sheet and he yanks it down revealing half of the painting.

"What the hell? What type of creep is keeping a painting of Alessandra in their bedroom?" Zane asks. His eyes show his anger but he clearly hasn't processed the situation.

"Zane pull the sheet all the way down," I tell him. He follows my order and takes a step back in shock.

Salvaza and Donata look at the painting in horror.

"Is that? Is that me?"

I nod.

He shakes his head and continues to walk backwards.

"I look so.."

"Menacing? Evil?" I ask.

"I was going to say old."

"The artist must have gotten it wrong," Salvaza says.

"What do you mean?" Zane asks.

"You never looked evil when you were with her." Tears glimmer in Salvaza eyes as she talks. She walks up to the painting and caresses the lady's face.

"I can't believe we didn't notice before," Dontata murmers.

"What? What are you two talking about?" Zane asks.

"That painting was a portrait painted by Leonardo Da Vinci himself," Donata says.

"I don't care about the artist! Why do they look just like us?" Zane shouts.

"This painting is of Lorenzo and Rosanna Moretti," Salvaza says.

"I know about them. They were the alpha family before the De Lucas," Zane says.

I knew this room had to be an alpha's.

"They resided in the west wing before they passed. I'm assuming this is their room," Donata says.

"Ok but why do we look like them?"

"I don't know. This is unlike anything I've ever seen before," Salvaza says.

"However we do know that the goddess is involved. The Blood Moon was definitely her doing," Donata says.

"Yes, which means that she wants you two together," Salvaza adds.

"Well is there anything you know about them?" Zane asks, gesturing to the painting.

"Ah, I love a good romance. There's was a bit tragic though," Donata says.

"Lorenzo Moretti was a ruthless alpha. He didn't leave room for error. He wanted to ensure that no one would bring down the Luna Rossa Pack like his father had," Salvaza says.

"Because of this he worked harder than any alpha before him. Ever since then, he's been regarded as one of the best alphas the world has ever seen," Donata says.

"Yes, some people even put him above the Alpha King," Salvaza says.

"What about Rosanna? Who was she?" I ask.

"Rosanna Moretti was a strong luna and a person with a kind heart. I believe I was fourteen when she died. But I had met her before and she really left a good impression on me," Salvaza says.

"Well how did she die?" I ask.

Salvaza and Donata's eyes fill with sadness.

"Luna Rosanna was attacked by the very own wolves she ruled," Donata says.

"People were angry about Lorenzo's father and all the things he had done wrong as an alpha," Salvaza says.

"And others were growing worried about the blind devotion people were showing the Morettis," Donata says.

"So they planned their demise," Salvaza says in a quiet voice.

"And what's the best way to take out the king?" Donata says.

"Take out the queen first," I say.

"Exactly. That's what they did. Rosanna was at the Temple of Selene on a full moon. She was a devotee of the goddess," Salvaza says.

"She was about to begin her prayers when she was attacked," Donata says.

"They attacked her to the point where it was certain she wouldn't survive," Salvaza says.

"She stumbled out of the temple, a trail of blood behind her, and collapsed to the ground right outside the temple," Donata says.

"That's where she laid until Lorenzo found her," Salvaza says.

"Some say she hung onto her last shred of life for her baby, so that it might survive after its father found them. She already knew it was too late for her," Donata says.

"Others say she was waiting for Lorenzo so she could say her final goodbye," Salvaza says, a sad look overtaking her features.

"Well did it? The baby I mean," I ask.

"No. Rosanna was wrong. It was too late for her and the baby," Donata says.

My heart breaks at the thought. What type of barbarians would attack a pregnant woman?

"And that's how she died. In the arms of her mate after being brutally attacked by some jealous individuals," Salvaza says.

"This doesn't make sense. If she was being attacked wouldn't Lorenzo be able to feel it?" Zane asks.

"He would've if he had marked her. The attackers used this knowledge to their advantage. They knew the alpha wouldn't find out about the murder until it was too late," Donata says.

"Don't worry he got his revenge," Salvaza says.

"How?" I ask.

"I'm sure you've all heard of the Blood Moon Massacre," she says.

"That was him? He killed hundreds of wolves because his mate was murdered?" I ask.

"First he killed everyone involved in the death of Rosanna. Then he continued to kill wolves until the Temple of Selene overflowed with bodies."

Everyone knew about the Blood Moon Massacre but I never knew the reason was about love.

"Why? They didn't do anything," Zane says.

"They didn't but Selene did. Rosanna was at her temple when she was attacked. She didn't help her even though Rosanna was such a devotee of the goddess," Salvaza says.

"All wolves are children of the goddess. What better way to hurt her than killing all of them?" Donata adds.

"What made him stop?" I ask.

"No one knows. All that we know is that he died mysteriously and Clarice De Luca took over as the alpha of Luna Rossa," Donata says.

"There was. Dante De Luca was also Alpha. But Clarice was the main ruler. Lunas are essentially female alphas," Salvaza explains.

"I don't understand. Why would he die and end the long line of Morettis? He just gave the pack over to a De Luca," Zane states.

"Yes, he did. But Clarice was a De Luca by name. By blood she was a Moretti," Salvaza says.

"Everyone hated the Morettis by this point. After all Lorenzo Moretti had slaughtered nearly half of the pack!"

"So he gave his pack to his sister, who was a De Luca. But technically the Moretti line never ended," I add.

"Exactly! It was a political move. He wasn't going to let the Moretti line end, but he did it in a way where people thought so," Salvaza says.

"That's true. Everyone calls Lorenzo the last Moretti," Zane says.

I guess I could see why he was such a great alpha.

"Where do you think your family gets their power from Zane? Alphas aren't made, they are born. It's a position that only a wolf with lycan blood can have," Donata says.

"And Morettis were some of the first lycans," I add.

"And this whole time everyone gives credit to Dante De Luca but it was really Clarice with the alpha genes," Zane says.

"This still doesn't explain why we look like them and why Zane and I were practically forced to mark each other," I say.

"Well, I guess this is something your wolves might have the answer to. It seemed like they were Rosanna and Lorenzo's wolves too when they took over your bodies," Donata says.

"I wouldn't suggest doing it now though. The setting might trigger something in your wolves and if they have full control it could be dangerous," she adds.

"Let's give them some space Donata," Salvaza says. She gives me a knowing look.

Honestly, it just screams use condoms!

They both leave the room, leaving me and Zane alone for the first time in two years. My eyes dart across the room and land on his. They are already fixated on me. I'm stunned to see the darkness that lays in his eyes. They look darker, haunted.

I'm assuming mine have changed too. Being away from the person who is supposed to love you for eternity does that to a person. It doesn't matter that I trained harder than I ever have before or the hookups I've had while I was here. At the end of every night, before my mind drifted off into peaceful slumber, it was his face that stayed in my mind. It was his scent that I longed to smell again, his eyes I wanted to see again.

However, underneath it all was the tight feeling in my heart. No it wasn't love, it wasn't even lust, it was hate. I hated him for choosing Isabel over me. I hated him for the constant torment he put me through as a child. I hated that my wolf would barely communicate with me because all she wanted was to see him. I hated him for making me look like a fool.

Because there was a moment, maybe even just a second, where I believed that I was good enough. Where I believed that there was someone in this world who would finally look at me. Someone who would love me without needing a reason to.

I hate him for giving me hope.

I hate myself because I should have fucking known better.