A/N: Hope you enjoy <3 So much tea is being spilled hehe, hopefully, it's not too overwhelming lmao. Anyways, I'm excited for their reunion, are you? :)

Vince’s POV

Where did I even start? There were so many questions swirling my mind, the sheer thought of Arthur going through those things was insane. Not to mention his relationship with Clayton and the fact that his mate had been dead for this long. 

“Damon was my mate,” Arthur reiterated as if that hadn’t already been evident. But then again, with my shocked face it was likely he believed I hadn’t quite grasped the concept. Which to be fair, it was a large bombshell he had just dropped. 

I merely nodded before gesturing between Clayton and him again. “And you two are merely married.”

Clayton rolled his eyes. “Yes, but our bond is way stronger than anything Damon could have possibly provided.”

It was Arthur’s turn to roll his eyes. 

“And Rina?” I voiced. 

“My daughter,” Clayton replied before his tone got somber. “My mate died giving birth to her.”

“I’m sorry.”

Clayton waved his hand in the air. “It’s been a long time, and Rina’s only ever known the two of us raising her.“

“So Rina would take over eventually?”

Clayton shook her head. “She has no desire to run a pack. And technically, I’m not the true alpha here; Arthur is, given his blood.”

Arthur curled his lip as if he wanted to argue. He settled for mumbling, “traditions.”

“Is that why you’ve run the pack for this long. You haven’t decided who would take your place?” Most wolves would “retire” after they’ve sired an heir, or perished in battle and the next of kin was expected to take over, like in my case. They had to have been in their sixties by now if they were around my father’s age.

They shared a glance before Clayton shrugged. “Well, I suppose there is an heir.”

“Clayton—“

“Chances are he’s still out there,” Clayton interrupted, raising a brow.

I blinked. “An heir?”

Arthur sighed before glaring at his husband. “Technically, yes. A son. However, his whereabouts are unknown. I do not know if he is even alive.”

“How do you not know? He doesn’t live here?”

Clayton seemed to regret bringing up, sparing Arthur an apologetic look. He turned to me, gritting out, “it’s a long story, but Arthur demanded the mother to raise the child away from the pack.”

“I did it to protect them,” Arthur clarified, almost defensively. “I feared Damon would have used them to get to me and the pack.”

“Have you tried finding him?”

Arthur looked away for a moment, his jaw tensed. His next words laced with sadness. “I have a couple of times, but it is hard when you don’t know their name.”

“You—you don’t know your son’s name?” Arthur shook his head remorsefully as if the question stirred up terrible memories. Which, considering it had to deal with Damon, I was sure of it. 

“Regrettably so,” he managed to say. “All I have is his mother’s name.”

“Her name?”

He nodded before letting out a shaky breath. “Willow.”

Why did that seem so familiar?

Arthur shook his head, letting the conversation of his lost son fade as his features returned to that stoic look. “You have another meeting today, don’t you? I’ll show him around the clinic.”

“I’ll join you two after the meeting,” Clayton nodded before patting Arthur’s shoulder. He jeered a thumb to where the council room was. 

Arthur nodded, before directing me down the corridor across the foyer. “There’s still much to show you.”

“Clinic?”

“Something I think you’ll find interesting, to say the least.” He hummed. “One of the many things your father argued about.”

I scoffed at that, but as we stepped into the foyer, something, or someone had caught my eye. A woman, with dark hair that cut just shy of her shoulders. But it wasn’t the hair or style that she had, but her unusual gait. 

I could recognize her from the way she walked, something Xavier had always found strange. It was just something I associated with people. From the way, their feet touched the ground, to if their head moved side to side while walking, or if they walked with a bounce to their step. And Jane’s—Sarah’s sister—had one of the most distinct ones. 

“Jane?”

She turned to face me, confusion on her face. She looked different with her hair shorter., that I thought I had mistaken her for someone else. “Vince?”

“What are you doing here?” Her voice was callous, fury behind those sharp eyes nearly as raged as our last interaction. My eyes narrowed, before an image of her family had flashed in the back of my mind. Slight anger built in me at the thought of Sally and Lucas still mourning her disappearance after all these years. “You should be with Sally and Lucas; do they even know you’re here?”

“I could say the same to you. Shouldn’t you be there?” She crossed her arms. “Do they know you’re here?”

I blinked, the thought of contacting Xavier or anyone else for that matter had slipped my mind. How long had it been since that night, was I gone that long? I didn’t even have my phone on me, was he worried? “No, I suppose.”

Jane scoffed. “You shouldn’t be here.”

I shook my head. “You should be home with your child and husband. Does Sarah even know where you are?”

She scoffed. “After what you and he put us through? Why would I call that place my home?”

There was a lump in my throat. Last I had seen her she was pissed at the both of us for what happened all those years ago, and rightfully so. But her disappearance had been unlike her, especially when she had a husband and daughter she left behind. “I know what I have done was wrong, Jane. I know that I cannot apologize enough for it, but think about your daughter. She has grown up without you, you are missing out on her life for something like this? She needs you, she needs her mother.”

A scowl marred her face as she pinned a glare between Arthur and me. Arthur gave her sorrowful look before her sour mood seemed to deflate. “I should have taken her with me, but it’s too late for that. Besides, I’m sure Lucas has painted me as a horrible mother.”

“No,” I assured. “He’s never badmouthed you. You may have moved on and forgotten but he has not. He loves you, Jane, and he’s never stopped looking for you.”

“You can’t possibly believe that. You’re not welcomed here, Vince. Get out.”

“Jane, dear. Please, that’s enough. He is a guest here.”

She look offended by Arthur’s defense, and honestly I was taken aback by it too. Her rage for me wasn’t totally unfounded. I turned to Arthur, holding my hands out as if in surrender. “It’s alright, she deserves to be angry. Let’s just go.”

Arthur frowned before pointing to the door at the end. Before I followed after him, I turned to her. “I don’t expect you to forgive me, Jane. But please, At least message him that you’re okay. And to your sister. They at least deserve that much.”

She scoffed, before turning on her heel. I only could hope that she’d consider my words.