Maxwell exchanged a look with his father-in-law. It was all too obvious that Adam wasn't lying. He had done something, perhaps put poison in the children's food, or even hired someone from inside the house to inject his children with something that perhaps only he had the antidote for, since all of Maxwell's biological children were born like his kind, and Adam did know how to kill his children. They needed to get more information out of Adam, but Maxwell and Henry had no more doubts. Those children's lives were in danger. And all they could do, at that moment, was give in to their brother's wishes, because they knew that Adam would endure the cruelest of tortures, say nothing, and leave his revenge in place. They couldn't comfort that Alpha openly. Maxwell couldn't help thinking that not everything was really his brother's fault. Alphas were legendary and bloodthirsty creatures. They couldn't very well tell the difference between affection and a punch. Maxwell knew that Adam often believed that both were good, not because he was bad, but because the instincts of his nature made him think that the animal inside him was always stronger than any remnant of humanity. And Adam fed this when he became Allister's official torturer and entered the world of the mafia. Allister was the real reason Adam still hadn't found his own personality, and lived on being the person his father decided he should be.
"What do you want to leave us alone, Adam?" Maxwell asked, his voice as sharp as his gaze.
"I want Anna and my son."
"You know there's no negotiating with those lives, which are very precious to me."
"They're precious to me, too. I'm not negotiating their lives. I'm negotiating the lives of all the people you know. Including your mothers, Max. Did you think what Allister did was cruel? Don't you know that I'm capable of much worse?"
"Adam." Anna's father called out, his voice and gaze menacing, and both brothers fell silent and stared at him.
"You can't reach me or my family. Don't be an idiot, boy. You've known me forever and you know very well that there's no one in this world who can blackmail me and get away with it. There is no greater pain than the pain your father inflicted on me."
"You've gotten soft and careless, Henry. A smart human who had access to the information you have about the monsters would have already taken steps to protect himself. There are ways to ensure that we don't hurt humans, Henry, but you've been too busy lost in your vices to think that one day you'd be confronted by one of the creatures that ended your dream of love." Adam replied fiercely. "You're not the man I used to know. And you're not that strong, or you wouldn't have left your daughter in the hands of a murderer and run away for years. Have you forgotten the man who made you run away for all these years? He hasn't forgotten you. And I'm willing to give him the address of your entire family. Do you want him back in your life? When he finds out you have grandchildren, he'll kill them all. That's why I don't mind dying today, because I know that my death will be accompanied by the death of all your grandchildren, and your daughter too. You also know that he doesn't want you to have a family. And again, you will fall into his hands, or live on the run. Only now, with the weight of the guilt of the deaths of your loved ones on your back, because you could have prevented it. However, the man who made you run away for years won't have the chance to kill your triplet grandchildren. They will die along with everyone who tries to protect them. And I know that even though you're not a werewolf, you can see in my eyes that I'm not bluffing."
Maxwell knew who he was talking about. His uncle, Dester. He and Allister were the pursuers of Anna's mother's family and, to Henry's misfortune, Allister found them first. But Dester wanted to kill Henry, too. Because he was the werewolf who posed as a witch in order to win over Anna's mother.
Anna's father felt his face turn red, but he kept his menacing gaze, and Anna saw, frightened, that he was looking directly at the camera from which she was spying on them. And as if she could read his thoughts, she suddenly knew what he needed. Adam must have been up to something very big, because he spoke very firmly about the death of his family, who stayed in the mansion. She hurried out, but made sure to lock the bedroom door, and went to the room where Adam was staying. Bonnie was there, putting her clothes in the suitcases, and looked indifferently at Anna when she entered the room without knocking.
"I have nothing to do with Adam's behavior. I hope you'll let me out of here unharmed, and that you won't persecute me."
"Bonnie... Do you know what Adam has done? He's very confident in his threats."
Bonnie stared at her ironically for a while, then went back to folding her clothes in her suitcase without saying anything.
"Please tell me, Bonnie. You must have a child in your family that you would protect with your life. Don't let him hurt my children." Anna pleaded, longing for her to feel the desperate plea in her embittered voice.
Bonnie dropped her clothes and crossed her arms, staring at Anna. There was no sympathy in her eyes.
"What's in it for me to tell you something?"
Anna understood that she wanted to negotiate.
"Apart from your safety to leave, anything else you want. My children's lives are priceless. I'll give you everything I have."
Bonnie looked at her thoughtfully.
"You can't give me everything you have, Anna. You have Adam's love, and you can't give it to me."
"If you help me, I'll go away with my family somewhere he'll never find me. I'll leave him free for you, Bonnie."