Rose's breath seized in her throat, her gaze fixed on Billy's shimmering wings, astonishment fading before the steel inside her took control. She was not someone who folded under pressure, especially not now. Those wings, as unearthly as they were, were not going to move her. If anything, they exacerbated the fire in her stomach.
"This isn't possible," she mumbled, but this time her voice was stronger, more determined. She took in a breath, attempting to comprehend the unfathomable. Billy, what is this? "What the hell is going on?"
As Billy's wings retracted, he moved toward her, but Rose threw up a hand, stopping him cold.
"Don't," she snapped, her voice sharp enough to cut through the thick tension in the room. "Just stay where you are." She wasn't going to let fear dictate her next move, but she needed space, needed to think.
"Rose, I understand this is a lot. But I am still me. I am still Billy." Billy froze, agony etched on his face.
Anastasia, who had also been caught off guard, was staring wide-eyed at Billy, her thoughts racing to keep up with everything. But Rose was a powerhouse, and this was not going to knock her down.
"You've got some serious explaining to do, Billy. You should have told me. Right from the beginning. I am not some delicate little creature that has to be coddled. I can handle the truth," Rose said, her voice was firm and steady.
Billy's voice trembled with emotion as he tried to explain. "I wanted to, but I was terrified. Terrified of losing you, of you seeing me as… something else. I couldn't stand the thought of you looking at me the way you are right now."
"So you believed lying was the answer? That hiding this would keep us safe? You underestimated me, Billy. I don't need shelter from the reality. "What I need is honesty." Rose's eyes narrowed, with the fire within them flaring.
"I'm sorry," he said softly, hardly audible. "I should have trusted you," Billy flinched, her words hitting harder than he expected.
Rose's mind was racing, but she wouldn't let it overwhelm her. "I need time to think, to figure out what all this means. But don't think for a second that I'm running away." She'd faced tough truths before, dealt with the unexpected, and she sure as hell wasn't going to crumble now.
"Rose, I didn't know about Billy either. I only knew about Warren. This… this is just as new to me as it is to you," Anastasia confided in Rose.
Rose glanced at Anastasia, a flicker of understanding passing between them. They were in this together, both blindsided, both strong enough to handle it.
"I'm not running," Rose repeated, more to herself. "But I need to get out of here. I need air."
Billy started to reach out, then stopped himself. He knew better now. "Take all the time you need," he said softly. "But please, Rose, know that I love you. That's never changed."
Rose fixed his eyes, looking for something—truth, sorrow, love, everything of it. She finally offered a faint, determined nod. "We will chat. Later."
Without saying anything further, she turned and went out of the room, her strides solid and forceful. The door snapped shut behind her, leaving the room in tense stillness.
Bastian placed a hand on Billy's shoulder, speaking calmly but strongly. "She will come around, Billy. She simply needs time to process. "This is a lot for anyone to handle."
Billy nodded, but the worry gnawed at him. He knew she was strong—one of the many reasons he loved her—but he couldn't get over the dread of losing her, of this reality breaking them apart.
After a few moments of thick silence, Wyatt let out a breath and tried to ease the tension with a joke. "Well, I'm glad you saved that bombshell for after dinner, daughter dear."
Anastasia gave a tight-lipped smile. "Daddy dear, you know I'm used to drama by now." But her smirk faded under Billy's stern stare. "Sorry, Billy. But seriously, Dad, is there more you need to tell us? Or was that it? Because I saw something interesting downstairs—a dojo, with a whole lot of Goodwin family photos. Care to explain?"
"You found the dojo?" Matt's face lit up with excitement as he looked at Anastasia.
Wyatt narrowed his eyes at his daughter. "You cracked the safe?"
Anastasia's grin widened. "Yep."
Wyatt shook his head, a mix of pride and disapproval in his expression. "Well, since that cat's out of the bag… Yes, it's a martial arts dojo. We'll be training there for the next three weeks. You'll learn to use your powers—speed, strength, agility, self-healing, and some magic. The training will be tough, gruelling, with little sleep. This was supposed to be taught to you from a young age, but your mother and I wanted different lives for you. Warren and Billy will help with the training."
"Mom?" Sean asked, stunned. "Was she a hunter too?"
Wyatt sighed, nerves creeping in as he prepared to reveal more truths. "Your mom… was an angel."
The room went silent, all but Billy and Bastian gasping in shock.
"In fact, she was Billy's aunt," Wyatt continued, but he paused when Matt shot a look at Billy.
"Wait! The aunt you told us about that died from her injuries was our mother?!" Matt fumed at Billy. Billy could only look down.
"That wasn't his secret to tell, Matt. And yes, your mother was wounded before she gave birth to Anastasia. When she decided to give up the guardian life, the Archangels made her human. They left just enough power in her to keep the demon poison at bay for a while, but it eventually ran out."
"So she didn't die of cancer?" Anastasia asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
"No. Once the poison started spreading, we tried everything to slow it down, but she only made it through two years of treatments."
"Didn't she return to being an angel when she died?" Sean asked, hope in his voice.
"No," Wyatt said, his voice heavy with sadness. "Once an angel dies on Earth, they go back to the Celestial City, joining the other gods. But they never return. She's at peace now."
Wyatt went on to tell them about their mother's life as an Angel Guardian, the importance of Demon Hunter mates, and how their mother's sole mission was to keep them from this life. He explained how he was tricked into marrying Beth, and Britney who wasn't pregnant, her goal was to break Anastasia down, though he didn't know why. That was the moment that Wyatt told her, that because of his ring that dispels hexes and curses, he found out that Beth and Britney were actually witches called 'Babarogas' and about the big plot they played out and the battle at the house where he vanquished Beth and Britney escaped and that's one of the reasons why they are being hunted.
"Beth is dead??" Anastasia shrieked.
"Yes Ana," Wyatt confirmed.
Anastasia, Matt, and Sean were overwhelmed by the new truths, feeling betrayed but understanding why their parents had kept it from them. They realized it wasn't entirely Wyatt's fault, nor was it his secret to share.
"We're hurt that our whole lives were a lie, but we understand why you did it, Dad. Are there any other secrets you'd like to share? Because it's now or never," Anastasia said sternly.
Everyone exchanged glances, and Wyatt avoided looking at Bastian, determined not to reveal that particular secret.
"I can't think of anything right now, but if there is more, I'll tell you," Wyatt promised.
But just as Wyatt finished his sentence, the lights in the room flickered ominously. A chilly air blew across the room, causing everyone to shudder. Anastasia's gaze darted about, a feeling of anxiety gathering in her chest.
"Did anyone else feel that?" She muttered, just above a murmur.
Before anybody could answer, a huge bang echoed throughout the home, sending shivers down everyone's spines. The sound came from the basement.