Chapter 17

Gabriel’s POV

Aariv smiled, clearly pleased by my interest and glad that, for once, I was listening. He continued, “Then they heard a noise, a faint whimpering noise. They searched and found a baby, cradled in one of those things humans put their babies in.”

“She was a mother,” I said.

“No, or at least that’s what your great-grandfather thought. He believed that because she was lactating, she refused to come into heat and mate with him. But humans aren’t like animals, and at that time, your great-grandfather was thinking like a wild animal, which, in reality, he was. So he did what wild animals do: he took the baby and slammed its head against the wall. Witnesses say the woman’s screams were more piercing than a double-edged sword. ‘You killed my brother, you killed my brother!’ was all she could say. But your great-grandfather didn’t believe it. He tried again to force himself on her, and broken by grief, she lay still and couldn’t resist. He took