Chapter 58: Love Is The Key - Riven's POV

“That’s right. My eyes did change.”

The silence in the room stretched out after my admission. I had just told him that I had the internal darkness and there was no taking it back now.

“I see,” Mr. Cross said solemnly. He studied me for a moment. I could see him processing it and connecting the dots.

“And now you also see why I can’t run without condemning both of our packs,” I said flatly.

Mr. Cross closed the journal he had shown us, the one with all the marked names. “If you accept his offer knowing what you are and knowing what he likely wants from you, then you need to understand what you’re walking into.”

“That’s why we are here,” Callista said, her hand finding mine. “We want to understand what our acceptance means and we thought you would be the best person to ask.”

He glanced at the door, and I knew it was well past time for students to file in. We were also missing our next class, but this was more important.

“Free period,” he whispered. “You’re safe here.” He huffed hard, then looked at us. “My grandfather was present during one of Alpha King Dami’s experiments.”

My stomach dropped. “Experiments?”

Our current Alpha King didn’t mention that one of the previous kings had tried experimenting before.

“Yes, it was an attempt to cure his heir using another wolf.” Mr. Cross opened the journal, but didn’t look at it. It was as if he had already memorized what it said and didn’t need to look at it anymore. “It took three days. By the end, the host wolf was—”

“Dead,” I finished.

“No, this was worse than dead. He was torn apart from the inside. He screamed until his voice gave out.” Mr. Cross’s expression turned grim. “And the heir was completely unchanged. The demon remained where it was.”

Callista’s grip tightened on my hand. I glanced to the side, taking in her reaction. She was more worried now than she was before.

“So, the experiment didn’t work.”

“Not for Alpha King Dami. But according to my grandfather’s notes, the Alpha King seemed almost satisfied. It was as if he had learned something valuable from the failure.” Mr. Cross finally glanced down at the page. “Failure didn’t stop it. He just tried again and again.”

The demon stirred at the back of my mind, amused at this revelation.

You're not a successor, it whispered. You're a laboratory rat. How does that feel?

I shoved it down hard.

“How many?” Callista asked, her voice barely above a whisper. “How many wolves did he use?”

“My grandfather only documented the one. He was barred from being around the others, so he doesn’t know how many happened after or even before that one.” he closed the journal carefully. “There is no telling how far they’ve come in their experiments or what they’ve been doing behind the scenes since. It’s all been buried.”

“So, he’s probably been conducting them.”

“Yes,” Mr. Cross murmured, looking at me directly. “Or he’s been waiting for a wolf with the same condition. As far as I know, there hasn’t been one in his son’s lifetime. Not until you.”

The bluntness of it should have shocked me, but it almost felt like relief. Finally, someone was telling us the truth without withholding information.

“Has anyone successfully gotten rid of the condition?” I asked. “Are there any records of anyone beating this thing?”

He hesitated. “No, but I can say that from what my grandfather could gather up, no one with this particular condition was moon marked to their mate. He thought that it might provide additional protection and may even subdue it if that happened.”

“None of the others were…Moon Marked?” Callista asked, her brow rising.

“No. They had mates, but none were Moon Marked,” he said, his voice low as he glanced at me. “That is why I think you have a chance to end it.”

“The Alpha King said if I did this, then I would be the next Alpha King. He just wants his son cured and then he’ll leave with him when I take over,” I admitted.

Mr. Cross looked between the two of us, shaking his head. His dark eyes found mine. “You know the answer to that already.”

I gritted my teeth. “He doesn’t expect me to survive or he thinks the cure will kill me, leaving his son alive.”

“The Alpha King is getting what he wants either way. You’ll be gone,” he said grimly. “If you’re alive, then you could be the one who challenges his authority.”

The words hit like a physical blow. Of course. Even if the experiments worked, and I survived long enough to cure his son, then I wouldn’t be wanted around after. I’d know too much and be dangerous to his line.

“Just a quick question,” Callista said, her voice low. “What about heirs that died and they had to find someone else?”

That made both brows raise. “Oh, about that. Well, they chose someone in their bloodline. Probably a nephew. The Alpha King’s line has been the same family for…as long as I can remember.”

“But the last names have changed over the years,” I added, trying to make sense of it. “They had different families.”

“Almost always, the Alpha King is born with a twin sister who marries into another pack. Oddly, that isn’t a well-known fact,” he whispered as he looked down at the journal. “And she almost always has a son.”

“Why would they hide that?”

Mr. Cross shrugged. “The only reason I know is because ‌my grandfather was an advisor to a king. They keep it quiet. The daughters were scrubbed from the records. I guess it’s because they only want to track the Alpha Kings.”

“So he probably has a nephew,” I said, then glanced at the door. “I wonder…how old his nephew is?”

Callista sighed. “I doubt we’ll be able to find out. This sounds like a death sentence.”

“Not necessarily,” Mr. Cross added. “I told you the mate bond may be what saves him, but there’s probably more to it than just having a mate bond, obviously. It didn’t work for the other wolves with your condition. But you also have something they didn’t.”

“You think the Moon Marks will save him?”

Mr. Cross met her gaze. “Love is the key. A true mate bond will save them.”

“That’s what the Moon Goddess told me,” she whispered.

“And my demon did as well until recently,” I said, my voice dipping lower. “He lies, though.”

My phone buzzed in my pocket before Mr. Cross could say anything else. It was my father texting.

I opened the message without thinking twice.

“We need to go home,” I whispered.

Callista leaned over, looking down at the message displayed. “The Alpha King called? But we had two more days.”

“Looks like he isn’t waiting.”