Chapter 22: Can I open it?

Chapter Twenty-Two

Maxie’s POV

Rowan slipped into the shadowed tunnel ahead of us with quick, controlled movements, his footfalls silent on the stone floor. The cavern behind us trembled under the force of Cameron’s approach. Every few seconds the sound of his aura cracked the air again, a pulse of gold that crawled along the walls and made the river glow brighter.

I held Tiara’s hand tightly as we followed Rowan deeper into the narrow passage. Her fingers trembled in mine, but her steps were steady. The awakening of her mark had changed something in her, sharpened her focus, strengthened her resolve. Even now, as shadows shifted along the tunnel and Cameron’s voice echoed behind us like thunder, she kept moving forward.

The path narrowed sharply, forcing us to walk in a single line. Rowan raised a hand to signal that he was stopping, then pressed his palm against a smooth part of the rock wall.

A low hum vibrated through the stone.

Tiara leaned closer to me. “What is he doing?”

“He is opening something,” I said quietly. “But I do not know what.”

Rowan glanced back at us.

“This tunnel was carved centuries ago,” he said. “Before your time, Alpha. Before the wars. Before the packs split. Only those born under a certain lunar alignment know how to open it.”

I narrowed my eyes. “And you happen to know.”

“I was taught,” Rowan said. “By someone who trusted me.”

“Lysandra,” I said.

Rowan did not deny it.

A low rumble traveled through the tunnel, and then the stone wall slid aside, revealing a second corridor lined with faint silver lights that shimmered like muted stars.

Rowan stepped through first.

“Hurry,” he said. “Cameron is almost here.”

Tiara hesitated beside me.

I turned to her. “What is it?”

She looked up at me, eyes tight with uncertainty. “I can feel something in there. A pull. Similar to the Moon Chamber.”

“Does it hurt?” I asked.

“No,” she said slowly. “It feels… familiar.”

A memory stirring.

A truth hiding.

I squeezed her hand. “Then we go together.”

We stepped into the hidden corridor.

The stone wall sealed behind us instantly, cutting off Cameron’s aura like someone had slammed shut a heavy door. The sudden silence pressed against my ears, almost painful after the roar of the cavern.

Tiara exhaled shakily.

Rowan walked ahead with his hands lowered, no longer performing any spell or ritual. The lights along the walls brightened with our presence.

Tiara looked around slowly. “What is this place?”

Rowan answered without looking back. “A refuge for marked wolves. A place where they came to hide during the old reigns. Long before the crown existed.”

I frowned. “The old reigns?”

Rowan nodded. “Before the bloodline kings. Before the throne was tied to power instead of to the Moon.”

Tiara stepped closer to him without passing me. “Lysandra knew about this place?”

“Yes,” Rowan said quietly. “She was one of the last marked wolves before you.”

Tiara stopped walking. “Lysandra had a mark?”

Rowan turned, his expression flat. “She hid it. Marcus was the only one who knew.”

My heartbeat stilled.

Rowan continued. “The council hid it for her. They believed the kingdom would revolt if they knew a marked wolf stood in a Luna’s place instead of a throne.”

Tiara touched her chest lightly. “She and I are the same.”

“No,” Rowan said. “You are different. Lysandra’s mark was incomplete. Yours is not.”

Tiara’s eyes widened. “Incomplete?”

“Yes,” he said. “Her power never fully awakened. She feared it. You did not. That is why she feared you.”

I stepped in between them.

“Enough,” I said. “If you continue filling her head with your half-truths, I will make sure you never speak again.”

Rowan studied me. “What part do you think is a lie?”

“All of it,” I said.

A faint smile touched Rowan’s mouth. “Then your fear is louder than your logic.”

“No,” I said. “My patience is gone.”

Tiara touched my arm softly. “Maxie. It makes sense.”

“No,” I said again, softer. “Even if it does make sense, it does not change what he did.”

Rowan lowered his gaze. “I know.”

The corridor widened into a round chamber with a high ceiling and a floor made of moonstone tiles. In the center stood a pedestal carved from dark crystal, its surface shimmering like the river water.

Tiara stepped toward it slowly.

“What is that?” she asked.

Rowan’s voice softened. “The Moon Archive.”

I inhaled sharply. “You brought us to another vault?”

“This one is different,” Rowan said. “The first showed you memories. This one shows you the truth behind them.”

Tiara looked back at me nervously.

“You trust it?” I asked her.

“I do not know,” she whispered. “But my mark is reacting.”

Her skin glowed faintly, the light building at the edges.

I stepped beside her, refusing to let her stand alone. My wolf pressed against my skin, alert and ready to strike if anything hurt her.

Tiara placed her hand on the pedestal.

A soft pulse of silver spread from her palm across the surface, illuminating delicate symbols carved in spirals. The air thickened with ancient magic.

Tiara gasped.

“I see something.”

“What do you see?” I asked gently.

Her breathing grew faster. “A room. A woman. Her hair is black. Her eyes are silver. She is arguing with someone.”

Rowan stepped closer but did not touch her. “Describe her.”

Tiara frowned. “She looks like… she looks like me.”

I stiffened.

Rowan whispered, “Lysandra.”

Tiara jerked back as the vision sharpened. “She is shouting. She is angry. She is telling someone that the pack must not control the mark. That the Moon chooses for a reason.”

“What else?” I asked.

Tiara’s voice trembled. “She is holding a baby.”

My chest tightened. “A baby?”

Tiara nodded slowly. “A newborn. Wrapped in white cloth.”

She paused.

Her next words shook the floor under my feet.

“She is calling the baby by a name.”

Rowan’s breath hitched.

“Tiara.”

Everything inside me went still.

I grabbed her arm gently. “What did you say?”

Tiara looked up at me, eyes glazing with shock.

“She was holding a baby,” she whispered again. “And she called her Tiara.”

My throat closed.

“That is impossible.”

Rowan closed his eyes.

“No,” he said quietly. “It is the truth.”

I turned on him. “Say it plainly.”

Rowan met my stare.

“Tiara is Lysandra’s daughter.”

Tiara’s knees buckled, and she collapsed against me.

I caught her before she hit the floor.

A single thought tore through my mind as I held her shaking body.

Nothing we believed… nothing we mourned… nothing we feared…

was the whole truth.

Everything had just changed.