Chapter 22
Gradel
Her jaw dropped and she stared at me wide-eyed. Shock masked her beautiful face and her eyes simmered with sympathy for me.
Strangely, I liked that she felt my pain, which was weird because I didn't enjoy having other people throw a pity party for my sake, but hers felt different. It felt proper.
"Oh my! I'm so sorry to hear that, "She gushed. "How were you able to cope?" She asked, pushing closer to me.
"I didn't try to cope, I just lived with it. There's nothing that can make me forget that night, sometimes the memories hide in the darkest part of my heart only to resurface whenever I think of her." My voice cracked.
She sniffed and when I glanced at her, I realized that she was crying. "I'm sorry," She whispered, "I can't help the tears." She said, drying her eyes.
I nodded curtly and drifted into the memory lane. "It all started one fateful evening. I'd just returned from the woods where I engaged in a running session with some of the sentinels that were assigned to watch over me even though I was against it. According to my father, he didn't want anyone to harm me since I was away, and till now, I regret going on that run because I would have been around to stop my mom if I didn't leave the house."
"As usual, I ran into my father's chamber room all sweaty and bubbly, anticipating her warm hugs and kisses but I stopped dead in my tracks, unable to move or utter a word when I saw her covered with blood flowing from a cut on her wrist." My hands shook as the memory became as vivid as day. "For some moment, I thought it was a joke or maybe she wanted to prank me but my mother rarely pranked us, especially me since I was closer to her..."
Iris wrapped her arm around my neck and peered at my face, and then she trailed her fingers along the scalp of my hair, her floral scent watering down the sadness that had clogged up my chest.
It was distracting yet soothing, just what I needed at the moment.
I stopped talking, taking in deep breaths at intervals until my body became calm and my mind ready to continue the conversation.
"Gradel, I won't say I understand your pain because I've never experienced something so hurtful, but if you aren't comfortable speaking about this, you should stop. I will understand." She spoke softly.
I shook my head, got to my feet and continued. "Alas! It wasn't a prank because when I talked to her she didn't respond, not even when I shook her hand. Her body had gotten cold, and her face was pallid, all the signs of unconsciousness were there and that was when I got a grip on myself and alerted the sentinels."
"They came running to the room, and then they halted immediately their eyes caught the sight of my mom in such a state. The room became chaotic immediately as a few men dashed out of the room to call the healer, while another guard went in search of my father."
"Did anyone check her pulse to know if she was still alive? I mean, she was a Luna and a cut on her wrist couldn't have ended her life like that." She probed.
My heart plummeted in pain as the memory from the past flooded my head. The image of her beautiful smile flashed in my mind and a knot tightened in my stomach.
"They wanted to, but I didn't allow it-"
"What?" She cut in, her eyes filled with doubt.
I strode to the window and leaned on the window sill. "I didn't want them to confirm my fears. She had bled heavily to the extent that her blood formed a pool and since that was the case, I knew that it wasn't a mere cut. Unfortunately, my fears couldn't be forestalled after the healer came in and informed us that the cut was infected with an unknown poison which stopped her body from healing..." I shut my eyes and drew in a deep breath, my body trembling visibly. "So, she... she died."
The dam of tears finally broke loose and I fell to the ground. The sadness and grief that had welled up in my heart for years was finally let out.
Her hand came upon my shoulder and I allowed it. I permitted her to care for me. I allowed her to see the vulnerable part of me and that opened my eyes to what I've been refusing to see.
I was slowly accepting her as my mate when I shouldn't. The plan was to remain closed off and alone, but for now, I didn't want to entertain any form of loneliness.
Her presence was a light in the dark tunnel of my life, one that brought me a different kind of peace and solace. No one in his or her right mind would want to discard that for anything.
"You have to stop crying," She spoke, breaking the companionable silence that reigned between us. "You have to stop beating yourself up for what you had no control over." She consoled me and planted a kiss on my forehead.
"I don't think I can stop doing that any time soon," I confessed.
She nodded and then sat beside me on the floor. "Who might have killed her?" She asked carefully.
Her question hit me like a tornado, but I shoved aside the dreadful feeling, remembering that she was dead already and not talking about it would only increase my bitterness.
"She killed herself," I replied flatly.
"What! Why?" She asked with a horrid look on her face.
"Apparently, my father had been cheating on her with a woman from the omega clan and she caught them having an affair on their matrimonial bed."
That was one of the numerous reasons I hated Iris' kind. They were thieves who liked to reap where they didn't sow, just like the strange woman who caused my mother's death.
I only hoped that I never met her again or else, I'd kill the woman with my bare hands.
"She narrated everything that happened on a piece of paper and dropped her bracelet and her necklace on it. I found it on the bed stand after her body had been taken away."