Chapter 133 A New King?

Chapter 133 A New King?
Dawn arrived silently that morning.
For the first time in weeks, Maya woke without immediately hearing voices.
No shadows gliding from the corners of the room.
No suffocating weight of the crack crushing her mind the instant she opened her eyes.
Just silence.
Calm.
Warm.
She remained still for a few seconds, watching Conrad sleeping beside her.
That alone seemed rare now.
His face was less tense.
The constant lines of worry finally softened by the rest of the previous night.
Lysander slept in the small crib beside the bed, wrapped in dark blankets while the faint morning light partially filtered through the curtains.
They seemed like a normal family.
Almost.
Maya sat up slowly so as not to wake them.
But Conrad opened his eyes the instant she moved away.
Instinct.
Always alert.
Even asleep.
She smiled slightly.
“You never really rest?”
Conrad let out a small, tired breath before reaching out to take her by the waist and pull her back close to the bed.
“I’m trying.”
Maya laughed softly.
Weakly.
But true.
And that seemed to relieve something inside him immediately.
Conrad rested his forehead on her abdomen for a few seconds in silence.
Then he murmured:
“Sometimes I want to run away.”
Maya blinked in surprise.
Conrad rarely spoke like that.
“Run away?”
“Just the three of us.” His voice came out muffled. “No kingdom. No council. No rift.”
Her heart tightened immediately.
Because part of her wanted that too.
More than she should.
“Could you abandon everything?”
Conrad slowly raised his eyes to her.
And there was real honesty in them.
“No.”
The answer came immediately.
Without hesitation.
“But I think about it.”
Maya stroked his hair slowly.
“That’s already scary coming from you.”
A small smile appeared at the corner of Conrad’s lips.
Short.
Almost sad.
Then the moment ended.
Knocks echoed on the bedroom door.
Too loud.
Too urgent.
Conrad stiffened immediately.
The king returned before he even opened the door.
One of the guards entered after authorization, visibly nervous.
“The council is already assembled.”
Conrad frowned.
“So soon?”
“Alpha Steve requested an extraordinary meeting.”
The room fell silent.
Maya felt Conrad’s body tense immediately.
The guard hesitated before continuing:
“The alphas are… restless.”
Of course they were. Steve had already begun.
Conrad ran a hand slowly over his face before standing.
The calm of the previous night seemed distant again.
Very distant.
—
The castle was different.
Maya realized this the instant she walked through the corridors hours later.
Conversations ceased as she passed.
Guards avoided eye contact.
Some alphas watched the corridors in small groups, speaking too quietly for her to hear clearly.
But she didn't need to hear.
She felt it.
The fear.
The doubt.
The kingdom was beginning to silently crack.
And Steve was probably at the center of it.
Maya held Lysander tighter in her arms as she crossed the main wing.
Then the baby suddenly became restless.
Very restless.
She frowned immediately.
“Lysander?”
His small face turned slowly toward the end of the corridor. Steve was standing there.
Talking with two older alphas.
The instant the baby's golden eyes met Steve's…
Lysander began to cry.
Loudly.
Desperately.
The alphas fell silent immediately.
Steve looked up at them.
And for just a second…
Maya saw something strange cross his expression.
Not anger.
Not guilt.
But recognition.
As if it confirmed something.
That same night…
Steve woke up startled.
The room was dark.
Cold.
And black symbols partially covered the wall beside the bed.
Symbols that seemed to be made of living shadows slowly pulsing in the stone.
Then the voices began again.
Low.
Ancient.
“A new king…”
Steve abruptly sat up in bed.
His heart racing.
His eyes were fixed on the dark symbols scattered across the wall.
The marks pulsed slowly like something alive breathing within the stone.
Liquid shadows.
Wrong.
The voices continued whispering around him.
“Balance…”
“Chosen…”
“A new king…”
Steve ran a hand quickly over his face, trying to regain control of his breathing.
This couldn't be real.
But as he approached the wall…
the shadows moved.
Slowly retreating from his touch.
Like sentient creatures.
A shiver ran down his spine.
And even frightened…
Steve couldn't immediately back away.
Because there was something mesmerizing about it.
Something dangerous.
As if the rift itself was trying to speak to him.
Then the shadows disappeared.
All at once.
Like smoke being ripped from the room.
Silence returned immediately.
Heavy.
Cold.
Steve stood motionless before the empty wall for several seconds.
Trying to understand what had just happened.
But deep down…
part of him wasn't just scared.
He was curious.
—
Maya knew something was wrong. It wasn't just about fear of the kingdom falling; Steve had some interest.
Conrad immediately took Lysander from Maya's arms, trying to calm his son while watching Steve with dangerous attention.
“Strange,” one of the alphas murmured too quietly.
But everyone heard.
The silence grew heavy.
Steve held Conrad's gaze for a few seconds before speaking calmly:
“Maybe he just feels fear like the rest of the kingdom.”
Conrad's jaw clenched immediately.
And Maya noticed.
This was no longer just a political conflict.
Something much worse was beginning to grow between the two.