Chapter 180 My Mother

Chapter 180 My Mother
Ivy POV

I couldn't let go. My mother's hand rested against my cheek, warm enough to make me forget the silver mist around us. I closed my eyes and leaned into her touch, afraid the moment would end if I moved.

"I've waited a long time to hold you again."

"So have I."

When I looked at her, she smiled the way she always had. Not because I had become the Keeper, but because I was her daughter.

"I've wanted to ask you so many things."

"Then ask."

The question slipped out before I could stop it."Why didn't you tell me the truth?"

She was quiet for a moment. Then her fingers brushed a loose strand of hair behind my ear, just as they had when I was little.

"Because I was afraid."

"Afraid of what?"

"That the truth would find you before you were ready."

Her gaze drifted across the endless water.
"If people had known who you were, they would've come for you. I couldn't let that happen. I wanted you to have as much of a normal life as I could give you."

"Were you scared?"

She nodded."Every day."

The answer settled deep inside me.

"I wanted to tell you so many times. Every time I looked at you, I wondered if I was making the right choice." A sad smile touched her lips. "Then I'd see you laughing with your friends or worrying about school, and I couldn't bring myself to take that away from you."

I swallowed the lump in my throat."Did you know I'd become the Keeper?"

"I hoped you would."

"But you didn't know?"

She shook her head."No. I prayed for you. I believed in you. But the choice was never mine to make."

A faint smile warmed her face."Whatever path you chose, you were always going to be my daughter."

My chest tightened. For years, one question had stayed buried inside me. I drew a slow breath.

"When you got sick... did you know you were dying?"

She held my gaze and nodded."I did."

"How?"

"I felt it before anyone told me. My body already knew."

"Were you angry?"

She shook her head."No."

"Not even once?"

"I was sad."

Her fingers slipped into mine."I wanted more time. I wanted to watch you finish school. I wanted to see the woman you'd become. I wanted to meet the man you'd fall in love with."

A quiet laugh escaped her. "I wanted to argue with you over little things, spoil my grandchildren, and remind you to wear a coat when it was cold."

A laugh caught in my throat before tears took its place.

"But I never regretted protecting you. If I had to choose again, I'd make the same choice every time."

Something inside me finally broke."I'm sorry."

She looked at me with surprise."For what?"

"I couldn't save you."

The words poured out before I could stop them."I was angry after you died. I kept thinking that if I'd understood sooner... if I'd been stronger... maybe things would've been different."

She stepped closer and wiped away a tear with her thumb."No, Ivy."

Her voice stayed gentle, but there was no doubt in it."Children aren't meant to save their parents. Parents spend their lives trying to protect their children. That's the way it's supposed to be."

Her hand rested against my cheek again.
"You don't owe me an apology."

"I should've understood."

"You were grieving." Kindness filled her smile."And even through all that pain, you never lost yourself."

She squeezed my hand."You were never meant to be perfect."

I lowered my eyes."I wasn't always sure I was doing the right thing."

"You only needed to remember who you were."

I looked back at her."The girl I raised never stopped caring about people, even after everything the world did to her."

A tear rolled down my cheek.

"You gave wolves hope when they expected more bloodshed. You helped them find each other again."

The weight I'd carried since losing her didn't disappear, but it no longer felt impossible to bear. Her eyes drifted past me, and a gentle smile touched her face.

"You love him."

A smile found me before I could stop it. "I do."

"And he loves you just as deeply."

"I wish you could've met him."

"I didn't need to."

I looked at her.

"I've seen the way he looks at you." She smiled."Not because you're the Founding Line. Not because you're the Keeper."

Her fingers closed gently around mine. "Because you're Ivy. My Ivy"

Emotion tightened my throat.

"Every woman deserves to be loved for who she is, not for what someone can gain from her."

I knew she wasn't only talking about me. She was talking about herself too.Tears blurred my vision again.

"I wanted that for you more than anything."

I couldn't speak.

"I've watched him stand beside you when walking away would've been easier. I've watched him protect you without asking for anything in return. Even after the bond was gone, he stayed."

Her smile grew warmer."That's the kind of love every mother hopes her daughter will find."

A shaky laugh escaped me."I got lucky."

She shook her head. "No." Her thumb brushed across my hand."You were loved the way you always deserved to be."

The words settled into the places inside me that had been broken for years."I wish you could've known him."

"I know enough."

She leaned forward and kissed my forehead. The familiar touch carried me back to scraped knees, rushed school mornings, and the quiet nights when I believed nothing could hurt me as long as she was there.

"I'm so proud of you, Ivy."

Soft golden light began to gather around her. My heart lurched. I reached for her hand before she could drift away.

"Please."

My voice cracked.

"Stay a little longer."

She smiled through the tears shining in her eyes and held my hand a little tighter."I'll stay."

Her thumb brushed gently across my fingers. "Until you're ready to let me go."

I closed my eyes and held on. Just a little while longer.