Chapter 73 Bloodline Secrets

Chapter 73 Bloodline Secrets
Ciara

Being Alpha was far less glamorous than I imagined.
Nobody talked about the endless meetings. Or the elders constantly arguing over useless things while pretending they are discussing matters of importance. It was as if nagging and saying pointless things was their way of exerting revenge for threatening them before the coronation.
I sat on the Alpha seat trying very hard not to look bored while one of the older elders spoke endlessly about stupid grain distribution to the northern villages. The man had repeated the same point three different times already and I was beginning to wonder if old age simply erased people’s ability to get to the point.
“With winter here, we must be more mindful of the reserves,” the elder continued seriously. “Especially now that neighboring packs may attempt to take advantage of the transition of leadership.”
Transition of leadership. Such a polite way to say they still doubted me.
I rested my chin against my hand lazily. “Then increase the reserves.”
Another elder frowned immediately. “That would require reducing trade supplies.”
“Then reduce them.”
A few uncomfortable glances spread across the room. Honestly, watching them struggle to disagree with me without appearing disrespectful was becoming mildly entertaining.
One elder finally cleared his throat carefully. “Alpha Ciara, decisions regarding military storage are not usually made so quickly.”
I nearly rolled my eyes.
“Good thing I’m not ‘usually’ anything. I mean you don’t usually see a self made female Alpha, do you?.”
Silence followed that statement instantly. The elders exchanged glances again but nobody openly challenged me this time.
The large council room suddenly felt suffocating. Maybe it was the heat from the fireplace or maybe it was the constant tension of being surrounded by people waiting for me to make mistakes.
Ever since the coronation, I noticed it more clearly now. The hesitation before people obeyed me. The surprise whenever I made decisions confidently.
The careful way the elders spoke around me like they still couldn’t believe a woman sat on the Alpha seat, especially one who took the throne by force.
My thoughts drifted unwillingly toward Lara again. The image of her standing beside Elijah during the coronation flashed through my mind instantly. That irritating smile on her face. The way Elijah barely looked away from her.
My jaw tightened slightly. She didn’t belong there. She especially didn’t belong beside Elijah. Something sharp twisted suddenly inside my chest.
At the same moment, every candle in the room went out. Darkness swallowed the council chamber instantly. A loud rush of wind burst through the room hard enough to rattle the windows violently.
Gasps filled the air immediately.
“What was that?”
“The windows are closed!”
Several papers scattered across the table as the wind swept through the room unnaturally before disappearing just as suddenly as it came.
Silence followed.
Heavy silence.
My own heartbeat echoed loudly in my ears while confusion spread across the elders’ faces.
One of the older women quickly lit another candle with trembling hands.
“What in the Goddess’ name…”
I looked around the room slowly.
The air still felt strange.
Charged somehow.
But everyone looked equally confused. The elder closest to the windows frowned deeply. “That wind came out of nowhere.”
“Maybe a storm is approaching,” another suggested uncertainly.
That didn’t feel like the weather.
Something about it felt… alive. The unsettling sensation lingered beneath my skin even as the room brightened again.
I straightened slowly before forcing my expression back into something calm.
“We’ll continue this tomorrow. Council dismissed.”
Nobody argued. Probably because half of them still looked disturbed about the sudden wind.
The elders gathered their papers quietly before leaving the council room one after another while murmuring softly among themselves.
The moment the doors finally shut, I exhaled slowly.
“What was that?” I muttered to myself.
“You felt it too.”
I turned immediately to find my mother standing near the doorway. Her sharp eyes swept across the room calmly before settling on me.
I frowned slightly. “Do you know what happened?”
Instead of answering immediately, she walked toward the table slowly.
“The candles,” she murmured softly. “Interesting.”
“That doesn’t answer my question.”
My mother glanced toward me briefly before sitting down elegantly in one of the council chairs.
“You’ve been different lately.”
I folded my arms. “Different how?”
“Stronger.”
The word unsettled me more than it should have. I looked away slightly.
“What does that have to do with anything?”
“It’s just...”
My eyes returned to her immediately. She was looking at me curiously, studying me more. I hate it when she does that. It somehow made me more uncomfortable.
The room became quiet for a moment before I finally sat across from her.
“I’ve been feeling strange since the coronation,” I admitted reluctantly.
One of her brows lifted slightly. “Strange?”
“Sometimes it feels like…” I paused, trying to explain properly. “Like there’s pressure beneath my skin. Especially when I get angry.”
My mother watched me carefully now.
“And when you get emotional?”
I hesitated.
The hesitation alone answered enough. A small unreadable smile touched her lips briefly before disappearing again.
“Ciara,” she said softly, “there are things about your bloodline you do not fully understand yet.”
A cold feeling settled faintly in my stomach.
“What does that mean?”
Instead of answering directly, she stood slowly from her chair.
“You should rest tonight.”
I frowned immediately. “That’s not an answer.”
“No,” she agreed calmly while moving toward the door. “But it’s the only one you’re getting today.”
Before I could stop her, she stepped out of the council room leaving me alone again.
I stared after her for several seconds before looking back toward the extinguished candles.
The room still felt wrong somehow. And for the first time since becoming Alpha…
I found myself wondering if whatever lived beneath my skin had always been there.
Or if something had finally awakened it.
What's my mother not telling me about?