Chapter 76 Questions asked

Chapter 76 Questions asked
Ciara

I was beginning to think being Alpha suited me far more than anyone expected.
A faint smile rested on my lips as I walked through the palace halls, servants and guards immediately stepping aside the moment they saw me approaching. Some bowed too quickly while others refused to meet my eyes entirely.
Good.
Fear was useful.
Respect was better.
But fear lasted longer and made more impact.
The silver embroidery of my dark gown brushed softly against the marble floors as I moved through the western wing of the palace. Night had already settled over the territory, leaving most of the corridors quiet except for distant voices echoing faintly from the lower levels.
For the first time in my life, the palace finally felt like mine. No father barking commands. No suffocating control. No constant reminder that I would never be enough simply because I had been born female.
I almost laughed thinking about it now. My father spent years underestimating me only for me to end up sitting on the Alpha seat anyway.
Pathetic.
The guards outside the old study doors immediately straightened when they noticed me approaching.
“Alpha.”
I barely acknowledged them before pushing the large doors open myself. The scent of cedar and old parchment filled the room instantly. My father’s study had remained untouched since his death. Shelves lined the walls from floor to ceiling while moonlight spilled across the massive desk positioned near the windows overlooking the cliffs.
Most people avoided this room now. I didn’t. If anything, I enjoyed being inside it. There was something deeply satisfying about occupying spaces that once belonged to powerful men. Especially a man like my father who would’ve rather burnt the room to the ground than allow me to enter.
I walked lazily toward the desk, removing the rings from my fingers one at a time. Old documents still littered the surface exactly the way my father had left them.
I opened one of the drawers absently while searching for an old territory map I vaguely remembered seeing weeks ago. Instead, my fingers brushed against parchment tied carefully with a faded black ribbon.
My brows lifted slightly. I pulled the letters free slowly. The handwriting caught my attention immediately. My mother’s. A faint frown tugged at my face.
Why would my father keep hidden letters from her locked away inside his study?
Curiosity replaced everything else instantly. I untied the ribbon carefully before unfolding the first parchment. At first, the contents looked ordinary enough. Then one particular line caught my eye.
“…the pregnancy weakens further…”
I paused.
Pregnancy?
I unfolded another letter.
“…if the child survives…”
My expression shifted slightly. The child.
Me.
Now fully interested, I grabbed another parchment from the stack.
“…the Alpha suspects nothing…”
“…the blood loss nearly destroyed everything…”
I frowned deeper.
Blood loss?
Another letter.
“…you promised she would live…”
“…Korvus said the process would work…”
The name made me pause entirely.
Korvus.
I leaned back lightly against the desk while staring at the word again. The name meant absolutely nothing to me and yet something about it felt oddly heavy somehow.
I unfolded another parchment slowly.
“…after the child stopped moving…”
“…there was no heartbeat…”
My brows furrowed immediately.
What?
The next line was partially smeared with ink but still readable enough.
“…his magic brought her back…”
Silence settled heavily through the study. I stared at the parchment for several long seconds before laughing softly under my breath.
That was dramatic. I tossed the letter onto the desk before reaching for another one. Unfortunately, before I could unfold it completely, the study doors opened behind me.
“You write very dramatic letters apparently.”
She paused near the entrance. Only for a second.
Dressed elegantly in deep emerald silk, my mother closed the doors behind her calmly before walking further into the room.
“You were searching through your father’s things?”
I shrugged lightly. “My things now.”
A faint smile touched her lips briefly.
“That’s true.”
I leaned casually against the desk while holding one of the letters between my fingers.
“You never mentioned almost dying while pregnant with me.”
Her expression barely changed.
“There are many things mothers don’t tell their daughters.”
“Mm.” I glanced back toward the letters. “Apparently there’s also someone named Korvus involved in my dramatic survival story.”
The silence that followed was subtle.
My mother stepped closer smoothly before taking the letter from my hands.
“Old matters,” she said calmly.
“Old matters involving magic?”
She folded the parchment carefully. “People become desperate when they fear losing what they love.”
Interesting answer.
I watched her more carefully now.
“You never told me I stopped breathing.”
For the first time that night, something softer crossed her expression.
“You were very small in my stomach,” she said quietly. “And very stubborn.”
A faint smile tugged at my lips despite myself. She moved toward the desk afterward, gathering the letters neatly together again. I noticed she avoided looking directly at the name Korvus.
Even more interesting.
“Who is he?” I asked casually.
Her hands paused briefly against the parchment.
“A man I knew a very long time ago.”
The answer felt incomplete immediately. I tilted my head slightly. “That sounds suspicious.”
“It’s supposed to.”
That actually made me laugh softly. My mother finally looked up fully then, calm and elegant as always.
“Some parts of the past are better left buried, Ciara.”
Normally, I would have pushed harder, but something told me she would not answer more tonight no matter what I said.
Still… the curiosity remained.
Especially about the line mentioning magic, heartbeat, and consequences. I looked back toward the letters once more while my mother tied the ribbon around them carefully again.
Whatever happened before my birth… It was clearly much bigger than a difficult pregnancy.