Chapter 75
Elena Valehart
I always knew this day would come — the day my son would come to me with that look.
The father’s look.
Cold… Furious…
The look of someone who believes himself to own reason and the world.
The door slammed open with a crash, as if the whole house were collapsing.
Adrian stormed in like a savage — heavy steps, beastly glare, labored breathing. Francesca, that insolent girl… nearly jumped off the sofa.
I, of course, remained seated.
I calmly picked up my cup of coffee and took a sip.
“What an elegant entrance, dear,” I murmured, without looking at him. “Did you forget that doors are meant to be opened, not kicked in?”
He didn’t answer.
He just kept advancing, and for a moment I thought he really might grab me by the shoulders.
“Was it you?” he asked, his voice more a growl than anything human.
I feigned surprise.
“Me?” I blinked, innocent. “Exactly what are you talking about?”
He stepped closer.
Quickly.
He stood in front of me, only a few inches away.
Francesca shrank into the corner, pale, not knowing whether to intervene or disappear.
But I ignored her.
His irritating stare was the only thing that held my attention.
“Don’t play dumb,” he continued. “You know very well what I’m talking about.”
I crossed my legs calmly, watching his rage like one watches a child throwing a tantrum.
“Adrian… are you really going to keep up with all that arrogance?” I said with a light smile. “What’s the matter? Forgot how to behave like a human being? Or has your animal side finally decided to take the reins for good?”
He leaned forward, his face moving threateningly close to mine.
His eyes gleamed with pure fury.
“You…” he whispered. “Since when have you been involved in this?”
I rolled my eyes.
“Oh, please…” I murmured. “Don’t start with this drama, Adrian… spit it out.”
But he didn’t back down when I pushed.
On the contrary.
He straightened and spoke in a dry, harsh tone, somehow even worse than my husband.
“I found out.”
“Found out what, exactly?”
“That it was you. That you contacted the council.”
“The council…?” I repeated, confused.
“And added Sofia’s name to the hunt list.”
Ah.
That.
I let out a disapproving breath, setting my cup on the table.
“Is that why you’re acting like a madman?” I asked, exasperated.
He stood taller, looking down at me, still furious.
“Just because of that?” he repeated. “You shouldn’t have messed with her… Do you have any idea of the shit you’re stirring? The amount of wood you’re throwing onto this council’s bonfire?”
I shrugged.
“Adrian, darling… the council’s been burning since it was founded. I don’t see what a single complaint could change.”
He snorted, tense, and for a moment I thought he might break something… in fact, I thought he might break my neck.
That idiotic boy… really, was he enjoying that filthy half-breed so much? Enough to act like this in front of me? Enough to confront me?
But then… he contained himself.
He took a deep, thoughtful breath and paced the room.
Then he spoke again, and I watched him.
I saw the tension in his shoulders, the clenched jaw, the distant look.
It was more than anger.
It was fear… fear of losing something precious.
I bit the inside of my cheek in anger, until I tasted blood.
“I trying to rid my line of eternal shame and impurity… is that what disturbed you?” I asked, resting my chin on my hand in a provocative, ironic tone. “This girl… You know very well you must stay away from people like her… I don’t need to tell you these things, Adrian… You know the rules, you know we don’t mix our pure blood with scum… with… those things.” I spoke trying to keep my voice soft and low, but my teeth clenched with rage halfway through the sentence and by the time I finished I was almost shouting.
That’s when he turned and spoke.
The phrase that changed the atmosphere of the entire room.
“That girl…” he said, cold and direct, “is a Hines.”
I blinked several times, thinking I hadn’t heard him right.
“What?”
“You heard me. Sofia Bliss is a Hines.”
I leaned back on the sofa, looking around confused, still trying to process it.
“No…” I murmured, almost laughing nervously. “No, it can’t be. That filthy little half-breed can’t be a Hines.”
“Stop lying,” he growled. “You knew exactly who she was when you put her name on the list…” He came toward me as if I were the devil from his hell.
“You did that to threaten me… to force me into this goddamn game… And also… you knew that by doing that you would weaken the Hines clan,” he continued, taking another step forward. “After all, Luke Hines is running for the Supreme Alpha throne. Eliminating his renegade niece would be a perfect blow, wouldn’t it?”
My stomach burned with everything he’d said, as if those words, all that information, were impossible to digest.
“What?…” I blurted without realizing, unable to finish the sentence, barely able to form it in my head.
What the hell was that?
I had no idea about any of this.
Nothing.
I only wanted that girl out of the way.
Simple as that. How was I supposed to know the rest?
I couldn’t stand seeing that look of hers glued to my son, that irritating way he spoke to her like he had all the patience in the world.
I only wanted to protect my blood.
My name.
The lineage.
And now Adrian looked at me as if I were the devil himself.
“You crossed a line,” he said, dangerously. “Tell me what you did to her mother.”
It took me a second to understand.
“Her mother?” I was already almost rising from the sofa, gripping the back as I spun, dizzy from it all.
“Joseph Bliss’s wife,” he answered, threatening me with that look. “What did you do to Serena Hines?”
I furrowed my brow, already lost in that conversation.
“I… have no idea what you’re talking about!” I tried to defend myself, but in vain.
“Don’t play the fool!”
He shouted so loud Francesca jumped.
But I stayed there, looking at him, trying to piece it together.
Serena Hines.
I had heard of her… about a broken engagement, but that was years ago…
“Adrian,” I said at last, more serious. “I already told you… I don’t know what you’re talking about!”
He looked at me as if I had spat poison.
“Of course you do.” His voice dripped with contempt. “You always know everything, don’t you?”
But I didn’t know — not this time — and that was starting to annoy me.
I crossed my arms and stared back.
“I already said I have nothing to do with this, Adrian. Nothing.”
“We’ll see.” He turned to leave. “Because if I find out you were the one who had her killed over this damned throne for Supreme Alpha… The same way you’re trying to do with her daughter now, it will be your head on that altar at the next hunt… and it will be me who takes it.” The door slammed hard.
The silence that followed felt like a black hole.
Francesca was still curled up, wide-eyed, panicked, not knowing what to say.
I stood for a while, staring at the empty cup, the bitter taste of coffee mixed with the blood from biting my cheek still in my mouth.
Serena Hines…
Sofia Bliss…
Hines.
I frowned and rested my head on the sofa.
What the hell was all of that?