Chapter 82 She was murdered

Chapter 82 She was murdered
~Elira~ 
I couldn't bring myself to touch the journal. It rested in Morwen's hands, its worn leather cover looking no different from any other old book.  
I had spent my entire life believing I knew who I was. Now, in the space of a single afternoon, that certainty had been ripped away from me.
I folded my arms tightly across myself, almost as though I could hold my body together before it fell apart. The room remained painfully quiet.
Kael stood beside me while Morwen slowly turned the final pages of the journal once more, hoping she had somehow overlooked something the first time.
She hadn't. The answers ended exactly where they had before. Or rather… they had been cut short.
I swallowed before finally forcing myself to speak. "If the First Crowned Moon was betrayed..." Both of them looked at me. "...then why doesn't it say who betrayed her?"
Morwen didn't answer immediately. Instead, she turned back to the last written page and gently laid it flat upon the table. 
Kael leaned closer. "It's almost as though… the person writing it never got the chance to finish."
My eyes followed his to the final sentence.
“He who betrayed her is…” 
The letter S wasn't really a letter anymore. The ink began normally, curving into the shape of an S. Then, halfway through… It changed.
Instead of completing the letter, the ink suddenly streaked downward across the page in one long, uneven line.
Dark blotches formed where the quill must have caught against the parchment before dragging lower, leaving a thick line of black ink running almost to the bottom edge of the page.
It looked like the hand holding the quill had been ripped away from the table before finishing the sentence.
Morwen slowly reached out, her fingertips hovering just above the page without touching it. Her voice had become barely a whisper.
"The writer was still holding the quill when this happened."
I let out a shaky breath before taking a step backward.
"This journal..." I shook my head. "It still doesn't answer everything."
Morwen looked at me. "No. It doesn't."
Frustration rose inside me so suddenly that I began pacing the room. "I know every Ascension calls wolves to me."
I lifted both hands helplessly and looked between Kael and Morwen.
"But why didn't it affect either of you? And even if I accept that..." I continued, "...what am I supposed to do when the wolves gather?"
I laughed softly, though there wasn't an ounce of humor in it.
"Am I supposed to command them? Or just stand there while they worship me? And I can't even control it."
The Ascensions happened whenever they pleased.
"Now we're being told something terrible waits if I keep ascending." I swallowed. "But no one bothered to write how I'm supposed to stop it."
Kael finally spoke up. "And we're still missing another piece."
Morwen looked at him. "The weapon."
He nodded. "We still don't know where it came from. Or who made it."
Morwen slowly closed the journal. "I'll keep digging. There are still archives I haven't searched. If this journal exists… There will be others."
She looked directly at me. "History has a way of hiding itself." A faint smile touched her lips. "But it also has a habit of leaving clues."
She picked up the journal.
"If you see anything else… A dream, vision, even the smallest detail. Tell me."
I nodded. "I will."
Only then did she offer a small bow toward Kael. "I should return."
Kael nodded. "Keep me informed."
"I will, Your Majesty."
A moment later… She was gone and the door clicked shut behind her.
I stood staring at the empty doorway, my thoughts tangled into a knot I couldn't begin to unravel. Every answer we uncovered seemed to birth three more questions. 
I let out a long breath and rubbed my temples.
"We will find the answers." Kael uttered, moving closer to me. "We will stop whatever this is."
His voice was calm, steady, the kind of certainty only Kael seemed capable of carrying. I nodded and held onto his arm. 
We soon began walking together through the palace corridors. Normally the servants chatted quietly while carrying trays through the halls, guards exchanged short greetings during their shifts and somewhere in the distance someone was always laughing.
Today, it was different. The maids we passed lowered their heads quickly, but each wore the same uneasy expression. Their eyes lingered on me for only a heartbeat before darting away. The guards were no different.
"They're afraid of me."
Kael glanced at the people around us before answering. "They're confused. They saw things today that shouldn't have been possible. They'll need time."
Before I could say anything else, hurried footsteps echoed down the corridor. I turned just as Drex approached us.
He stopped a respectful distance away before lowering his head. "Your Majesty."
"What is it?" Kael asked.
"You have visitors. They requested an audience with the Queen."
"Who?" I asked with my brows furrowed. 
"It's Alpha Ryker..." He paused briefly. "...and Lady Lyra."
I blinked and exchanged a confused glance with Kael. "What are they doing here?"
Kael looked just as puzzled. "I suppose we're about to find out. Take us to them," He said.
Drex nodded immediately. "This way."
We followed him through another series of corridors until the palace gradually grew quieter. Eventually he stopped outside one of the larger receiving halls.
"They're inside."
The doors opened and my eyes found Lyra's almost instantly and I swallowed hard.
As Kael and I approached, both of them lowered their heads.
"Your Majesty." The words came from both of them together.
I almost groaned. I was never going to get used to people calling me that. We stopped in front of them and for a second, nobody spoke.
Then Lyra lifted her head. 
Our mouths opened together. "I'm sorry." We both froze as we settled over the room.
Then, unexpectedly… A small laugh escaped me and Lyra laughed too.
It wasn't because anything was funny. It was simply the absurdity of us apologizing at precisely the same moment.
"I should be the one apologizing." Her voice trembled. "I betrayed your trust."
I looked at her for several seconds before answering. "And I shouldn't have treated you the way I did. I was angry and hurt." I smiled softly. 
Before either of us could continue, Kael cleared his throat gently.
"I'd like to believe the two of you didn't travel all this way simply to apologize."
Ryker finally stepped forward. "No." His expression became serious again. "We came because something happened."
Lyra added, "A force pulled every wolf toward the east."
Kael and I exchanged a quick glance before looking back at Ryker. We both stood and listened to them saying the exact thing I had suspected happened. 
Finally, I looked at Ryker. "So..." I hesitated. "...you weren't affected?"
He shook his head. "No. Do you know why it happened in the first place?” 
I looked toward Kael and he gave me the slightest nod. I took this as my cue and began to explain everything I had found out these past weeks to them. 
When I finished, neither of them spoke for several seconds. Until Lyra broke the silence.
"So..." She searched for the correct words. "You're the second Crowned one?"
Kael cleared his throat. "Crowned Moon."
She looked slightly embarrassed. "Right. Crowned Moon. The second Crowned Moon… in two thousand years?"
I nodded once. "I wish I understood why."
Lyra looked completely overwhelmed.
"I don't even know what to say."
Ryker suddenly straightened. "Actually, there is one thing."
All of us looked at him.
"I think I might know why I wasn't affected."
The room immediately fell silent again. "What do you mean?" Kael asked.
Ryker folded his arms thoughtfully.
"After everyone returned… I couldn't stop thinking about it. So I started going through the records my father left behind. My grandfather kept journals, so did his fathers."
He looked at me and took a slow breath. "I discovered something I'd never paid much attention to before."
His voice lowered. "My family descends directly from the First Bloodline."
Ryker continued.
"My father told me years ago but I simply never thought it mattered. It was just family history." He shrugged.
His eyes lifted to mine again.
"Maybe that's why it didn’t affect me?” 
I looked between him and Kael. "If the Crowned Moon comes from the First Bloodline, maybe people from that same bloodline can't be compelled."
Everyone stared at me. Hope flickered inside me for the first time all day.
I turned fully toward Kael. "Maybe that's why it didn't affect you either."
He blinked. "What?"
"You weren't compelled and neither was Morwen." I took another step toward him. "What if both of you come from the First Bloodline too?"
Kael laughed. "I highly doubt that." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I think I would've known if my family carried some legendary bloodline."
His smile faded. "Wouldn't I?"
None of us answered.
Because after everything we'd learned recently, none of us were willing to say anything was impossible anymore.
The silence lingered for several heartbeats.
I found myself studying Kael's face. He looked thoughtful now instead of dismissive, as though the idea I had planted was beginning to take root despite himself.
He let out a quiet breath. "I don't know much about my family's history. But, if the First Bloodline spread across generations, then there could be more descendants than we realize."
Before anyone could speak again, footsteps echoed outside the hall. A moment later, Drex appeared in the doorway.
He lowered his head immediately. "Your Majesty."
We looked toward him.
"What is it this time?" Kael asked. 
"There is... someone here to see you."
I exchanged another glance with Kael. "Again?"
Drex nodded. "Yes."
I couldn't help letting out a small laugh. "What is happening today? It feels like everyone suddenly remembers we exist."
Kael shook his head. "Who is it this time?"
Drex answered. "An elderly woman."
The smile faded from Kael's face. "Does she have a name?"
"I... do not know. I only know she insisted she must speak with the King."
Kael frowned.
Drex stepped aside. "She is waiting in the meeting hall."
Kael nodded once. "Bring us there."
"This way."
We followed Drex through another corridor. The large wooden doors to the meeting hall stood open.
Inside, an elderly woman sat carefully in one of the carved chairs near the center of the room. Her back was slightly bent with age and grey hair escaped from beneath a neatly wrapped scarf.
One frail hand rested atop a walking stick while the other gripped the edge of the chair as though standing had become difficult over the years.
The moment we entered, she slowly pushed herself to her feet. Kael stopped walking and his eyes widened. "...Mama Cheryl?"
The old woman's tired eyes lifted toward him and a gentle smile appeared across her wrinkled face. "My boy..." She bowed her head respectfully despite her age.
"My King."
Kael turned toward me. "I know her." His voice carried a warmth I hadn't expected. "She worked in my parents' household."
He smiled faintly at the memory. "She practically raised me."
The old woman lowered her eyes.
"When my parents died..." Kael continued quietly. "...everyone turned against me."
His jaw tightened slightly. "But she..." He looked back at her. "...she was the one who helped me escape. She was the only person who showed me kindness."
Mama Cheryl slowly shook her head. "No." Her voice was barely above a whisper. "I wasn't."
The smile disappeared from Kael's face. "What?"
She gripped her walking stick more tightly. "I was never kind to you."
Confusion spread across every face in the room and Kael frowned.
"Mama Cheryl… I don't understand."
She had just been introduced as the woman who had saved his life. Why would she deny it?
The old woman lifted trembling eyes to meet his.
"Everything I ever told you about your parents..." Her voice cracked. "...was a lie."
The room fell completely still and even Drex looked stunned.
Kael stared at her as though he'd misheard. "What are you talking about?"
The old woman closed her eyes briefly and when she opened them again, they were filled with tears.
"I lied because I was told to lie."
Kael took one slow step forward. "Who told you?"
She didn't answer, instead, she spoke the words that shattered the room.
"Your mother..." She struggled to steady her breathing. "...did not die giving birth to you."
I felt Kael stiffen beside me.
The old woman's voice trembled. "She was murdered."
Kael's face drained of all colors.
"...What?"