193

193
Logan’s POV
The red light was so bright I had to shield my eyes.
Valencia floated three feet above the bed. Her arms spread out to her sides. Her hair lifted around her head like she was underwater.
The Heart of Rubia blazed on her finger. The ruby pulsed with each beat of her heart.
I watched her wounds close. The gash on her shoulder sealed itself. The cuts on her ribs knitted together. The stab wound in her thigh disappeared like it had never existed.
But the most impossible thing was her right hand.
Her severed finger was growing back.
Bone pushed out from the stump. White and clean. Then muscle wrapped around it. Blood vessels formed. Tendons connected. Skin grew over everything in layers.
Within thirty seconds, she had a complete finger again.
"This is impossible," Master Theron whispered beside me. "This surpasses any healing magic I've ever seen. This is... this is divine intervention."
I couldn't speak. Couldn't move. Could only stare at Valencia floating in that red light.
Sir Aldwyn stood on my other side. Tears ran down his face. His lips moved like he was praying. But I couldn't hear what he said.
All my attention was on Valencia.
Through the mate bond, I felt her consciousness returning. That flickering light that had been dying was now blazing bright.
She was coming back to me.
The red light began to fade. Slowly at first. Then faster.
Valencia's body lowered. Gently. Carefully. Like invisible hands were setting her down.
She settled back onto the bed. The red light disappeared completely.
The room fell silent.
Valencia's eyes opened.
Purple. But with gold flames dancing in the depths. Dragon fire burning behind her gaze.
"Valencia," I breathed.
I rushed forward and grabbed her hand. The one with the newly grown finger. The one wearing the Heart of Rubia.
"Valencia, you're alive. You're actually alive."
She turned her head to look at me. A small smile crossed her lips.
"Logan."
Her voice was weak. She tried to sit up. I immediately moved to help her. Supported her back with one arm.
Valencia threw her arms around me. Held on tight.
"Logan, I need to tell you something. About everything. About the truth."
"No." I pulled back slightly to look at her face. "You need to rest first. Whatever it is can wait."
"It can't wait." Her purple eyes locked onto mine. Urgent. Desperate. "You need to know now. About your mother. About my existence. About everything that's happened."
My mother?
What did my mother have to do with any of this?
"Valencia—"
"Please," she interrupted. "Just listen. I saw things while I was... while I was dying. The ring showed me. Alduin showed me. The truth about everything."
Sir Aldwyn cleared his throat quietly. I'd almost forgotten he and Master Theron were still in the room.
"We'll give you privacy," Sir Aldwyn said. His voice was thick with emotion. "Master Theron and I will be outside if you need anything."
He wiped the tears from his face. Then he and the healer left the room. The door closed softly behind them.
I turned back to Valencia. She was staring at her right hand. At the finger that had been severed and was now whole again.
"This ring," Valencia said quietly. "It let me see everything. Ophelia's plan. The truth about my birth. The truth about who I really am." She looked up at me. "And the truth about your mother."
My chest tightened. "What about my mother?"
Valencia took a deep breath. "Logan, your mother is alive."
The words hit me like a physical blow.
"What?"
"Kiora didn't die eighteen years ago. She's been alive this whole time. Watching over me. Protecting me. Because Ophelia asked her to."
I stared at Valencia. Unable to process what she was saying. My mind was spinning.
"Start from the beginning," I said. My voice came out harsh. Angry. "Tell me everything."
So she did.
Valencia told me about the visions the Heart of Rubia had shown her. About Ophelia transferring her dragon power into Valencia as a baby. About the ritual that killed Ophelia and changed Valencia forever.
She told me about Ophelia's meeting with my mother. About how Ophelia had asked Kiora to help with her revenge plan.
About how my mother had delivered a map of Moonfall Ridge Pack's defenses to Marcus. The map that allowed Marcus to destroy that pack so easily.
About how Kevin and Sienna's deaths were part of Ophelia's design.
About how Valencia's years as a slave were planned. Orchestrated. A way to forge her into the weapon Ophelia needed.
And about how my mother had left me. Abandoned our pack. Faked her own death. All to watch over Valencia from the shadows.
With each revelation, I felt like I was being torn apart from the inside.
"The rogue who attacked Marcus's ceremony," Valencia continued. Her voice was shaking now. Tears streaming down her face. "The one who created enough chaos for you to rescue me. That was Kiora. Your mother. She was following Ophelia's instructions. Making sure I survived long enough to meet you."
I couldn't breathe.
My mother. Alive. All these years.
She'd left me. Let me think she was dead. Let me grieve for her for eighteen years.
And for what? To protect Valencia? To serve some dead princess's revenge scheme?
"Even our mate bond," Valencia whispered. "Ophelia saw it. She knew we were fated mates. And she used that knowledge. Incorporated it into her plan."
Rage exploded through me.
"Ophelia used us like chess pieces!" My voice came out as a roar. "She manipulated everything! Every death, every tragedy, every moment of suffering! She orchestrated all of it!"
I stood up from the bed. Paced across the room. My hands clenched into fists.
Knox and Axel snarled inside me. But there was no one to fight. Ophelia was dead. Had been dead for eighteen years.
"Logan—" Valencia started.
"My mother chose you over me," I said. The words tasted bitter. "She abandoned her own son to protect a stranger. Because some princess told her to."
"I'm so sorry," Valencia sobbed. "This is all my fault. If Ophelia hadn't chosen me, hadn't decided to make me her weapon, your mother would never have left you. Kevin and Sienna would still be alive. All those innocent people in Moonfall Ridge Pack would still be alive."
I stopped pacing. Looked at her.
She sat on the bed with tears pouring down her face. Her shoulders shook with sobs.
"I understand if you hate me," she said. "My existence took your mother from you. Destroyed so many lives. Maybe Kai was right. Maybe I am just a weapon. A thing that was made. Not a real person. I don't deserve your love. I don't deserve—"
"Stop."
My voice cut through her words.
I walked back to the bed. Sat down beside her. Took her hands in mine.
"Listen to me, Valencia. Listen carefully."
She looked up at me with those purple eyes full of pain and guilt.
"Ophelia's sins are not your sins," I said. Each word deliberate. Clear. "What she did, the choices she made, the people she manipulated and killed. None of that is your fault."
"But—"
"You didn't ask to be born. You didn't ask to have dragon power transferred into you. You didn't ask for Kevin and Sienna to take you in. You didn't ask for any of this."
I squeezed her hands gently.
"You're not a weapon, Valencia. You're a person. A kind, strong, brave person who deserves to be loved. Ophelia tried to make you into a tool for her revenge. But you're so much more than that."
"Your mother left you because of me," Valencia whispered.
"My mother made her own choice. She chose to help Ophelia. She chose to protect you. She chose to leave me behind." I paused. Let those words settle. "I'm angry about that. I won't lie. I'm furious that she let me think she was dead all these years. But that was her decision. Not yours."
"Kevin and Sienna—"
"Chose to love you as their daughter. That love was real, Valencia. Ophelia didn't create their kindness. Didn't manufacture their affection. They saw you and chose to protect you. To raise you. To care for you. That was genuine."
Valencia was still crying. But she was listening.
"And our mate bond," I continued. "Maybe fate pushed us together. Maybe Ophelia saw it in her visions and used it for her plans. But what I feel for you? That's my choice. I chose to save you that night. I chose to bring you to Cliffwatch Pack. I chose to fall in love with you. Me. Not Ophelia. Not fate. Me."
I lifted her chin so she had to look directly at me.
"I don't hate you. I will never hate you. We're both victims of Ophelia's manipulation. Both of us had our lives shaped by her schemes. But we can choose not to let her define us."
"How?" Valencia asked. Her voice was small. Broken. "How can we be anything other than what she made us?"
"By making our own choices now. By deciding our own path forward."
I wiped the tears from her face gently.
"Ophelia wanted you to kill Ashwood for revenge. For her family. For her kingdom. But forget what Ophelia wanted."
I held Valencia's gaze.
"Why do you want to fight Ashwood?"
She was quiet for a moment. Thinking.
"Because he's evil," she said finally. "Because he'll keep conquering and killing if no one stops him. Because innocent people will suffer under his rule."
"Exactly. Those are your reasons. Not Ophelia's. You're choosing to fight him because it's the right thing to do. Not because you were programmed to."
Understanding started to dawn in her eyes.
"We're going to war with Ashwood," I said. "That was inevitable the moment he started gathering troops on our border. The moment he threatened our people. Ophelia's plan has nothing to do with it. We would fight him anyway. Because he's a tyrant who needs to be stopped."
"So we're not just following her script..."
"No. We're living our own lives. Making our own decisions. Ophelia tried to control everything. But she's dead. And we're still here. Still choosing. Still free."
Valencia leaned against me. Her head rested on my shoulder.
"I was so scared you'd hate me when you learned the truth," she whispered.
"I could never hate you. You're my mate. My Luna. The woman I love." I wrapped my arms around her. "Nothing changes that. Not Ophelia's schemes. Not my mother's choices. Not anything."
We sat in silence for a while. Valencia's breathing gradually calmed. The tears stopped.
"Do you think your mother is still alive?" she asked quietly.
"I don't know. Maybe. If she was the rogue at Marcus's ceremony, then yes. She was alive recently."
"Do you want to find her?"
I thought about that. About the woman who'd left me eighteen years ago. Who'd let me grieve for her. Who'd chosen to protect Valencia instead of staying with her own son.
"Eventually," I said. "But not now. Right now we have more urgent problems. Ashwood's army. Elton's betrayal. The war that's coming."
"And when we do find her?" Valencia asked. "What will you say?"
"I don't know. I'm angry at her. But I also understand why she did it." I kissed the top of Valencia's head.
"I'll probably yell at her. Demand explanations. But I won't hate her. Just like I don't hate you. You were both trapped in Ophelia's web. Both trying to survive impossible situations."
Valencia pulled back to look at me. "You're too forgiving."
"No. I'm practical. Hatred won't change the past. It'll only poison the future."
She smiled slightly. The first real smile since she'd woken up.
"When did you become so wise?"
"I've always been wise. You just never noticed."
That got a small laugh out of her. The sound made my chest feel lighter.
"We're going to be okay," I said. "Both of us. We'll fight Ashwood because he needs to be fought. We'll protect our people because they deserve protection. We'll build our future because we choose to. Not because Ophelia planned it. Because we want it."
Valencia nodded. "Because we choose it."
"Exactly."
She looked down at the Heart of Rubia on her finger. "This ring showed me so much pain. So much manipulation. But it also saved my life."
"How does it feel?" I asked. "The dragon. Can you control it now?"
Valencia closed her eyes. When she opened them again, they glowed pure gold. Dragon fire blazed in her gaze.
But she wasn't struggling. Wasn't fighting against it.
"Yes," she said. Her voice had a slight echo to it. Like two voices speaking in harmony. "Alduin and I reached an understanding. We're partners now. Not master and slave. Not controller and controlled. Partners."
The gold faded from her eyes. They returned to purple.
I pulled her close again. "Good. Because we're going to need that strength."
We stayed like that for a long time. Holding each other. Finding comfort in the bond between us.
Outside the door, I heard quiet footsteps. Sir Aldwyn and Master Theron were still waiting. Probably worried. Probably wanting to check on Valencia.
"We should let them back in," I said. "They need to see that you're okay."
Valencia nodded. But she didn't let go of my hand.
I stood up and walked to the door. Opened it.
Sir Aldwyn and Master Theron stood in the corridor. Both of them looked anxious.
"You can come in," I said.
They entered the room quickly. Sir Aldwyn's eyes went straight to Valencia.
"How do you feel?" he asked.
"Different," Valencia said. "Stronger. The ring... it changed something fundamental inside me."
Master Theron approached the bed cautiously. "May I examine you? I want to make sure the healing was complete."
"Of course."
He checked her wounds. Or rather, checked where her wounds had been. All that remained were faint pink lines. New skin. New flesh. Everything healed perfectly.
"Remarkable," he murmured. "The silver poisoning is completely gone. Your organs have regenerated. Even your finger..." He gently touched her right hand. "The bone structure is perfect. The nerve connections are intact. It's as if it was never severed."
"We need to return to Valdoria," I said. "How soon can the ships be ready?"
"They're already prepared," Sir Aldwyn replied. "We were making arrangements while you were... while Valencia was being treated. The crew is waiting at the dock."
"Good. The situation at home is getting worse every day. We can't delay any longer."
"What about Kai's body?" Master Theron asked quietly. "It's still on the Sea Wolf."
Silence fell over the room.