The Alpha's Heir Forbidden Mate

His decision

(Kiara)

I returned to the kitchen, but Lucan's questions stayed with me. Maris handed me another stack of dishes without asking what the Alpha wanted. I was grateful because I wasn't ready to explain anything. Nyra was just as confused about the folder and his questions about my father.

I kept thinking about the night I arrived in Blackridge. Lucan had known my father's name before anyone else here knew anything about me. At five years old, I hadn't understood why that mattered. Thirteen years later, I was beginning to wonder what else he'd known.

Cassian didn't find me after my meeting with Lucan. I assumed his father had found some reason to keep him busy, so I continued working. Near midday, Maris sent me to clean one of the smaller sitting rooms. I was finishing when Luna Evelina entered.

"Kiara, stay a moment." Evelina closed the door behind her. "I need to speak with you." She seemed worried about something.

I put the cloth on the table and waited. Evelina had always treated me better than Lucan had, but she was still his mate and Luna of Blackridge. I didn't know what Cassian had told her. The answer came before I had to ask.

"Cassian told me you're his mate." Evelina came farther into the room. "He spoke to me after his meeting with Lucan." She watched me for my reaction.

I wasn't surprised that Cassian had told her. Once Lucan knew, there wasn't much reason to keep the truth from his mother. What worried me was what Lucan might have already said to her. I wondered whether she agreed with him.

"It's true." I faced her. "We discovered the bond a few days ago." I didn't try to defend it.

Evelina nodded. "I suspected something had changed between you." She took the chair near the table. "I didn't expect this, though."

I waited for her to say what she thought about it. She had been Luna for years and understood the political part of Cassian's future better than I did. Selene had probably looked like the easier choice to everyone except Cassian. I prepared myself for another warning.

"This could create problems for Blackridge." Evelina looked troubled. "Lucan has spent years building relationships with other packs, and he expected Cassian's future mating to strengthen those relationships." She didn't try to hide her concern.

"I know." I remained standing. "Lucan already made it clear that he doesn't think I belong beside Cassian." I had heard enough about my place from him.

Evelina looked down for a moment. "Lucan and I don't agree about everything." She looked back at me. "And I don't believe a true mate bond should be rejected because it doesn't fit a political plan."

Her answer surprised me. I had expected her to protect Lucan's decision even if she didn't like it. Instead, she was separating what she believed from what her mate wanted. That made it easier to speak honestly with her.

"He threatened Cassian's future." I thought about the words Lucan had used in his office. "He said Cassian would learn that every choice has a cost if we accepted the bond publicly." I needed her to know how far he'd gone.

Evelina's face changed. "He said that to you?" She rose from the chair. "Cassian has earned his place as heir."

"I told Lucan the same thing." I watched her. "But he wants me to believe Cassian could lose everything because of me." I hated even saying it aloud.

Evelina walked toward the window before turning back. She seemed angry now, but not with me. I had rarely seen her openly disagree with Lucan about anything important. It made me wonder what else she'd disagreed with over the years.

"There's something I think you should know." Evelina returned to the table. "It concerns what happened after you arrived here." She waited before continuing.

I became more alert. Lucan had spent the morning asking about my childhood, and now Evelina wanted to discuss the same period. I wondered whether Cassian had told her about his father's reaction to my name. Whatever she knew, I wanted to hear it.

"What happened?" I asked. "I don't remember much after my mother died." Most of those early days had become mixed together in my memory.

"You were frightened and had nowhere to go." Evelina looked at me. "I wanted you placed with a family in Blackridge once we knew you had no relatives coming for you." Her words caught me by surprise.

I stared at her. For years, I'd assumed everyone had agreed that I would work in the pack house. Nobody had ever told me there had been another possibility. I had believed becoming a servant was simply what Blackridge decided for me.

"Why didn't that happen?" I asked. "Why did I end up working here?" I already suspected the answer.

"Lucan decided it." Evelina didn't look away. "He said keeping you in the pack house was best and that you would earn your place through work." Her answer confirmed what I'd feared.

My mind went back through years of early mornings, orders, punishments, and reminders that Blackridge had allowed me to stay. Lucan had always made it sound as though I should be grateful for whatever he gave me. Now I knew another life had been offered for me. He had been the one to refuse it.

"Did he tell you why?" I asked. "Did he ever explain why a five year old needed to earn the right to stay?" The question hurt more than I expected.

"No." Evelina remained near me. "I argued that you were a child who had just lost her family, but Lucan wouldn't change his decision." She looked troubled by the memory.

That answer brought me back to Lucan's office. He had questioned me about dad, Silvercrest, council work, and whether my father had given me anything. Those questions hadn't sounded like the questions of a man who barely knew my family. His interest had existed long before Cassian and I became mates.

"Lucan knew who my father was when I arrived." I looked at Evelina. "He recognized the Vale name that night." I needed to see whether she knew why.

Evelina shook her head. "He never explained much about Garrick to me." She paused near the door. "I knew Lucan had heard of him, but I didn't know there was more to it."

I didn't tell her about the folder in Lucan's desk. Until I knew what it contained, there was nothing useful to say about it. But Evelina had given me something more important than another guess. Lucan alone had chosen what my life in Blackridge would become.

"Thank you for telling me." I picked up the cloth I'd left on the table. "I wish someone had told me years ago." I meant it.

Evelina stopped before leaving. "Whatever happens between you and Cassian, don't believe you deserved the life Lucan chose for you." She opened the door. "That decision belonged to him."

I remained in the sitting room after she left. Lucan's hatred of the bond was beginning to look less like a father's concern about his son's future. He had controlled my place in Blackridge since the night I arrived, long before Cassian could have wanted me as his mate. Now I needed to understand why keeping Garrick Vale's daughter powerless had mattered so much to him.