chapter nine
656 Words
CHAPTER NINE
THE TRUTH ABOUT LIANA
Liana stared at the words written beneath her mother's letter.
TRUST THE BETA.
She looked at Ethan.
“You knew about this?”
Ethan shook his head.
“No. I swear I didn't.”
Kael stepped between them.
“Ethan has served this pack for twelve years. If your mother trusted him, there must be a reason.”
Liana looked at Kael.
“And what about you?”
Kael was silent.
“My mother warned me not to trust you,” Liana continued. “But she also sent me here.”
“That means she believed you would eventually need me.”
“Then why didn't she just say that?”
“Because she knew someone might find the letter.”
Ethan picked up the black ring.
“There is another possibility.”
“What?”
“The ring may not belong to the traitor.”
Liana frowned.
“Then who does it belong to?”
Ethan turned it over.
“There is a name inside.”
Kael took the ring and examined it.
His expression changed.
“Lucian.”
Liana recognized the name.
“The stranger?”
Kael nodded.
“He was once a member of the royal guard.”
Liana's eyes widened.
“Then why is he following me?”
Before Kael could answer, the pendant around Liana's neck began glowing.
A bright silver light filled the chamber.
The stone pedestal opened.
Inside was a small crystal.
Liana reached toward it.
The moment her fingers touched the crystal, memories rushed through her mind.
She saw her mother running through a forest.
Her father was beside her.
A baby was wrapped in a blanket.
Liana.
Her mother was crying.
“We have to hide her.”
Her father nodded.
“They will never stop looking for her.”
Then the memory changed.
A man wearing a dark cloak entered their home.
Liana couldn't see his face.
He held a strange black symbol.
Her father stood between him and Liana.
“You will never get the heir.”
The memory disappeared.
Liana stumbled backward.
Kael caught her before she fell.
“What did you see?”
“My parents.”
“What happened?”
“They were hiding me.”
Kael looked at the crystal.
“There's more.”
Liana looked at him.
The crystal had revealed a final image.
Her mother was standing before the Moonstone.
She placed her hand on it.
“Liana will be safe with the Alpha of the Black Moon Pack.”
Liana's eyes widened.
“My mother trusted you.”
Kael nodded slowly.
“She did.”
“Then why did she warn me?”
“Because she knew trust should be earned.”
Liana looked at him for a long moment.
For the first time, she understood.
Her mother hadn't been telling her to hate Kael.
She had been telling her to be careful.
Suddenly, the chamber shook.
Ethan looked toward the stairs.
“We have company.”
A dark figure appeared at the entrance.
Lucian.
He smiled.
“You finally found the truth.”
Kael stepped forward.
“Why are you here?”
Lucian looked at Liana.
“Because your parents asked me to protect her.”
Liana stared at him.
“Then why did you frighten me?”
“To make sure you questioned everything.”
Kael's eyes narrowed.
“And the traitor?”
Lucian's smile disappeared.
“He is closer than you think.”
Then he looked toward the ceiling.
“The council has already been taken.”
Liana's heart dropped.
“The elders?”
Lucian nodded.
“And whoever took them is coming for you.”
The crystal in Liana's hand suddenly cracked.
A powerful silver light burst from it.
Lucian stepped backward.
“The Moonstone has chosen.”
Kael looked at Liana.
“What does that mean?”
Lucian whispered,
“It means the heir is awake.”
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