Chapter 9 The Draven Family
I can hear them whispering.
Finished
The funeral continues but all around me, murmurs spread like wildfire. I don’t look. I don’t acknowledge them. I keep my gaze fixed on the high priestess as she delivers the sacred rites. But even as I focus. I know what they’re whispering about.
Elian is here.
And he’s not alone.
I saw her. A beautiful woman draped over his arm, holding his hand like she belonged there.
I refuse to react. Not here. Not at my mother’s funeral. I force myself to stand tall, to not let my grief and humiliation consume me. My mother would have wanted me to be strong. And so, I am
I do not cry.
I do not break.
As the last rites are given and my mother is lowered into the earth, I stare at the ground, feeling nothing but the crushing weight of emptiness. The woman who gave me life is gone, and all I have left is Elian. My husband. The man who was supposed to be at my side through everything.
But he has not spoken a word to me since returning.
When the funeral ends, I stand alone while Elian leaves with his mother and the woman by his side. The sight burns, but I do not let it show.
Instead, I turn to face King Aldrich.
“Walk with me,” he says, his voice quieter than before. Less formal. More… concerned.
I follow him through the graveyard’s
“You know what I must think about now, Seraphine,” he says. “The stability of the kingdom.”
I say nothing. I already know where this is going
“Your mother was the last tie keeping the Beta seat from falling into the hands of another family. You rejected your birthright three years ago, but with her gone, there is no anchor. The position is vacant.
The air feels colder. The duty I ran from settles back onto my shoulders like a long–forgotten.cloak.
Aldrich studies me. “You were the most feared warrior in the kingdom, Sera, You are still the Red Phantom, whether you acknowledge it or not. We need you in battle. If you reclaim your birthright, I will make you Beta, as your father was.”
Temptation flickers inside me. I remember the thrill of war, the blood on my blade, the power in my strikes. But then, 1 I remember my mother.
Promise me, Sera. Promise me you’ll live
you’ll live a different life.
I sighed, hardening myself, “I can’t.”
His brow furrows
“I promised my mother I would be a good wife. That I would never go back to battle, to the same war that stole my father and my brothers. I won’t break that vow.”
Silence stretches between us before Aldrich sighs. Then I have no choice. The title must pass to the next in line.
Dread curls in my stomach. “Who?”
Chapter 9 The Draven Family
Finished
The Dravens. A family whose lineage was always a failsafe, should the Velkan bloodline refuse its role. A family we have never gotten along with–one that has waited decades for an opportunity like this.
I swallow back the bile rising in my throat.
- n. not
Aldrich leans in, keeping his voice low. “I don’t trust them. You shouldn’t either. The kingdom needs a Beta it can rely on. one who has spent years scheming for power.”
He is right. The Dravens are cunning, opportunistic. If they take the Beta throne, they won’t relinquish it without a fight. They will change the structure of leadership, shift the balance of power in ways I can’t predict.
I should say yes. I should pick up my sword. I should return to the battlefield.
But I shake my head. “I’ve lost my father. My brothers. My mother. But I still have my husband. I made vows on the altar that I can’t break. I am not a warrior anymore.
Aldrich lets out a sharp breath. “Then I will send an official decree to the Dravens. The Beta title now belongs to them.”
I nod once, my decision final.
Before regret catches up with me, I say: “I wish you the best, Alpha King Aldrich.” I bow slightly before walking away.
By the time I return home, the sun has begun to set. My steps quicken. Finally, after three long years, I will see my husband. again. I will hear his voice, feel his touch. We will talk, and he will explain.
I step inside and freeze.
Elian is on the sofa.
And she is with him.
Her hands trace his jawline. His fingers tangle in her golden hair. Their lips move together in a way that tells me everything I
need to know.
My world shatters
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