Chapter 199

Maeve’s POV

I stared at Queen Leonora in shock as she told the room of people, including Eric, that this woman was his mother. Eric’s face was pale as he took in the familiar features of his mother. The eyes that looked like his, the smile that he clearly got from her. Now I knew why she was so familiar, and I was in such shock over the ordeal that I couldn’t speak.

“Yes,” the woman finally said after a long pause, her eyes never leaving Erics. “I am your mother. My name is Athena.”

“I don’t understand,” Eric finally said, shaking his head, his expression serious. “I thought you were dead…”

“I am not, though I often wished death would come,” she whispered as tears filled her tired eyes. “I had been kept alive and tortured for a long time.”

“If I knew he had kept you alive…I would have put a stop to it, Athena. I hope you know that. I never wanted any of this to happen,” Leonora said with a choke sob.

“You were never to blame,” Athena said gently. “It was his selfishness that kept me locked away for all these years.”

“I don’t understand,” Eric said, stepping forward. “How is it possible that you are alive? Where have you been for all these years?”

“She was in the dungeon,” I blurted. “Underneath this palace.”

“The dungeon?” Eric asked, turning to look at me, his eyes narrowed. “And how exactly do you know this information?”

“Because I was the one who set her free. I set all the prisoners free during the battle. I doubted any of them were truly that bad anyway despite the warning,” I said, rolling my eyes. “I knew she had familiar features, but I never imagined she could be your mother, Eric. That means she’s been alive this whole time… your father never killed her.”

“He might as well have,” she murmured. “He acted as if he banished me, I’m sure. Just as he said he would. But instead, he dragged me to the dungeons and kept me a prisoner there. He would visit me often and have his way with me for a long time. It was as if he had trouble letting go of what we once had. I would refuse him, and it would get him angry. When he got angry, I got beaten…”

Leonora closed her eyes, and I knew it physically pained her to hear about her husband’s infidelity. She took a deep and shuddering breath before releasing it and opening her eyes once again to look at Athena.

“And then what?” She asked, bracing herself to hear the entire truth.

“And then nothing,” Athena murmured. “After years of having his way with me, his visits got less frequent until they stopped altogether. I thought maybe he just forgot about me.”

Leonora nodded slowly, her face pale and her heart tight in her chest. I couldn’t imagine how she must be feeling right now… or how her wolf would be feeling. I was only mated officially with Xaden for a couple of hours and the thought of him cheating on me made me want to die.

“This whole time, you’ve been alive,” Eric whispered, his eyes downcast. “How could I have not known this?”

“He did everything in his power to make sure you never found out…”

“And the letter?” Eric asked his eyes finding hers again. “Was it real? Did you ever send him a letter.”

She bit her lower lip and then after a beat of silence, she finally nodded.

“I ran away,” she explained. “But when I stopped, I thought about him often because at one point, I did love him. I truly thought I was just another woman on his list of affair partners, and he’d forget about me quickly enough. But he came after me and captured me. Caught me with that spellbook and told me how dangerous it would be if this were to get into the wrong hands. He had his men escort me back to the palace and into the dungeon. I hadn’t seen outside those walls again until today.”

“I’m so sorry, Athena,” Leonora said as tears spilled out of her eyes. “My husband should have never targeted you. For that, I am truly sorry. I hope you know I don’t blame you for anything that has happened. You were never to blame for any of this.”

Athena gave the queen a small smile.

“It took a lot of convincing to realize that fact, but it took me long enough and now I understand that it was never my fault. He was a sick man, and a lot of people suffered because of him.”

I stared down at my baby, my little miracle. He was so adorable that my heart squeezed whenever I looked down at him. I held him close to my chest; he didn’t even have a name yet. I would have to talk to Xaden later about what he would like to name our first son.

I heard footsteps coming from the front foyer and soon a couple gamma warriors along with Nicholas was walking into the room. He scanned the room, his eyes trailing over the ladies and children briefly before he found Charlotte. It almost looked as if he relaxed slightly at the sight of her, making me raise my brows.

I glanced briefly at Xaden to see if he had noticed it as well. He was glancing between Nicholas and Charlotte.

After a minute, Nicholas turned his attention from Charlotte to the rest of the room.

“Sorry to interrupt,” he said, his eyes narrowing as he fixed his attention on Ethan. “But I need ot take him in.”

“Take him in?” Char asked, her brows furrowed. “But he’s on our side now.”

“That doesn’t excuse his previous actions, Charlotte,” Nicholas said, his eyes never leaving Eric’s. “He’s still a traitor to the Kingdom and brought the bears to us in the first place.”

“He’s still a royal prince,” Char said, folding her arms across her chest in a show of defiance.

“A traitor is a traitor.”

“He’s right,” Eric said, stepping forward. “I did betray the kingdom; I deserve every punishment that I receive.”

“Eric…” Char started to complain but Queen Leonora stumbled slightly. She looked dizzy and a bit pale. Char pulled her attention from her brother and straight towards her mother. She rushed to her side and helped bring her over to one of the love chairs.

“I’m okay,” Leonora said softly, giving her daughter a faint smile. “Just a little tired.”

“Losing your mate will do that to you,” Athena said softly. “Your wolf is very weak right now. You should get as much rest as possible.”

Leonora nodded, tears filling her eyes.

“I knew he was a bad guy… but he was still my mate,” she said softly. I’m not sure how to exist without him.”

Athena grabbed a hold of Queen Leonora’s hand and then looked at everyone’s faces. She went from Henry, who was holding onto Sarah’s hand as if his life depended on it, and then he looked at Xaden who was now holding our little baby boy and standing close to my side, she glanced at Char who was watching Nicholas with blushed cheeks, and then she was looking Eric. Lucas and Mia hadn’t arrived yet; they were too busy checking for survivors.

“You exist through your children,” Athena finally stared, refocusing on the queen. “Included your extended ones; and then their children.”

“My children,” Leonora whispered as tears spilled down her cheeks. “All of them.”

…..

Days soon turned weeks, and those weeks turned into months. Today was the second most important day of my life; the first being the birth of my son of course. But today, I was marrying my fated mate, and I couldn’t have been happier. My dress was designed by Charlotte, and it was the most elegant gown I had ever worn in my life.

“You look beautiful…”

I turned to see Sarah standing at the doorway, her thin frame wrapped in a gorgeous dark blue dress and her dark hair curled to perfection, cascading around her shoulders and pinned out of her face, kept in a place with a gorgeous beret.

“Thanks,” I said, giving her a small smile. “For once, I actually feel beautiful.”

Since the battle ended a few months ago, Sarah had been oddly nice to me. I think it’s because she met Henry as her fated mate, so it softened her a bit. But I couldn’t help but wonder if something else had happened that caused her to become warmer towards me.

“Everyone is waiting in the gardens; are you ready?”

I nibbled on my lower lip nervously, but I nodded.

“Yeah, I think so,” I told her as we walked towards the door. Just as we stepped out of the room, I saw Leonora walking down the hallway and towards the stairs. A small baby in her arms made my smile stretch out.

When she noticed me, she smiled.

“Shouldn’t you be in the garden getting married?” Leonora asked teasingly.

“I’m heading there now,” I assured her as I smiled at my baby boy. I poked his belly lovingly, making him smile. “And how is Asher this morning?”

“Perfect as always,” Leonora assured me. “You can have him back after you’re married but we have to get you walking down that aisle.”

I kissed Asher’s chubby little cheek before puling back, taking in a deep breath.

“You’re right, I have to go,” I said breathlessly.

As we walked down the stairs, my nerves nearly bubbled over.

“Hey,” Sarah said, making me look over at her. “You got this, okay?”

I nodded as I wiped my sweaty hands on the skirt of my dress.

I straighten my posture as the doors opened, shining a light on me as I stepped out onto the back terrace, my eyes gazing over the crowd of people all eager to see a wedding. My eyes found Xaden’s and I saw the warmth and love swirling around his eyes, warming my heart and putting my mind at ease.

This was it… it was time to get married.

And with that, I walked down the aisle and towards my future.